Review: SEAL of Honor by Tonya Burrows

SEAL of Honor

By Tonya Burrows

HORNET #1

Lt. Commander Gabriel Bristow is not looking forward to his forced medical retirement. A year ago, he was involved in a car accident and suffered a serious injury to his foot, leaving him unfit to return to duty as a Navy SEAL. He's all set to begin his boring Pentagon job when he's approached by his best friend and former SEAL teammate, Travis Quinn, to sign on to a private hostage rescue and negotiation team as the commanding officer. It didn't take much for him to cave. 
 

The set up
The first covert assignment is the rescue of wealthy businessman Bryson Van Amee who was kidnapped in Bogotá, Columbia. They're racing against time as the FBI special agent in charge of the official negotiation wants to pay the ransom. Gabe is convinced that Bryson will be murdered if they do.


The issues
There were LOTS of issues, the first being Gabe's team. Individually, they represent the best at what they do but this isn't a SEAL team working in tandem. They're an indisciplined group and Gabe hasn't the time to properly train them. When they visit Bryson's apartment, they unexpectedly run into his sister, Audrey, and end up having to bring her back to their safe house and she's unwilling to leave. To make matters worse, they're not even sure who they're dealing with or where the kidnappers might be located, nor do they have the most ideal equipment to be operating in the jungles of Columbia.


The romance
Audrey and Gabe get thrown into a situation where they're isolated from the rest of the team and are repeatedly trying not to get killed. While they definitely had an initial attraction, these circumstances just turned the heat up beyond boiling. She's a free spirit but no air head. He's a SEAL and a commander, used to be obeyed, so Audrey's tendency to apply her own logic and reason made for some tense situations. Gabe's hard to resist and Audrey's a good match for this alpha.


What works
At first I was frustrated by all the mishaps due to the team's inexperience and lack of discipline but then found this to be the strength of the story. Their imperfections set them apart from being just another military-like op team. There are some unique members I definitely want to know more about and this team will never behave in an ordinary way. Gabe and Audrey work as a couple and they suffered some harsh situations. The story was unpredictable and I was never prepared for most of the things that happened.


Bottom line
I like this story and what this series promises to be, and like it a lot. Gabe is excellent as a leader and he's going to have his hands full with this team and Audrey. There's lots of action, twists and surprises. I enjoyed it from start to finish and am ready for the next one. If you like a lot of heat, both in the action and the romance, this book delivers. I really didn't want it to end.

Tonya Burrows | Writing has always been my one true love. I wrote my first novel-length story in 8th grade and haven't stopped since. I received a B.A. in creative writing from SUNY Oswego and I'm now working on a MFA in popular fiction at Seton Hill University.

When I'm not writing, I spend my time reading, painting (badly), exploring new places, and enjoying time with my family. Give me a good horror movie over a chick flick any day. (And, let's be honest, I'll take a bad horror movie too!) I'm a geek at heart and pledge my avid TV fandom to Supernatural and Doctor Who. I'm also a big fan of The Voice. What can I say? Guilty pleasure.​​

I share my life with two dogs and a ginormous cat. We live in a small town in PA, but I suffer from a bad case of wanderlust and usually end up moving someplace new every few years. Luckily, my animals are all excellent travel buddies.

Author Website: http://www.tonyaburrows.com

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