Long Lost (Masters and Mercenaries: The Forgotten #4) by Lexi Blake-Review & Excerpt tour
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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date February 4, 2020
A stolen past
The only thing Tucker remembers of his past is pain. Used in a doctor’s evil experiments, his memories and identity were erased, and his freedom taken. He believed his nightmare was over when he was liberated by the men and women of McKay-Taggart, until he heard the name Steven Reasor. The idea that he could have been involved in the terrible experiments that cost his “brothers” everything crushed him. A desperate attempt to force him to remember the truth almost cost him his life. Now his world is in chaos and his only path to finally uncover the truth and atone for his sins leads to Veronica Croft.
A painful present
Veronica “Roni” Croft knew Dr. Steven Reasor was bad for her, but she also saw a side of the man that no one else knew. Even as she began to believe their employer was hiding something sinister, she was drawn to him like a moth to a flame. Their affair was passionate and intense, but also fraught with danger. When he disappeared under mysterious circumstances, she took her first chance to run and never looked back. She has stayed hidden ever since, running from forces she knows are too powerful to overcome. But now the man she believed was dead, the man she mourned, has returned and needs her help.
A dangerous future
As Tucker and Roni unravel the secrets of his past, a dark force rises and threatens to destroy them. Their only chance for survival will require them to join forces with the Lost Boys’ worst enemy. Only together can they finally unlock Tucker’s past. But as Tucker’s memories begin to come back, will it free them both or tear them apart forever?
•••••••
REVIEW: LONG LOST is the fourth instalment in Lexi Blake’s contemporary, adult MASTERS AND MERCENARIES: THE FORGOTTEN erotic, romantic suspense series focusing on six former military soldiers (Jax, Dante, Sasha, Tucker, Owen and Robert) whose minds and lives were eradicated and erased by a secret, military experiment. This is Tucker aka Dr. Steve Reasor, and Dr. Veronica ‘Roni’ Croft’s story line. The Forgotten is a spin-off from the author’s Masters and Mercenaries series where the characters were first introduced and played an important role throughout. I recommend reading the series in order for back story and cohesion, as several story lines are introduced throughout the FORGOTTEN series.
NOTE: If you have not read Lexi Blake’s original Masters and Mercenaries series, their may be some confusion as it pertains to the Lost Boys and their backstory.
WARNING: There are some BDSM scenes as well as Dom/sub sexual scenarios.
SOME BACKGROUND: Several months earlier, the mercenaries from the McKay-Taggart Black Ops group rescued, from an unauthorized military lab, run by Dr. Hope McDonald, six men they labelled the ‘Lost Boys’. With their memories wiped clean, no ID, and no traceable DNA, the Lost Boys were essentially ‘new born’ soldiers trained to kill and destroy. The Forgotten are their stories.
Told from several third person perspectives including Tucker and Roni LONG LOST follows the building romance between Tucker aka Dr. Steve Reasor, and Dr. Veronica ‘Roni’ Croft. Approximately three years earlier Dr. Steve Reasor and Dr. Veronica Croft embarked on an affair in Paris, France but hours later Steven Reasor disappeared leaving an angry and heart broken Roni behind, believing Steven had left her for another woman. Fast forward to present day wherein Roni discovers that Reasor had been Dr. Hope McDonald’s prisoner and fell victim to the same experiments that had been performed on so many others. As Reasor, now known as Tucker begins to recall his memories of the past, our couple must embark on a second chance romance wherein they discover that Roni has been targeted for who she is, and what she knows. What ensues is the rebuilding romance and relationship between Tucker and Roni, and the potential fall-out as miscommunication and misunderstanding threaten their already floundering romance.
The relationship between Roni and Tucker is one of second chances but Roni has a secret that she knows must be revealed, a secret of which her mother struggles in the face of presumed betrayal and lies. Tucker’s memories will slowly return but his love for Roni has never waivered. The $ex scenes are numerous, erotic and intense without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.
There is a large ensemble cast of colorful and energetic secondary and supporting characters including the McKay-Taggart team, and several characters from the author’s Masters and Mercenaries series including Ian Taggart. Solo and Ezra Fain’s second chance story line is next in NO LOVE LOST (September 2020)
LONG LOST is a story of secrets and lies; betrayal and revenge; family, friendships, power and control. The premise is intriguing and engaging; the romance is seductive and captivating; the numerous characters are dynamic and charismatic. LONG LOST is an entertaining and wonderful addition to Blake’s MASTERS AND MERCENARIES: THE FORGOTTEN romantic, suspense series.
Reading Order and Previous Reviews
Memento Mori
Lost and Found
Lost in You
Copy supplied for review
Reviewed by Sandy
“Did I hurt him?”
His question came out measured so she couldn’t tell if he wanted the answer to be yes or no.
“Not physically, but he didn’t touch me again. Anyway, afterward you stayed while I finished up. You said you wanted to walk me out to my car. I thanked you and we ended up talking.” She could remember how grateful she’d been to not be left alone. “It was the first time I saw you as something other than the ambitious doctor who handled things for McDonald. You stayed way longer than you had planned, and I felt bad for keeping you. You told me it was okay because it might be the only good thing you’d done for anyone in months. I don’t know what made me do it, but I went up on my tiptoes and kissed you. It wasn’t much. It was barely two seconds. When I moved back, you told me that wasn’t a kiss. You asked me if you could show me what a kiss was. And you did.”
He’d been careful with her, making sure she was all right.
Rather like he’d explained he would be now. He’d been careful right up until he’d been sure she was with him and then he’d taken over. Then he’d taken her someplace she’d never been before.
“Show me.”
She came out of the memory at the sound of his command. Show me. That was what he’d said to her that night.
She could come out of the memory because it was hers. That moment was there in her brain and she could call on it for the rest of her life. It was something so personal. Her memories were the sum of her soul. It struck her forcibly what he’d lost. What she’d lost. That memory had truly been theirs, a shared history that should have connected them for the rest of their lives.
Now she was the only one who knew what it had felt like that night. He was right there. He was standing in front of her asking for that connection again.
She went up on her toes. “Thank you. I didn’t want him near me, but I don’t feel the same way about you.” She let her lips brush his, the bare meeting of flesh that came from a woman who wasn’t sure of what she’d wanted then. Of what she wanted now. “And then you shook your head.”
Tucker shook his head and took the beer from her hand. He set it on the ledge and turned back to her. “Oh, that wasn’t a kiss. Let me show you how I kiss. Will you let me kiss you, Roni? I think about kissing you all the time.”
So close to what he’d actually said. She would take it. “Yes. Please kiss me.”
The air seemed to go out of the room and her vision focused in on him. It was like the rest of the world fell away. It was exactly as it had been that first night with him. Something had fallen into place when he’d looked at her and she’d known nothing would be the same.
If he kissed her again, they would have that connection they’d lost.
His hand went around the nape of her neck, sending a delicious warmth down her spine. He pulled her slightly, drawing her close in an easy show of strength. He brought their bodies together and her breasts brushed against his chest. His free hand wrapped around her waist and she took a moment to look into his eyes.
They were the clearest blue. Something about his eyes had always dragged her in. Even when they were cold, even when no one else had been able to see the emotion behind them, she hadn’t been fooled.
“I want to believe. But I don’t want to want to believe,” she said quietly.
“Because it would be easier if I was the bastard you’ve spent years believing I was. I know. Roni, I can’t imagine I was easy to care for then. I’m not easy now. But for however long we get together I want to try to be with you. We can take it slow and find a way to be friends again.”
She sighed at the thought because he was going to pull away and that was the last thing she wanted. Now that she was here and alone with him, she knew she couldn’t lose the chance to explore this side of the man. “We were never friends.”
She moved in and kissed him. It wasn’t what had happened that night, but that was all right. They were making a new memory, one no one could take away from them. It might all go to hell tomorrow, but she would kiss the father of her child again. She would have this new memory of him.
NY Times and USA Today bestselling author Lexi Blake lives in North Texas with her husband, three kids, and the laziest rescue dog in the world. She began writing at a young age, concentrating on plays and journalism. It wasn’t until she started writing romance and urban fantasy that she found the stories of her heart. She likes to find humor in the strangest places and believes in happy endings no matter how odd the couple, threesome, or foursome may seem.
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Wonderful review, Sandy. Looks like great series. Thanks.
great review, sandy. i love the sound of this series.
Thanks for another great review and excerpt.
Terrific review, Sandy. Looks like a great read.
Thanks for the informative review and excerpt, Sandy! ?
Very nice review and excerpt, thanks Sandy
Great review, Sandy. Looks like a good story line. Thanks.
Thanks for the great review and excerpt Sandy.
Thanks Sandy, for another wonderful review and excerpt.
Very nice review and excerpt, thanks Sandy.