Customer Reviews

Out of Control

5 star:		(56)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(14)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Suzanne Brockmann and her Navy Seal books are my new obsession. I loved this one the most because I actually liked all of the multiple storylines. She usually does a main romance, a secondary one, the obligatory Sam/Alyssa angst (which i adore because I LOVE these two) and a WWII flashback. In some of her other books there is at least one storyline I skim through because I think it steals valuable time from the better stuff. Not this time. I loved all the storylines.

There are two reasons this one doesn't get 5 whole stars:

First is Ken Karmody. This character has really changed from the previous books. He wasn't very recognizeable as "Wildcard" Karmody. He seemed way too normal in this one.

Second, I know that Sam and Alyssa's path to true love is already tortuous and doesn't need any other help to be even more torturous, but I was disappointed in the Max/Alyssa let's pretend we're together shenanigans. It just seems so high school. I think the heart-failure quotient for the Sam/Alyssa fans would've been really high if Max/Alyssa had actually, really tried to be together. Temporarily, of course.

But enough of my armchair fan-fic.

Great book, great series. Total recommendation!

I'm a big fan of Suzanne Brockmann's SEAL books, both the Silhouette Intimate Moments and the Troubleshooters series. I get completely caught up in the suspense and emotion of her books. NO ONE does action/adventure romance better! And OUT OF CONTROL is no exception. It starts off with a bang (literally) and I was hooked. I didn't care for Ken Carmody in the previous books too much but he grew on me here, and Savannah was a great match for him. The two subplots were diverting, especially the World War II story, and Sam and Alyssa's story moves along as well, although not very satisfactorily for them. Can't wait for their book.

If you haven't read Brockmann before, this series starts with THE UNSUNG HERO, but it's not necessary to have read the others for anything but the Sam and Alyssa plot. If you are looking for a good, fast paced romantic thriller, you can't go wrong with Suzanne Brockmann!

This was a very, very entertaining book. I read it in one sitting while the housework piled up around me. I stayed up half the night and got up bright and early to grab a cup of coffee and finish it. I have read the whole series and her characters are so human. They have their faults, and they have their strengths. Some of them you like better than others - that's life. Ken Karmody is someone that not everyone likes. He has been portrayed as a man-on-the edge in the past books. The kind of man that lets his emotional baggage weigh him down. But as in life, there truly is someone for everyone (in this case Savannah). As in her other books, there are other relationships developing along the way. I get lost in all of them. I loved Molly and Jones' story. It was so rewarding to FINALLY read about a beautiful woman who does not have a perfect figure. Do you have any idea how long we have been waiting for this? She has laugh lines too! She is not even all that classically pretty. Imagine! Someone sees through this to a beautiful person underneath. The Sam and Allyssa saga continues as she finds him married with baby (and none too contently). I predict Allyssa searching for her Happy Ever After in the arms of her boss, Max, just in time for Sam to realize he's been duped and bail out of his marriage. I think it is brilliant for Suzanne B. to show that life [is bad] sometimes. If he had kept his pants zipped up, he and Allyssa might be together. If she had been honest about her feelings, and not just after about ten drinks, they might be together. Sometimes life isn't so pretty. Sometimes women trap men. Some people may find the language in this book offensive, but not me. I don't believe for a second that Navy SEALS walk around saying darn! or calling their lovers Darling! If you want that, read a Harlequin Romance. This is how men talk when they're together and the dialogue is what makes this story so believable. I love reading a book that shows me how he thinks and how he feels even when he's in tears or paralyzed by insecurities. I think I will find it very hard to read a lot of the other [stuff] that is on the shelf because nothing can compare to this. I guess I'll have to wait until Into the Fire! Do we have a release date on this yet?

I have read several of Suzanne Brockman's books and find that she, like her latest work, is "out of control". Yes, there are the familiar touches of comedy (I especially enjoy how she lets us women readers peek into the riotous musings of the male mind) and the inevitable steamy romance between the two main characters, but I quickly became bored with the tired format and predictable plot. [girl in trouble, stuck abroad in unfriendly territory, NAVY seal to the rescue, flashbacks to WWII, etc.] In Over the Edge (her best book by far), she took what could have been an unbelievable plot and made it realistic. And she had you rooting for the characters' romance - while enjoying every snappy, delicious bit of banter along the way. I can only hope she finds that fresh, quirky, adrenaline-laced fun that was so evident in Over the Edge. And please, Ms. Brockman: get Alyssa and Sam back together! Every character pales in comparison to those two.

Suzanne Brockmann has hit another home-run! Kenny "Wild Card" Karmody and Savannah Von Hopf make the perfect unlikely couple. Savannah has known (and had a crush on) Kenny since she met him through his old ex-girlfriend in college. She tries to use this to her advantage when she needs help after her uncle is kidnapped in Jakarta. Unfortunately, Kenny doesn't remember Savannah, but that doesn't stop them from falling into bed after he helps her with her broken down car. When Kenny really finds out why Savanna is there all hell breaks loose. Unable to let her fly to Indonesia alone Kenny joins her and the action begins from there. Along the way Kenny and Savannah meet the unlikely lovers Molly (who's a missionary) and Jones (a shady businessman with a price on his head) and through out the book Brockmann also weaves in a glimpse of Savannah's grandparents' romance in World War II. This is a well writen adventure/romance that will keep your attention from the beginning page to the end. Ms. Brockmann skillfully weaves together four (that' right, FOUR) storylines and gives them each the time they deserve. Sam and Alyssa fans will be once again heartbroken by what happens to their "romance" in "Out of Control." This book left me anxious to read the next installment in this series tentatively titled "Into The Fire" and featuring Lt. (jg) Mike Muldoon. After that should be the book that SB's fans have really, really been waiting for: Sam and Alyssa's story! Do yourself a favor and buy this book and the others in this series: "The Unsung Hero," "The Defiant Hero," and "Over the Edge."

I found this book & the previous very depressing due to Sam & Alyssa's constant misery. In "Over the Edge" Sam sleeps with a woman, before his relationship with Alyssa. The woman somehow gets pregnant, they hardly know each other, he's in love with someone else, but they get married? In this day & age two mature people would not behave this way knowing that everyone would be unhappy, especially a child raised in this type of "home". I had hoped there would be a promising resolution in "Out of Control". Instead everyone's unhappy, yet the situation remains the same. This ruined the whole book for me & makes me hesitate to continue with the series even though I've read four previous.

This book kept me up late and got me out of bed early to finish it. Ms. Brockmann tells several stories - all of which are wonderful. Ken & Savannah are a great story - they REALLY hit it off right away, but Savannah has to break the news that she had come to ask him a favor. He's disappointed because he thought their initial meeting was a chance encounter. That encounter, by the way, was a lot of fun. I love the way Ms. Brockmann makes each of these guys into their own characters. Too many romance writers write the same cookie cutter dialogue, mannerisms, and words from one man to the next. She gets us into the heads of the guys in these stories - and Wildcard's thoughts just kept me laughing - especially when he's helping change the tire and trying very hard to not say the wrong thing.

The plot was fast, many characters interwoven together, and lots of action!

Molly & Jones' story was wonderful - sad, but wonderful. I would like to see a whole book with them, but the way their relationship started would be so necessary to understand them together.

Alyssa & Sam...Well, the storyline continuation is disappointing, because, of course, you wanted them to live happily ever after after Over the Edge. But, I have to say, if Sam had to get married, the way the story continued is realistic - there's longing, but honesty from both sides that it can't continue. I was surprised that Alyssa would so easily dump her commitment to not being seen as sleeping her way to the top in order to make Sam believe she's moved on. It's a sad story that I hope, eventually, will be resolved happily. I kind of expected Sam to find out he'd been tricked, somehow, since the point was made at the end of "Over the Edge" that he had been very careful with protection. I guess that would've been too easy, though...

Though I've bought a lot of books during the years in Amazon, and I'm an avid romance reader, his is the first review I feel compelled to write. I first read about Suzanne through the recommendations, I even remember a reader saying that if she could read only one book for the rest of her life Over The Edge would be it. After reading that, you have to imagine that the writer is an extremely gifted person, to make someone feel that way. That comment made me buy Over the Edge(3rd book in the series)and I loved it so much that I decided to buy the first two(which were fabulous, I even laughed and cried,and that does not happen often when I read)and this one.
I have to say that of the four books this one has been the worst, which doesn't mean it's not worth reading, it just means that it doesn't have the same way of pulling you into the story that the others have. So if you are a fan of SB and if you are following the series as closely as I am (and wondering what will happen between Sam and Alyssa and hoping that they'll end up together)you definetly have to read it.
I know I'm buying the next one and I just hope that it is as great as I have come to expect from Suzanne.

This was the second Suzanne Brockmann book I read and since I have purchased every other one I could find. Out of Control is still my favorite.

Maybe because I was first introduced to Wildcard in this book, I don't share some of the othe opinions about him not living up to character. He's an intelligent, tough hero with low self esteem because he was abused by his father. It's part of who he is, no matter what medals he earns. His inner monologue seemed very honest and realisic and I wish I had a man like him, self depricating and all.

Same goes for Jones. The more you learn about him, the more you want to know and his banter with Molly is the best! I have read this book about six times and I enjoy it everytime!

I've read all of Ms. Brockmann's SEAL team 16 series and I've loved every one. Well, almost every one. This one didn't sit as well with me, but it's still better than a lot of the junk out there!

Mainly my issue is with the main relationship between Ken & Savannah-- it starts out with a bang (no pun intended), but then fizzles out. The rest of the relationship in the book fails to achieve any sense of depth or intensity. Perhaps its because of Ken's character flaws (and what devoted readers already know about him & Adele), or maybe it's because Savannah reads sort of silly, I'm not sure. But I just didn't connect with either of them.

That said though, the secondary characters in this one were REALLY STRONG!! I loved the Rose/Hank story and the Jones/Molly relationship. both of those romances were compelling and charismatic and I found myself wanting to hear more about them. I can't say I was happy with the further development of the Sam/Alyssa since it wasn't exactly a happy development, but I did appreciate reading about them again!

Overall, I would recommend this book to others, but more for the secondary romances than for the primary one!