Customer Reviews

Swept Away

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Brock Denton was undercover and about to bust a smuggling ring wide open when his cover was blown and he found himself stranded on an island with the woman of his dreams, literally. Ever since the night she'd offered herself to him, Katrina Spencer had been the woman he fantasized about. When he was stuck undercover with hours to kill, she was who he thought of; now that he was on the island with her, he could only hope that they could turn his dreams into reality.

Katrina Spencer had bailed on her friends and their plans of a bachelorette party to escape to her family's uninhabited island and try to reconnect with herself. She found herself thinking about that night years ago when she'd thrown aside inhibitions and propositioned the darkly handsome Brock Denton. She remembered the shame when she'd been turned down and how he'd never been far from her fantasies since. Now that he's here, within reach, Katrina has to fight everything to be true to her fiancé.

Swept Away is a compelling mix of clichéd romance and truly deep emotions. With a hero who doesn't know how to love and a heroine who's daddy's little girl, there were a lot of moments in this book that I was frustrated with it, but I kept coming back to the love, the hate, and the fear that was effortlessly woven into the story. By the time I finished Swept Away, I no longer thought of the plot devices as clichés, but as tried and true romantic ingredients. I have never been happier than now that I've continued to read a book even when the characters and plot frustrated me. Brock was a fantastic bad boy and never really lost his edge while Kat truly shone as the heroine in this book. Her sheer strength of will was amazing and the sexual tension between the two of them sent shivers down my spine. I have to say brava Ms. Blake, brava.

SWEPT AWAY by Toni Blake
December 17, 2006

Amazon rating 3.5/5


"Ten years ago on her birthday, teen Katrina Spencer tried to seduce Brock Denton (who was twenty-two years old at the time), thinking he wouldn't be able to resist her. But Brock said no, and ruined what she expected to be her best birthday yet.

Now Katrina is about to marry Ian, a conservative accountant who works at her father's art gallery. Katrina has curbed her wild streak and is ready to settle down. She works for her father and creates beautiful pottery on the side, but she isn't happy. Instead of heading to Las Vegas for her bridal shower, she hides out on her family's private island off the coast of Florida, trying to sort out her life. No one knows she's there except her best friend.

FBI agent Brock Denton is at sea, working undercover, attempting to capture a ring of art smugglers who have been stealing Guatemalan artifacts and selling to private collectors. Unfortunately, carelessness reveals his true identity. His life in danger, he jumps ship and swims to the closest island. Of course he encounters Kat napping on the beach. Brock brings danger to Katrina's refuge, but does his best to protect her, as they hide from the pursuing smugglers." - Complete review at BookLoons - M. Lofton

This was a book that will keep you reading into the night, and Toni Blake does a great job with the writing. However, I felt that the subplot involving Kat's mother didn't belong in this book, and should have been eliminated before the book went to print. SWEPT AWAY is a good beach read with a lot of action and sensual love scenes.

This book is such an easy read and a guilty pleasure. When I started it, I was a little hesitant...the characters seemed very flat at first and I really thought that if Brock kept calling Kat "kitten" the whole book it would drive me crazy! I'm glad I stuck with it, though, because I really enjoyed this book. The characters got more depth through each page. The pace of the book picked up a lot about 100 pages through, with suspense and steamy sex scenes. If you are looking to read a really fun, hot, mindless book then you'll love it! I ended up really liking both characters by the end of the book, which I didn't expect at all.

Katrina Spencer have been looking forward to settling down and form a family, the only thing missing in the relationship with the man she is set to marry in a week is love and passion. That's why instead of going to Vegas to celebrate her Bachelorette party with her friends, she decides she wants to escape to her private island and prepare herself for what the future holds. Then a man from her past suddenly shows up on her beach. The one that hurt her so bad years ago that made her give up her dreams of a fairy tale. Now he is here in the flesh and she doesn't know what to do with all the conflicting emotions inside her, but one thing is for sure he is trouble with capital T and in mayor trouble, the kind that is putting both their lives in danger.
Brock Denton cannot believe his luck when he arrives at this island and finds the woman that still haunts his dreams and fantasies. The one he let escape when he was young, and the only one that makes his heart beat faster. He is no longer the kid from the wrong side of the tracks and is determined to seduce Kat but she is fighting him tooth and nail, its not that he wants to marry her, is just that its not right that she is settling for less than what she deserves and he want her to have that with him.
In this romance Toni Blake weaves a passionate, sexy story full of suspense, steam and passion that will get your heart beating harder and faster!

Toni Blake has penned a sizzling sensual and suspenseful story with lots of action between the main characters.

Ten years ago Katrina (Kat) Spencer threw herself at Brock Denton on her graduation night, only to be sent away embarrassed, humiliated and deeply hurt. Now ten years later the last person she expects to see swim out of the ocean on her deserted island is Brock.

Kat has declined going to Vegas with her friends and having a bachelorette party, instead opting to go to the family's private island to get herself mentally prepared to marry her fiancé, Ian in seven days. She has known him all her life; he is prominent, rich and would be able to help her family out. But it also means that she would have a sedate life, something she has to come to terms with, because it is for the best. She knows all this, but it just doesn't feel right for her, something is missing or is it?

Brock is an undercover FBI Agent, who has had his cover blown. He escapes off a yacht and manages to swim to an island. Imagine his surprise when he comes upon a grown up, half naked Kat when he emerges from the water. She is the one person he has never been able to forget. While the bad guys are still pursuing him, and now having to protect Kat, as well as deal with the sparks that fly between the two of them with enough heat to burn up the pages, Brock stumbles on something on the island that puts Kat's family, especially her father and fiancé in jeopardy. How is he ever going to survive all this?

Toni has weaved an true love story with passion, betrayal, and heart pounding suspense that will keep you on the edge of your chair and turning pages to the very end. It is a book well worth reading and I recommend it.

Katrina "Kat" Spencer has taken a little break from her hectic wedding plans and has gone to her parents privately owned in order to transition from who she is...to who she thinks she needs to be. Gone will be the party girl and in her place will be a pastel wearing, sedate lady. Can she help it if she still dreams of a pirate whisking her away from it all? So, when she awakens from a nap and a half dressed god walks out of the surf...she first thinks that she's in a dream world but when the god speaks and it's a voice from her past...she knows otherwise. What on earth is Brock Denton doing on her island...and why is her heart beating way to fast? This man hurt her once before and she is not about to give him a second chance of doing it again. But, when danger follows Brock and he protects her as a knight should...it becomes harder and harder to say no to the one man she has always wanted. Is this really their second chance at love and will they survive in order to see their happy ending?

This red hot read is beyond entertaining! It's action packed and so sensually written you will be able to feel the sexual tension she builds between her main characters. Ms. Blake is an awesome talent and once again has created one of the hottest hero's in print today. Brock and Kat's romance will keep enthrall until the final page. This is one read you must add to your summer reading list! You will be "Swept Away" for sure!

After humiliating herself when she offered her virginity to hunky Brock Denton only to be turned down twice, Kat Spencer watched her unrequited obsession leave town, never to return. A decade later, she escapes to her father's private island to prepare for her upcoming nuptials while her bridal party is in Vegas. Brock crashes into her island paradise, bringing smugglers and danger in his wake. And reigniting a passion that Kat thought was long buried. Brock is now an FBI agent investigating a ring of smugglers of Central American artifacts. Her boat blown to smithereens, the duo must wait it out for five days until her friends realize she is missing and come looking for her. In between dodging bullets and Brock's many advances, Kat's resolves melt. But with danger possibly returning to the island, can Brock get the woman he resisted for so long safely back to Florida.

Blake sure knows how to write passion. She smartly makes readers wait and let's the tension build up between the characters, and then it's one sizzling and fun ride to the end. Realistic dialogue, plenty of action and thrills, great chemistry, and flawless writing make this a first rate romantic adventure on the spicier side.

Ten years ago Kat put her heart and her body on the line to be with the one man that she couldn't resist, and was turned away. Devastated, she tried to put everything behind her and go on...but she can't forget him.

Kat Spencer, also known by her friends as Crazy Kat is getting married. Her family loves Ian; he's perfect for her...she thinks. After working summers at her dad's gallery and going on to get her degree in Art History, Kat has made the gallery a huge part of her life. And after several years, she's finally going to have her own showing, showcasing her pottery. Being an artist has been her dream for a long time, and finally her life is coming together the way she's wanted it...for the most part.

Brock Denton has made something of himself; he's gone from doing the grunt work and deliveries for a gallery to being a special agent for the FBI. He loves his job, nothing is more satisfying than bringing down the bad guys, but he's getting tired, and occasionally losing his edge; it's a rough life. He still misses his grandfather, the only one he misses besides his brother. Seeing his brother is tough, he's been in and out of jail for years and although intelligent, he keeps on breaking the law and ending up back behind bars.

After 2 months of working undercover getting an "in" with the Morales brothers, Brock's cover is blown and he is about to be delivered to the Omega Man--the Morales' boss. He escapes the yacht he is on and swims to an island that he sees not too far away. Coming onto the beach of what he thought was an uninhabited island, Brock sees the one woman that he could never forget, Kat Spencer.

Deciding to relax on her father's island just off the coast of Florida, instead of going to Las Vegas with the rest of her friends for her bachelorette party, Kat is trying to come to terms with the life that she's about to have. She's not sure she's ready to settle down and become the wife and mother that she's expected to be. She's accepted Ian's proposal and her marriage will help her family, and she's known Ian most of her life...it's for the best, isn't it? Seeing the one man that she could never forget come up on shore of her private island is a shock. Her heart and body still yearn for him, but he can never know that, she's getting married next week and she'll be faithful to her fiancée.

Swept Away is chock full of danger, love, passion and betrayal. Toni Blake has brought to life a story that I found gripping. Not only are Kat and Brock so life-like that I came to know them intimately, but her secondary characters felt just as real. Swept Away is an intriguing mix of love, passion and danger that I simply couldn't put down. When the threat of death follows Brock onto the island, Kat gets a first-hand look at the danger that Brock faces often on the job. The love that Kat feels for Brock is deep and ever-lasting, but can a man that has never loved, feel anything other than fondness for a woman that he can't forget? Swept Away is perfect for those that like spice and action with a passionate romance; I thoroughly enjoyed it!

Lyonene
Reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

Desperate to escape from the pre-wedding madness and relax before exchanging vows with her fiancée in five days, Kat secretly vacations on her family's private island. She's only there one day when the completely unexpected happens - the one man guaranteed to make her loins quake, her heart ache and to make her seriously rethink her engagement walks out of the surf and back into her life. Not only is Brock the one who got away, but his rejection devastated Kat to the point that she shut her heart away for good, never again willing to love.

Seeing Brock again stirs long-buried feelings inside Kat that endanger her emotional well-being, her future with her intended husband, and all of the plans she has made for her life. But she can't ignore her feelings for Brock for long, especially when the goons chasing him threaten both of their lives, forcing them into close proximity as the sexy FBI agent pulls out all the stops to protect her.

The more I read of author Toni Blake's work, the higher the regard I have for her talent. Swept Away is the fourth story I have read by her, and proves to this reviewer the consistent high quality in Blake's work.

From page one, Blake creates empathy for the characters she pens, engendering a feeling within the reader that they are a part of the story, instead of being on the outside looking in. You don't read a story by this writer as much as you feel it. In my opinion, that is the mark of a truly great author.

Kat and Brock are a fantastic romantic duet! Each of them brings to the story a considerable amount of trepidation regarding love - especially with each other. Kat is frightened to give her heart to anyone again after the way Brock rejected her when she was just 17 years old, and Brock is convinced that love and commitment can never be in the cards for a man with his dangerous lifestyle. Watching the fireworks commence as these characters fight what is oh so obviously a losing battle is riveting!

In the end, Blake once again delivers a beautiful HEA (happy ever after). While happy endings are the stuff fairy tales are made of, this author ensures that her couple has a realistic happy ending, working out both their individual issues and their issues together before finally culminating in a very satisfying finish. I highly recommend Swept Away!

Kat loved Brock as a teen, but Brock mysteriously left town. Ten years later, Kat is on a private island for a five-day contemplative vacation. She is engaged to someone she doesn't love. She sees Brock (for the first time in ten years) as he swims to the island from the ocean. I enjoyed this, but I wish Kat didn't avoid Brock so much for the first two days on the island. I also wish Brock would have told her details about his past and current situation sooner.

Sexual content: not evaluated. I read this book before I began counting sex scenes and describing the language. As I recall, it was probably moderate. Setting: current day U.S. and a private island off the Gulf Coast of Florida. Copyright: 2006. Genre: contemporary romance.