Skin Deep (I-Team, #5.5) in Pamela Clare ~ Fan Group

Mar 18, 2012 UniquelyMoi ~ BlithelyBookish rated it it was amazing

Shelves: reviewed-by-me, 2012-reads, first-in-series-trilogy-duet, 5-stars, ebook-own-have-read, author-pamela-clare, own-have-read, manuscript, novella, series-i-team-after-hours

Skin Deep is a story that all of us die-hard I-Team fans have been waiting for!

Megan Hunter, Marc Hunter's baby sister, has been working hard to put her life back together after the horrific ordeal she went through years ago, and just as things are falling into place, when things are finally looking up, she gets a very unwelcome, very dangerous visitor from her past.

Nate West, a local rancher, has just delivered several cases of beef to a community shelter and as he's leaving he spots Megan, th ...more

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Mar 18, 2012 Auntee rated it it was amazing

Shelves: e-books, part-of-a-series, for_my_kindle, anthologies-novellas, 2012_reads

Oh...wowww! Fan-freakin-tastic! I think that best sums it up. Pamela Clare has written one ultra-satisfying, tightly written yet beautifully detailed and smokin' hot little novella here!

There's nothing I like better than a scarred hero (emotionally or physically, take your pick)--I guess it's just something about that vulnerability that they display--it gets to me all the time. And Marine Nate West is scarred physically--victim of an IED while in Afghanistan. (I appreciated all the research and ...more

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Mar 18, 2012 Shawna rated it it was amazing

Shelves: heroine-single-mom, hero-besotted-so-smitten-its-sexy, 2012-reads, heartwarming, hero-nice-guy-gets-the-girl, steam-3-hot, anthologies-novellas-shorts, favorite-hottest-love-scenes-nookie, favorite-romance-couple-hh-pairings, hero-military-blackops-govop-spy

5 stars – Contemporary Romance/Romantic Suspense Novella

Gah! I don’t have time to fully review this book to give it the justice it deserves. And there’s no way I could possibly gush enough over how much I enjoyed the sweet, touching romance between a remarkable H/h, both of whom are battered souls deserving of gentleness, healing, and love. Pamela Clare never fails to amaze me with her emotional, powerful stories and she pens some of the absolute best heroes in romance. If you’re a romance fan ...more

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Mar 25, 2012 Lady Jayne *~*The Beach Bandida*~* rated it it was amazing

Shelves: author-pamela-clare, favourites, series, owned-read, ebook

19 May 2012 - LOVED IT!!! SO GOOD!!! To be reviewed...
.......

5 Stars! - Also reviewed at:Lady Jayne's Reading Den

24 May 2012, Australia

Governor of Romancelandia Declares Pamela Clare Model “Prisoner” But Won’t Release Her

Author, Pamela Clare, made headlines when more readers became confirmed I-Team-oholics after reading Unlawful Contact, the third I-Team book, starring the dangerously gorgeous Marc Hunter and the sweet and strong Sophie Alton (now Hunter).

It was books such as that one that re ...more

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Mar 19, 2012 ♡Karlyn P♡ rated it it was amazing

Shelves: steam-hot, published-2012, genre-suspense, novella-shortstory

How does she keep coming up with these amazing heroes???!!! I. LOVED. NATE! Wow, what a great story that really goes for the heart.

Skin Deep is not just a quicky story with some smoking heat (and there is that too!!), but an emotionally charged romance between two people healing their deep scars. I loved the tenderness, understanding, and acceptance between them. sigh

I had forgotten much of Megan's story from Unlawful Contact, but we eventually learn all we need to know as her past is slowly r ...more

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Jun 04, 2013 UniquelyMoi ~ BlithelyBookish rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: own-have-read, 5-stars, author-pamela-clare, 2013-reads, series-i-team-after-hours, format-audio-book, novella-audio-book, super-sexy-narrative-voice, narrated-by-kaleo-griffith

This review discusses my impression of the audio version, as well as the story itself.

I’m going to start by saying; I’m in love with Kaleo Griffith’s voice. No, let me rephrase that; I’m in lust with his voice. In fact, it took me much longer than it should have to finish listening to this story because there were certain sentences, certain… uh… “things” he said that had me scrolling (is that the right word for rewinding an audio book?) back to listen to them again and again. There were time ...more

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Mar 18, 2012 Anne OK rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2012-reads

Another fabulous addition to Pamela Clare's popular I-Team Series. I've loved them all and this one is no exception. I swear she writes with a magic wand.

Every new and marvelous character introduced into the I-Team family burrows deep into my heart. Nate makes a big and unforgettable impression. He's perfect for Megan and she's perfect for him. Jack, whom I hope to see again soon, almost stole the show, along with his fab skills in the kitchen and his big-hearted acceptance and gifts of love for ...more

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Mar 18, 2012 Jess rated it it was amazing

Review posted: Happily Ever After - Reads
Blog rating: 4.5/5

It's always good to get back to the I-Team world and it's finally Megan's turn to get some happiness in her life. She more than deserves it after her past that was filled with torture, pain and hopelessness (Unlawful Contact). She's trying to keep her life steady and stable for not only her own benefit but most importantly for her 4 year old daughter, Emily. But a man from Megan's past, Donny who's also Emily's father, knows she recently Review posted: Happily Ever After - Reads
Blog rating: 4.5/5

It's always good to get back to the I-Team world and it's finally Megan's turn to get some happiness in her life. She more than deserves it after her past that was filled with torture, pain and hopelessness (Unlawful Contact). She's trying to keep her life steady and stable for not only her own benefit but most importantly for her 4 year old daughter, Emily. But a man from Megan's past, Donny who's also Emily's father, knows she recently came into money from a settlement and starts threatening her for money. Megan turns first to her brother, Marc, for help and eventually finds herself at Nate West's ranch.

Nate West, a former Marine who was horribly scarred on one side of his body during an explosion, was in the right place at the right time when he first met and helped Megan during a run in with Donny. He gives her an open invitation to bring Emily to his ranch to see his horses any time she wants. Megan takes him up on his offer and heads to the ranch, only to be caught there for a few days during a snow storm. Nate, Megan, Emily and Nate's dad Jack all spend a few days getting to know each other, and relationships are formed start to heal Megan and Nate.

"When a man touches me, I feel...revulsion. I instantly feel sick to my stomach...What those men did to me - it's a part of me. I can't shake it."

(...)

"I'm sorry. If I'd known..." Nate's frown deepened. "Did I make you feel that way just now when I held you?"

"N-no." Warmth rushed to Megan's cheeks.

(...)

His gaze locked with hers. "And last night - when I kissed you?"

"No." She rushed to explain. "But we were interrupted, and I... I think maybe there just wasn't time for me to react."

Nate set his drink down on the coffee table. "Do you want to test that theory?"

Megan's heart took off at a sprint. "Wh-what do you mean?"

"I could kiss you again just like I did last night-soft and easy-and since we're not going to be interrupted this time, you'll be able to see whether that sense of revulsion kicks in. If it does, we stop."

"And if it doesn't?"

He gave her a lopsided grin. "We'll know you just needed to kiss the right man."

Nate and Megan are both dealing with issues that are keeping them from moving forward and living life. Nate has a hard time letting people get close, especially women. He doesn't come across a lot of people who are able to look past his skin and really see him. Megan does that from the start - she truly sees Nate for the man that he is and looks at his scars as signs of his courage, nothing more or less. It felt incredibly emotional to read from Nate's POV because he was finally able to just be himself and feel accepted.

For Megan, she has a hard time touching men, which is understandable due to a past that was filled with abuse and having people she thought she could trust turn their backs on her. She's only ever had Marc and now she's trying to be a good mom to Emily, but she can't imagine ever feeling comfortable enough around a man to be with him, kiss him, have sex, get married. These are all things that she never dreamed of. Nate knows her entire past and like he tells Megan, "...Who you were then is not who you are now, and I'm interested in the woman you are today." Even though their story takes place over the course of a little more than a week, their romance and the progression of it worked. They went from simple kisses that rocked Megan completely, to a sweet sex scene that allowed them both to let go of the past and think about what a future together could be like.

Little Emily and Jack were so sweet! Emily is so adorable and her random comments and actions had me smiling every time she came on page. Nate's dad Jack was also a great character to get to know. He balanced out the family and I enjoyed his talks with Nate. The I-Team men show up briefly and it doesn't take much from them to have me laughing out loud. Just the thought of a criminal trying to kick Julian, or Marc being the protective older brother, it's the little moments with these men that pack a big punch.

This short story reads well as a stand-alone, but if you're not familiar with the I-Team series, all the books are definitely worth a read. I enjoyed seeing Megan get her happy ending and I fell in love with another hero that Pamela Clare brought us. Nate is a strong man who comes alive when he finds a woman that loves him, scars and all. I loved getting to know this couple and seeing them get their happy ending. ...more

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Mar 11, 2014 Booklover, Indianapolis rated it really liked it

Shelves: romantic-suspense, own-in-e-format, short-story-or-novella, read-in-2014

(Mar) This was a pretty substantial short story - almost felt like a Novella (not sure what the distinction is between the two). Nate West is a former soldier, wounded in battle and carrying the scars to prove it (face, body). He meets Megan, who carries her own scars inside due to a horrible upbringing, rape, jail time, heroin addiction, etc. Clean and sober but so afraid of men, she barely notices Nate until her ex shows up and Nate comes to her rescue. The rest of the story shows how she slow ...more

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May 19, 2012 Manda Collins rated it it was amazing

Shelves: contemporary

This is the kind of story that makes me, as a writer, despair. Clare has such an exquisite ability to craft characters that live and breathe on the page that it's hard not to be jealous of that skill. But I was really too busy enjoying the way that Nate and Megan danced around one another to care. Both of them had serious issues to get past and I had my doubts that Megan would be able to allow Nate to get close to her in the space of a novella, but Clare did it. Both Nate's and Megan's vulnerabi ...more

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Apr 19, 2012 Carrie rated it liked it

Shelves: contemporary, ptsd-mental-health, forced-proximity, law-enforcement, kindle, short-stories-novellas, read-2012

This is an entertaining novella about Megan, Marc Hunter's sister (Unlawful Contact), and Nate, a scarred former Marine. The shorter length does not allow for much character development, so Nate wasn't nearly as interesting as he could have been. With the extent of his injuries and the horror of the explosion that caused them, I can't imagine he wouldn't have at least some PTSD symptoms. That might have been an interesting angle to consider. As it was, Megan is the one with PTSD from her trauma ...more

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May 18, 2012 MelissaB rated it it was amazing

Shelves: kindle, contemporary-romance, 2012-reads, pamela-clare-i-team, military-men

** 4 1/2 stars **

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Apr 01, 2012 Lynsey A rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2012-reads, favorite-author, part-of-a-series, kindle-books-i-own, heroine-traumatic-past, contemporary-romance, ebook, romantic-suspense, abused-heroine, favorite-series

So great to read how Megan finally got her happily ever after. Of all heroines, she deserved it. Nate was a sweet man and the perfect hero for Megan.

How much did I love seeing Marc, Julian and even my darling, Zach. The beer run story was a delightful added bonus.

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Apr 05, 2012 Brandy *Ahviel* rated it it was amazing

Shelves: romantic-suspense, chic-romance, contemporary, favorite-couples, nook-ebook, 2012

LOVE LOVE LOVE. All of Clare's men are my favorite but this one between Nate and Megan really touched me. They were both wounded and needed that release and forgiveness to heal, I love it ...more

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