Darkest Before Dawn (KGI #10) by Maya Banks-Review & Giveaway

DARKEST BEFORE DAWN
KGI #10
by Maya Banks
Release Date: October 27, 2015
Genre: adult, contemporary, romantic suspense

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / The Book Depository / BAM

About the book: Release Date October 27, 2015

The enigmatic Hancock has been both opponent and ally to the KGI teams for as long as they’ve known him. Always working a deep game, Hancock’s true allegiance has never been apparent, but one thing is for certain—he never lets anything get in the way of duty.

But now, his absolute belief in the primacy of his ultimate goal is challenged by a captive he’s been ordered to guard, no matter how much she suffers in her prison. She’s the only woman who’s ever managed to penetrate the rigid walls surrounding his icy heart, but will he allow his perplexing feelings for the beautiful victim to destroy a mission he’s spent years working to complete or will he be forced to sacrifice her for “the greater good.”

Review:

Honor Cambridge has dedicated her life to helping in war torn areas of the Middle East. When the camp she’s been volunteering at is bombed, she is the only one who survives. As the attackers are searching to make sure there are no survivors, she gets lucky in that they don’t discover that she’s alive. Even though she’s injured, she knows that she has to put as much distance between her and the camp as she can. She travels by night and finds hidey holes to rest in during the day, until she runs across a female in a village who is willing to help her, even though she knows that she herself could be killed for aiding Honor. There is a price on Honor’s head…………

Hancock has been trying to take out an enemy who is the epitome of evil. When his “boss” informs him that his next mission is to find the American woman who has outsmarted the very faction that he’s been trying to infiltrate for years, he can feel in his bones that he’s close to attaining his goal. As he and his team head out to track down the woman who has managed to stay two steps ahead of those searching for her, he has no idea how much everything is about to change.

It doesn’t take too long for Hancock and his team to locate Honor in the very village where she has found somewhat of a champion. When Hancock convinces Honor that they are her only option, she reluctantly goes with them. He’s promised to keep her safe and deliver her. Unfortunately for Honor, she thinks that she’s going to be going home. Once she figures out that she is no more than a pawn to be sacrificed for the greater good, she has never felt more betrayed. Neither has Hancock. He let his target slip away a couple of times before by helping KGI, but has vowed that he will not do so again. What follows is a series of highs and lows that will change everything.

I’ve been waiting for Hancock’s story for a long time now. I think most fans of KGI have been as well. Hancock has walked the line between good and bad for a long time. There have been times in previous books where you wanted to strangle him and times where you were cheering for him. His back story lets you in on why he has such a hard time letting down his guard. He’s had a hard life full of betrayal and heartbreak. But, when he meets Honor we see that guard slipping. He is so torn between saving one or letting down possibly thousands. Honor perplexed me. One minute she’s very understanding of being “sacrificed” and the next she is mad, albeit deservedly so. She is attracted to Hancock and his sense of honor, and then turned off by the same sense of honor. And, bless her bones, she’s so torn about what’s going on between her and Hancock, that she doesn’t know which end is up. She’s just not what I imagined Hancock’s woman would be.

There is a lot of action in this story, which I love. I just didn’t think that the romance was prevalent until the very last part of the book. We get to see pretty much all of the KGI folks in this one, so that’s always a big plus. If I were to pick one thing to be critical of, it would be the repetitiveness. The same thing gets said a lot. (I think I’ve said in other reviews that that seems to be a trend with a lot of authors lately.) The book was very long, and usually that’s a good thing for me, but not with this one. I did like the fact that there was a political undertone in this one that is current. With all of that said, I really liked the book. I just didn’t love it and I usually love anything in the KGI series. Fans of this series will like the fact that Hancock finally got his story. I look forward to the next installment. Well done, Maya Banks!

Copy supplied by Netgalley

Reviewed by Vickie M.

Maya’s publisher and The Reading Cafe are offering a paper copy of DARKEST BEFORE DAWN to ONE (1) lucky commenter at The Reading Cafe.

1. If you have not previously registered at The Reading Cafe, please register by using the log-in at the top of the page (side bar) or by using one of the social log-ins.

2. If you are using a social log-in, please post your email address with your comment.

3. Follow MAYA BANKS on Facebook.

4. Please LIKE us on FACEBOOK and click GET NOTIFICATIONS

5. Please FOLLOW us on Twitter for an additional entry.

6. Please FOLLOW us on GOODREADS for an additional entry.

7. Please LIKE us on TSU for an additional entry.

8. Giveaway is open to USA only

10. Giveaway runs from October 29-November 2, 2015