Wild Card
Elite Ops, Book 1

Lora Leigh

Publisher:
St. Martin's Paperbacks

Release Date:
August 26, 2008

Genres:
Action Adventure
Erotic
Contemporary Romance

ISBN:
Print
9780312945794
Kindle
No ISBN

Bookmark Rating:

Reviewed by
Kimberly

Review Posted:
October 2008

Nathan Malone is a man who has known hell.  When a rescue mission went terribly wrong, the Navy SEAL found himself held captive by a Columbian drug cartel, tortured and constantly pumped full of an experimental aphrodisiac drug.  Through it all, the memory of his wife, Sabella, is what helped him survive.  But after his rescue, Nathan finds that he isn’t the man he once was.  He isn’t the man his Bella married.  He can’t go back to his old life, but he can join a new team of operatives.  The Elite Ops unit is exactly what he needs.  Five men from various international agencies, all of them legally dead, physically altered, and without ties to their old lives.  It’s perfect. 

Nathan Malone is dead.  And Noah Blake has been born. 

But things are never so simple, particularly when the Elite Ops team takes on a mission to bring down a terrorist organization, one that is operating out of Nathan Malone’s home town.  Noah may not like the assignment, but when he finds Bella is in danger, nothing will stop him from protecting her.  And that’s all he plans to do…until he sees her again.  

For years Bella has been in mourning for her husband.  She lives her life, struggles to keep her business afloat, and tries to date.  But when sexy bad boy Noah Blake comes into town and threatens the sense of equilibrium she’s managed to attain, Bella can’t help but be attracted.  But as threats surrounding Bella and Noah mount, will the two be drawn together or will they be torn apart once more? 

Prepare yourselves for a passionate, heartbreaking adventure with the first installment of Lora Leigh’s explosive new series.  WILD CARD is an enthralling read that will have you on the edge of your seat from beginning to end. 

It’s hard to think of two characters that deserve happiness more than Noah and Sabella.  Noah is the perfect example of a tortured hero I love to read about.  He has seen some of the worst life has to offer and thinks he’s hardened against true emotion, only to learn that love can never be pushed to the background.  His internal struggle, and the fact that he can’t resist the woman who is his heart, makes WILD CARD all the more compelling a read. 

As for Bella, I simply adored her.  She’s smart, capable, and holds her own against the dominant males in her life.  She has also been through her own personal hell in the intervening years between Nathan’s “death” and Noah’s arrival.  She compliments Noah perfectly, and while it’s easy to see why the two fell in love to begin with, the struggles they have gone through add a depth and an honesty to their relationship which makes the romance feel more real. 

Though WILD CARD is an emotionally gripping tale, it would be a disservice not to mention the book’s sexual intensity.  Noah and Bella generate so much heat, I’m surprised the pages of my book didn’t go up in flames. 

Though WILD CARD kicks off a brand new series, this book in particular is strongly connected to Ms. Leigh’s Tempting SEALs series.  Fans of the Tempting SEALs books will remember Nathan’s tear-jerking rescue, and will delight in “Irish” finally finding peace and happiness and being reunited with his wife.  Readers unfamiliar with the previous series won’t be lost at all, though they may find themselves rushing out for the six Tempting SEALs stories after meeting the delicious members of Nathan’s former team. 

And what of Noah’s team?  To say that I’m intrigued by the four other men of the Elite Ops team and their leader, Jordan, would be a gross understatement.  I’m absolutely fascinated by these mysterious, wildly diverse, and – it must be added – incredibly sexy men and look forward to learning more about them in the next Elite Ops book, Maverick. 

WILD CARD is a captivating blend of eroticism and emotion that fires the blood and warms the heart.  Noah and Bella’s road to happiness is by no means easy, but their struggles only serves to make the outcome of WILD CARD that much more satisfying.

Buy it in Print
at Amazon:

Buy it in Kindle
at Amazon:

Buy it in Print
at Barnes & Noble