Customer Reviews

Takedown (Harlequin Intrigue)

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

 

 

The first word that comes to mind is satisfying. Yes, Julie Miller's Takedown has everything a great book should, including sizzling lovemaking. You read it right, a Harlequin Intrigue with passionate scenes and unexpected hot kisses. A perfectly threaded blend of romance and suspense, featuring a convoluted villain who kept everyone (including me) exhilarating until the very end.

I must confess, I fell in love with Captain Michael Cutler at first read, it's hard to say which part of him I like more, but I'll try. Maybe is the way he wears his KCPD uniform, his age (he is in his early forties) so tasty mature, with salt-and-pepper hair and dark blue eyes, his height (I have a thing for tall men) and of course, Michael's kisses! Next time I have to give an example of a great alpha, he will be mine. Oops! I forgot to mention he is a hero, a real one, he leads a SWAT team with Spartan discipline.

I'm sorry Jillian (the heroine) when Michael is in the room I don't have eyes for anybody else. You know what I mean, right?

Just kidding, Jillian Masterson is a complex character with emotional issues we all can relate to, even without ever fighting the same addicting demons she struggled with during her adolescence. Her need for redemption and her genuine desire to help others motives her now. She's the savvy sister of Eli Masterson, who I relished in Julie Miller's Baby Jane Doe, excellent book too.

Besides the rebuffing and thrillful pursuit of the villain, Michael and Jillian have their own battle among themselves. The fifteen age difference, her lurking past, and his fear to lose another love one (he is a widower); must be settled before we can enjoy our astounding happy ending.

In the past I was not a fan of May/December romances, part of the problem was the books I was reading were mainly about the H being the ultimate mature male and the h being to juvenile for words. There was just no way I could suspend belief to believe love could grow in that type of relationship. I'm happy to report things are looking up and recently I have discovered some very good authors that can do justice to this type of theme. Takedown by Julie Miller is such a story. Jillian a Physical Therapist with a past is attracted to one of her young patient's dad. Swat Team Cpt. Michael Cutler had his life all figured out and it did not include falling in love with his son's therapist, someone 15yrs his junior. But all of that is about to change when he discovers someone is stalking Jillian and the people around her that the stalker perceived as a threat to her are attacked and killed. Once Jillian opens up to Michael about her problem there is no going back to their old relationship of father of patient and therapist as they race against time to catch a stalker as the violence around Jillian escalates.

What made this story work for me was Jillian, the author developed her character to show she was more than a PYT (pretty young thing). The process of conquering demons in her past helped to shape the woman she became. She was familiar with loss and self destruction and what it took to pull yourself up out of the hell hole she allowed herself to fall into. She had an old soul in a young body and a determination to help troubled kids to spare them from what she experienced at that age. Love was the one area in her life she had closed the door to. Because of her past and the past hurt she had caused her loved ones she did not feel she was worthy enough for the love of a good man like Michael. Jillian never dreamed the crush she had for her patients father could be anything deeper.

Cpt. Michael Cutler Sr. was the type of guy in his mid 40's that thought with the death of his wife romance had also ended for him. He had experience the love of a good woman for 15yrs and did not feel he could get lucky twice in his lifetime. He was content devoting himself to his son and his career as a Swat Team Cpt. He was confident and focus, so far the only thing he had trouble dealing with was the estrangement between him and is son Mike Jr. His son a survivor of an auto accident that left him in a wheelchair is reluctantly opening up to Jill during their therapy sessions. Michael notices the positive changes in his son once he starts treatment with Jillian and is very grateful for her devotion to her work and the special interest she has for Mike Jr. He also notices she is a very attractive young woman but because of their age difference he refuses to think about any type of personal relationship with her. When Jill brings her problem to him he pretends he is only involved because he cannot and will not loose the only person that has been able to connect with his son since the accident and his wife's death. Nobody including the reader is buying that theory as the romantic tension builds.

I enjoyed this book that was equal parts suspense and romance. There were no moments of silly misunderstanding, and the author did not beat you over head with the age difference. How the family members and co-workers handled the age subject was perfect. I was not able to correctly identify the stalker until half way through the book. Michael was in need of a mature woman to help him deal with the stresses of his job and to be his life partner, Jillian was in need of a good man that would not hold her past against her, it was a treat experiencing them falling in love. Julie Miller is a new author for me and so far all her books have been great reads. She writes believable scenes about police work, there is a SWAT hostage situation that was done extremely well. Takedown is part of The Precinct series of books. I'm currently reading them out of order with no problem, but I will probably read her Taylor Clan series next because that is the series that first introduce the reader to the K.C.P.D

Police Business
Search And Seizure
Baby Jane Doe
Partner Protector
Beauty and The Badge
Takedown

I wish Julie Miller would write longer, non-category books! I've loved everything I've read by her, but the limitations of writing for Harlequin mean she can't realise her full potential. I've read some disasters by other Harlequin authors in the last few weeks, and I picked this up knowing this writer would not disappoint.

Miller seems to actually know what she's talking about when it comes to the police stuff (unlike the other category books I've read this month!). Her characters always seem like real people. The romance is engrossing, and the writing style very readable. The older man, younger woman theme works very well here.

This is part of a loosely-linked series about members of the KCPD, with a perfect balance of romance and suspense. The police side of the story actually makes sense, and is actually very important to the relationship. It's a very well-rounded story.

It's such a pity we always have to get such short books from this writer, because she's really wonderful and I'd love to read something longer. This was really good romantic suspense.

"Age is a matter of feeling...not of years."
- by George William Curtis -

3.5 stars. Again, I want half stars!

The heroine, Jillian, is a physical therapist with a ,certain past'. Jillian is attracted to Michael Cutler - he's the dad of one of her patients. SWAT Team Captain Michael Cutler had no intention to fall in love again. Certainly not someone 15 years his junior. Michael and Jillian get pretty close, when Michael discovers that Jillian is being stalked...

I have to admit that I wanted to read this book because the hero is 'older' - Michael is 43 and Jillian is 28. I do regret that the heroine is not the same age. As I mentioned before in a review, I'd love to read more good stories about 'older' H/h. Yeah, and of course I love men in and out of uniform! Ok, I got sidetracked...back to Takedown.

The plot is pretty good, it's nicely paced, and the writing style is smooth. The author created likeable characters. I cared about them and I felt invested in the story. Jillian is headstrong and compassionate. Michael is pretty stoic and stalwart. He's a guy you really like to 'see' in a uniform, that's for sure. He is caring and very protective of Jillian - and that's important to me. Michael is a widower and after losing his wife and almost losing his son in an accident, both to events beyond his control, he's just afraid of losing another woman. Jillian. He's afraid of being powerless. Again.

Memorable "quotes":

[...]"I only wanted you to check my apartment for goblins and perverts. I wasn't asking you to launch a full-blown investigation."
Michael paused in the open doorway and turned. "I only wanted you to help my son walk again. I didn't realize I'd be asking you to heal his spirit as well. It's the most important job in the world right now, as far as I'm concerned. If I can help my go-to woman get the job done with Mike, then I intend to."[...]

[...]After he tipped his hat and left, Jillian watched him stride down the hallway. Yeah, Big-brotherly overprotection aside, fortysomething looked good on the police captain from this view, too.[...]

[...]"Haven't you figured it out yet, Captain? I didn't slow my steps because of your age. I was just waiting for you to catch me."[...]

My main complaint is that the sex scene was too cheesy for my liking. And where was the STD talk? No condoms either... I found that disturbing. There were a few other lines which were just too much, but overall it's a solid read. It's engaging and I would definitely recommend it if you want to kill a few hours of spare time!