I have recently come to love Avon books. When I saw this cover and read the blurb, I got excited over the prospect of a hot romantic suspense read. To say I was disappointed with this book is putting it mildly. I really liked the plot, and there was potential in all directions for nail-biting suspense, heart-thumping action and toe-curling romance. Unfortunately the story fell flat due to the characterization and actions of the heroine. Despite having purchased and read this book in July, I still remember the story today, so it was memorable. But for all the wrong reasons.

Cara had naively married into a dangerous family and suffered years of abuse at the hands of her husband. Somehow, her brother had managed to convince her husband to let her go through with the divorce. She may have been free of the beatings, but the fear still followed her around. It was easy to sympathize with the heroine once learning about her back story. Her fear was always palpable, and I didn't blame her for looking over her shoulder, always waiting, always wondering. Her freedom meant a second chance at life. Obviously that would take time.

Today, the fragile framework of her new life was splintering, leaving her alone, exposed, and vulnerable. A thread of anger shot through her. She'd spent enough time feeling defenseless. Not even her brother was taking her back there. She was never going to be a helpless victim again. (Chapter 4)

That sounded good, but the execution of that fierce declaration of hers completely clouded her judgement, and it showed. A lot. Instead of acting fearless and growing a backbone, she came across as reckless. That was most evident in her trust of Sam, the mysterious stranger who grabbed her at the fair "under the pretense" of meeting his niece. If a strange man grabbed me in public and attempted to haul me off (which he did), I'd scream bloody murder. Then the lame excuse he gives for how he got her phone number:

"Right, I remember you, Sam. How'd you get this number?"

"I was in the electronics shop when someone came in to pick up a phone for Cara. I figured there couldn't be too many people named Cara in our little town so I took a chance. I realize that sounds kind of creepy, and I'll understand if you don't want to hear from me again."

Notice how he both answered and evaded the question at the same time? It made no sense and it was creepy, yet Cara (the girl who trusts no one) bought it hook, line and sinker. She has many more questionable moments that just added up to her not being a very likeable heroine and one that I just couldn't connect with.

Annoying repetitions:"stuck her chin out", "raised her chin" (the most used phrase), "her chin came up", "her chin trembled", "she lifted her chin defiantly".
There were a lot of mentions about Cara's chin (Chapters 5, 6, 8, 9, 13, 14, 17, 19, 21, 23, 24, 25, 30, 37). If the reader was supposed to get the impression that Cara was a tough cookie, Cara's actions (mentioned above) obliterated the illusion.

In my opinion, of the main characters, Joe definitely stole the show. Not only was he wracked with guilt over the death of his friend, but he had already formed an opinion of the heroine without ever having met her. I liked that setup and anticipated the moment when he would realize how wrong he'd been. At first it worked, and I never got the feeling that he tried to sugarcoat things for Cara. He understood that she'd need time to learn to trust him. But as the story got to the nitty gritty and my impatience with her deepened, I honestly couldn't see what about her was so attractive to him. He was forever rescuing her, protecting her, encouraging her to learn self defense. I thought the "relationship" was too one-sided with Joe putting in the most effort and Cara not doing anything. I even found the supporting cast of mercenaries more interesting than her. Walker and Charlie's sister in particular. If I continue with the series, it would be for those two characters. ( )

The mysteries of Cara Sinclair, her life and her family are troublesome to Joe Reynolds but he made a promise to his best friends to protect her. Joe, and the reader, spend most of the book trying to figure out if Cara is party to the crimes occurring around her. Brown does a good job of creating turmoil and an embroiling story built around two edgy but ultimately very likable people. The book is fast paced, the story interesting and full of intrigue and suspense and the heat between the hero and heroine steamy. Nothing goes easily, almost no one is who they seem to be and it all makes for a well written book. I really enjoyed ALL OR NOTHING and will put the rest of the series on my “to be read” list.

Heat Rating:

Mild: Mild detailed scenes of intimacy, mild violence or profanity.

Rating:

4.0

Reviewed By: ReadWarrior,My Book Addiction Reviews ( )