With One Breath: Book 1 Two Against the Taliban, Two Wildly Different Agendas - Both Crazy Risky!
Laila’s not the type of woman who needs rescuing. Except for a tiny rule-breaking penchant, she’s a model CIA agent—smart, resourceful, brave, and very very determined.. But right now she’s in a tight situation—in more than one way. She’s hiding from the Taliban in a network of pitch-dark interlocking caves, so narrow a cat could barely thread its way through them. A cat or an agent trained for it.
And that would be Jase, her designated rescuer.
Once her CIA training agent, he’s the last man she’d get involved with, even though he’s the hottest guy she’s ever met. He’s bossy. Intimidating. Way too alpha. And a strict rule follower.
All traits on her ‘no fly’ list.
Set against the tense U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, this rapid-fire tale begins with electrifying action, moves on to fast-flying sparks, and never lets up. Laila’s on the way to Kabul to leave the country, where she also teaches a class of village girls, when her driver betrays her. She outwits him, but it’s only a matter of time till the Taliban track her down.
She’s never been so glad to see Jase.
Romance should be the last thing on either’s mind as they frantically crawl and slither their way through the claustrophobic caves, desperate to find an exit. Still, infatuation sparks.
And smolders.
But neither can afford to take their eyes off their own goals. Jase’s is simple--to rejoin his team and deliver Laila safely to Kabul. But Laila has a more ambitious agenda, one that will require breaking rules, disobeying orders, and endangering the whole team.
Once Removed: Book 2 When Lainey becomes trapped in a burning building with her almost-divorced husband’s body, Brody rescues her just in time. And when she realizes the killer is now after her, she takes refuge at Brody’s Montana ranch.
Lainey and Brody have been fighting their attraction for years. But as the barriers between them begin to fall, Lainey rescues Phoebe, a runaway teen, from the compound where her husband died. Now they’re forced to focus on Phoebe and an invisible threat.
Whoever murdered her husband has eyes on Lainey. Will their fragile new family survive a desperate predator? Can they protect Phoebe, identify the killer and find their happily ever after?
USA Today bestselling author Margaret Watson is a two-time RITA Finalist with thirty books in print for Harlequin and Silhouette and many other award-winning romantic suspense novels.
When not writing, Margaret practices veterinary medicine in the Chicago area.
Finally! Lainey’s getting divorced from her abusive husband. All she has to do is verify his current address. But she finds the mysterious compound where he works deserted. As she investigates, she barely has time to smell gasoline before the building goes up in flames. She tries to climb out a window but someone tries to push her back in. Just when she thinks she;s about to die, a passing neighbor pulls her out of danger. A completely harrowing day.
But it keeps on getting worse. The firefighters find Ron, her estranged ex, dead in the building. The sheriff tells her straight out that he’s the number one suspect. And she learns someone’s broken into her house.
All that only gets you through a chapter or two-- author Watson’s talent for heart-racing action is on full display here. But she’s not done upping the ante— Lainey’s rescuer is Brody, an accounting client on whom she’s long had a secret crush. And she can tell he reciprocates.
But the day your husband is murdered is the worst possible time for romance.
Still, since her house is clearly vulnerable, she has no safe place to stay. So she accepts his offer to stay at his ranch a few days, both agreeing to put their growing feelings for each other on hold. But it turns out that, though Brody’s ranch has great security, there’s no real safety for either of them. Because whoever killed her husband isn’t going to give up and they’ll go through Brody to get to her-- unless the sheriff arrests her first.
‘With One Breath’ was exciting. Its thrilling plot was filled with suspense, tension, action, clandestine activities, betrayal, a major rescue, heartache, aiding others, making intense decisions, and falling in love. Jase and Leila, the protagonists, were soul mates and oozed chemistry. Additionally, I liked the author’s use of vivid descriptions including imagery, exacting word choices, and figurative language such as, “It took only a handful of minutes to the crease in the rock. The black hole of it yawned in front of her.” ‘Once Removed’ was mesmerizing. Its plot was filled with intrigue, suspense, tension, action, arson, murder, caring for a teen, stumbling upon some answers, and falling in love. Again, I liked the author’s vividness including imagery, just-the-right word choices, and figurative language such as, “The tiny stream of water was dwarfed by the flames greedily licking at two buildings.” Overall, I liked the riveting box set.
You will thoroughly enjoy these captivating stories that are the beginning of a thrilling and romantic series. The well-crafted characters and gripping plot lines will keep you engrossed from start to finish.
WITH ONE BREATH will leave you almost breathless at times and often on the edge of your seat. There are enough twists and turns to keep you thoroughly engaged from page to page and easily involved with its appealing characters and intriguing storyline.
ONCE REMOVED is an intriguing story that will keep you enthralled from start to finish. The characters are thoroughly engaging, and the storyline has enough emotional drama and suspenseful twists, combined with heartwarming moments and just the right touches of passion, to hold your interest throughout.
I highly recommend each of these stories in this box set!
Laila and Jase started volume one with off the chart attraction and action packed reading. Running from the Taliban while trying to save school girls and themselves. Brody and Laney finish out the book in volume two with much of the same. Laney becomes the suspect in her husband's death. Brody tries to keep her safe. I can't wait to read about Mel and Dev. They're around in both books and will be partners in Blackhawk security.
From the first moment Brody had met his accountant, Lainey, he knew he wanted her in his life. Only problem was, she was already married. Lainey's marriage was horrible and she was getting out. When she goes to where her husband worked to see his boss, she discovers a dead body and someone tries to burn her alive. Brody saves her and this leads to strong of events. Great read starting from first page to last.
Overall: 5 stars With One Breath: 5 stars Once Removed: 5 stars
This pair of Romantic Suspense is superb. While the connection to Blackhawk Security is almost nonexistent, these two stories provide a backstory for the group. The first story includes some history for some of the characters in the organization. The second tale details the location of their compound. Both stories are independently and collectively splendid.
He was her trainer for the CIA. When she needed rescuing his team came to Save her. He was afraid of commitment. They had wanted to be together for a long time she was married to an abusive man. When her life is disrupted he steps in offering his home and love.
I started with book 3, then went back to books one and two. I'm glad it happened that way because it Gave me some background to work with. If I hadn't done that, I'm not sure I would have gone any further. I'm intrigued about hot it's all coming together and am eager to get on to book four.
Both books were decent with minor grammatical errors. Some of the conflicts seemed manufactured and were too quickly resolved. But overall the plots were different than I’ve read and I would read more from this author.
This story has a lot of danger,and suspence, keeps you turning the page to read what happens next until the very last page, looking forward to reading more books from this author
I liked everything about these two books--the morals, the depth of the characters, the sex, and the happy endings. You have a talent in developing the personalties as you tell your stories. It left me wanting to read more of them.