Calculated Risk (Blackbridge Security 5) by Marie James-Review Tour

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Google Play

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date May 11, 2021

As the fixer for Blackbridge Security, Quinten Lake is the man that comes in and cleans up after people make stupid decisions.

Which means he didn’t want to be the one teaching lustful women gun safety.

There were guys on the team better suited for the task.

Get in and get out, that’s his motto, something he lives by not only at work but also in his personal life.

And he could be doing just that if it weren’t for the internet.

But if #BlackbridgeSpecial wasn’t trending online he would’ve never met Hayden Prescott.

He wouldn’t be wondering why she won’t make eye contact with him.

He’s supposed to teach her the skills to protect herself, but his ego is encouraging him to be her means of protection.

She isn’t impressed, and he’s left wondering if she’ll ever open her eyes and finally see him.

•••••••

REVIEW:CALCULATED RISK is the fifth instalment in Marie James’ contemporary, adult BLACKBRIDGE SECURITY erotic, romantic suspense series focusing on the men and women who work for Blackbridge Security. This is thirty-five year old, crisis management consultant/fixer Quinten Lake,and twenty-nine year old accountant Hayden Prescott’s story line. CALCULATED RISK can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Hayden and Quinten) CALCULATED RISK follows in the aftermath of a break in. Hayden Prescott no longer feels safe, and at he insistence of her best friend Parker Maxwell, attends a self defense/ weapons class sponsored by Blackbridge Security where she will meet the man with whom she will fall in love. Enter Blackbridge Security crisis management consultant Quinten Lake. Before class ever begins, fellow security specialist Wren Nelson (Shot in the Dark 2) presents our hero with a list focusing on several issues of which each attendee has struggled, and Quinten soon learns that a house-invasion has left our heroine frightened for her life. As a reluctant Hayden begins to assert herself in learning to fire a weapon, our heroine finds herself the target of an unknown assailant who has target Hayden for perceived betrayal. What ensues is the building romance and relationship between Hayden and Quinten, and the potential fall-out as Hayden finds herself not once but twice target for who she is, and what she might know.

The relationship between Quinten and Hayden begins acrimoniously as Quinten is reluctant to teach a glass to a group of women but meeting Hayden and her best friend Parker pushes all of Quinten’s buttons and both women leave the class before it ever gets started. As the days turn into weeks, the attraction between Hayden and Quinten grows stronger but an attack against Hayden finds our couple as roommates, then lovers, then more. The $ex scenes are intimate, erotic and passionate without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

There is a large ensemble cast of secondary and supporting characters including most of the couples we have met in previous storylines as well as Wren’s foul-mouthed bird ‘Puff Daddy. We are introduced to Hayden’s best friend Parker Maxwell, who may or may not have a thing for security specialist Jude Morris. The requisite evil has many faces.

CALCULATED RISK is a story of friendships and family; betrayal and revenge; love, relationship and happily ever after. The premise is intriguing, captivating and engaging; the romance is seductive and intense; the characters are energetic and dynamic-the camaraderie between the men who work at Blackbridge Security if fun, fast and frenetic.

Reading Order and Previous Reviews
Hostile Territory
Shot in the Dark
Contingency Plan
Truth be Told

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

Marie James is a USA Today Bestselling Author of contemporary romance. She’s book boyfriend crazy, the mother of two rowdy boys, and a wife of 15+ years. She’s obsessed with tacos, otters, and FunCo Pops figures. Born, raised, and still living in central Texas, Marie spends most of her time locked away writing and reading. 

Links

Facebook: http://bit.ly/MarieJamesFacebook
Twitter:http://bit.ly/MarieJamesTwitter
Bookbub: http://bit.ly/BookBubMarieJames
Instagram: http://bit.ly/MarieJamesIG
Amazon Author Page: http://bit.ly/AmazonMarieJames
Book and Main: http://bit.ly/MarieJamesBookMain
Goodreads: http://bit.ly/MarieJamesGoodReads
Pinterest: http://bit.ly/MarieJamesPinterest
YouTube: http://bit.ly/MarieJamesYouTube
Reader Group:http://bit.ly/MarieJamesStalkers
Newsletter:http://bit.ly/MarieJamesNL