Book Review: Nobody's Hero by Kallypso Masters

Author: Kallypso Masters
Series: Rescue Me #3
My Rating: 5 cups
Blurb: (from Goodreads):

Retired Marine Master Sergeant Adam Montague has battled through four war zones, but now finds himself running from Karla Paxton, who has declared war on his heart. With a twenty-five year age difference, he feels he should be her guardian and protector, not her lover. But Karla's knack for turning up in his bed at inopportune times is killing his resolve to do the right thing. Karla isn't a little girl anymore—something his body reminds him of every chance it gets.

Karla Paxton fell in love with Adam when she was a sixteen-year-old runaway and he rescued her. Now, nine years later, she's determined to make Adam see her as a woman. But their age difference is only part of the problem. Adam has been a guardian and protector for lost and vulnerable souls most of his life, but a secret he has run from for more than three decades has kept him emotionally unable to admit he can love anyone. Will she be able to lower his guard long enough to break down the defenses around his heart and help him put to rest the ghosts from his past? In her all-out war to get Adam to surrender his heart, can the strong-willed Goth singer offer herself as his submissive—and at what cost to herself?

I finally gave in and read this book. I wanted to wait, to be closer to the publishing date of the next book in the series (Nobody's Perfect). It's only that the curiosity kept me from being a good girl. I'm glad it did though. If the first two books of this series were good, this was even better.

Adam Montague is an amazing man, one that every woman should have in her life, either as a boyfriend, husband, brother, friend. Heck, even another man would be lucky to have someone as Adam on his side. Adam might appear as a cold guy at first, but it's because he is a very suspicious man. He doesn't trust easily. I think he was afraid of trusting someone and caring about someone so much, only to have that someone taken from his life or to be rejected. But he's a very loyal friend, a caring guy with such an amazing heart. For someone so guarded about his feelings, the way he cares for the ones he calls friends and the way he protects them is simply amazing. I loved Adam. Like I said before, he had trouble facing his feelings and trusting, but Karla changed that. I think Karla is one of the very few people who challenges him. And she does that daily, since they first met when she was a scared, runaway teenager.

Karla is a sweetheart. I loved her character so much and I loved the fact that we see her grow up since the very first book. I don't think there's anyone more perfect than Karla for Master Adam. I really can't think of anyone better.

I also loved the fact that we get to meet Savi again *happy dance* If anyone needs a HEA, then Savi is the one. She's been through so much and she deserves a better life. I just can't wait to see how Damian will try to win her back and how he'll squirm, because let's face it. Savi will keep him on his toes :)

And we also find out more about Marc and Angelina and that's always a great pleasure of mine, keeping up with recent events from the characters who already found their HEA.

I can't wait for the next book in this amazing series.

My Rating:

Book Review: Nobody's Angel by Kallypso Masters

Author: Kallypso Masters
Series: Rescue Me #2
Blurb: (from Goodreads):

Marc d'Alessio might own a BDSM club with his fellow military veterans, Adam and Damian, but he keeps all women at a distance. However, when Marc rescues beautiful Angelina Giardano from a disastrous first BDSM experience at the club, an uncharacteristic attraction leaves him torn between his safe, but lonely world, and a possible future with his angel.
Angelina leaves BDSM behind, only to have her dreams plagued by the Italian angel who rescued her at the club. When she meets Marc at a bar in her hometown, she can't shake the feeling she knows him, but has no idea why he reminds her of her angel.
When Marc's search-and-rescue partner, widower Luke Denton, confides he believes Angelina is the angel his wife promised to send him, Marc is convinced she is meant for Luke. A painful incident from his past keeps Marc from letting any woman drive a wedge between him and a friend.
While Luke can provide Angelina with love and stability, Marc knows his friend can't satisfy her submissive needs. Marc offers one night to show her that BDSM is not about pain, but a power exchange with mutual trust and consent. But he knows he can't commit emotionally to anything more.
When the abusive Dom from Angelina's past threatens, Marc's protective instincts kick in; he must keep her safe. Again at the Masters at Arms Club, she turns the tables on him and turns his safe, controlled world upside down. (Book Two in the RESCUE ME series; follows introduction to series, MASTERS AT ARMS.)

 Last week I reviewed the first book in the Rescue Me series, Masters at Arms, and if you recall, I was very pleased with the book. I still am, but I'm also realizing I might have made a huge mistake in reading this second book so fast. I had a moment when I thought "Don't read it now, wait till December, so you don't have to pull out your hair waiting for the next book." That thought never manages to sway my initial intention of reading a book fast and it totally didn't help now. *sigh* Oh well, no matter. I'll learn patience next time (yeah, right!).

Like I said in the previous review, Marc seemed to me like he really found himself after he enrolled. After reading his story, I stand by what I said then. Before the Army shaped him into the man he is, Marc lived in the shadow of his older brother, with the typical rivalry that comes from having an older brother that somehow managed to be good at everything. Before he enlisted he never did anything for himself. The job he had was at his parents's resort and even though he didn't feel quite satisfied, he stayed there, trying to prove his parents that he was just as capable as his brother, Gino. I think the first thing he did for himself was actually enrolling, but even that seemed fueled by his deep sense of regret for the fact that he couldn't get one more chance to apologize to his brother.Even so, I believe the minute he realized that he was good at what he did, he started to believe more in himself. In a way, going to war helped him mature. The thing I loved about Marc was his ability to say "I messed up and I'm sorry for it". He wasn't trying to pass as the dumb ass alpha wannabe guy, the one who either can't do a thing wrong or the one who never admits he made a mistake. He wasn't that guy. Also, he didn't have the arrogance that usually comes with wealth. Had he met Angelina before he enlisted, I think the relationship would've been doomed from the start, him not being mature enough for her, Angelina being too intimidated by her education and her brothers to take risks.

Angelina is what you might call a good girl. She only dates guys that are perfect in the eyes of her family, as she called them "boring" and "safe". At the same time though, I think she was a bit scared of listening to her instincts or to her heart or to trust her gut or whatever you want to call it. She was scared of going after the guy or type of guys that really appealed to her. I don't think it's because she never found the perfect guy before meeting Marc and Luke, but it's because she was scared of what they made her feel, and the only moment she allowed herself to take a chance was when the fear of being hurt was stronger than the fear of her feelings.

I mentioned Luke. Before you get your hopes up, it's not a threesome. You only get one scene (though I REALLY hope Ms. Masters will write an M/F/M scene - a big one *smiles* ). Luke is still a puzzle to me. I think there's more to him that what we learn in this book. I do think that there are other things that were left unsaid, things that made Luke who he is now. Also, there's a moment in the book where Luke totally surprised me. I'm guessing there a few other surprises for Luke, so I'm waiting (im)patiently before I make any judgments about him.

The ending is the real reason I regret finishing the book so early. Should've stopped at two, three pages a day, but I couldn't. Who could? I won't talk about the ending, except to say that it convinced me to get hooked up on the series and to say, again, good job! Anyway, I hope we'll get Master Adam's book soon.

My Rating:

Book Review: Masters at Arms by Kallypso Masters

Author: Kallypso Masters

Series: Rescue Me

Blurb: (from Goodreads):

Masters at Arms begins the journey of three men, each on a quest for honor, acceptance, and to ease his unspoken pain. Their paths cross at one of the darkest points in their lives. As they try to come to terms with the aftermath--forging an unbreakable bond--will they ever truly become masters of their own fates? Or would fate become masters of them?

Wow. I just finished reading this story and all I can think of saying as a start to this review is "wow". Another thing that crosses my mind right about now is "balls of steel" and it's directed at the author. If you're looking for a HEA or declarations of undying love, this is not the book. This is the book that promises many happy endings and many "I love you"s, but in the future. You meet the main characters all at once and you get a background story for each of them, but it's not complete, it still leaves you with questions, questions that Ms. Masters promises to answer in the next books in the series.

The characters are so complex and so different from each other, that I had a hard time imagining how they could be friends without fighting every few days. You have Adam Montague, the oldest of the bunch, sexy for his age (picture Mark Harmon), he seems like the Dom of Doms if that makes sense. He's a former Marine, so he's used to give orders and have them followed. Don't go picture a sadist in his shoes, he's not. He's one of the most caring characters I've ever read about. I won't say much about him, or the other characters, because I now this story is just a prequel, so my image of them is not complete. I know there are many facts to them that will be revealed in the next books.

After reading a short story about Adam, we meet Damian Orlando, a young man who's already paid for doing what he thought was right. But even knowing that he could end up losing his job or even his freedom, he comes to the rescue of a girl who I hope will be his heroine in his book. He then joins the Army and he meets Marco D'Allesio, another important character who I loved. Damian is willing to risk his own life to protect the men in his unit, and the price he ultimately pays is a big one for a man so young. It made my heart ache for him and I can't wait till February to read his story.

Marc is different than the other two characters we've met. From what I've read so far, he really found himself after he joined the Army. But I won't dwell much on his story now, because I want to get a clear picture of him after I finish the second book in the series, Nobody's Angel.

I think this series will be one of the best in the genre. It has a lot of potential, and so far, I'm not disappointed. The characters are new, fresh and more complex than I ever imagined possible. The plots in this prequel (though I prefer to think of it as a bigger first chapter) are very well built and intriguing. And I think for a new author to decide to publish a story without happy endings is a very gutsy move. I do believe the fact that you don't have the ending makes the book all the more interesting and amazing, because without the romance and the numerous "Aww" moments that come with a romantic relationship between two or more characters, you can actually see the real deal, the true sense of building the characters into what we see them ultimately. I think it's amazing and brilliant to get the back story first and then the characters in present time. I'm well aware of the fact that there will be some details that this book didn't reveal and that we'll get them in the future, but some of the main traits, the important traits, the reader can see develop. If I could give it a higher rating, I definitely would. All I can hope is that Ms. Masters keeps up the good work, because, again, AMAZING!!

My Rating: