Action: ♠♠♠♠♠ / Emotion: ♣♣♣♣.♣ / Romance: ♥♥♥♥.♥ / Sensuous: ♦♦♦♦.♦ / Suspense: ♠♠♠♠♠
Action: 5 / Emotion: 4.75 / Romance: 4.5 / Sensuous: 4.25 / Suspense: 5 // Humor: 1 / Tears: 3
For some reason, heroine Tyler Hanson did not seem to stand out in the previous two books of the series. Since Davis seems to be following a path of revealing as few physical attributes of the members of the A-Tac team as possible, it was helpful that she described Tyler's hair color and style in book two, because Davis did not reveal Tyler wore her blond hair in a ponytail in her book. Yes, she did reveal that Tyler was an independent, tough, drop-dead gorgeous, smoky-green-eyed, "girl next door with a body to die for" heroine in Desperate Deeds. [Note: found a description of these characters at www.HachettBookGroup.com]
There is nothing in the world of ordnance that Tyler cannot take apart or put together. Because of this capability Tyler was assigned to join a military team transporting specialized detonators designed in a collaborative effort between the United States and England. During the transport {1} Tyler was wounded, {2} the two soldiers with her killed, and {3} the detonators stolen. General Fisher, the base commander involved in the transfer, suspects Tyler as an insider involved in the theft because she is the only one left alive.
Having read the first two books of the series it was readily apparent that the A-Tac mole had inside information about Tyler's psyche. Tyler's background as the stoic daughter of renowned General Zachary Hanson is revealed. As is the loss of her mother when she was a girl. The thieves used a blue scarf (like the one Tyler had once gifted to her mother) as the means to emotionally distract Tyler. The scarf caused Tyler to leave the transport vehicle and go down the incline beside the damaged guard rail, which left the terrorists to attack the other two men guarding the detonators.
After reporting in to her commander that someone was playing her, Tyler went down to the hotel bar to use bourbon to drown the memory of the dead soldiers. The MI-5 British Intelligence officer who was to receive the detonators joined Tyler at her table. Since Tyler no longer did relationships (after being burned by Justin), she invited hero Owen Wakefield to her room for a one-night stand. Davis does a great job of titillating the reader with a heat-filled love scene full of spice. Know it is not possible to pepper the book with more love scenes because so much space is required for the in-depth action and suspense required for such a great read, but wish that the hero and heroine could make love more often in this series.
Tyler returns to Sunderland College to find that the devastatingly attractive, hunky MI-5 operative has been assigned to the A-Tac team to help them find {1} the stolen detonators and {2} the suspected A-Tac mole. What Tyler and the A-Tac team don't know is that Owen is not MI-5. He was reporting to Logan Palmer, the NSA man who policed America's intelligence agencies. Can see serious repercussions in Owen's future when Tyler and Avery learn this pertinent fact. Tyler, because she won't like being lied to. Avery, because Logan Palmer and Avery Solomon (A-Tac commander) have a long-standing mutual dislike for the other.
Owen calls in an outside computer specialist (former FBI, Harrison Blake) to join the A-Tac team. The other A-Tac members are not exactly comfortable having these new players on their playing field; particularly Jason Lawton, A-Tac's computer guru and IT whiz. Hannah Marshall, the A-Tac intel specialist, however, seems to warm to Harrison as he displays his amazing talent at unearthing clues.
As with the other two books in this series, Davis concentrates on giving the reader massive amounts of action and suspense in Desperate Deeds. Although Tyler was left alive at the scene of the detonator thefts, the man (or men) behind that theft do not plan on leaving her alive. Several attempts are made to kill Tyler as she and Owen start following the clues to find out why A-Tac was even involved in such a mundane mission as transporting detonators.
It was discovered that the orders for Tyler to travel with the convoy carrying the detonators came from her father. After visiting General Zachary Hanson's home, Owen and Tyler went to visit her father's long-time friend, Lieutenant General Mike Hollingsworth, to find out what General Hanson's Alzheimer's-impaired brain was trying to tell them. Uncle Mike's revelations led Owen and Tyler to one of the chief designers of the detonators, Jefferson Smithwick. As Owen and Tyler continue to follow the trail of clues, they engage in one harrowing, death-defying, action-filled scene after another.
This book had a stronger emotional pull than the previous two books. Davis spends more time revealing Tyler's developmental history and emotional background. (Being a "daddy's girl" caused an enhanced emotional connection to Tyler as she dealt with events related to her father.)
As Owen and Tyler followed the clues, their wide, steel-enhanced emotional barriers against the other were slowly being torn down. Although Owen's past hurts were the more intense between the couple, it seemed Tyler had a more difficult time accepting that she could have a job she loved as well as be with a man who would accept her and her job. It was the only way Tyler could find her happily-ever-after.
There was something about this A-Tac Series that just really grabbed and held my attention. Features about Desperate Deeds that were so enthralling and engaging, include: {1} The massive amounts of action that pervaded the book. {2} The dual sense of nail-biting suspense: (a) who was the mole and (b) would the hero and heroine be able to find him/her/them in time to prevent a catastrophic event. {3} An emotionally wounded, hunky, alpha hero strong enough to stand up to the heroine. {4} An attractive, smart, independent heroine who knows what she wants and won't settle for less. {5} Spicy, heated, magical love scenes that include an emotional connection as well as a sexual one. {6} The inclusion of the entire A-Tac team as interesting secondary characters. {7} The inclusion of additional secondary characters who are connected to the heroine's personal background (i.e., her father and brother). {8} The two things that always count in fiction: (a) the good guys win, and (b) the boy gets the girl (and lives happily ever after).
Love this series. Cannot wait to read future installments (scheduled for 2011 and 2012).
--Vonda M. Reid (Sunday; October 10, 2010 : 5:18 p.m.)
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Books In The Series: "The A-TAC Series"
| # | Date | Book Title | Hero | Heroine |
| 01. | 04-2010 | Dark Deceptions | Nash Brennon | Annie Gallagher |
| 02. | 07-2010 | Dangerous Desire | Drake Flynn | Madeline Reynard |
| 03. | 08-2010 | Desperate Deeds | Owen Wakefield (Cantor) | Tyler Hanson |
| 04. | 09-2011 | Deep Disclosure | Tucker Flynn | Alexis Markham |
| 05. | xx-2012 | [Deadly Dance] | . | . |
| 06. | xx-2012 | [Double Danger] | . | . |
Books Similar to "Desperate Deeds"
| Site | Author | Title | Series |
| 01.ff | Brockmann, Suzanne | Infamous | |
| 02.ff | Banks, Maya | The Darkest Hour | 01. The Kelly Group International {2... |
| 03.ff | Feehan, Christine | Water Bound | 01. A Sea Haven Novel {1... |
| 04.ff | Fetzer, Amy J. | Damage Control | |
| 05.db | Eden, Cynthia | Deadly Fear | 01. The Deadly Trilogy {3} |
| 06.db | Davis, Dee | Dangerous Desires | 02. The A-Tac Series {6} |
| 07.db | Davis, Dee | Dark Deceptions | 01. The A-Tac Series {6} |
| 08.db | Morgan, Kira | Captured By Desire | 01. Related Books One {2... |
| 09.db | Brady, Kate | Last To Die | 02. The Sheridan Series {2... |
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Desperate Deeds Quotations:
112 . . . A part of her wishing he'd ignore all the rhetoric and carry her away. . . .
144 . . . No one is ready to deal with losing people they love. . . .
148 . . . She'd longed to be like her father, desperate to prove she wasn't weak like her mother. But the stronger she'd become, the greater the distance between them. By following in his footsteps, she'd effectively pushed him away.
216 . . . We made a choice, Tyler. And the one thing I've learned in this life is that there are costs for every decision we make. And most of the time, once the choice has been made, there's no going back."
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Dee Davis
♠ Website
♣ The Whine Sisters (Blog)
♠ My Space
♣ Fantastic Fiction
♥ FictionDB
♠ . . . . . . . . . . ♣ . . . . . . . . . . ♥ . . . . . . . . . . ♦ . . . . . . . . . . ♠ . . . . . . . . . . ♣ . . . . . . . . . . ♥ . . . . . . . . . . ♦
Desperate Deeds Reviews:
| Rated | Posted | Site | Notes, Comments, Etc. |
| 4.27 average | {15 reviews} | Amazon | as of: March 25, 2011 |
| 4.0 | 08-10-2010 | Arms of A Sister | also posted on Amazon, Good Reads, Shelfari |
| 4.0 | 08-09-2010 | Ashley's Bookshelf | |
| 4.0 | 08-09-2010 | Book Hounds: Books, Gardens & Dogs | also posted on Amazon, Good Reads, Shelfari |
| -- | 08-...-2010 | Book Page | no rating / positive inflection |
| 5.0 | 06-14-2010 | Book Pleasures | also posted on Amazon |
| 4.0 | 07-27-2010 | Bookaholics Romance Book Club | also posted on Amazon, Good Reads, Shelfari |
| 5.0 | 08-...-2010 | Coffee Time Romance | |
| 9 / 9 / 9 | 09-26-2010 | Eye on Romance {Suspense Romance Writers} | |
| -- | {2 reviews} | Fresh Fiction | no ratings / positive inflections |
| 3.83 average | {27 reviews} | Good Reads | as of: March 25, 2011 |
| 4.0 | 11-27-2010 | Huntress Reviews | also posted on Amazon |
| 3.5 / C | 07-29-2010 | Jandy's Reading Room | |
| 5.0 | 07-28-2010 | Harriet Klausner | posted on Amazon |
| 2.5 | 05-13-2010 | Loves Romances and More | Gina |
| 4.0 | 01-18-2011 | Loves Romances and More | Tammy |
| 4.0 | 08-24-2010 | Michelle & Leslie's Book Picks | also posted on Amazon, Good Reads |
| 3.0 | 07-26-2010 | Michelle's Book Blog | |
| 5.0 | 08-07-2010 | My Book Addiction And More | boilerplate review |
| 5.0 {top pick} | 07-07-2010 | Night Owl Romance | also posted on Amazon |
| 4 out of 5 | 08-11-2010 | Paranormal & Romantic Suspense Reviews | |
| 4.0 | 01-01-2011 | Paranormal Kiss | slightly different on Good Reads |
| 4.0 | 08-18-2010 | Readaholic | posted only on Amazon |
| -- | -- | Reader To Reader | no rating / positive inflection |
| 5.0 | 07-30-2010 | Reader's Favorite | also posted on Amazon |
| 4.5 | 08-03-2010 | Romance Junkies | also posted on Amazon |
| -- | 08-01-2010 | Romance Reviews Today | no rating / positive inflection |
| 4.0 / hot | 06-13-2010 | RT {Romantic Times} Book Reviews | |
| 4.0 | 08-10-2010 | Rundpinne | |
| 4.25 average | {4 reviews} | Shelfari | as of: March 25, 2011 |
| -- | 08-20-2010 | Simply Stacie | didn't review / positive inflection |
| 4.0 | 08-01-2010 | Smexy Books | also posted on Good Reads |
| 4.5 | -- | The Romance Readers Connection | |
| 4.5 / mild | 07-13-2010 | The Romance Studio | |
| -- | 08-10-2010 | Wendi's Book Corner | no rating / positive inflection |
| 4.95 | 03-25-2011 | Wolf Bear Does Books | shorter post on Amazon, Good Reads, Shelfari |
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♥ Disclaimer: I purchased this book.
♥ Very Subjective Rating: rated before created Blog
♥ Willing to share Cheat Sheet
♦ in whole or in part
♦ WordPerfect or PDF
♣ Will add your Desperate Deeds review link to table, just ask
