Collateral Damage

Author: J.L. Saint

Genre: Sci-Fi / Fantasy Romance, Post-Apocalyptic

Reviewed by: Night Owl Reviews — by Talina

PERSONAL SUMMARY:

Lauren is caught in the crossfire of her ex-husbands betrayal and deceit that is stained with terrorism against his country. Lauren has no idea of the hell about to be unleashed on her. She has only one chance at proving she had nothing to do with her ex-husbands wrong doings against her country. That one chance is in the form of one Delta Force leader. With assassins hot on her trail, Lauren will have to think fast on her feet to help save herself and her twin sons. She’ll also have to work hard to keep her heart intact and closed to one sexy as hell Jack Hunter if she survives the trained killers that is.

SUMMARY: (taken from the publisher’s site)

One thing makes Jack Hunter invaluable to his Delta Force Team. The same trait that makes him suck at relationships. Single-minded focus on his career—and honing his ability to never miss a kill.

After a terrorist missile devastates his team and leaves him with only partial memory of a

a FUBARed rescue mission, he retains only one clear picture no one believes: the last face in his gunsight belonged to a prestigious American businessman. The man’s wife has to know something, but the only way to get to her is go AWOL.

After her husband trades his family to tango with double-Ds, Lauren Collins decides her dogs are better judges of character. She’s unaware how far her soon-to-be-ex’s web of deceit reaches—until the only thing between her, her sons and a killer is a wounded Delta soldier who activates her sorely neglected X-chromosome like nobody’s business.

Their instant attraction is kryptonite to Jack’s injury-dulled edge. Thrust into a world of peril, political treachery and treason, Lauren has no choice but to trust Jack with her life. Even if she and her sons survive, she’s not sure her heart will…

Contains a warrior who doesn’t hesitate to lay his body on the line, more than one emotional love story to tug at your heart, and chaos at Chuck E. Cheese.

FIRST LINE:

Pink Floyd’s “Time” hammered through Sergeant First Class Jack Hunter’s brain as he tightened his grip on the treadmill and ran harder, his heart pounding, his lungs burning.

PLOT:

Collateral Damage was one hell of a ride! One minute you just know what will happen only to have your know it all readers mind get a jolt of adrenaline from the plot twists you never saw coming. From cover to cover there was not one page that didn’t have you wanting to know what happened next. The author definitely paid attention to the plot points and threads, making sure they weaved seamlessly together to form a wonderful tale of manipulation, secrecy, betrayal and to top it all off — love. She also delved into the meaning of the two most haunting words I have ever read Collateral Damage. If you think about it, those two words can describe so much of what people are suffering and living through right now. While showing there is a price to pay for every action that is taken, the author also pointed out the one thing that is over looked at times — the feeling of being alive, the joy of falling in love, the joy of our children, the steel nerves of determination to not allow our freedom to be taken or our lives to be interrupted. And in my opinion she did a fabulous job of showing the excitement of life through her story. Ms. Saint has written a book that I hope leads to several more to come.

SETTING:

Collateral Damage takes place in the present day. Lauren and Jack’s story starts out in Washington D.C. then moves between Georgia, North Carolina, Dubai and a secluded reserve located in a section of the Peruvian Amazon Rain forest.

WRITING:

Ms. Saint has such a fabulous and strong voice. She lavishes her stories with the grit and truth that makes the story stick with you long after you’ve read the book. I loved her books under her other name, Jennifer St. Giles, and I will definitely be looking for her J.L. Saint books in the future.

CHARACTERS:

Lauren Collins brought a life force to the story that had me riveted to everything happening in the story. She showed a strength within her that made me stop and question how I would respond to the life threatening situations she was plunged into with her twin sons in tow. To follow her through the story and to ‘see’ her fall for the wounded warrior, a man that risked everything to help protect her from being collateral damage to her ex-husbands actions was an emotional journey. Her actions and beliefs in life have changed how I see my own life. And I admit, it is not often that a character can be so well written that they influence me enough to take a step back and consider my own inner beliefs and thoughts.

Jack was the perfect counterpart to Lauren. His soul is tormented and in need of someone strong enough to help him heal. His Delta Team is in need of a leader that is whole enough to lead them and Jack ‘DT’ Hunter is determined to be that leader once again. I won’t say anything else because I would be to tempted to spoil the book for you. Be warned though, DT is one sexy-as-hell warrior that will whisk your heart away!

Ms. Saint also did an excellent job in writing the antagonist. He’s a unique character with a twisted desire to only preserve the world for his son. BUT, you’ll have to read the book to find out just how sick, twisted and somewhat genius he really is. The depth of conflict and the supporting characters provide an exhilarating emotional ride, a story that is simply a must read.

LAST THOUGHTS:

After reading Collateral Damage I couldn’t help but stop and think about my own actions in life. Ms. Saint has brought to my attention just how blessed a life I live. This book has gone to my must keep pile and I look forward to reading the Silent Warrior series as each new book comes out. I also look forward to revisiting Jack and Lauren for another read soon!