Friday, February 17, 2012

Born to Darkness


Suzanne Brockmann always has books with plenty of action, romance and thorny problems.  Born to Darkness is no exception and it was a blast to read!  She has decided to write the 'Fighting Destiny' series centered around people who are able to use more of their brains than the average person as well as amoral individuals who have found a way to exploit some of those capabilities through a drug.  I am always fascinated by the idea of telepathy, telekinesis (moving items with your mind), psychometry (picking up memories by touching an object), etc. because I have read that we use only a fraction of the capabilities of our brains and think that we could all learn to expand our minds.

There are multiple romances in this volume and it was particularly heartwarming to read about the pair that had secretly adored each other but were afraid to reach out and suddenly there is a dramatic sacrifice that each makes for each other.  Sigh, what a great romantic moment.  (And I confess to being bemused and entertained by idea of the 'fireman's hold' being used to carry one's lover into the bedroom, what a wonderful visual). There are plenty of SEAL stories being published today but Ms Brockmann always has distinctive heroes who perfectly reflect the credo of these fantastic men while creating multiple storylines that the reader becomes invested in.  It is always somewhat frustrating in her works that not everyone gets their HEA and this story is no exception but without a doubt, this is another winning series that has been launched with a fantastic first novel.

A peek at Amazon reveals that there is a short story for sale that tells of the last mission of the hero of Born to Darkness but I can't give any other opinion about it since I haven't read it yet.  I do warn the squeamish that there are deliciously scorching love scenes as well as pretty intense and disturbing descriptions of the torment that the young girls experience.  My Amazon review is at this link

I had the great good fortune to receive a copy of this title through the Goodreads program (as well as a copy to review for Night Owl...for which the link will be posted once it is live on that site).

3 comments:

  1. Loved her troubleshooter books and most all of the characters in them, but wasn't thrilled with her last book and thought this might be a good break. I was wrong. In Born to Darkness, the female lead, Mac, is whiny and unlikable with her recurring 'oh poor poor me' refrain. The male characters are OK, though Elliot's dialog just sounded like recycled Jules, nothing particularly unique. And hmm, a plot with a woman who was sexually abused when she was young and a pedophile/child murderer, where have I read this before? Oh, yes, it is just recycled from her last book.

    I'm sure it is difficult to keep coming up with new ideas, but the dialog and plot line in this book had me rolling my eyes so hard I almost fell over. I'm listening to the audio-book and am a little over half-way through and already find myself switching to listening with the speed doubled because I can't bear to listen to more whining and the plot just isn't holding my interest. Not sure if I'll even finish, which I never would have believed I'd say of a Suzanne Brockmann book when I've listened to some 3 or more times.

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  2. Sorry that it wasn't to your tastes. I confess that I can't listen to audiobooks because they are just too slow for me but your interpretation of the story is understandable given your familiarity with the Troubleshooter books (which I love). I think that Ms Brockmann is probably trying to enter a different genre market and many of her new readers will be unfamiliar with some of the "types" that established fans have already come to know and love. This is just my thought on the subject...and isn't it a good thing that we all have different opinions...otherwise the world would be a terribly boring place (-:

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