YOU HAD ME AT JAGUAR (Heart of the Jaguar #6) by Terry Spear-Review, Excerpt & Giveaway Tour
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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date February 26, 2019
They’re not the only ones on the prowl…but they’re the most dangerous…
The United Shifter Force gives jaguar agent Howard Armstrong an impossible task—to protect fierce she-jaguar Valerie Chambers, when the last thing she wants is protecting. They’re going international to take down a killer and he can guard Valerie all day long. But guard his heart? He doesn’t stand a chance.
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REVIEW: YOU HAD ME AT JAGUAR is the sixth instalment in Terry Spear’s contemporary, adult HEART OF THE JAGUAR paranormal, romance series. This is she-jaguar Enforcer Valerie Chambers, and United Shifter Force (USF) Agent Howard Armstrong’s story line. YOU HAD ME AT JAGUAR 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 third person perspectives (Valerie and Howard) YOU HAD ME AT JAGUAR follows the building relationship between she-jaguar Enforcer Valerie Chambers, and United Shifter Force (USF) Agent Howard Armstrong. Valerie Chambers’ latest assignment as a member of the Enforcer Team is to hunt, and take down a killer; a jaguar male who killed his newly turned mate, then ran to places unknown. While on assignment Val will come face to face with former Enforcer, and new USF agent Howard Armstrong, whose own assignment is to shadow and protect our story line heroine. What ensues is the building relationship and romance between Val and Howard, and the potential fall-out as several investigations cross paths in Belize, placing the Enforcers and USF team in the line of fire.
As a Enforcer, Valerie’s job is to take down the worst rogue shifters, and sometimes the human who were killing jaguars or shifters in the wild but never had Valerie suspected that the USF would assign backup, on her latest solo mission. Howard Armstrong’s attraction to Valerie began during Valerie’s training as a jaguar Enforcer. Now, months later Howard ‘volunteered’ along with his USF partner and wolf-shifter Jillian Greystoke, to cover and protect the woman with whom he is falling in love.
Meanwhile Valerie’s parents, and jaguar Guardians are on an assignment of their own, tracking a drug dealer in Belize, who may or may not have connections to the jaguar shifters, and the man for whom Valerie and Howard are on the hunt.
The relationship between Valerie and Howard is one of mutual attraction; a friends to lovers romance heightened by their current working assignments that forces our couple to work and live in close proximity. The quick building romance is fated, passionate and hot.
There is a large ensemble cast of secondary and supporting characters including human homicide detective Rowdy Sanderson whom we have met on a number of previous occasions; wolf shifters Jillian Greystoke and her mate Vaughn ; Valerie’s parents; Izzie Summerfield- a woman whose life is about to change, and jaguar female Emmie Bancoft. The requisite evil has many faces including jaguar and murderer Benny Canton.
The world building continues to look at the law enforcement and secret society of shifters; their private police and investigative forces, as well as the political hierarchy of the shifter nation.
YOU HAD ME AT JAGUAR is a character driven story line of family, friendship, betrayal and love but a story line with more telling than showing driven by the conversations between most of the characters. There is some redundancy and repetition when the characters restate or explain previous conversations. The premise is engaging; the romance is seductive; the characters are numerous, colorful and energetic. YOU HAD ME AT JAGUAR is a fast paced and intriguing story of shifters and the human world of which they inhabit.
Reading Order and Previous Reviews
Savage Hunger
Jaguar Fever
Jaguar Hunt
Jaguar Pride
A Very Jaguar Christmas
You Had Me at Jaguar
Copy supplied for Netgalley
Reviewed by Sandy
The three branches—the Enforcers, JAG, and Guardians—all had a common mission: deal with jaguar shifters who posed a threat to humans and shifters alike, though each handled different situations. The Guardians focused more on providing aid to injured jaguars, while the JAG went after the rogues, or humans who were dealing in jaguars. The end result—incarceration or death for the rogues—depended on the situation. The Enforcers were sent to terminate murdering jaguars. Period. They didn’t consider jail time for the offender.
Howard and Jillian were now with the USF, a special section of the JAG that took care of jaguars and wolves creating trouble or in trouble. They were currently the only two agents who had a break between cases. Since Howard was a former Enforcer, his boss felt he would be right for the job. The branches worked together when necessary, but usually all the agents involved would be well aware of the situation.
Jillian was mated to Vaughn, a gray wolf SEAL who was busy tracking down a murderous wolf with the two other jaguar team members of the USF. They hadn’t needed Jillian and Howard too.
Jillian got another text, the fourth one in a half hour. She texted back.
Howard didn’t have to guess who it was from. “Vaughn should have taken you with him.”
“This guy that Val is trying to neutralize is supposed to be a lot less violent than the one Vaughn’s team is trying to track down. At least as far as the general population is concerned. Benny’s wife was a different story.”
“I still wish Martin had allowed us to tell Val we are here watching her back.”
“The boss said she doesn’t like working with anyone else. Since many Enforcers work alone, she’d think her boss felt she couldn’t handle the case on her own. How well do you know her?” Jillian asked.
“I’ve been in training with her. Never worked with her though. She’s got some kick-ass moves, and I have to say she’s extremely quick-witted.”
Jillian smiled at him. “Did she ever get the best of you?”
He gave her a dark smile back. “Not that I’d ever admit to.” He ordered another beer. “You know, her mother, Gladys, was the first female Enforcer we had, and she and her mate, Jasper, are still on the force.”
“Wow. They don’t want to leave all the excitement behind?”
“That’s about it. They’re both good people, wanting to right the wrong and deal with the bad guys. And Gladys wanted to prove to her dad, who was an Enforcer, that she could do as good a job as any man. She and her mate have one of the highest success rates for eliminating rogue jaguars. They make a great team. But there has to be a time when Enforcers need to retire, when they might not be as quick to react or as strong as they had once been. Their boss just doesn’t want to force retirement on them. Not while they’ve been so successful, despite being in their golden years.”
“I think it’s great. Better to die doing what you love than live to an old age wishing you were still fighting the good fight.”
He smiled at Jillian. “Easy for you to say. Your kind lives much longer than we do. What a deal.”
“True. You know, Val’s been watching you. And she’s been watching the entrance. Do you think she’s onto us?”
“I doubt it. What would the odds be that Martin would send two of his USF agents to protect an Enforcer in a simple takedown operation without her being informed?”
“Not likely. Do you want to dance?” Jillian grabbed Howard’s hand before he could object.
“Hell, do you want this to get back to Vaughn? As a SEAL wolf, he’d kill me.”
Jillian laughed. “He knows we’re undercover, and this is just for fun. You never dated Val?”
“No. I never dated anyone in the Enforcer branch. How do you know she’s been watching me?” he asked as they danced to the loud beat, the lights flashing all over the dance floor. “Wait. It was when you went to the ladies’ room. That’s why you took so long to return. You were observing her.”
“And others. And you.”
“Me? I wasn’t about to blow our cover. What if she had a meltdown because we’re here to protect her?”
“You did good. You only looked her way five times and only when she was busy ordering a drink, telling a patron to bug off, and looking around at other people at the time. If you had caught her eye though, then what?”
“I would have waved. She knows me. I know her. It would be foolish to pretend I didn’t recognize her.”
They continued to dance to the faster beat, which Howard was glad for. He really didn’t want Vaughn to get any ideas about him and Jillian.
“You ought to ask her to dance. You’re no longer an Enforcer. Then she’ll know we’re not together in a boyfriend/girlfriend way. It might help our mission if it looks like we’re just here to have fun.”
“She’s on a job.”
“Right. But you aren’t supposed to know that. You’d be her cover too, though she wouldn’t realize it.”
“All right. You just don’t want it to get back to your mate that I only danced with you.”
Jillian laughed.
He led her back to the table, but the next dance was a slow dance, and he wasn’t going to ask Val then. Not that he didn’t want to, but he hated being here under false pretenses, as far as Val was concerned. What if they got a little too hot and heavy on the dance floor, as he’d like to with her, and then she learned he was only there on an assignment?
He sat down across from Jillian.
She smiled. “Coward.”
“Next dance.” But it was a slow one too. “Next fast dance,” he clarified.
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Love, love, love romance, the paranormal, hunky Highlanders with their delicious brogue and hot kilts, so Terry Spear writes about those hunky Highlanders both in medieval times and as wolves in contemporary times. Jaguar shifters too! And young adult urban fantasy. And romantic suspense. She grew up reading mystery, adventure, mythologies from around the world, ghost stories, the paranormal, fell in love with Dracula and Wolfman, and felt they needed loving too. Everyone should have someone to love. Which means her stories always have a HEA. USA Today Bestseller residing in Central Texas from Sacramento, California who creates award-winning teddy bears too!
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