Rated: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ . ♥ {4.30}
Action: ♠♠♠.♠ / Emotion: ♣♣♣♣♣ / Romance: ♥♥♥.♥ / Sensuous: ♦♦.♦ / Suspense: ♠♠♠♠
Action: 3.5 / Emotion: 5.0 / Romance: 3.5 / Sensuous: 2.5 / Suspense: 4.0 // Laughter: 2 / Giggle: 2 // Tears: 9 / Teary: 2
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Setting: Belarus, Minsk
Era: Present Day (2014) {one year after Midnight Games}
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Midnight Pursuits, Elle Kennedy's fourth book in The Killer Instinct Series is another enjoyable, entertaining, exciting, suspenseful read. Kennedy has such a gifted voice as she tells her stories that she quickly draws readers into the lives of the characters walking across the pages of her books that forces one to keep reading her books rather than getting sleep or doing necessary chores. And while Midnight Pursuits is another such book, it was not, however, a favorite in this series.
While this book has, so far, been the most emotionally moving book in the series, it was the least favorite for one simple reason -- Ethan Hayes and Juliet "Jules" Mason just did not seem to fit together. Kennedy failed to be convincing when she delved deeper into the personality of the young looking, sweetheart of the band of extremely skilled, handsome, über-soldiers labeled Morgan's Mercenaries. Having read the previous books in the series, Kennedy has occasionally showcased Ethan in all his capable glory to remove any doubt that, as the rookie (his team nickname), Ethan is just as capable as his older, more experienced counterparts.
At the same time Kennedy has been slowly developing Ethan's personality to reveal that not only is he a superior warrior, but he is also a kind-hearted, gentlemen -- the kind of man romance readers (particularly, Regency Romance readers) fall for. There is just something about Ethan that melts your heart. The handsome 'boy next door' that served his country and is strong enough to protect the people he cares for.
Even as the story progressed and Kennedy began showing readers (and Juliet) that Ethan had some special bad boy vibes going on underneath his sweet farm boy face, it did not quite ring true. Look at the first well-written scene that revealed Ethan in all his bad boy glory when Juliet pushed him too far and he demonstrated that he was more than capable of producing toe-curling kisses.
Yes, Kennedy did an fantastic job of detailing the horror that was Juliet's childhood (an orphan who was forced to fend for herself because of brutal, uncaring foster parents like Deke and Maria Miller) in a manner that created a compassionate sadness for that poor little girl, but she failed to retain that compassion for Juliet, the adult, who just came across as too abrasive and too smart-mouthed. While it was easy to understand why Juliet was not willing to open herself up to more heartbreak because Kennedy wrote a really original and moving scene in which Juliet revealed that her boyfriend betrayed her on her seventeenth birthday, it was not lack of compassion for Juliet that make her unlikeable -- it was her hard exterior, her sassy smirks and her biting remarks that made her feel so inappropriate for Ethan.
Ethan's personality seemed to give off a peaceful presence while Juliet's personality brought forth a sense of chaos. Look at the scene in the beginning of the book featuring Ethan. He is staying at Trevor and Isabel's quiet chalet in Vermont, feeling a welcome respite from the people and noise that was constant at Morgan's compound in Costa Rica. Well if Ethan wants peace and quiet ever again, he is going to have to fall out of love with Juliet, because she seems to be all about high drama. At the end of this book, Ethan and Juliet are already engaged in connubial bickering before they enter the Jetstream to head home -- an obvious indication of what their future holds.
Kennedy does an exceptional job of creating realistic scenarios that places her characters in a position that enables them to spend time together falling in love and catching the bad guys. Kennedy removes Trevor Callaghan and his bride, Isabel Roma, (the hero and heroine of the previous book, Midnight Games) from the story by sending them to Maui for their honeymoon. And it just so happens that Isabel left her cell phone at home, the Vermont chalet where Ethan was staying. So when Juliet calls Isabel in a feverish stupor for help, Ethan is the one who takes the call.
Era: Present Day (2014) {one year after Midnight Games}
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Midnight Pursuits, Elle Kennedy's fourth book in The Killer Instinct Series is another enjoyable, entertaining, exciting, suspenseful read. Kennedy has such a gifted voice as she tells her stories that she quickly draws readers into the lives of the characters walking across the pages of her books that forces one to keep reading her books rather than getting sleep or doing necessary chores. And while Midnight Pursuits is another such book, it was not, however, a favorite in this series.
While this book has, so far, been the most emotionally moving book in the series, it was the least favorite for one simple reason -- Ethan Hayes and Juliet "Jules" Mason just did not seem to fit together. Kennedy failed to be convincing when she delved deeper into the personality of the young looking, sweetheart of the band of extremely skilled, handsome, über-soldiers labeled Morgan's Mercenaries. Having read the previous books in the series, Kennedy has occasionally showcased Ethan in all his capable glory to remove any doubt that, as the rookie (his team nickname), Ethan is just as capable as his older, more experienced counterparts.
At the same time Kennedy has been slowly developing Ethan's personality to reveal that not only is he a superior warrior, but he is also a kind-hearted, gentlemen -- the kind of man romance readers (particularly, Regency Romance readers) fall for. There is just something about Ethan that melts your heart. The handsome 'boy next door' that served his country and is strong enough to protect the people he cares for.
Even as the story progressed and Kennedy began showing readers (and Juliet) that Ethan had some special bad boy vibes going on underneath his sweet farm boy face, it did not quite ring true. Look at the first well-written scene that revealed Ethan in all his bad boy glory when Juliet pushed him too far and he demonstrated that he was more than capable of producing toe-curling kisses.
"I know what you see when you look at me. The boy next door, nice and sweet and harmless." Ethan's voice lowered to a deadly pitch. "You see me and you think I'm the guy who'll make love to you in a room full of flowers and candlelight. You picture sweet, sweet kisses and oh so tender caresses -- isn't that right, Juliet?" (Ethan, page 46)The scene got hot and heavy real quick and Juliet was all over Ethan and then Kennedy threw an entertaining twist into the story that, basically, became part of the teasing, romance-building conversations that were held between Ethan and Juliet from that point on. But, at the same time, the scene revealed that while Kennedy was trying to convince readers that Ethan was indeed a bad boy who preferred bold, abrasive, women like Juliet (rather than the sweet-natured girl he had been casually dating back in San Jose), he was really, all the way to the bone, a born and bred gentleman. (Even though when Ethan spouted this line you had to laugh as loud as Juliet.)
"Well, I could blame it on your staunch declaration about how you're never going to have sex with me, but we both know you were lying through your teeth. And anyway, I'm nothing if not honest, so . . ." He looked very, very smug now. "I'll have you know that I don't put out on the first date."Kennedy definitely tried to emphasize the bad boy side of Ethan and reveal Juliet's vulnerabilities to make the relationship that grew between them more viable.
Juliet stared at him for a moment.
Then she burst out laughing.
Shit, this was priceless. The man had just destroyed her with his kiss, turned her into a puddle of mush at his feet, and then he went and threw a gentleman curveball at her. (Juliet, page 47)
He knew she was being purposely crude in an attempt to scare him off, but it only succeeded in steeling his resolve. People thought he was Mr. Nice Guy, a man you could stomp all over if you felt like it, a man who'd end up with a sweet, docile bride who would pop out his rug rats and worship the ground he walked on.Nevertheless, for some reason Juliet "Jules" Mason did not come across as the ideal mate for Ethan. Part of that reason could be that I, personally, had an incredibly difficult time liking Juliet. Not that Kennedy didn't create a strong emotional tie between readers and Juliet -- because, oh my word, Kennedy had the tears flowing so copiously on Juliet's behalf that the words on the pages were swimming at times. But Juliet was just too confrontational, too combative, too determined to do things her way, and too much of an adrenaline junkie to "fit" Ethan's laid back, calm, soothing personality. It wasn't until long into the story (page 133) that Juliet finally did the one thing that make her likeable -- and an almost acceptable candidate as Ethan's mate. Juliet brought Ethan a cookie.
But he had no interest in sweet, passive women. He might've dated a few, but deep down he'd always been attracted to the strong ones. Women who spoke their mind, who stood their ground, who knew exactly what they wanted and went after it.
Women like Juliet.
Except he'd gotten more than he'd bargained for with her. She was strong, yes. Not to mention bold, resourceful, gutsy. But she was also far more vulnerable than he'd ever imagined. She had a hard exterior, hiding behind sassy smirks and biting remarks, but the more he got to know her, the more he realized what a pretense that was. (Ethan, page 94)
Yes, Kennedy did an fantastic job of detailing the horror that was Juliet's childhood (an orphan who was forced to fend for herself because of brutal, uncaring foster parents like Deke and Maria Miller) in a manner that created a compassionate sadness for that poor little girl, but she failed to retain that compassion for Juliet, the adult, who just came across as too abrasive and too smart-mouthed. While it was easy to understand why Juliet was not willing to open herself up to more heartbreak because Kennedy wrote a really original and moving scene in which Juliet revealed that her boyfriend betrayed her on her seventeenth birthday, it was not lack of compassion for Juliet that make her unlikeable -- it was her hard exterior, her sassy smirks and her biting remarks that made her feel so inappropriate for Ethan.
Ethan's personality seemed to give off a peaceful presence while Juliet's personality brought forth a sense of chaos. Look at the scene in the beginning of the book featuring Ethan. He is staying at Trevor and Isabel's quiet chalet in Vermont, feeling a welcome respite from the people and noise that was constant at Morgan's compound in Costa Rica. Well if Ethan wants peace and quiet ever again, he is going to have to fall out of love with Juliet, because she seems to be all about high drama. At the end of this book, Ethan and Juliet are already engaged in connubial bickering before they enter the Jetstream to head home -- an obvious indication of what their future holds.
Kennedy does an exceptional job of creating realistic scenarios that places her characters in a position that enables them to spend time together falling in love and catching the bad guys. Kennedy removes Trevor Callaghan and his bride, Isabel Roma, (the hero and heroine of the previous book, Midnight Games) from the story by sending them to Maui for their honeymoon. And it just so happens that Isabel left her cell phone at home, the Vermont chalet where Ethan was staying. So when Juliet calls Isabel in a feverish stupor for help, Ethan is the one who takes the call.
Because Ethan is one of the kindest, gentlest men on the planet, he would never think of interrupting Trevor and Isabel's well-deserved honeymoon by telling Isabel about Juliet's SOS phone call. Therefore, Ethan flies halfway across the globe to Belarus, Minsk to help the wisecracking, smart-mouthed assassin who pushed his buttons in the previous book. And the story takes off!
Juliet's foster brother, Henry Jonathan Albright, a compassionate do-gooder (just like Ethan), was working as a volunteer for the Red Cross as a medic in rural hospitals, had been shot and was in St. Anne's Hosptial in Minsk. Be warned, this is the part of the story that requires a box of tissues. When Juliet rushes to the side of the one person she loves above all others, she learns that Henry was collateral damage because he showed up at the house of his long-term girlfriend, Zoya Harkova, just after an assassin killed her.
Even if Henry had not told Juliet to avenge his death, Juliet would have gone after the person who shot her brother. Juliet called information broker, Sean Reilly to find out the name of the assassin by describing his modus operandi. Sean gave Juliet three addresses for Victor Grechko, the Russian assassin known as the Siberian Wolf. Although she is more than qualified to be one of Noelle's Assassins, apparently her emotional state and her lack of preparation resulted in Juliet getting shot when she invaded the Wolf's home to get the name of the man who hired him to kill Zoya Harkova.
Kennedy showed readers she pays attention to detail in her effort to make the story seem realistic by giving Val Markin a one-time appearance into the story. Ethan called Val, former Army medic, who still took the occasional contract job for Morgan, to go to the hotel to administer medical attention and antibiotics to Juliet before he arrived. Too many times, authors just ignore realistically tending to a character's wounds. Usually the injured is a ultra macho hero, who is so alpha that he performs feats of daring-do after minimum recovery from his amazingly-healing wound.
When Ethan arrived at the Grenadier Hotel, in Belarus, Minsk to tend to the infected wound in Juliet's side, that battle of wills between them began. Ethan, refused to leave Juliet until she revealed to him what happened. Juliet reveals how stubborn and determined she was to remain solo.
And, once again, Kennedy demonstrated that Ethan and Juliet had conflicting opinions about how they should proceed. Ethan was concerned about the safety of the remaining targets while Juliet could have cared less -- all she wanted was to go after the man who killed her brother.
Out of all the characters that Kennedy has introduced in this series, these three demand the most interest. D, however, is the one character that stands out the most. It is obvious from his parting conversation with Noelle that D believes he possesses no emotions.
Kennedy did not give readers as much page time with D and Noelle as she did in the previous book, but they were, again, given voices in this story. Right after D helped Noelle fulfill one of her assassination assignments (and engage in their usual emotionless sexcapade), Ethan and Juliet contacted them to protect (and watch) one of Orlov's targets, Yuri Kozlov, the younger brother of a Supreme Court judge vacationing in Spain.
Kennedy is doing a bang up job of ensuring the longevity of this series. Kennedy has judiciously been revealing bits and pieces about the personalities of D and Noelle as they walk through the pages of each and every book of this series. Even though they both deny it with their every word and deed, it is obvious that both D and Noelle possess broken hearts that they've encased in cold, impenetrable mile-wide ice.
When Jim Morgan learns that Noelle's cold-hearted assassin has involved Ethan, a young man that he feels very protective toward, in a dangerous personal mission, he, too, heads off to Spain to make sure that Noelle understands his displeasure and remains on edge. But to be quite honest, it is way easier to agree with D's take on why Jim hightailed it to Spain.
Kennedy did not spend quite as much time in this book detailing the interaction between the protagonists and the secondary characters as she does in previous books. Ethan asked the two buddies, Sullivan "Sully" Port and Liam MacGregor to come to Minsk to watch over the second target on Orlov's list, Alisa Baronova, the wife of some cabinet member who was friends with Orlov. Kennedy is really throwing in some astronomical hints that Sully and Liam were lovers. It's not that I have anything against gay men (since the photos of three such friends can be found hanging on my wall), but because I choose to read strictly one male, one female romance books, it was a bit disappointing to see Kennedy headed in that direction. Selfishly, I would love to read two more books in this series featuring both Sullivan and Liam with their own special heroine.
Ethan and Juliet decided to watch and protect the third target on Orlov's list, Anastacia "Stacie" Karin, the prime minister's daughter. In a unique twist, Kennedy decided to give Stacie a voice in this book, which turned out to work quite well to enhance the depth of the story and to send the story in the direction that it needed to take.
An example of Kennedy's exceptional skill at filling her books with exciting tension-filled, edge-of-your-seat scenes involved Stacie when Orlov instructed his subsequent hired assassin that it was time to kill Anastacia. The way Kennedy set up this story was inspired. First, she introduced three people that are part of Stacie's everyday life. Nina is the prime minister's kind, young assistant who consoled her because her father, Leo Karin, was not going to make it home in time for her sixteenth birthday. The next two characters were Stacie's bodyguards, Roman and Mikhail.
Kennedy had readers on edge and excited as Ethan and Juliet were following Stacie when her bodyguard picked her up in the black Lincoln after school and the car passed the turn to the Karin estate. And simply because of the way Kennedy had set this entire scene up, she inserted one of those surprising twists that makes her books such a joy to read. Naturally, Ethan and Juliet saved Stacie and took her to a safe house.
And while all this is taking place Ethan and Juliet have to squeeze in their hot, spicy, original lovemaking scenes. You have to give Kennedy some kudos for coming up with some original places for Ethan and Juliet to entertain readers with their love lives.
A cute, "fun down home" scene was also included in this book. This is just the kind of clever insert that highlights Kennedy's skill at making the characters leap from the pages with realism. During one of Ethan and Juliet's "getting to know you" conversations, Ethan told Juliet about his mom.
It was while they were at the safe house that Kennedy wrote the really sensitive scene between Juliet and Stacie, who was sad because this had to be the worst sixteenth birthday on the record books. And that was when Juliet shared with Stacie the horror that was her tenth, twelfth, fifteenth, and seventeenth birthdays. Another well-written scene that managed to make Juliet a bit more likeable.
The villain, Dmityr Orlov, was given a voice in this book. Kennedy, again, displayed her skill at developing intriguing secondary characters as she let readers into the mind of this greedy, power-hungry politician, who was determined to bring about the demise of PRF, the revolutionaries who were responsible for the death of his beloved son, Sergei. Orlov was so cold and calculating that he came up with the plan to kill off the loved ones of his fellow government officials so that they would understand the pain of loss and would be incited to support his drive to rid the country of The People's Revolutionary Front, a terrorist group that had been wreaking havoc on Belarus.
Kennedy even made the very minor, way in the background secondary character leap from the pages. When Kirill, the former KGB operative who worked exclusively for Orlov strode across of the pages of the book, he came across as one cold-blooded villain who would take great pleasure in inflicting death and pain.
Kennedy closed the book with a really exciting, action-packed, suspenseful, tense finish that showcased D and Juliet in all their warrior glory. And Juliet proved her love for Ethan. Just the kind of finale necessary to finish off a great Romantic Suspense novel.
In closing, Midnight Pursuits was another stellar addition to The Killer Instinct Series. This story boasts: {1} the hero, Ethan Hayes, a hunky, alpha, skilled warrior who was the epitome of a gentleman and had that 'boy next door' thing going on; {2} the heroine, Juliet "Jules" Mason, a beautiful intelligent, skilled assassin, an adrenaline junkie who hid her vulnerabilities beneath her smart mouth and bad girl vibes; {3} a marked sense of romance permeated the story as Ethan determinedly pursued Juliet; {4} some unique, potent, and heated lovemaking scenes; {5} some entertaining well-written action scenes that added excitement to the story; {6} an edge-of-your-seat degree of suspense kept one turning pages to see what was going to happen next; {7} a deep emotional connection between the readers and the characters resulted in many tears and some laughter; {8} the inclusion of a side story featuring the three most intriguing members of the cast in this series: {a} Derek "D" Pratt, {b} Jim Morgan, and {c} Noelle; {9} well-developed, attention-grabbing supporting characters: {a} Henry Jonathan Albright, {b} Sullivan "Sully" Port, {c} Liam MacGregor, {d} Anastacia "Stacie" Karin, and {e} Dmitry Orlov; and {10} necessary supporting characters thrown briefly into the story: {a} Val Markin, {b} Kirill, {c} Alexei Mironov, {d} Nina Berezovsky, {e} Roman, and {f} Mikhail. Midnight Pursuits can be listed as another must read in this outstanding series.
--Vonda M. Reid (Sunday, February 22, 2015 : 2:16 a.m.) [367]
Juliet's foster brother, Henry Jonathan Albright, a compassionate do-gooder (just like Ethan), was working as a volunteer for the Red Cross as a medic in rural hospitals, had been shot and was in St. Anne's Hosptial in Minsk. Be warned, this is the part of the story that requires a box of tissues. When Juliet rushes to the side of the one person she loves above all others, she learns that Henry was collateral damage because he showed up at the house of his long-term girlfriend, Zoya Harkova, just after an assassin killed her.
Even if Henry had not told Juliet to avenge his death, Juliet would have gone after the person who shot her brother. Juliet called information broker, Sean Reilly to find out the name of the assassin by describing his modus operandi. Sean gave Juliet three addresses for Victor Grechko, the Russian assassin known as the Siberian Wolf. Although she is more than qualified to be one of Noelle's Assassins, apparently her emotional state and her lack of preparation resulted in Juliet getting shot when she invaded the Wolf's home to get the name of the man who hired him to kill Zoya Harkova.
Kennedy showed readers she pays attention to detail in her effort to make the story seem realistic by giving Val Markin a one-time appearance into the story. Ethan called Val, former Army medic, who still took the occasional contract job for Morgan, to go to the hotel to administer medical attention and antibiotics to Juliet before he arrived. Too many times, authors just ignore realistically tending to a character's wounds. Usually the injured is a ultra macho hero, who is so alpha that he performs feats of daring-do after minimum recovery from his amazingly-healing wound.
When Ethan arrived at the Grenadier Hotel, in Belarus, Minsk to tend to the infected wound in Juliet's side, that battle of wills between them began. Ethan, refused to leave Juliet until she revealed to him what happened. Juliet reveals how stubborn and determined she was to remain solo.
Except now it was a matter of principle. She wasn't going to spill her guts just because he demanded it. Maybe that made her petty, but she hated taking orders from anyone. She followed Noelle's commands only because she trusted the woman implicitly and liked the arrangement they had, but there'd been times when even Noelle couldn't push her around. (Juliet, page 28)After Ethan's perseverance, Juliet revealed that not only did she manage to get the name of the man who hired the Wolf to assassinate Zoya, but she also got the list of twelve people the Wolf was to kill over time while on retainer for Dmitry Orlov, the minister of defense in Belarus. After turning over the names on the hit list to Paige (one of Juliet's fellow assassins and all-star computer gurus) and Sean Reilly to find out why these particular people had been targeted, it was learned that there were three people on the list still alive.
And, once again, Kennedy demonstrated that Ethan and Juliet had conflicting opinions about how they should proceed. Ethan was concerned about the safety of the remaining targets while Juliet could have cared less -- all she wanted was to go after the man who killed her brother.
What was it with Morgan's crew and their need to save the damn world? Some of her own colleagues were the same way, Abby and Isabel, in particular, but for the life of her, she didn't understand why they felt it was their duty to rescue every poor, victimized soul in their vicinity. (Juliet, page 33)After Juliet tells Ethan all about her childhood with Henry, she decides to join him in his efforts to protect the three targets on the list, particularly since one is a fifteen year old girl. Naturally, reinforcements are needed so Kennedy can include her sub-plot in the story featuring Noelle, Derek "D Pratt, and Jim Morgan.
"I know you're going after Orlov." He released an aggravated breath. "And it looks like I'll be going after Orlov's targets." (Ethan, page 34)
Out of all the characters that Kennedy has introduced in this series, these three demand the most interest. D, however, is the one character that stands out the most. It is obvious from his parting conversation with Noelle that D believes he possesses no emotions.
"About us." D ran his hand over the stubble dotting his jaw. "When I said we were the same, I was wrong. I'm an emotionless asshole, but you, baby, are not an emotionless bitch."How much longer is Kennedy going to make readers wait before she lets D know that he, too, has a heart and is worthy of being loved? Please, please, please end D's (and our) suffering and write his book next!
"I have to disagree with that."
"Disagree all you want, but we both know it's true. I used to think you were dead inside, just like me, but there's still some life in you." He shrugged. "If we keep [screwing], I'll end up killing that last shred of humanity you've got left." (D and Noelle, page 177)
Kennedy did not give readers as much page time with D and Noelle as she did in the previous book, but they were, again, given voices in this story. Right after D helped Noelle fulfill one of her assassination assignments (and engage in their usual emotionless sexcapade), Ethan and Juliet contacted them to protect (and watch) one of Orlov's targets, Yuri Kozlov, the younger brother of a Supreme Court judge vacationing in Spain.
Kennedy is doing a bang up job of ensuring the longevity of this series. Kennedy has judiciously been revealing bits and pieces about the personalities of D and Noelle as they walk through the pages of each and every book of this series. Even though they both deny it with their every word and deed, it is obvious that both D and Noelle possess broken hearts that they've encased in cold, impenetrable mile-wide ice.
When Jim Morgan learns that Noelle's cold-hearted assassin has involved Ethan, a young man that he feels very protective toward, in a dangerous personal mission, he, too, heads off to Spain to make sure that Noelle understands his displeasure and remains on edge. But to be quite honest, it is way easier to agree with D's take on why Jim hightailed it to Spain.
Normally D didn't give a shit about other people's pesky feelings. But he had a troubling suspicion that Morgan didn't want him to sleep with Noelle, despite his claim that he didn't give a shit what -- or who -- D did in his spare time. (D, page 150)Kennedy writes such incredible dialogue when Jim, D, and Noelle are conversing that the reader can almost feel the undercurrents seeping off the pages. Kennedy used the sub-plot in this book to end the ongoing affair between D and Noelle and to guarantee that each and every person who reads the final scene between Jim and Noelle (at the end of this book) will pick up the next book in the series, Midnight Action, to devour Jim and Noelle's story.
Kennedy did not spend quite as much time in this book detailing the interaction between the protagonists and the secondary characters as she does in previous books. Ethan asked the two buddies, Sullivan "Sully" Port and Liam MacGregor to come to Minsk to watch over the second target on Orlov's list, Alisa Baronova, the wife of some cabinet member who was friends with Orlov. Kennedy is really throwing in some astronomical hints that Sully and Liam were lovers. It's not that I have anything against gay men (since the photos of three such friends can be found hanging on my wall), but because I choose to read strictly one male, one female romance books, it was a bit disappointing to see Kennedy headed in that direction. Selfishly, I would love to read two more books in this series featuring both Sullivan and Liam with their own special heroine.
Ethan and Juliet decided to watch and protect the third target on Orlov's list, Anastacia "Stacie" Karin, the prime minister's daughter. In a unique twist, Kennedy decided to give Stacie a voice in this book, which turned out to work quite well to enhance the depth of the story and to send the story in the direction that it needed to take.
An example of Kennedy's exceptional skill at filling her books with exciting tension-filled, edge-of-your-seat scenes involved Stacie when Orlov instructed his subsequent hired assassin that it was time to kill Anastacia. The way Kennedy set up this story was inspired. First, she introduced three people that are part of Stacie's everyday life. Nina is the prime minister's kind, young assistant who consoled her because her father, Leo Karin, was not going to make it home in time for her sixteenth birthday. The next two characters were Stacie's bodyguards, Roman and Mikhail.
Kennedy had readers on edge and excited as Ethan and Juliet were following Stacie when her bodyguard picked her up in the black Lincoln after school and the car passed the turn to the Karin estate. And simply because of the way Kennedy had set this entire scene up, she inserted one of those surprising twists that makes her books such a joy to read. Naturally, Ethan and Juliet saved Stacie and took her to a safe house.
And while all this is taking place Ethan and Juliet have to squeeze in their hot, spicy, original lovemaking scenes. You have to give Kennedy some kudos for coming up with some original places for Ethan and Juliet to entertain readers with their love lives.
A cute, "fun down home" scene was also included in this book. This is just the kind of clever insert that highlights Kennedy's skill at making the characters leap from the pages with realism. During one of Ethan and Juliet's "getting to know you" conversations, Ethan told Juliet about his mom.
"She was the best mother in the world, but she wasn't always sweet." A laugh sprang to his lips. "This one time, she got into a fistfight at one of my hockey games."Sullivan and Liam had to abduct the target they were instructed to watch and bring her to the safe house where Ethan, Juliet, and Stacie were staying. Alisa Baronova was a shrill-voiced, complaining, whining woman who made Juliet re-think the wisdom of Ethan's intention to protect the targets. It was obvious that Sullivan and Liam wholeheartedly agreed with Juliet that if ever there was a woman who deserved to be done away with, it was Alisa.
Juliet burst out laughing. "Seriously? Why?"
"One of the other moms was trash-talking a kid, a player on the opposing team. She was being really nasty, booing the poor kid, yelling at the ref to toss him out of the game when he bodychecked her son." Ethan grinned. "My mother asked her very politely to stop, which led to the woman turning her nastiness on Mom, and, well, nobody gets away with talking to Debbie Hayes like that. All us kids were on the ice -- the game was stopped so the refs could deal with the fight in the bleachers -- and we were just standing there, gaping at them." (Ethan, page 132)
It was while they were at the safe house that Kennedy wrote the really sensitive scene between Juliet and Stacie, who was sad because this had to be the worst sixteenth birthday on the record books. And that was when Juliet shared with Stacie the horror that was her tenth, twelfth, fifteenth, and seventeenth birthdays. Another well-written scene that managed to make Juliet a bit more likeable.
The villain, Dmityr Orlov, was given a voice in this book. Kennedy, again, displayed her skill at developing intriguing secondary characters as she let readers into the mind of this greedy, power-hungry politician, who was determined to bring about the demise of PRF, the revolutionaries who were responsible for the death of his beloved son, Sergei. Orlov was so cold and calculating that he came up with the plan to kill off the loved ones of his fellow government officials so that they would understand the pain of loss and would be incited to support his drive to rid the country of The People's Revolutionary Front, a terrorist group that had been wreaking havoc on Belarus.
Kennedy even made the very minor, way in the background secondary character leap from the pages. When Kirill, the former KGB operative who worked exclusively for Orlov strode across of the pages of the book, he came across as one cold-blooded villain who would take great pleasure in inflicting death and pain.
Kennedy closed the book with a really exciting, action-packed, suspenseful, tense finish that showcased D and Juliet in all their warrior glory. And Juliet proved her love for Ethan. Just the kind of finale necessary to finish off a great Romantic Suspense novel.
In closing, Midnight Pursuits was another stellar addition to The Killer Instinct Series. This story boasts: {1} the hero, Ethan Hayes, a hunky, alpha, skilled warrior who was the epitome of a gentleman and had that 'boy next door' thing going on; {2} the heroine, Juliet "Jules" Mason, a beautiful intelligent, skilled assassin, an adrenaline junkie who hid her vulnerabilities beneath her smart mouth and bad girl vibes; {3} a marked sense of romance permeated the story as Ethan determinedly pursued Juliet; {4} some unique, potent, and heated lovemaking scenes; {5} some entertaining well-written action scenes that added excitement to the story; {6} an edge-of-your-seat degree of suspense kept one turning pages to see what was going to happen next; {7} a deep emotional connection between the readers and the characters resulted in many tears and some laughter; {8} the inclusion of a side story featuring the three most intriguing members of the cast in this series: {a} Derek "D" Pratt, {b} Jim Morgan, and {c} Noelle; {9} well-developed, attention-grabbing supporting characters: {a} Henry Jonathan Albright, {b} Sullivan "Sully" Port, {c} Liam MacGregor, {d} Anastacia "Stacie" Karin, and {e} Dmitry Orlov; and {10} necessary supporting characters thrown briefly into the story: {a} Val Markin, {b} Kirill, {c} Alexei Mironov, {d} Nina Berezovsky, {e} Roman, and {f} Mikhail. Midnight Pursuits can be listed as another must read in this outstanding series.
--Vonda M. Reid (Sunday, February 22, 2015 : 2:16 a.m.) [367]
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Books In The Series: "The Killer Instinct Series"
| # | Date | Title | Hero | Heroine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01. | 05-2012 | Midnight Rescue | Kane Woodland: Morgan's Mercenary: ex-SEAL | Abby Sinclair: Noelle's Chameleons: assassin |
| sub-plot: | Trevor Callaghan: Morgan's Mercenary: ex-Army | Isabel "Izzy" Roma: Noelle's Chameleons: master of disguise | ||
| 02. | 02-2013 | Midnight Alias | Luke Gustave Dubois: Morgan's Mercenary: ex-SEAL | Olivia Taylor: stripper, girl friend of mob boss |
| sub-plot: | Trevor Callaghan: Morgan's Mercenary: ex-Army | Isabel "Izzy" Roma: Noelle's Chameleons: master of disguise | ||
| 03. | 08-2013 | Midnight Games | Trevor Callaghan: Morgan's Mercenary: ex-Army | Isabel "Izzy" Roma: Noelle's Chameleons: master of disguise |
| sub-plot: | Derek "D" Pratt: Morgan's Mercenary: deadly | Noelle: Queen of Assassins | ||
| 04. | 04-2014 | Midnight Pursuits | Ethan Haynes: Morgan's Mercenary: ex-Marine | Juliet "Jules" Mason: Noelle's Chameleons: master thief |
| sub-plot: | Derek "D" Pratt: Morgan's Mercenary: deadly | Noelle: Queen of Assassins | ||
| 4.5 | 10-2014 | After Midnight | Kane Woodland: Morgan's Mercenary: ex-SEAL | Abby Sinclair: Noelle's Chameleons: assassin |
| 05. | 11-2014 | Midnight Action | Jim Morgan: Morgan's Mercenary: leader: ex-Ranger | Noelle: Queen of Assassins |
| 06. | 06-2015 | Midnight Captive | Sean Reilly: reckless, rule-breaking Irishman | Bailey Jones: Noelle's Chameleons: former CIA Agent |
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Characters Found In "Midnight Pursuits"
| Character | Description |
|---|---|
| Ethan Hayes | [Hero] spent most of his time with hardened mercenaries; nickname: rookie (1) lived with his fellow mercenaries for past 3 years; (2) worked for Jim Morgan; had friends he'd lay down his life for; a shit ton of money in the bank; a roof over his head; food on the table; feeling out of sorts lately; casually seeing a cute tour guide; 25-y-o (2) good-looking; classically handsome features, straight nose, defined cheekbones, perfectly shaped mouth; light brown hair, cut short, hazel, deeply intelligent eyes (23) a rookie on Morgan's mercenary team; a former Marine; way too polite for his own good (24) woodsy, masculine scent (25) a gentleman; broad chest; muscular legs; taut ass; spectacular body (26) chest was rock hard and rippling with power; a soldier; a warrior (28) a winter person; liked the snow (29) cute when he grinned; boyish; 6 years younger than Juliet; bright-eyed and bushy-tailed (30) blessed with two loving parents for eighteen years of his life; losing them had been a blow he wasn't sure he'd ever recovered from (36) sarcastic; überpolite personality and unassuming demeanor (40) hard body, like a brick wall, solid, unyielding (42) taller than Juliet (42) hazel eyes gleamed with raw heat (46) grew up in small town north of Kansas City, Missouri; gentlemanly; great manners; too nice for your own good; small towner boy (72) patient; radiating strength and compassion but also a quiet intensity; calm fortitude; a soldier; a ruthless and dangerous side (82) people thought he was Mr. Nice Guy, a man you could stomp all over if you felt like it (94) favorite M40 sniper rifle, a memento from his days in the corps (98) tight six-pack; big, hard, masculine body (120) handsome features; trim hips; short hair (121) wasn't the kind of man you walked away from; one of the good ones; kind of man you pledged your love and devotion to (123) |
| Juliet "Jules" Mason | [Heroine] dark hair and chocolate brown eyes; tall, willowy body; high, perky breasts; sassy little smile, great ass, endless legs; gorgeous woman (3) 2 years older than Henry; they were two kids sleeping on a ratty old couch because their foster mother had been too much of a bitch to give up the spare room she'd used as an office; protected Henry while in foster home (6) had made a lot of enemies; an invisible assassin; perfected the art of silence; able to move like a ghost; a wanted thief, turned contract killer; considered reckless and impulsive, but was more cautious than was given credit for; every move she made was a calculated one, even those that seemed spontaneous (7) spoke fluent Russian (8) olive skin tone; still wanted in Europe (9) shut off her emotions long ago; had loved deeply, just once (10) 31-y-o; never cried; a lost little orphan who hadn't known a shred of kindness until she'd met the equally young and equally lost Henry Albright (14) wildcat; a warrior; tough as nails (20) willowy body (21) smirking, sassy smart-ass; tiny mole above her lush top lip (22) gorgeous face and delectable figure; men underestimated her (23) petty; hated taking orders from anyone; followed Noelle's commands only because she trusted the woman implicitly and liked the arrangement they had; there'd been times when even Noelle couldn't push her around (28) never asked for help; even loath to contact Noelle when shit went south, only doing so as a last resort (30) had always felt older than her years; at six, was already preparing meals for herself and her foster siblings; at ten, was shopping for groceries, at twelve, was working illegally at a dry-cleaning place to pay for her foster dad's booze; felt ancient at 31-y-o; hardened; embittered (30) didn't open up to anyone; hid behind smirking, I-don't-give-a-shit curtain; Juliet 12 when she and Henry were placed with Miller's (36) ran away from Deke when 15-y-o, lived on streets (37) doesn't trust men; has no intention of ever being betrayed by a man one again (41) 5'9" (42) needed action, excitement, stimulation; spoke 6 languages (44) full breasts; cluster of nautical stars tattooed on her upper arms; tattoos were tiny, done only in black ink, and they gave her a sexy, badass vibe that at the same time managed to look feminine (47) smelled like roses and honey (49) worked alone so she was always the one in control, the one who decided the outcome of any given situation (58) alpha warriors turned her on (59) long, dark hair; at 15, learned to boost cars, sent to juvie (62) sharp intelligence; fearlessness; smoking-hot body (63) adrenaline junkie (64) no-care-in-the-world attitude; so full of life, so vibrant and exciting (70) thick brown hair (71) dad OD'd when she was 2-y-o; mom OD'd two years later (72) gorgeous chocolate brown eyes (73) strong; bold; resourceful; gutsy; far more vulnerable than Ethan ever imagined; had a hard exterior, hiding behind sassy smirks and biting remarks (94) thick, shiny, long, dark hair; beautiful (109) at 16, wily and scrappy and considered herself the toughest girl in Chicago (113) flat belly and surprisingly defined abdominal muscles (130) thoughtful (133) |
| . . . | . . . |
| Derek "D" Pratt | [Sub-Plot Hero] one of Ethan's teammates; lived at Costa Rica compound (2) off rotation; surly mercenary (4) big warrior body; tanned skin, muscles that may as well have been chiseled out of marble; tattooed arms (53) never beat around the bush when it came to his needs; wiry hairs on his broad chest; startlingly handsome features; black eyes (54) background meant he had connections; gravelly voice (55) brooding, tattooed mercenary with savage black eyes and the personality of a thornbush; a wildcard (58) worked solo for most of his career; wasn't entirely sure why he'd decided to join Morgan's crew; built for action; wired for death and violence; self-imposed retirement from the agency had been crucial for his survival, but he hadn't been ready to lie down and die yet; heard that super-soldier Jim Morgan was putting together a mercenary team, he'd been intrigued, offered his services; somehow he'd begun considering it his duty to watch his teammates' asses and keep them from getting themselves killed (79) too volatile; lost the privilege of being carefree and ignorant and blessedly optimistic when he was 8-y-o; indulged in death and violence over the subsequent years ensured that he'd never get those feelings back (80) |
| Jim Morgan | [Sub-Plot Hero] [Book 5 / Midnight Action] Ethan's boss; relocated his men to a sprawling estate in Costa Rica; insisted on mandatory vacation time for members of team; a deadly super-soldier and one of the most honorable men Ethan had ever met (2) sexy as sin (45) runs a tight ship (55) man of honor; reminded Ethan of his dat; a bastard sometimes (72) turned every female head when he entered the room; marched through the place as if he owned it, dark blue eyes observing, then dismissing each admiring look aimed in his direction; always had that effect on women; imposing presence, the ripples of sheer danger that rolled off him, the confidence of his long stride (116) defined forearms; cobalt blue eyes (123) smoked Marlboros (124) spicy scent (125) |
| Noelle | [Sub-Plot Heroine] [Book 5 / Midnight Action] gave away house in Vermont without batting an eye; blond assassin; made Ethan nervous; Queen of Assassins (1) stunning blonde turned every head in the room (50) golden hair cascaded down her back in waves; face was flawless, boasting just enough makeup to emphasize her high cheekbones, wide-set blue eyes, and naturally red lips; crimson dress molded to her body like a glove, showing off her tucked-in waist, full breasts, and perfectly shaped ass; black stilettos added four inches to her petite frame and making her tanned, shapely legs appear endless; a straight-whiskey girl; ample cleavage (51) blue eyes (53) keeps tabs on everyone (55) had spent years tracking down and recruiting the perfect operatives to make up her deadly team; chosen only women who met a specific criteria, no ties, no loyalties, and, if possible, no consciences (56) liked calling the shots (59) has contacts and informants in every corner of the world (90) 'hundreds of contract killers out there, but none who inspire the same level of terror in people that she does' (95) terrifying; smart; resourceful; her services are in high demand (96) |
| . . . | . . . |
| Henry Jonathan Albright | [One Appearance] only person Juliet knew in Belarus; genius IQ; Juliet's brother (5) brought in several hours ago with four gunshot wounds to the abdomen (6) had been Juliet's rock when they were growing up, her only friend, her one confidante; two years younger than Juliet; he'd always felt decades older, even when they were two kids sleeping on a ratty old couch because their foster mother had been too much of a bitch to give up the spare room she'd used as an office; protected each other back then; too damn sweet and kindhearted, and if it weren't for Juliet, he probably wouldn't have survived a day in that foster home; not related by blood to Juliet (6) 6-mo-a was working for the Red Cross, still volunteering as a medic in rural hospitals, still madly in love with his longtime girlfriend (7) normally thick brown hair was oily and stringy, plastered to a forehead that was as pale as the rest of his face; wire-rimmed glasses were gone; Juliet' nerdy little brother; brown eyes (8) too good; too naive; so damn ignorant to the evil that pervaded the world; in spite of his childhood, believed everyone possessed some shred of good, making it his mission in life to help others; English and Scottish heritage gave him a lily-white complexion that burned crimson in the summer (9) worshipped the ground Zoya walked on (10) stubborn to the core (13) a scrawny kid; really shy (36) a great kid; so smart and compassionate; tried so hard to treat everyone with kindness and respect; ended up volunteering with the Red Cross instead of going to college, and eventually he landed a permanent job with them; trained as a counselor and medic; traveled to needy areas of the world, working at hospitals and clinics and helping anyone he could; a champion for every downtrodden human on the planet (37) |
| Hector Alvarez | [One Appearance] wore an Armani suit that fit his toned physique to a T, an expensive Cartier watch, and a diamond pinkie ring; the bling didn't back up his denials about taking bribes from every shady criminal on the island; with men like him at the reins, it was no wonder that Puerto Rico was quickly becoming the United States' most politically corrupt jurisdiction (52) senator (53) |
| Alisa Baronova | [Secondary Character] on Orlov's hit list; not yet assassinated; the wife of some cabinet member who's friends with Orlov (49) a handful' forties, dressed in a skintight purple dress with a neckline that was quite low for a woman her age; breasts were enormous and out of proportion with her reedy-thin frame, a sign that they probably weren't natural; hair was a shade of platinum blond that definitely didn't occur in nature; artificial exterior; razor-sharp red fingernails and orange-tinged skin that spoke of too many visits to the tanning salon (89) spoke English with a thick European accent (92) driving them all nuts with her shrill voice and constant complaints; all she did was whine (126) |
| Erik Baronova | [No Appearance] Alisa Baronova's husband (125) |
| Irina Bartney | [No Appearance] on Orlov's hit list; killed in car bombing in May; connected to member of the House of Representatives; blamed on PRF (48) |
| President Belikov | [No Appearance] (of Belarus, Minsk) had a grand and luxurious office (38) |
| Nina Berezovsky | [Brief Appearance] elegant blond woman; kind blue eyes (66) one of prime minister's assistants; a lot nicer than previous assistants; 27-y-o; younger than the other assistants; incredibly sweet and thoughtful; the one who picked out all gifts Anastacia's father gave her each time he disappointed her (67) |
| Billy | [No Appearance] Juliet met him at 16, living on the streets; he was 21, working as a booster for one of the big chop shop owners in Chicago; Juliet fell head over heels for him; larger than life; fun; exciting; sexy; Juliet was young and stupid and considered him her knight in shining armor; Juliet moved in with him two weeks after they met was convinced they'd get married one day and live happily ever after; they kept boosting cars, made lots of money; very mean; he wanted to control Juliet; got jealous every time Juliet talked to another guy; he monitored where Juliet went; picked out the clothes Juliet wore; control went on for about a year (113) |
| Trevor "Trev" Callaghan | [No Appearance] [Book 3 / Midnight Games] lived in chalet in Vermont; married to Isabel; Ethan's teammate; on honeymoon (1) drove Range Rover (3) |
| Pavel Drygin | [No Appearance] on Orlov's hit list; killed in car bombing in May; connected to member of the House of Representatives; blamed on PRF (48) |
| Luke Dubois | [No Appearance] [Book 2 / Midnight Alias] got bitten by viper on Bolivia extraction job; former SEAL was far too cocky for his own good (116) a dark-haired man with laughing brown eyes; cocky Cajun; engaged (151) |
| Colonel General Durov | [No Appearance] had abandoned the investigation into the bombing that killed Sergei Olvo months ago, calling it a dead end; head of the city's militsiya (39) |
| Galina | [One Appearance] Dmitry Orlov's secretary (68) |
| Mr. Ivan Gorbenko | [Brief Appearances] tall, heavyset man in a crisp blue suit, with salt-and-pepper hair combed to perfection and harsh, arrogant features; rudely bumped into Juliet when entering bar; called her sugar tits (44) drove silver Porsche (60) |
| Victor Grechko / Siberian Wolf | [No Appearance] the Russian assassin who's eluded Russian law enforcement, Interpol, and multiple federal agencies for the past five years; Russian psychopath; a mass murderer (16) 3 known addresses: {1} Russia, way up north; {2} Belarus, about three hours east of the capital, close to the Russian border; {3} Budapest, an apartment in the west end of the city (17) empty black eyes (18) been on standby for Orlov this past year (33) |
| Oleg Harkova | [One Appearance] a lower-level official in the Ministry of Justice; Zoya's father; hardly a political powerhouse, just an insignificant cog in the government machine (15) will be inconsolable; 'useless moron worshipped his daughter' (39) vacant gray eyes (57) had not reached the top of his ladder; stalled halfway, or maybe he'd simply decided to stop climbing; lack of ambition and negotiating with terrorists disgusted Orlov (58) |
| Zoya Harkova | [No Appearance] Henry's fiancée; had been shot by an unknown intruder (9) only person Henry loved other than Juliet; a good woman (13) didn't have any enemies; Juliet had her investigated once Henry began dating her; a schoolteacher; a tad timid; way too sweet; perfect for the kindhearted Henry; happened to be the daughter of a lower-level official in the Ministry of Justice (15). Her father was hardly a political powerhouse, Juliet recalled, just an insignificant cog in the government machine, but maybe his position in the ministry was the reason the man's daughter had been targeted. Or at least it was the only one Juliet could think of, and she made a mental note to get Paige to dig into his background ASAP. |
| Debbie Hayes | [No Appearance] Ethan's mom; taught second grade; enjoyed cooking and baking; got into a fistfight at one of my hockey games (132) |
| __ Hayes | [No Appearance] Ethan's father; good, hardworking; patriotic as hell too; career navy; disappointed that Ethan wanted to go to to med school rather than enlist (73) |
| Irina | [One Appearance] one of Anastacia's Karin's friends (68) |
| Bailey [Jones] | [No Appearance] [Book 6 / Midnight Captive] one of Noelle's assassins; capable of killing without remorse and staying focused on the objective (56) one of Noelle's chameleons; stays undercover for way longer than other operatives; spent more than a year on her last job (129) |
| Joseph | [No Appearance] Anastacia Karin's former bodyguard; replaced by Roman (67) Anastacia missed Joseph and his silly jokes; had always known how to cheer Anastacia when she was feeling down (68) |
| Alexandra Karin | [No Appearance] Anastacia's mother; had died when Stacie was 5-y-o; warm brown eyes; sang lullabies; tender smiles (67) |
| Anastacia "Stacie" Karin | [pov] [Secondary Character] the prime minister's daughter; only fifteen years old (49) lives with father; not home schooled; attends a super wealthy private school not far from the house (64) prettier in person than in the picture Paige had e-mailed; a slender waif of a girl with shoulder-length brown hair, dark green eyes, and an air of sadness about her (74) green eyes (81) a sweet kid; tough as nails (152) |
| Leo Karin | [No Appearance] prime minister (49) Anastacia's father (83) |
| Kirill | [Secondary Character] bulky, fair-haired man; standard expressionless look; former KGB operative who now worked exclusively for Orlov under the guise of head security officer; did far more than protect his boss and oversee the Presidential Security Service guards that had been assigned to Orlov; handled all of his boss's unofficial business; had contributed greatly to Orlov's rise to power (38) blond; bulky; vacant expression (147) barrel-chested man in green fatigues (162) |
| Yuri Kozlov | [Rare Appearances] on Orlov's hit list; not yet assassinated; the younger brother of a Supreme Court judge (49) vacationing in Spain at the moment (50) {D and Noelle following him around Spain} |
| Liam MacGregor | [Secondary Character] moving to the compound (2) sexy; cocky; deadly (59) Boston accent; best friends with Sully; bickered like an old married couple (70) thick black hair, his piercing blue eyes; stood well over six feet; muscular physique; wisecracker (88) looked like a male model (92) |
| Marisova | [No Appearance] from Justice (83) |
| Val Markin | [Brief Appearance] Ethan sent him to help Juliet (19) a wife and kid at home; had to drive to Minsk in the middle of the night (20) as deadly as they came; a former soldier and medic in the army who'd been discharged the prior year due to a shoulder injury; wasn't out of the game completely; still took on the occasional contract job for Morgan; only person Ethan knew in Belarus (20) fair-haired man; his large, graceful hands (26) |
| Marta | [No Appearance] Karin housekeeper (111) |
| Holden McCall | [No Appearance] had lost his wife in the attack on their compound last year, and he'd been AWOL ever since; D didn't expect to ever see the man again, which both annoyed and confused him; people died all the time -- he couldn't imagine ever experiencing grief so powerful that he'd abandon his teammates because of it (116) |
| Mikhail | [Brief Appearance] one of Anastacia Karin's bodyguards (66) |
| Deke Miller | [No Appearance] burned Henry's arm with the cigarette when in foster care (14) pure filth; shower mildew; toilet-bowl grime; soiled mattresses; all the unwanted filth people try to scrub out of their lives; beatings started off small, just a spanking here and there, the occasional slap when we were quote-unquote bad; liked to toy with Henry, shoved him around a lot, taunted him because he was too skinny; eventually got meaner, doling out fair share of bruises, cuts, cigarette burns, but never in places that were visible to the teachers or caseworkers (36) told caseworkers could only keep Juliet, not Henry (37) |
| Maria Miller | [No Appearance] pure filth; shower mildew; toilet-bowl grime; soiled mattresses; all the unwanted filth people try to scrub out of their lives; beatings started off small, just a spanking here and there, the occasional slap when we were quote-unquote bad; eventually got meaner, doling out fair share of bruises, cuts, cigarette burns, but never in places that were visible to the teachers or caseworkers (36) ran out on Deke; took off with some loser (37) |
| Alexei Mironov | [One Appearance] tied to the PRF (57) leader of PRF; young; charismatic; picking up followers like crazy (89) early thirties; tall man with sharp brown eyes and surprisingly aristocratic features; wore black jeans and a turtleneck that outlined his muscular chest and broad shoulders; carried an HK pistol with a suppressor attached to the muzzle; pretty, with dignified features, he could easily pass for a Slavic prince (101) |
| Grigory Novik | [No Appearance] on Orlov's hit list; killed in car bombing in May; connected to member of the House of Representatives; blamed on PRF (48) |
| Diana Orlov | [No Appearance] Dmitry Orlov's wife; devote member of Eastern Orthodox church; died of cancer (57) |
| Dmitry Orlov | [pov] [Major Secondary Character] the name Grechko gave Juliet as the man who ordered the hit on Zoya (19) corrupt politician; made Juliet's top ten Don't Mess With list; minister of defense in Belarus; a smooth, attractive man on the surface with the reputation of a cold-hearted psycho beneath it; whenever someone in the government opposed him, that person mysteriously disappeared or wound up dead in a Dumpster; had the head of the police force in his pocket; had a tendency to use heavy-handed tactics to get his way, but he'd become drastically more violent since he'd lost his son in a terrorist attack that had dominated every global media outlet; antiterrorist stance had only strengthened since then, and he now went to any lengths to eliminate threats to his country or his position of power, blackmail, murder, rape, torture -- the man had no qualms about using whatever method was available in order to achieve his goals; violent maniac (32) cold sterile office in the House of Government; tailored double-breasted suit jacket; clean-shaven jaw (38) hated anything that disrupted his objective (40) considered the main opposition to President Belikov; always taken a stance about using military action to deal with the rebels (49) during his political climb, he'd attached himself to anyone who could help his ascension; formed alliances, surrounding himself with people who had power, or those he believed would eventually get it (58) thirst for power (146) good looks; tall; fit, boasting black hair with distinguished streaks of gray, sharp bone structure, and dark, intelligent eyes; wore a tailored gray suit and shiny black loafers (147) |
| Sergei Orlov | [No Appearance] Dmitry's son; Dmitry's pride and joy; a good boy, destined for greatness; promising future stolen from him (39) killed in a terrorist attack that had dominated every global media outlet (32) an unfortunate casualty in a random street bombing; rebels didn't target him directly (49) only ten years old and already ahead of his class, with more intelligence and charm than Oleg Harkov would ever possess in his sorry life (58) |
| Paige | [No Appearance] Juliet's colleague; tech skills; Juliet asked her to figure out what happened to Henry (9) tech-savvy; capable of conducting the kind of deep background searches teams required (35) crisp British accent (43) lived in an isolated cottage in Northern England (44) capable of killing without remorse and staying focused on the objective (56) |
| Sasha Petrova | [Brief Appearance] surgical nurse at St. Anne's Hospital in Minsk; called Juliet (5) petite brunette; younger than Juliet had expected; a gentle demeanor and big blue eyes that swam with compassion (8) |
| Sullivan "Sully" Port | [Secondary Character] moving to the compound (2) sexy; cocky; deadly; best friends with Liam; bickered like an old married couple (59) stood well over six feet; muscular physique; wisecracker (88) light gray eyes (95) possessed a potent brand of sexuality that oozed out of him in spades, an anything-goes vibe; he swung both ways (123) tall blond man (141) Australian (153) |
| Oliver "Ollie" Reilly | [No Appearance] Sean's twin brother; in the Bahamas (15) he and Sean make it their business to know anyone who might be of interest to them or their clients; "We maintain a database of all the active and inactive contract killers operating on the globe." (16) |
| Sean Reilly | [No Appearance] [Book 6 / Midnight Captive] talent for producing information from thin air far too much to risk losing such a crucial contact by sleeping with him; in Michigan; Ollie's twin brother (15) Irishman; he and Ollie make it their business to know anyone who might be of interest to them or their clients; "We maintain a database of all the active and inactive contract killers operating on the globe." (16) |
| Isabel "Izzy" "Iz" Roma | [No Appearance] [Book 3 / Midnight Games] lived in chalet in Vermont; married to Trevor; Ethan met 2-y-a; endless compassion; on honeymoon (1) blond chameleon (23) was happy for the first time in her life, married to a man who adored her, a man who'd been able to look past her shitty background and issues, a man who saw her for who she truly was (25) Morgan called on her whenever he needed someone to do undercover work for him (30) had always been too compassionate for her own good; Noelle had never intended for the woman to be a killer; unmatched talent for becoming a different person was what Noelle had wanted from her (56) a master of disguise; could transform into a completely different person (74) |
| Roman | [Brief Appearance] one of Anastacia Karin's bodyguards (66) intense blue eyes; had been guarding Anastacia for only six months (67) polite; nice; Anastacia uncomfortable around him (68) |
| Abby Sinclair | [Brief Appearance] [Book 1 / Midnight Rescue] [Novella 4.5 / After Midnight] one of Ethan's teammates; lived at Costa Rica compound (2) the most tight-lipped person Juliet had ever met, after Noelle; former assassin had mellowed since falling in love and marrying Kane (45) always had a fondness for knives (96) red hair streaming out from beneath a black beret (151) |
| Olivia "Liv" Taylor | [No Appearance] [Book 2 / Midnight Alias] Luke Dubois's fiancée (151) |
| General Vasiliev | [No Appearance] meeting with Dmitry Orlov to discuss the potential funding for an elite Special Forces unit within the military's Special Operations arm (68) |
| Dr. Vlacic | [One Appearance] doctor tending to Henry Albright; asked nurse Petrova to contact Henry's next of kin (6) Russian; short, stocky man in green scrubs; harsh features that no one could ever deem attractive; gentle voice (12) |
| Kane Woodland | [Brief Appearance] [Book 1 / Midnight Rescue] [Novella 4.5 / After Midnight] one of Ethan's teammates; lived at Costa Rica compound (2) inserted himself into Abby's mission a couple of years ago (30) Abby's husband; sandy blond hair (151) |
Locations, Organizations Found In "Midnight Pursuits"
| Location / Organization | Description |
|---|---|
| Belarus, Minsk | Book Setting: where Grenadier Hotel was located (4) where St. Anne's Hospital was located (5) |
| Black Swan | where Ethan and Juliet to meet Mironov; bar owned by one of Mironov's men (95) shit hole; situated between two pawnshops, the bar boasted a tinted front window, a neon sign with half the letters burned out, and a broken rain gutter that was causing a fountain of wet slush to pour over the entrance. There were only two points of entry: a door with chipped paint that opened onto the unkempt sidewalk, and a metal delivery door at the rear, which spilled onto a narrow alley that reeked of beer, garbage, and urine. (98) |
| Bolivia | where Abby and Kane were heading up an extraction (4) |
| Chicago | where Juliet grew up (113) |
| Colorado | Ethan contacted a colleague before leaving Colorado (26) {believe this is an error / should be Vermont} |
| Costa Rica | Jim Morgan had relocated his men to a sprawling estate in Costa Rica, where the air was forever humid and the wildlife couldn't seem to shut up; jungle bordered one side of the new compound (2) |
| The Crow's Nest | where Orlov told Kirill to bring the leader of the team that interrupted his plans (136) Orlov's private bunkers; stood isolated several miles south of the Russian border; lightly guarded and off the books in order to preserve a high level of secrecy (145) |
| Evangeline | Stacie thought this was Sullivan's girlfriend (109) |
| Grenadier Hotel | where Juliet was when called Isabel for help (4) a modest downtown establishment with the kind of sloppy security (14) |
| Kansas City, Missouri | Ethan grew up in small town north of Kansas City (72) |
| Las Vegas | where Juliet was when got call about Henry being shot (5) |
| Maui, Hawaii | where Trevor and Isabel were going for their honeymoon (1) |
| Mexico | where Morgan's Mercenaries had previously been based until compound had been destroyed by a private hit squad last year (2) |
| Michigan | where Sean Reilly was when Juliet called him for information on Zoya's father (15) |
| Miller Foster Home | Juliet 12 when she and Henry were placed with Miller's (36) |
| Monte Carlo | where Juliet met Ethan when she'd joined forces with him and his team to track down his missing boss (23) |
| Moscow | where the prime minister was so tied up with work that he couldn't be home for his daughter's birthday (66) |
| Nikolov Academy | where Anastacia Karin attended school (67) |
| Parque del Retiro | in Madrid, D and Noelle were following Yuri Kozlov (78) |
| PRF | The People's Revolutionary Front was a terrorist group that had been wreaking havoc on Belarus for several years now; they were staunchly opposed to the current government and disgusted with the corruption that ran rampant among its officials; when the PRF first cropped up years ago, they'd taken a strictly nonviolent approach, but they'd drastically changed their MO since then (48) |
| San Jose | where the girl Ethan had been seeing was from (41) |
| San Juan | where Noelle was working an assignment (50) |
| St. Anne's Hospital | in Minsk; where Henry Albright was taken after he was shot (5) |
| Vermont | Trevor and Izzy's home; chalet-style house; isolated house and surrounding area were idyllic; chalet was located in the middle of nowhere, directly on the top of a rocky hill surrounded by dense trees and a creek (1) |
| Vitebsk | safe house was a farmhouse in tiny village in the Vitebsk region of Belarus (84) |
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"Midnight Pursuits" Quotations
| 17 | Nobody should die alone. (Juliet) |
| 24 | Those hazel eyes darkened. "I'm not scared of you. I just happen to have a healthy respect for your skills." (Ethan) |
| 28 | Except now it was a matter of principle. She wasn't going to spill her guts just because he demanded it. Maybe that made her petty, but she hated taking orders from anyone. She followed Noelle's commands only because she trusted the woman implicitly and liked the arrangement they had, but there'd been times when even Noelle couldn't push her around. (Juliet) |
| 30 | Well, she didn't want to owe any favors, and she certainly didn't trust anyone to look out for her. She'd been taking care of herself since she was five years old. Whatever obstacles she encountered, she was perfectly capable of facing them alone. She would be the one to avenge her brother. She owed him that. (Juliet) |
| 30 | And at thirty-one, she felt ancient. Far too hardened and embittered for someone as bright-eyed and bushy-tailed as Ethan Hayes. (Juliet) |
| 33 | What was it with Morgan's crew and their need to save the damn world? (Juliet) |
| 46 | "I know what you see when you look at me. The boy next door, nice and sweet and harmless." Ethan's voice lowered to a deadly pitch. "You see me and you think I'm the guy who'll make love to you in a room full of flowers and candlelight. You picture sweet, sweet kisses and oh so tender caresses -- isn't that right, Juliet?" (Ethan) |
| 47 | "Well, I could blame it on your staunch declaration about how you're never going to have sex with me, but we both know you were lying through your teeth. And anyway, I'm nothing if not honest, so . . ." He looked very, very smug now. "I'll have you know that I don't put out on the first date." (Ethan) |
| 47 | The grin he shot her melted her insides. "I subscribe to baseball rules, of course. First, second, third, and then I screw your brains out." (Ethan) |
| 93 | "Uh-huh. Right. You only care when it benefits you. You're selfish, motivated by self-preservation, and totally uninterested in forming attachments. Isn't that right?" (Ethan) |
| 117 | Palpable waves of hostility moved between them. Two pairs of blue eyes -- one dark as midnight, one pale as ice -- narrowed with bitter acrimony and deep malice and years of bad blood. (D) |
| 132 | He gritted his teeth, impatience coursing through him as he waited for her to return. It was always one step forward, two steps back with the woman, and he was getting damn tired of it. (Ethan) |
| 151 | "Did you come here to discuss your teammate's sex life or to rescue his ass before Dmitry Orlov kills him?" "Both," they said in unison. (Juliet, Ethan, and Luke) |
| 154 | "I know everything about that man! I know that he's not as weak and helpless as you all seem to think. I know that he'd lay down his life for any one of you. I know that the reason he got captured was because he cared enough to try to save a woman who certainly didn't deserve it. I know that he's kind and sweet and at the same time deadly as hell. I know that he's got a bossy alpha side that he never lets anyone see. I know that he has this dry sense of humor that he rarely ever shows. I know -- " (Juliet) |
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"Elle Kennedy -- Midnight Pursuits" Review and Information Links
| Rated | Posted | Site | Notes, Comments, Etc. |
|---|---|---|---|
| -- | -- | Elle Kennedy's Website | Author |
| -- | -- | Elle Kennedy's Facebook | Author |
| -- | -- | Elle Kennedy's Twitter | Author |
| . . . | . . . | . . . | . . . |
| -- | -- | Fantastic Fiction | List of Elle Kennedy' Books |
| -- | -- | Fict Fact | List of Books In The Killer Instincts Series |
| -- | -- | Fiction DB | List of Elle Kennedy' Books |
| . . . | . . . | . . . | . . . |
| 5.00 | 04-04-2014 | Adria's Romance Reviews | --Adria // excellent review / great details about Ethan and Juliet {a25gr} |
| 4.58 average | {38 ratings} | Amazon | as of: February 22, 2015 |
| 4.00 average | {13 ratings} | Barnes & Noble | as of: February 22, 2015 |
| -- | 02-07-2013 | Book Binge | --Holly // Arthur Interview {short, but interesting} |
| 3.50 | 04-04-2014 | Books n Kisses | --Kimberly // poor review {a34pr} |
| 5.00 | 04-04-2014 | Cindy's Reviews | --Cindy // not much detail / simplistic {a39gr} |
| 4.00 | 05-30-2014 | Dark Faerie Tales | --Kristie // nice take on Juliet / interesting quote {a20gr} |
| -- | 05-03-2012 | Dark Faerie Tales | Author Interview {about beginning book of series} |
| 5.00 | 04-16-2014 | Debbie's Book Bag | --Deb // excellent review / good details about Ethan and Juliet {a29gr} |
| 5.00 | 03-26-2014 | eBook Obsessesed | --Lucy D // good synopsis / good review {gr14} |
| 5.00 | 05-xx-2014 | Fallen Angels | --Tammy // PR review // perfect marks |
| -- | 03-26-2014 | Fresh Fiction | --Rachel Williams // great story detail / good review |
| 4.16 average | {456 ratings} | Good Reads | as of: February 22, 2015 |
| 4.00 | 04-01-2014 | Good Reads // Alyssa H. | excellent review / good detail on Ethan and Juliet {a42gr} |
| 3.00 / C+ | 04-02-2014 | Happily Ever After - Reads | --Jess // story detail / good points about Ethan and Juliet {gr2} |
| 5.00 | 04-29-2014 | Harlequin Junkie | --Sara // good / "suspense and romance compliment each other" |
| 4.50 | 04-03-2014 | Herding Cats and Burning Soup | --Anna // cute voice / valid points / sexy quotes {a18gr} |
| -- | 03-31-2014 | Heroes and Heartbreakers | --Lucy Dosch // great story detail / nice quotes |
| 3.38 average | {4 ratings} | Library Thing | as of: February 22, 2015 |
| B+ | 04-15-2014 | Love To Read For Fun | --Ellie // good details about Ethan and Juliet {a21gr} |
| 4.50 / Hot | 07-18-2014 | My Book Addictions and More | --Apri R // brief, no synopsis, no justifications {gr9} |
| -- | -- | Open Letters Monthly | --Steve Donoghue // nice review, different |
| 4.00 average | {3 ratings} | Paperback Swap | as of: February 22 2015 |
| 4.00 | 04-14-2014 | Paranormal Haven | --Eva // okay review, no justifications {a27gr} |
| 5.00 | 04-04-2014 | Peace, Love, Books | --Jessica // nice review / good details {gr11} |
| 5.00 | 04-08-2014 | Ramblings From A Chaotic Mind | --Pam // great review, nice take on Ethan and Juliet {a32gr} |
| 5.00 | 04-19-2014 | Ramblings From This Chick | --Cris // really great review, nice detail on Ethan and Juliet {gr12} |
| 5.00 / A | 04-01-2014 | Red Hot Reads | --Jaimie // pretty good review / excellent detail on Juliet {gr7} |
| 4.50 Top Pick | -- | RT {Romantic Times} Book Reviews | --Jim M. Smith // PR Blurb |
| 3.80 average | {5 ratings} | Shelfari | as of: February 22, 2015 |
| 5.00 / A | 04-01-2014 | That's What I'm Talking About | --Deelylah Mullin // nice review, very personal touch {gr16} |
| 4.00 / B | 03-31-2014 | The Book Pushers | --MinnChica // great review / excellent detail on Ethan and Juliet {gr4} |
| -- | 08-14-2012 | The Book Pushers | --MinnChica // Elle Kennedy Interview |
| 4.50 | 03-20-2014 | Wit and Sin | --Kimberly // pretty good / nice take on Ethan and Juliet {a43gr} |
| -- | 04-03-2014 | Yummy Men and Kick Ass Chicks | --Anne interviews Elle Kennedy // interesting |
| 4.50 | 04-03-2014 | Yummy Men and Kick Ass Chicks | --Anne // good review {more of a take on the entire series} {gr8} |
| 4.30 | 02-23-2015 | Wolf Bear Does Books | shorter post on Amazon, Fiction DB, Good Reads, Library Thing, Shelfari |
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♥ Disclaimer: I borrowed this book
♥ Very Subjective Rating
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