Tag: Authors Jocelynn Drake and Rinda Elliott

Review: Broken Warrior ( The Weavers Circle #1) by Jocelynn Drake and Rinda Elliott

Rating: 3.25 🌈

The combination of a great cover and a fantasy author who’s stories I’d enjoyed brought me to Broken Warrior, the first in The Weavers Circle series by Jocelynn Drake and Rinda Elliott.

I found the premise of the series arc really interesting and full of potential. The idea that long ago a tear was created between worlds to allow another species access to our world to steal energy and resources to give to their dying one. A battle to seal the tear and save our world began, including the use of immortal warriors.

Well not exactly. They die , then are resurrected, looking exactly the same, minus the memories and groovy clothes of the era they died in. Then, slowly, in a magical “I can’t help myself “ way start to travel to a southern mansion to start to gather together and battle again.

So far they haven’t been really good at this. They’ve died a lot of times. Only to return and do it again.

Interesting elements. A pull to a certain region. A internal “recognition “ factor that allows each warrior to know instinctively that another is his missing brother in arms. A neat idea that thrown away in the first book by a actual photo. SMH! No don’t need a to feel my new bro is around here, I know what he actually looks like to recognize him. Sigh.

There’s a handyman that’s clueless to all the strange hunky men gathering in the gorgeous mansion he’s been hired to renovate by the three older women…cough… goddesses….

While the characters are likable, the part of the story that’s basically a instant love romance between Clay Green, Earth Warrior, and Dane Briggs, handyman, feels rushed and incomplete. It’s more that Dane has a part to play, less than he feels like half of a HEA.

As I said, there’s sections I like, others that make little sense other than it’s what was needed to move the plot along. The men were told to do this, naturally they did that which made zero sense so the plot ended up at point zed.

Things done like that are narratively frustrating. Characters, their personalities, especially within a plot should make sense. You’d think they’d leave notes for themselves. Tried this, big fail. Note to self. Don’t do that again, and btw…no one liked my mullet.

You know… important stuff.

Nopes.

The characters that had the best chemistry were the two ‘brother warriors’ found in this story. They were easily the best friends and characters here. You got to thinking I’d ship them and not the handyman.

Baer Manning, the Animal Warrior, is adorable. You’re not wrong in thinking he’s destined for Clay Green, but alas and alack , no. And if you’ve noticed a pattern with the names you’re not wrong there either.

Clay Green: Earth Warrior plus Dane

Baer Manning: Animal Warrior..grrr you great big ol bear you.

Grey Ackles: Soul Warrior

The three women who are the goddesses are interesting and likable. Not a whole lot of information on them as yet .

Honestly, not sure if I’m going forward. Towards the end Clay and Baer found a photo of all of the warriors before the last and unsuccessful battle, showing that they do in fact always look identical in every new life, minus a Fu Manchu mustache or two.

Now , as the both remark, they know EXACTLY what their missing warriors look like.

Soooooooo

Baer’s book is next.

Wild Warrior. Where according to the long description, it’s where Baer meets an adorable guy because he’s MISTAKEN him for one of his missing brothers.

You know, the ones on the picture he’s seen so he knows exactly what they look like plus all Warriors know who the other is by a Internal “bro alarm”.

So I’m thinking… um no. I’ll think I’ll quietly move on.

But you may be totally fascinated by how this all shakes out. Let me know.

The Weavers Circle series:

Broken Warrior #1

Wild Warrior #2

Blind Warrior #3

Tangled Warrior #4

Storm Warrior #5

https://www.goodreads.com › showThe Weavers Circle #1 – Broken Warrior – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Clay Green:

A brotherhood? Monsters? Goddesses? Magic?

The world has become a strange place.

After a life on the run, Clay Green is rescued by a crazy old lady with a shotgun and an even crazier story about monsters, goddesses, and a secret brotherhood.

Gifted with the power of the earth, Clay must locate his missing “brothers” before invading monsters can destroy everything.

As if that’s not enough to contend with, Clay can’t keep his hands off the man trying to rebuild the house he’s temporarily living in.

Dane Briggs

Something strange is going on…

Dane knew restoring the old house wasn’t going to be an easy job, but at least none of the clients were going to be underfoot. Since losing his wife and child, the only way Dane can keep going is to focus on the work.

But that focus crumbles the second Clay appears covered in blood and barely hanging on to life.

Mystery and danger cling to Clay and the other men who suddenly show up. A smart person would walk away.

Dane chucks smart out the window in favor of hungry kisses and the silken slide of skin against skin. He doesn’t understand what’s happening, but there’s no question that Clay needs him.

He’s just not sure his heart can survive being broken again if something happens to Clay.

Broken Warrior is the first book in The Weavers Circle series. It includes fast-paced action, explosions, hurt/comfort, sexy times, animal shenanigans, wounded hearts, three crazy old ladies, and magic!

A Chaos Moondrawn Review: Ignite (Unbreakable Bonds #7) by Jocelynn Drake and Rinda Elliott

Rating: 4.25 stars out of 5

In this series the first four are a unit with a shared plot, the fifth is a wedding, the sixth is a misstep adventure (in my opinion), and this one is more related to the spin-off, Ward Security. In fact, if you haven’t tried the spin-off series, this might make you want to as it highlights all the characters.

While everyone in the group of friends is getting married and starting families, this book focuses on Rowe and Noah’s relationship and what they want. They would know if they actually talked about it honestly. It takes an old Army buddy and former lover of Noah’s showing up for them to acknowledge all the things they don’t know about each other, which is a major source of tension in the book. I found the balance between the personal interactions and the action sequences really well done. The love scenes between Noah and Rowe are always hot, and as they deepen their relationship they get hotter. Although Rowe stews in his own jealousy juice, Noah never does anything to make him feel that way. This is not really about JB, he is just a catalyst for moving them forward.

The other source of tension is intrigue with mercenaries and government agencies linked back to a traitor during their time in the service. JB shows up after the other two guys in their unit are killed. With someone gunning for Noah and JB, Rowe wants to get to the bottom of who is behind the murders and why. He doesn’t want to lose Noah like he lost Mel. There is only so much vigilantism most people can take before the good guys are the bad guys, so this uses creative ways to walk that line, until there is very clear evidence and they are on a sanctioned mission. With all the gun violence in the news lately, it seems wrong to have fun while people are shooting each other and blowing things up…and the authors do acknowledge that, but anyone familiar with the series will be used to the gallows humor and coping mechanisms involved. Now that Rowe and his people are on the CIA’s radar, I wonder how Ward Security will change. Will Rowe be allowed to keep turning down Black Ops work as he has since Mel’s death? I’m not sure having everything just go away moving forward is believable. He has also mooted expanding Ward Security, possibly on the West Coast to work security for Hollywood types. These seem like two very different moves forward in different directions so I suspect another spin-off series.

This is classic Drake and Elliot in top form. I do feel like this was a Ward Security book rather than an Unbreakable Bonds book, but does it matter? No. This is a fun, sexy action adventure with likeable characters and a brief check-in on old favorites.

The cover art by Stephen Drake of Design by Drake. It is eye catching and matches the mood of the book. I am not sure what it has to do with the story. There are grenades and some bombs, a lot of fire power, but not in largely populated downtown areas like this photo.

Sales: Amazon

Book Details:

Kindle Edition, 230 pages
Published July 26th 2019
ASINB07V4VYWCN
Series Unbreakable Bonds #7

Unbreakable Bonds Series – Goodreads links to all the novels in the series

Don’t Miss Out on the Book b Fracture (Unbreakable Bonds #6) by Jocelynn Drake & Rinda Elliott (excerpt and giveaway)

Title: Fracture

Series: Unbreakable Bonds Series #6

Author: Jocelynn Drake & Rinda Elliott

Publisher: Drake & Elliott LLC

Release Date: March 29, 2019

Heat Level: 4 – Lots of Sex

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: 71,000

Genre: Romance, Thriller/Suspense

Add to Goodreads

Synopsis

After three years, Snow and Jude’s relationship is still passionate and strong. They’re getting ready for a romantic vacation at home when Jude receives a horrifying call no one wants to receive. His youngest brother was found barely clinging to life. While Jude’s family is rallying around Jordan, Jude is determined to find out what happened to him.

Snow and Jude follow the clues, investigating a side of Jordan’s life none of them knew about…and is far darker than any would have believed possible. They get pulled deeper into the seedy side of life, while echoes from a past Snow thought he walked away from return to offer an unexpected insight into the cause of Jordan’s injuries.

But someone else has noticed their involvement and is furious, putting them both in danger. The risk is high but so is Jude’s determination to find the truth—though the knowledge could very well fracture his heart.

Trigger Warning: This book has a scene that some might find triggering, but the triggers are also spoilers to the plot, so they can be found at the front of the book.

Excerpt

Snow rushed through the emergency room with Jude. His heart was pounding so hard it was like he could feel it in his throat, threatening to choke off his airway. A sinister nagging voice in the back of his head kept repeating, <em>Three years, three years, three years</em>.

Roughly three years ago, he’d run into this same hospital to find one of his best friends on the floor, his entire world falling apart because his wife had been killed in what had appeared to be a car accident. And he hadn’t been there to operate on her. To save her life.

Melissa Ward had been light and laughter and happiness. She’d brought joy to all who knew her.

And Rowe Ward had been devastated to lose her. They all had been.

They’d nearly lost Rowe to his grief.

Now Snow was running through the hospital where he and Jude worked nearly every day. He was vaguely aware of familiar faces registering surprise and flashes of sadness as they passed by, but it didn’t matter. They stopped only long enough to find out that Jordan was in surgery and that Jude’s family was already in the surgical ICU waiting room.

“Snow,” Jude said in a low, shaky breath as they waited for the elevator to ascend to the correct floor. That broken sound gutted him.

He reached over and wrapped his hand around the back of Jude’s neck, pulling him tight against his taller frame. “We’ll figure this out,” he replied, forcing the words past the lump in his throat while telling himself that this was not going to be like Mel.

Jordan was a strong young man. Not even twenty-one yet. A good guy who loved to laugh. Definitely not the sort to seek out trouble. This had to be nothing more than him being in the wrong damn place at the wrong damn time. The doctors on call would be able to fix him up and get him safely on the mend.

But he couldn’t give Jude promises that he couldn’t keep or offer fake platitudes. Jude had worked as a paramedic for several years now. He’d been the paramedic first on the scene for Mel. He knew how quickly things could turn bad with nothing anyone could do to stop them.

“My brain won’t accept it. Not Jordan.”

“I know,” Snow said. “But he’s young and he’s strong. That works in his favor.”

The elevator doors parted, and they were quickly moving again to the large, quiet waiting room.

Purchase at Amazon

Meet the Author

Jocelynn Drake and Rinda Elliott have teamed up to combine their evil genius to create intense gay romantic suspense stories that have car chases, shoot outs, explosions, scorching hot love scenes, and tender, tear-jerking moments. Their first joint books are in the Unbreakable Bonds series.

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New Release Blitz for Deadly Dorian (Ward Security Series #3) by Jocelynn Drake and Rinda Elliott (excerpt and giveaway)

Title:  Deadly Dorian

Series: Ward Security Series #3

Author: Jocelynn Drake & Rinda Elliott

Publisher: Drake and Elliott Publishing LLC

Release Date: April 13, 2018

Heat Level: 4 – Lots of Sex

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: 87K

Genre: Romance, Thriller/Suspense

Add to Goodreads

Synopsis

Someone is trying to kill Marc Foster.

Attempted poisoning was bad enough, but when the would-be killer messes with the brakes on Marc’s precious Porsche, the art dealer admits he needs help. He just wasn’t expecting help to be quite so dark and sexy.

Royce Karras loves his job at Ward Security. He’s making up for a lifetime of bad decisions and a bloody past he’d rather forget. But Marc isn’t the spoiled rich boy he thought he’d be protecting. Sticking close to Marc as his “boyfriend” gives Royce insight into his toxic family, but it also reveals a brilliant, compassionate man who completely disarms Royce. Against his better judgment, Royce finds himself falling.

But can they find a way to make it work when Royce’s past threatens to tear their lives apart? Their future hinges on a lost Renaissance painting, six Bichon Frises, and a pornographic Robin Hood.

No worries, right?

Excerpt

Marc Foster rose from one of the outdoor couches and came toward him with his right hand out. There was no missing how he shifted his left hand slightly behind his body, but Royce already caught sight of what looked like a bandage. He stood taller than Royce by several inches, his shoulders broad, his body slim. He wore a fashionable suit that probably cost more than a month of Royce’s salary.

But his damn face—that was going to be a problem.

He had the most fascinating combination of features Royce had ever seen. Sharp was the first description that came to mind. He had thick, black, slanting eyebrows over piercing, blue eyes, bladed cheekbones and chin—all of it coming together to form a stunning, intense face that was completely belied by the softest-looking, fullest lips he’d ever seen. The dichotomy of severe and overly sensual startled, sending a punch of surprising lust into Royce’s gut. Marc wore his dark brown hair long on top, and it looked like he’d been running his hands through it, because it curled back off his face in soft waves with one strand falling over his eye.

It was the perfect length for gripping.

“Royce Karras?”

“Yes.” He wanted to say more, but he felt momentarily tongue-tied and shocked. Rich playboys were far from the kind of men he usually liked to get rowdy with, so his gut reaction to this one made him feel off. He’d never been much of a talker, though. He hoped the man didn’t want a chatterbox for a pretend boyfriend.

The smile that stretched those full lips revealed teeth that went along with the program: sharp and flawlessly white. But the smile softened his features, making him seem more welcoming.

And…somewhat devastating. Royce would have no trouble pretending to be attracted to this man.

Marc nodded then, his gaze running down Royce’s body.

Royce wondered what he thought as he took in his black vest over the white button-down shirt tucked into dark jeans. Black motorcycle boots completed the look. He’d also rolled up his sleeves, leaving the tattoos on his left arm in plain sight. He’d trimmed his black beard close to his chin. Normally, he wore the company’s polo or T-shirts on jobs, but Andrei had asked him to “hot it up” a little so he’d appeal to a rich playboy.

He watched that rich playboy now as he eyed him, then turned back to Quinn. Royce followed his gaze to find his coworker standing silently, watching them with a funny smile on his face.

“He will work,” Marc said in a no-nonsense tone. “My acquaintances won’t question me wanting him.”

That particular word choice sent a blast of heat to Royce’s groin, and he ruthlessly ignored it. But the image that had surged into his mind had been this gorgeous, haughty man kneeling before him, and that was harder to push aside. He’d look so pretty like that, his head back, mouth open, waiting on instruction.

Royce knew, without a doubt, that he could have this man on his knees, that he could easily overpower him despite his taller form. If there was one thing that always played out in Royce’s favor, it was the steely strength he carried in his compact body. It had been the reason he’d been a very successful shylock for a bloodthirsty bookie in Virginia. He came with the element of surprise—always underestimated, always triumphant in a fight. He didn’t have the special martial arts training of a lot of his coworkers, but that didn’t matter. There was something to be said for sheer determination.

“You aren’t going to question if he’s big enough to fight someone off for you?” Quinn asked. “He gets that a lot.”

Marc smirked and brought those astute blue eyes back to him. “I have absolutely no doubt this man can protect me. Anyone paying close enough attention would see that he could easily take them down.”

Royce hoped the lust coating his last three words was only in his own imagination. A quick glance at Quinn told him it was not. And the IT guy was finding this situation highly amusing as he lifted one eyebrow behind his black-framed glasses.

Purchase

Drake and Elliott Publishing LLC | Amazon

Meet the Author

Who are Drake & Elliott?

Jocelynn Drake and Rinda Elliott have teamed up to combine their evil genius to create intense gay romantic suspense stories that have car chases, shoot outs, explosions, scorching hot love scenes, and tender, tear-jerking moments. Their first joint books are in the Unbreakable Bonds series.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | eMail |Tumblr

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New Book Release Blitz for Dantès Unglued (Ward Security Series #2) by Jocelynn Drake and Rinda Elliott (excerpt and Giveaway

Title:  Dantès Unglued

Series: Ward Security Series #2

Author: Jocelynn Drake and Rinda Elliott

Publisher:  Drake and Elliott Publishing LLC

Release Date: January 26th

Heat Level: 4 – Lots of Sex

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: 72k

Genre: Romance, Thriller/Suspense,

Add to Goodreads

Synopsis

When private investigator, Shane Stephens, is hired by the mayor of Cincinnati to track down the hacker who has been threatening him, Shane is sure this is the opportunity to launch the Merleau Detection Agency into the big time. He even convinces Rowe Ward of Ward Security to loan him one of his best IT specialists, Quinn Lake.

Shane, a man who prefers casual intimacy, is surprised by his attraction to the moody computer geek, but when Quinn suggests they have fun for the month he’s on loan, Shane happily agrees. Both men are expecting nothing more than a good time.

But the investigation takes an unexpected turn and they quickly discover they are facing more than a hacker out to ruin the mayor’s re-election chances. And as they spend more time together, they realize their relationship may be a lot more than just a good time.

With only weeks until the election, Shane and Quinn race to gather the proof they need while dodging bullets and possibly…falling in love.

Excerpt

After one quick knock on Rowe’s door, he stepped inside without waiting for him to call since he was already expected. But he stopped short when he saw the tall man standing next to Rowe’s desk, his hands on his slender hips as he grinned down at Rowe. Quinn couldn’t stop his eyes from quickly sweeping over his broad shoulders and chest that tapered into a narrow waist. His eyes snapped back up to find a pair of brown eyes that twinkled as they finished checking him out as well.

“Sorry,” Quinn mumbled, instantly taking a step backward. “I can come back.” Rowe rarely saw clients. He had customer representatives that handled talking to the clients. Of course, with Rowe’s lack of a filter, it was better if he didn’t talk to the new clients directly.

“No, come in, Quinn,” Rowe said sharply. He stood behind his desk, drawing Quinn’s gaze to his shorter but broader frame. His dark red hair stood up slightly as if he’d been running his fingers through it. Quinn never took that as a particularly good sign.

With a quick jerk of his head, Quinn stepped in and shut the door behind him. The other man was smiling at him, that assessing look still in his eyes, and Quinn didn’t want to think about the fact that he was dying to take another longer look at him, but not with the freaking boss in the room.

“Quinn Lake, this is Shane Stephens. He’s a private investigator with The Merleau Detection Agency,” Rowe introduced.

Shane extended his hand to Quinn and Quinn clenched his teeth, trying to hide his discomfort at taking Shane’s hand. His own palms were sweaty, making the momentary contact awkward. Why the fuck was he always so damn awkward around hot guys?

“Rowe tells me you’re the best,” Shane said, releasing his hand.

Quinn couldn’t help the skeptical look he shot at Rowe, who only shrugged as he sat down again. “Well, I said you <em>and</em> Gidget are the best.”

“Is this about a job?”

“Sit, Quinn.” Rowe absently waved toward the two chairs in front of his desk. He shuffled some papers around without seeming to actually look at them, placing them in piles at the edge of his desk.

Shooting one last uncertain look at Shane, Quinn moved to the farthest chair and sat, his tablet clenched in both hands. His mind raced as he tried to figure out why he’d been called into this meeting. Clients didn’t meet with Rowe, and Quinn didn’t meet with clients unless they’d already been assigned a bodyguard. And while they’d worked with some private investigators in the past, Rowe wasn’t usually involved. He had a company to run.

“Shane recently acquired a client who is the victim of a hacker,” Rowe started.

Quinn looked up at Shane, who was still standing beside Rowe’s desk, his mind finally turning away from too many questions to a problem he could understand. “Identity theft? Bank accounts drained?”

“No, not yet.” Shane shook his head, some of his dark curly hair falling forward against his temple. “At least, not that we’ve uncovered.”

“Then how do you know this client was hacked?”

“There are other signs…but I can’t go into it.”

Quinn frowned for a second. That certainly wasn’t going to make his job easier. “Well, do you just need improved protection? Alerts on accounts? We’ve got a comprehensive list of things we can do to help shore up the client’s account protection and privacy.”

“Shane isn’t looking for protection from the hacker for the client.” Rowe paused until Quinn looked back at him. “His client has hired him to track down the identity of the hacker.”

“Whoa…” Quinn said on an exhale, sitting back in his chair. That…that was not an easy task. Most hackers were pretty damn good at not being found. You had to be if you wanted to survive as one. If you sucked, you were usually snagged by the FBI pretty damn fast. Quinn would know. He’d started hacking at a young age—not stealing other people’s money but just breaking through security systems because he could. It took the feds a solid five years to catch him. But his boss knew all this. Rowe knew everything about the people working for him.

“We’re not equipped to handle this level of…” Shane frowned at Rowe’s computer as if he blamed it for his problems. “Well, we’re not staffed yet to handle computer things like this. I can do some of the forensic research in accounting matters, but I need a computer genius like you.”

“That’s why I agreed to loan you to Shane and his business partner, Ethan, for one month,” Rowe announced.

Quinn was out of his seat in a shot, hovering over the edge of the desk as he looked down at his boss. Pain shot through his chest, and he was suddenly having trouble catching his breath. Panic clouded all of his thoughts. He loved working for Ward Security. He’d been there for just less than two years, and he’d never found another place where he’d felt like he fit so damn perfectly. This was home. These people he worked with, they were his friends. He didn’t have to hide or pretend or feel uncomfortable.

And Rowe…Rowe had always been amazing. Sure, he could be cranky and a little crazy. He was always loud and tended to speak before thinking. But Quinn always knew exactly where he stood with Rowe. He always felt like Rowe had his back.

But this…

“Are you getting rid of me?”

“What?” Rowe snapped. “Where the fuck did you get that idea?”

“You’re hiring another IT person. I saw the listing. And this? Putting me ‘on loan’?”

Rowe groaned and scrubbed a hand over his face. With a heavy sigh, he pointed back at the chair Quinn had just vacated. “Sit.” Grudgingly, Quinn followed direction while Rowe looked over at Shane. “Can you give us a minute?”

Purchase

Drake and Elliott Publishing LLC | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | iTunes | Smashwords

Meet the Author

Who are Drake & Elliott?

Jocelynn Drake and Rinda Elliott have teamed up to combine their evil genius to create intense gay romantic suspense stories that have car chases, shoot outs, explosions, scorching hot love scenes, and tender, tear-jerking moments. Their first joint books are in the Unbreakable Bonds series.

Website | Facebook | Twitter

eMail | Tumblr

 

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