Sue Brown (1)

I started reading The Night Porter knowing full well there would be no HEA and Sue Brown did not disappoint...I was left weeping at the end.

Max I fell desperately in love with. He is who I wish I could be - someone who, even after his heart is broken time and again, remains open, caring and vulnerable. Robert...Robert was something else entirely. He led me to believe he was kind and generous, honest and loving but in the end proved himself to be none of those things. And yet he had the show more potential to be all of those things and I found myself mourning the man he could be.

Ms. Brown is to be commended for bringing us such a well crafted story, inhabited by 3-dimensional characters...and all this in a short story! *applause* show less

All I was going to do was read the first chapter, just to get a feeling for what this story was like. I am still not sure what it was—The situation? The characters? The dialogue?—but I could not put down the book. There is something very real, something fascinating, at least for me, in a werewolf story set in an otherwise completely contemporary world. The general public doesn’t know about shifters, yet there are some hidden politics going on, secretive, brutal hunters on the prowl, show more and a semi-military group that comes in to help. It almost sounds normal–except for the shifter part.

Joe may be a university professor teaching ancient history, but he knows his way around his father’s farm and is taking good care of it while his dad is in hospital, trying to fight the recurrence of his cancer. And, as it turns out, all those hours of Joe studying the various military strategies of now-dead despots and other leaders had a purpose after all. But, I am getting ahead of myself. The scene that pulled me in and that turns Joe’s world upside down is the beginning of, what I hope, a series of adventures around wolf shifters trying to survive genocide. Joe, like most farmers, is not a fan of wolves, so when he finds one on his father’s land he shoots it. Problem is, before he can finish the task, the wolf turns into a man and Joe has to figure out whether he’s gone insane, or whether he needs to adjust his thinking. Luckily for him and the wolf, who turns out to be so much more, Joe decides to use his brain.

Cal is on the run. The hunters, out to kill every last shifter on the planet, have already murdered his father and two eldest brothers. They are known never to give up once they have found a pack, so Cal is pretty sure he is next. He has little hope of escaping. He has been separated from his family (the females and children went into hiding but he doesn’t know where), and is unsure where his other four brothers are. For the first time in his life he is on his own. Having been told he is weak, since he is an omega, he doesn’t believe he stands a chance. But wen he meets Joe, and figures out what they are to each other, all of that slowly begins to change.

As the cliffhanger (grrr, Sue, the next book better be out quickly!) at the end of this first volume indicates, Joe and Cal, as well as the intriguing secondary characters, have a long way to go. The hunters don’t easily give up, a mysterious party has taken over financial support for eradicating the hunters,, human politics is just beginning to wake up to the fact illegal genocide may be going on, and I have a feeling a few more events are lurking just around the corner. Loved it!

If you like werewolf stories that feel so contemporary you may think the paranormal creatures really ARE among us, if two men from different worlds who need to learn to work together if they want to survive sound interesting, and if you’re looking for an action-packed yet entertaining read with some very hot man-on-shifter action, then you will probably like this novella. I definitely want more of the same—as soon as possible.


NOTE: This book was provided by Love Lane Books for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews. show less

[Morning My Angel] - Sue Brown
Angel Securities Series, Book #1
5★
In London to find the missing partner of his security firm, Josh Cooper constantly clashes with his new UK partner, charismatic, but arrogant Cal Ross. It should have been a simple case of finding the man. But Josh is dealing with conflicting agendas, both with the assignment and his love life. There’s no doubt of the physical attraction between him and Cal, but Josh is also involved with the mysterious Charlie, his show more long-term cyber-relationship. Who will he choose?
Josh’s heart is tied up with Charlie, his head is with Cal, and his missing persons case has taken a sinister turn. Now there’s a new target. Him. Will Cal rescue him before he becomes fish bait?

Josh Cooper is a tad obnoxious in his behavior and obviously his boss thought so also since Josh soon found himself and his team on a plane headed to the London office for an "undisclosed" period of time...to help in the search for a person that disappeared 3 weeks ago. It was pretty clear to everyone but Josh, that he should probably start learning to appreciate tea more than coffee. This is not their usual job so Josh doesn't understand why he and his team are working on this case, not to mention they're suppose to actually work with the London team who they soon found were not as forth coming about too many of any of the details. To make things worse, he is VERY attracted to Cal, one of the operatives they work with. He is conflicted about Cal because he truly cares for Charlie even though Charlie is a guy he hasn't met yet...in person that is. You can see where this is going even if you have never read an M/M romance book. Cal has many secrets, and though they slowly unravel there is still quite a surprise at the end. I really didn't see that one coming. It was great meeting Josh and watching him try to make sense of his complicated life. The twin bodyguards, the London team and all those little characters we've met along the way made this story feel genuine and also made it engaging and enjoyable. Josh's banter with everyone was fun... and oh yeah...he really, really missed his coffee. show less

This is such a heartrending story, mainly because the characters are so engaging, but also because what they go through is entirely possible. Mistakes are easy to make in relationships, and the more you love someone the higher their capacity to hurt you. The story of Morgan and Shae is a perfect illustration that love is not always enough – communication, trust, and the ability to forgive play at least as much of a role as simple physical and emotional attraction.

Morgan has a lot to learn. show more He made a huge mistake when he cheated on Shae and is still paying for it. He thought he had moved on – even got engaged – but he finds out that relationship wasn’t everything he thought it to be. And not just his part. He also learns all kinds of things about his so-called friends. But, most of all, he finally learns to open up, listen to his partner, and build some trust. Only to have everything almost come apart when it is his turn to forgive – and that is the most important lesson of all. It is far easier to ask for forgiveness than to grant it.

Shae has made as many mistakes as Morgan, even if they were less obvious – initially. He hasn’t had it easy, and what he has done is very understandable, but he too, needs to learn and change before he ever stands a chance of finding happiness. He has to hear the truth of what happened, admit the part he played in it, and face the fact he needs to ask for forgiveness as much as Morgan does. Not an easy fact to accept for someone who has seen himself as the victim all along.

I really liked this story because both main characters are very flawed, very “normal” human beings. What they go through could happen to any of us, and how they deal with it contains a lesson for everyone. The emotional depth Sue Brown has created here is wonderful, and it made me turn the pages, brought me to tears, and let me draw a breath of relief when it was finally over. If you like real-life drama but prefer reading it over living through it, if you’re interested in a story about love found, lost, and found again, and if you’d rather see the main characters suffer for a bit before they get their happy ending, you will probably love this novel.


NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews. show less