Customer Reviews

A Kiss to Kill (Berkley Sensation)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I enjoyed this so much more than I expected to. The cover is truly frightening (while oddly appealing!!), but the story was fun.

There was a lot going on here - we could have had more time with Gina and Gregg to see their relationship evolve - however, Nina Bruhns can write relationships like nobody's business, and wow did I fall in love with Gregg (and the others in the various pairings). I think Gina was realistic, considering what she's been through. After having most of the other women in this series be superhero cops and special agents, I liked that Gina was a normal woman I felt I could identify with.

I love romantic suspense that actually bothers to have a suspense plot, and this is one of those books. There was just the right balance between the different aspects of the books.

I know I will be rereading this.

This is the third book in the Dangerous Passions series, following Shoot to Thrill and If Looks Could Chill. Fans of the series will enjoy following up on previous characters and their relationships. I think the reader will have a better understanding of who is who if they have read the previous books. However, this one will stand alone.

A very fast paced exciting storyline! I loved how we got several romances within this story and the continuation of romances from the previous two books. There were a lot of supporting characters that played important roles that was a little confusing trying to remember which agency or person they belonged to. The author does a great job weaving the suspense through the romance. I was shocked when it was revealed who the ultimate villain was - I never even thought it was this person. Gregg is the ultimate hero - his strength and determination to protect Gina even amidst the skepticism of her and his team will leave you breathless. Great characters, exciting plot, nonstop action, and intense sexual tension combine to make this a book you'll want to read over and over again. - Lisa Freeman

Oh I liked this one and I agree with others that this is the best of the Passion For Danger trilogy. Its like Bruhns finally got the formula right here with each character getting just the right amount of page time, an exciting but not over-the-top storyline and the perfect balance of action/suspense to romance. It could also be said though that I've gotten used to her style and didn't expect to read exclusively about just one couple. I actually enjoyed the multiple romances taking place this time around and since I've read these back to back (thanks to advice from other reviews) I'm also seriously invested in the characters and seeing them through to their HEA's.

All in all this was a great read that I was sad to see come to an end. Theres some excellent action scenes; Rebel and Alex diving the "Allah's Paradise" wreck during one of his flashbacks (yikes) and quite a few LOL funny moments including male bonding "fist bumps" and the continued witty banter between agents. The love scenes remain heartfelt and super steamy with just the right amount of alpha maleness thrown in. I should mention that in order to fully appreciate the back story and romantic build up involved here this series should be read in order, as almost all of the characters stories began in book #1(SHOOT TO THRILL) and are only now are seeing through to there conclusions.

Pegged as Gina and Gregg's book -although as I said all the couples receive equal page time, this couple met eight months ago. Back then scientist Dr Gina Cappozi and black-ops agent Gregg Van Halen were (fantastic) lovers until Gregg committed the ultimate betrayal, turning Gina over to the hands of the terrorists. Tortured for several months, while they utilized her bio chemical talents to perform acts of terrorism Gina was rescued in the last book (A KISS TO KILL) and has now made it her mission to kill the man she once loved. Of course that wouldn't be any fun especially now that she's being targeted by kidnappers again and it seems that Gregg is the only one who can help her. Even if he is slightly controlling, in and out of the bedroom.

This is however only one of several ongoing plotlines we also; Alex and Rebel who have finally gotten it together, although he has a few surprises about why they can't stay that way and newcomer detective Sarah McPhee and rebound specialist Wade Montana. Hmm, more secrets there too. While all the love is going on the agents are still running around trying to discover the identity (didn't see that coming) of the person responsible for the terrorist attacks and also to stop "the trigger" from killing the president. All these subplots blend well this time into a fast paced romantic thriller. Cheers

Sexy black-ops heroes and gorgeous heroines. What else do you want? I loved all three book in the series. They are page-turners and you cannot put them down. So if you have something important to do read these at a better time. Every single book by Ms. Nina Bruhns is more exciting than the other. The stories are provocative, original, funny, passionate, and intriguing, with captivating characters. I do strongly recommend all three books in this series to readers that love FBI suspense stories. I loved them and will reread them in the future. I am hoping that Ms. Bruhns write more of these stories. Is there one waiting to be printed in the near future!!!?

This book is the third book to a series. I absolutely loved the whole series! Through all three books you get a feel of all the characters, which I really liked how you get to keep up with everyone. Also how they all stay together in the end! There are really two romances in each book. The heroin of this book, Gina, previously had a relationship with the sexy CIA black ops agent Gregg Van Halen before she got kidnapped in Shoot to Thrill. Gina thought Gregg had betrayed her and gave her to her kidnappers. So after her rescue shes determined to kill him. Little does she know that hes trying to save her. Its a very hard road to the the truth of who kidnapped her and why. But as they work together to figure it out they cant fight the passion and heat between them as it only gets hotter! If you like special black ops, hard men, and dangerously sexy romances, then you'll love this series too!

Ok. So I'm starting out my review with the statement that I got this book from the library. The reason? Because I pre-ordered the book on Kindle and then the publisher pulled it. If the publisher is going to pull stunts I don't see why I should support them by buying the paper copy. I do regret that the author loses out on the sale. That being said.....I had read the previous two books and was looking forward to the third. Read it as soon as I picked it up. I did have a little bit of a problem with the beginning as the author was switching story lines between three different couples every 2 or 3 pages. But as the book progressed each section got longer and each of the couples stories started to come together into one story line. It was actually an interesting tactic. You just have to get through the frustrating beginning. I would say that if you had not read the firt two you might have a problem catching up on the back story which is extremely important to the resolution of this one. My heartrate was definitely racing by the end of book.....lots of action. I would recommend the book to those who like romantic action adventure.

In Manhattan, private protection firm Storm agents follow Dr. Gina Coppozi to keep her safe from al Sayika operatives especially her former lover CIA Black Ops ground Zero unit operative Greg Van Halen. She vows to kill him for selling her out to the terrorists. Gina also knows he is nearby watching her to obviously kidnap her for his handlers. Storm agents Alex Kane and Kick Jackson are part of the surveillance team, but are called off it to attend a meeting as NSA insists there is increased al Sayika chatter.

Alex loves CIA Special Agent Rebel Hayward and knows she loves him too, but he refuses to act on their mutual feelings as he feels unworthy of her. She is sent to Chesapeake Bay to investigate a threat posed by a yacht Allah's Paradise and told by her boss she will work for Storm on this mission. Alex is assigned to join her.

In DC Metro Police detective Sarah McPhee leads the investigation of a dead woman Asha Mamoud. CIA agent Wade Montana calls Sarah to question her about Asha. Soon all will converge in DC as a diabolical traitor has set up everyone to take a deadly fall.

This is a great tale in which several subplots rotate nicely before blending together into a fast-paced romantic suspense thriller. The ensemble cast comes across as different and fully developed characters. Although A Kiss to Kill By can stand alone; it helps to have read the previous tales (see If Looks Could Chill and Shoot to Thrill) to better understand the references to the past. Still this is a terrific Storm entry.

Harriet Klausner

I was very disappointed with this final book in the trilogy. A Kiss to Kill was supposed to be Gina and Gregg's story. Readers were fed intriguing sexy tidbits from the first novel If Looks could Chill. I was highly anticipating this and was let down. The story has a combination of romances going on, as well as the main couple and then a continuation of the terrorist plot from the 2nd novel. This was handled better in the previous stories. Way too much going on in this one without the skillful weaving and there was so much transitioning that I never felt like the story had a flow. It felt rushed with Gina and Gregg doled out sections in increments that were not satisfying. Rebel and Alex get closure but their story is not enjoyable because Alex comes off as a jerk in A Kiss to Kill and his reason for his engagement to Helene is so lame that I wouldnt have blamed Rebel if she had shot him. Gregg went from being in love with Gina secretly because he was the tough black ops agent that had to remain distant and then he was the I dont trust you Gina because you cant be trusted. Argh!! it was so frustrating to see Gina take this especially since we are led to believe that she has toughened up from her hostage experience and is ready to kick butt. Instead she folds and comes across as wimpy in scenes where she could have really proven that she was just as tough as her lover Gregg. The surprise killer and the ending was just as rocky as the whole story so it was fitting. Perhaps my expectations for this book were too high. Oh well, one out of three is still stellar for Nina Bruhns transition into mainstream

If you're running a competition to find the most embarrassing book cover ever, look no further. Here's your winner. The designer obviously worked on the theory women only like pink and biceps. My problem is that pink is a little on the embarrassing side, and biceps have their uses, but put together on a cover = a book you can never let anybody see you with.

I liked the conclusion to the `Passion For Danger' trilogy, but if you haven't read the earlier books you're not going to appreciate it anywhere near as much. Yet again the hero and heroine take a definite backseat to EVERYONE else. Though Gregg and Gina's story has been running through the whole trilogy, and so I felt a little more connected to them than the stars of the last book, their story wasn't given justice in this one. One minute Gregg is a crazy, dangerous agent guy who may or may not have sold Gina to terrorists and who can only get turned on when he's tied Gina to the bed. The next he's telling some story about childhood trauma, being tied to the bed himself, and getting mushy at a wedding and proposing with a whole lot of purple prose. It's hard to believe in such an extreme character transformation when it happens off the page.

The premise is interesting; Gina was kidnapped by terrorists in the first book, tortured and forced to work for them in the second, and here at the beginning of the third is just recovering after her rescue. Gregg was the man who took her to the place where she was abducted from, so when the book begins she believes that not only is he a traitor, but that he's coming back for her. Of course, Gregg isn't the bad guy here.

What we got of the relationship was good. Gregg is an interesting hero (and blonde! - I'm so sick of people who'll only read about heroes who are carbon copies of each other, but who are fine with women being eight feet tall, 600 pounds, with multi-coloured hair and a pet pig), and there was a lot of potential there. It's only a pity the author forgot he was the hero, and gave more page time to Alex (also blonde!). Same goes for Gina. There was so much potential for a heroine who is recovering from a terrible ordeal while believing the man she's in love with in working with terrorists. But Rebel stole her book from her.

Yet again I liked the characters - the eighty-six thousand and two characters - and their stories. But I didn't like them all in the same book. Rebel and Alex's relationship took over the book, which would have almost been fine if Rebel wasn't a prim and proper `Southern Belle' little...FBI agent...who spent more time nagging all the men about bad language than actually doing any work. Speaking of the bad language, the woman's offended by words I didn't even know could be offensive. There were times she was nagging someone about swearing where I had to go back and read the dialogue a number of times because there wasn't a swear word anywhere to be seen.

Marc - hero of the last book - obviously wasn't a favourite of the author's, as I think he might have had about a paragraph of page time and maybe two words to say in the whole book. Maybe if the author hadn't given the female characters so many Too Stupid To Live moments there might have been more time for Marc to flex those superhero muscles. TSTL in order to move the plot along is always annoying. Rebel being on the phone, gossiping with her friend through the terrorist attack at the beginning and the assassination attempt at the end was stupid. There are moments for the characters to deal with friendships and relationships, and then there are moments where they should be doing their job!

There was so much happening that when we got to the best part of the story it was dealt with too quickly. By then we'd spent so much time with so many people that there wasn't page space to make the action at the end very exciting. When that was over and done with we got a few pages of super-gooey, lovey-dovey stuff with a wedding, a baby and a proposal. I don't think that in a series about Islamic extremists, CIA agents and torture we need to be handed the standard, old-fashioned `your life's not complete until you've had the white wedding and popped out the kiddies' ending. That's what the category romances are for. Don't make something edgy and then borrow the Virgin Princess and the Billionaire Tycoon's epilogue. It's wrong.

This series had so much potential, but became swamped in too many characters and too many side stories that none of them were given justice. I would have liked for there to have been six books instead of three so that we could actually get to know these people and care about their relationships. There were certainly enough couples to fill out a longer series. It also would have been nice if the books were a little more self-contained; none of them stand up on their own, and so you have to read them in quick succession to have any hope of understanding them.
There's a lot of good here, but the Passion For Danger series is not my favourite romantic suspense by a long shot.

* MAJOR SPOILERS *

Granted, I've only read one review of this book, but I'm so relieved to see it. I had HIGH hopes for this book, too, and it just felt flat to me. There were several things I didn't like. I didn't want Rebel with Alex, I wanted her to kick him to the curb. I didn't want Gregg to be the cold-man-with-issues I've seen in most other romances. I felt such build-up with the how-could-he-betray-her storyline, and when it was resolved, I just thought, "Oh. Well, that makes sense." But it didn't feel satisfying either.

And when Wade started hitting on that other character whose name I don't even bother to remember because she's so generic, I thought, "When have I read this before?" Oh, right, when he came on strong to REBEL. He just HAD to have her, didn't he? I felt bad for him before, now he's a man-slut. I kind of hope he dies alone. And I had really liked Wade in the last book.

So with all that, why three stars? Because a mediocre Bruhns is still better than most other books. She has multiple storylines going, it's gripping, things are resolved. I'm going to reread it again soon, because my own expectations might be part of the problem. I still adore this author and will give her next work/series a try. I love the three-storylines-in-one thing she has going, I haven't read any other romantic suspense authors who do it so well. But she might also be one of those authors who write the secondary characters better than the main couple.