May 1, 2006
Miki Fortune is willing to travel to the ends of the earth to be successful as a photographer. When she ends up on a remote island after a plane wreck, she is rescued and taken captive by mysterious Max Preston, who is part of the paranormally enhanced Navy SEAL unit encountered in " Code Name: Baby" (2005). Max is convinced the only reason the blond beauty ended up on that specific island is because she is working for the superenhanced villain Cruz. Max's partner, a Labrador retriever named Truman that has abilities far exceeding those of most dogs, plays an important role. An impending hurricane keeps the suspense rising as the action paves the way for a showdown with Cruz, who may actually have different motives than those attributed to him. Skye is terrific at writing fast-paced adventure romances, and even though this tale stands on its own, it is also a tantalizing addition to the compelling Code Name series. (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2006, American Library Association.)
May 3, 2004
The latest romantic intrigue from Skye (Hot Pursuit
, etc.) is as full of contrived cliffhangers as the pulp fiction that inspired its striking cover. San Francisco assistant DA Cara O'Connor and presidential hopeful Tate Winslow are planning their wedding when Cara is threatened with harm and the exposure of an abortion she had in a Mexican clinic decades earlier. An underworld smuggler she convicted seems to be the source, but who's actually delivering the dead rat and sinister notes? Using the pull afforded by their status, the couple arranges protection from FBI agent Summer Mulcahey, who stands in as nanny to Cara's two children, and Navy SEAL Gabe Morgan, who poses as gardener on her estate. Summer and Gabe patrol the property, make a dramatic visit to the clinic and fall into bed and love. But despite their constant use of agency technology, they fail to solve the mystery or even keep themselves safe. Indeed, Cara's psychic daughter is the one who finally exposes the rather clueless and unlikely culprits. Although Skye has done her homework on FBI/Navy SEAL jargon and surveillance devices, even beach readers may find the wildly implausible investigation difficult to swallow, and few will likely care about the fate of a privileged couple misusing vast public resources in the face of a patently silly personal threat. Agent, Meg Ruley
.
September 13, 2004
This slim but action-packed sequel to Skye's previous romance, Code Name: Nanny
, stars navy SEAL Hawk MacKenzie and hotel investigator Jess Mulcahey (sister to FBI agent Summer Mulcahey, the heroine from Nanny
). The pair come together under tumultuous circumstances when Jess, pretending to be minor royalty, bribes a hotel manager into upgrading her to a nicer room, which turns out to be Hawk's digs. Although the hotel has changed locks, it doesn't deter Hawk, who gains entry with a "highly illicit piece of technology" and catches her in the shower—a plot twist used in Skye's last book. Hawk is hot on the trail of a stolen government lab animal, and Jess is afraid the hotel staff will seek revenge on her for a bad review. Neither has the time or patience for the other's drama, but they are thrown together time and again in the genre's usual fashion—chasing the bad guys through the fog and rain of Washington State's Olympic Peninsula, easing sexual tension in a stalled hotel elevator and tracking down the lab animal, an adorable koala bear. The pace is frenzied at times, and the characters lack depth (all of Skye's navy SEALS are "poster boys for commando work," and her heroine is a typical beauty with tough-girl feistiness). But the story's snappy dialogue and between-the-sheets sizzle will please Skye's numerous fans.
October 24, 2005
In bestseller Skye's thrilling third Code Name romance (after Code Name: Princess
), gorgeous dog trainer Kit O'Halloran works under government contract at her New Mexico ranch with four genetically enhanced black Labradors that, unknown to her, are worth millions to outside forces as well as to U.S. covert operations. Navy SEAL Wolfe Houston arrives to protect Kit and her canine charges, including Baby, the book's most endearing character. As it happens, Kit has known Wolfe from childhood, and her long-standing secret crush makes for a highly charged reunion. Wolfe's own biotech enhancements only intensify their red-hot sex. Meanwhile, Wolfe's former colleague Gabriel Enrique Cruz has escaped from an experimental government lab, where he was treated like an animal, and all hell breaks loose. The pat finish is a bit of a letdown, but fans should eagerly await the next in the series.
June 4, 2007
It's The Six Million Dollar Man
meets The Love Boat
in this fifth addition to Skye's energetic Code Name series (following Code Name: Blondie
). Fresh from a northern Afghanistan war zone and worse for the wear, microchip-enhanced navy SEAL Trace O'Halloran has a new assignment guarding valuable human tissue samples aboard a luxury cruise ship en route to Mexico. Trace, who'd rather be in a northern Afghanistan war zone, grimaces his way through boarding and the first uncomfortable meal before meeting pastry chef Gina Ryan, a rising industry star who gets her kicks creating and plating a thousand crème brûlées a night. Unfortunately, Ryan's nascent celebrity has netted her an enemy in Blaine Richardson, the Cruella DeVille of beverage service. When a villain from Trace's past resurfaces, things go from bad to deadly. While the romance between Trace and Gina feels inevitable and uninspired, and the plot line barely plausible, it makes a fun, antic read. Series fans will find what they came for, but newcomers will want to save themselves some confusion by starting at the beginning.