review || BEYOND THE CALL OF DUTY { blog tour } by Tracy Tappan

B. Reed Publishing | September 25, 2015 | Military Romantic Suspence
Wings of Gold, book 2
★★★★

SOURCE: GODDESS FISH TOURS

Eric “LZ” O’Dwyer, a senior lieutenant stationed out of San Diego, is in command of his own helicopter detachment out of the HSM-75 Wolf Pack. Deployed off the coast of South America on a counterdrug operation, Eric jumps at the chance to take down a ruthless drug lord. But to do it, he’ll have to join forces with badass DEA Agent Nicole Gamboa. Infiltrating the drug lord’s mansion is crucial to the mission, and to pull it off, Eric and Nicole have to play out an intimate scene together that leaves them both reeling.

In the aftermath, Eric wants to foster something real with Nicole, but there is a secret part of Nicole’s life that makes a relationship impossible. The mission erupts again, and Nicole and Eric end up relying on each other in ways they’d never predicted. The stakes are raised to their highest when the drug lord gains the upper hand, and living or dying hinges on a final showdown between Nicole and her past…and whether Eric can get to her in time!

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{ about tracy tappan } .

Tracy is the bestselling and award-winning author of gritty romance, her books spanning genres across paranormal (The Community series), military romantic suspense (The Wings of Gold series), and medieval historical (The Baron’s War trilogy). During nearly twenty-five years spent as a naval aviator’s wife, she lived all over the United States and in Europe, enjoying seven years overseas in the diplomatic community, first in Rome then in Madrid, until she settled back in San Diego. Tracy holds a master’s degree in Marriage, Family, and Child Counseling (MFCC), loves to play tennis, is a volunteer puppy raiser for Guide Dogs for the Blind, and enjoys a good glass of wine. To learn more, please visit her website at www.tracytappan.com

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{ excerpt } .

Her DEA partner, Ryan, was at her side in two paces. “You’ve got the wrong idea about what just happened, Nicole.”

Nicole squared her chin and walked faster, nearing the doorway into the Air Traffic Control tower.

“Would you stop—” Ryan grabbed her arm—“and let me talk to—?”

She whirled, and with a hard downward chop of her hand, crashed his hold off her.

Ryan barked in pain.

“I have two black belts in martial arts!” she shouted into her partner’s face. “Do you ever bother to remember I’m more than a pair of tits?”

“Hey, what’s going on?” Eric jogged up to them, hauling off his flight helmet. “Are you two okay?” Behind him, the helicopter’s rotors were still turning.

Aagaard kept his eyes on her. “That wasn’t about your ability to fight. It was about distraction. The target was going to blow us to Kingdom Come. There weren’t any other options I could see for handling the situation other than what we did. You either, or you would’ve mentioned them. I knew it would work. And it did.”

“Congratulations.” Her voice came out of a dark pit in her stomach. “You’ve seen my breasts now, Ryan. Maybe you—”

“What?” The one word cracked out of Eric like a bullet from a gun.

“—finally stop being such a jerk.”

Ryan’s face flushed a strangled shade of red. “You’re out of your skull if you think that’s what this was about.”

“Right. Then why do you keep blushing?” Nicole reached for the door handle to the tower. A hand grabbed her arm again. Eric’s.

“Everyone needs to stop touching me.”

“I’m sorry,” Eric said, dropping his hand. “I just want to make sure you’re okay.”

“No, Eric, I’m not okay.” She turned to face him fully. “I haven’t been okay since we pretended to have sex together.”

{ review } .

This was my first look at military suspense through the eyes of Tracy Tappan, and I felt she did a great job. Her experience in the lifestyle is certainly evident in her writing. Beyond that, her writing style is easy to read. I enjoyed her use of descriptions and 'noise words'.

As for the story itself, Eric and Nicole were a fun couple. I loved watching Nicole open up; her past certainly tainted her beliefs and thoughts, so bringing once-cocky, pretty fun Eric into the fold for her was an interesting mix. I absolutely loved Eric talking to Nicole about call-signs and what "LZ" stood for -- and the reaming he received when he was dubbed LZ.

I'm a huge military romance fan, so I do tend to judge them a bit harsher. This wasn't my favorite, hence the four-star, but it was still a great book with just enough suspense to balance the romance.

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