SWORN TO PROTECT (Rescue Ops #1) by Diana Gardin-a review

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date June 4,2 017

To keep her safe, he’ll have to uncover all her secrets…

Rayne Alexander. A face I never thought I’d see again, and one I never could forget. Nine years ago, she left town-and me–without a backward glance. But now she’s back, with a haunted look in her eyes and a feisty attitude that didn’t exist when we were teenagers. Seeing this grown-up–and sexy–Rayne is something I wasn’t prepared for… and it’s bringing up feelings I’d thought I’d buried years ago.

Although I want to demand answers from Rayne, working on black ops at Night Eagle Security has taught me that it’s sometimes better to keep my mouth shut. So when I catch her hiding a photo of a little boy, I’m curious. When I see her jump as her phone rings, I’m concerned. But the second I notice a car following her home, I know she’s hiding something. Something dangerous. And while I may not know why she left or why she’s back, if there’s someone out there Rayne is afraid of, I’ll make damn sure that threat is eliminated.

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REVIEW: SWORN TO PROTECT is the first installment in Diana Gardin’s contemporary, adult RESCUE OPS romantic, suspense series focusing on the men and women of Night Eagle Security-a security company made up of former members of the military including Special Forces, Navy SEALS, and Army Rangers who specialize in personal security as well as working for some governmental agencies. This is Jeremy ‘Brains’ Teagues, and PA Rayne Alexander’s story line. The Rescue Ops series is a spin off from the author’s Battle Scars series, and several characters cross-over for cohesion and familiarity. You do not have to have read the original series to follow SWORN TO PROTECT. Any important information from the previous series is revealed where necessary.

Told from three first person perspectives including Jeremy and Rayne, SWORN TO PROTECT is a second chance story line that focuses on protecting Rayne Alexander. Rayne is on the run having uncovered some disturbing information about her former boss. Landing back home in Wilmington, North Carolina our heroine will come face to face with her past-a past she thought she had left behind-but a past that is with her every moment of her life. Enter Jeremy Teagues, security specialist and former Special Forces soldier, who has never stopped loving the woman who disappeared years before. What ensues is the rekindling romance between Jeremy and Rayne, and the struggle to protect Rayne, and someone she loves.

Almost nine years earlier Rayne Alexander dropped out of sight, and out of Jeremy Teagues’ life. Fast forward to present day, and our hero is determined to uncover the truth behind Rayne’s disappearance but in order to ensure her safety, Jeremy becomes the over protective male in our heroine’s life. But Rayne Alexander has a secret-one that could destroy her relationship with the man that she has always loved-or a secret that could pull together the family she has always wanted. With issues of trust, Rayne doesn’t know if Jeremy is the man for the job.

The relationship between Jeremy and Rayne is one of second chances; a reawakening of a love that was destroyed by secrets, betrayal, lies and power. The $ex scenes are intimate, intense and seductive. Their reunion and revelations of secrets is emotional and heartbreaking.

We are introduced to Jeremy’s team of security specialists at Night Eagle Security headed by Jacob Owen; Dare Conner and his girlfriend Berkley, and ex-SEAL Grisham Abbot and his fiancé Greta from the Battle Scars series, as well as Ronin Shaw; Rayne’s next door neighbor Macy and her son Julius, Decker James, Night and Rayne’s sister Olive who has some secrets of her own. The requisite evil has many faces including a twist to the story line that I detected early on.

The world building follows the friendships, camaraderie, and working relationships of the men and women of Night Eagle Security: their close knit devotion to one another, and their willingness to go above and beyond for the people they love.

SWORN TO PROTECT is a suspense filled, action packed, intense story line about two people whose lives were torn apart by power and greed. The premise is engaging and energetic; the characters are spirited, colorful and charismatic; the romance is captivating and sensual. Diana Gardin is a new to me author; SWORN TO PROTECT is my first story and will not be my last.

Copy supplied for review by the publisher through Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy

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Diana Gardin was born and raised combing the coasts of Southeastern Virginia. She is now a happy resident of South Carolina as she married into an enormous Carolina-rooted family. She loves the beach, and even more than that she loves to read while sitting on the beach.

While writing was always a passion of Diana’s, she enrolled in college to become an elementary-school teacher. After eight years of teaching in both Virginia and South Carolina, she decided to stay at home with her first child. This decision is what opened her eyes to the fact that she still very much loved to write, and her first novel was written.