TARGETED (Deadly Ops #1) by Katie Reus-a review

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ABOUT THE BOOK: October 1, 2013

Former Marine sniper and current NSA agent Jack Stone has a new face to go with his new identity. But he still has the same tortured memories—which include the woman he let get away years ago, when they were teenagers. Now his new assignment in Miami will put him so close to the woman he’s never been able to forget, he could reach out and touch her—if only she weren’t under suspicion.

When Sophie Moreno uncovers evidence linking the medical supply company she works for with arms smuggling—and worse—she doesn’t know who to turn to. After a shocking betrayal, she realizes the only person she can trust is a mysterious new person in the company—a man with hauntingly familiar eyes.

As Sophie questions her intense attraction to this man and Jack struggles not to blow his cover, the two of them must race against the clock to stop terrorists from killing scores of people—starting with them.

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REVIEW: TARGETED is the first storyline in Katie Reus’s new contemporary, suspense Deadly Ops series that introduces the former marines and military personnel currently working for the NSA.

Jack Stone is a former Marine sniper and a man with a secret past. His latest undercover assignment is to infiltrate the South Beach Medical Supply (SBMS) company and uncover the connections to a multi-billion dollar drug cartel and arms dealer. And the assignment becomes personal when he is forced to work alongside SBMS employee Sophie Moreno – the very woman who owns him-heart and soul.

TARGETED is a storyline that pulls the reader into a non-stop, action packed adventure where two would-be strangers have much more in common than uncovering the truth. On the run throughout most of the novel, Sophie and Jack’s attraction to one another will become a definite hazard as Jack’s need to protect Sophie is a distraction they do not need.

Katie introduces several secondary characters including Levi, a former friend and missing member of the NSA. Levi’s story is building and you know that Katie has plans on the horizon for Levi. Levi is a man whose life has been destroyed and he is on the hunt for the person or people responsible.

There is plenty of backstory that allows the reader a deeper understanding into Sophie and Jack’s pasts although there is a major gap in the earlier years after Sophie turns away from the only man she has ever loved. It would have added a deeper understanding to the events that occurred in the backstory and history that was only revealed towards the end of the novel.

Katie Reus pulls the reader into a storyline of second chances, betrayal and the truth about forgotten lives and hidden pasts. Sometimes the heart knows where it belongs and a second chance at love is only the beginning.

Copy supplied by the author through Netgalley.

Reviewed by Sandy