Romance Readers Reading Challenges discussion

I dare you to get hooked on another series with me!

Author: Pamela Clare
Discussion:
Do you feel that the author researched the story well enough to make it seem realistic? Stepping into the characters shoes, what would you have done if you had ended in the same situations?
Duration: 5 months
Books: 5
1. Extreme Exposure
2. Hard Evidence
3. Unlawful Contact
4. Naked Edge
5. Breaking Point


*You can start whenever you want within the next five months, beginning next month. If you want to start immediately, feel free to do so!

I've just read the first two already, mind if I say something about them right now?

Go right ahead Nisha, just try not to post any spoilers just yet. Once more people start reading them, you can post spoilers about the book we will be discussing for that month.

I added the first book to my wishlist the other day, Rossy... But I'm not sure I'm ready to add another challenge to my list just yet :) I'll see where I'm at at the end of this month. Good luck!

I've heard so much about this series, let me think about joining in on this one :)

I've been wanting to read this series for awhile now, since I loved her historicals... I'm doing a couple other challenges and work gets real busy for me in April, but I'll try and keep up! =)

Jane (PS) wrote: "I added the first book to my wishlist the other day, Rossy... But I'm not sure I'm ready to add another challenge to my list just yet :) I'll see where I'm at at the end of this month. Good luck!"

You can start at any time Jane. Just have to finish by September. So if you get some time next month, come join!

Samantha wrote: "I've heard so much about this series, let me think about joining in on this one :)"

Come join me Sam!LOL

I'll join in. However, if I don't like the first book, I won't be reading the other 4. Now I just need to get a copy. The two primary bookstores I go to have it listed as out of stock. Hopefully, I'll get lucky and the third store near me will have it.

This looks like an interesting series. I'll read the first book , Extreme Exposure and if I like it, I'll read the other 4 :)

Yay, am glad you guys will join at least the first book. It's said the first is the weakest in the series, so keep that in mind.

I finished reading the first book today actually. It was really good, kind of reminded me of the Erin Brockovich movie, with a reporter twist and willing to kill bad guys....not the twirling mustache kind either.

That hero...*dreamy sigh* I want me one just like him!

I just finished the first book too! I really liked it! And I will confess to needing motivation when it comes to picking books, so I'm in!

I've read the first two, so far. When I read the first one, I thought that nothing could beat that. so it took me awhile to start the 2nd book. I finally did and think the same thing.

@Rossy - I was thinking the same thing; Erin Brockovich with more action and death. I loved the hero. An ex-teacher, politician? In what other book can you find someone like that?

I have it on good authority (someone whose opinion has proved accurate) that the books only get better! That was really great news for me, especially since I thought the first was pretty darn good!

MountainKat wrote: "I just finished the first book too! I really liked it! And I will confess to needing motivation when it comes to picking books, so I'm in!"

Yay! Did you start the second yet? I broke my kindle so i have to wait until tomorrow to see if i can start on that one or wait until Tuesday for one of the new releases.

Nisha wrote: "@Rossy - I was thinking the same thing; Erin Brockovich with more action and death. I loved the hero. An ex-teacher, politician? In what other book can you find someone like that?"

Glad i was not the only one who thought so! I got to be honest, i hear some friends say the books get better, but that the 2nd book's heroine is TSTL. Will i want to smack her?LOL

I am so sorry for the loss of you Kindle! I hope your grief is short lived! (Honestly, my reader very quickly moved to the "replace instantly if broken or lost" list!)

I haven't started the second book yet, but I hope to soon! So many challenges....

Rossy wrote: "Nisha wrote: "@Rossy - I was thinking the same thing; Erin Brockovich with more action and death. I loved the hero. An ex-teacher, politician? In what other book can you find someone like that?"

G..."

Tessa? TSTL? Yea, I didn't think she was brave, mostly just stupid. I couldn't understand why someone who knows that there was an undercover FBI agent on the case, would think it was safe enough for her to scour the neighborhood. Seriously? And her arguments for the power of the press...*facepalm*

Yeah, i'm going to need support for that second book for sure!

MountainKat wrote: "I am so sorry for the loss of you Kindle! I hope your grief is short lived! (Honestly, my reader very quickly moved to the "replace instantly if broken or lost" list!)

I haven't started the seco..."

Well Amazon has fantastic costumer service, so i did get it overnight. I'm not sure what happened, but it looks like they may have upgraded my kindle to a more thinner or smaller one?.....Might be imagining it though, with my excitement.LOL

Nisha wrote: "Tessa? TSTL? Yea, I didn't think she was brave, mostly just stupid. I couldn't understand why someone who knows that there was an undercover FBI agent on the case, would think it was safe enough for her to scour the neighborhood. Seriously? And her arguments for the power of the press...*facepalm* "

OMG, Nisha! Those are exactly my thoughts. That book got a 3 star for me just because of that even though the plot was awesome.

I'm reading #3 now and I'm LOVING IT! I don't know how the author is going to make this work! But OMG is so good. Both the hero and the heroine are great so far.

Julian (hero #2) is an important part of this story and I'm liking him more than in his own book.

Oh man, i almost wish i was the kind of person that could skip books. My OCD does not allow it though, so i'll have to drink LOTS of alcohol while the heroine does her stupidity.

Rossy wrote: "Oh man, i almost wish i was the kind of person that could skip books. My OCD does not allow it though, so i'll have to drink LOTS of alcohol while the heroine does her stupidity."

She's not as bad as other heroines I have seen and you have to give her some leeway because she's an investigative journalist and those people sometimes have to take big risks to get their stories (and once they get on the scent of a story, they are like pitbulls.) If they were concerned about their life all the time, they really couldn't do their jobs.

I still think she did a lot of stupid shit and I don't care about her arguments but at least she didn't do them to prove she was 'feisty' or because a 'man shouldn't tell her what to do' crap.

D.G. ~The Devil's Harlot~ wrote: "OMG, Nisha! Those are exactly my thoughts. That book got a 3 star for me just because of that even though the plot was awesome.

I'm reading #3 now and I'm LOVING IT! I don't know how the author is going to make this work! But OMG is so good. Both the hero and the heroine are great so far.

Julian (hero #2) is an important part of this story and I'm liking him more than in his own book. "

Julian was my favorite part of the book. I loved him. Now I need to read book 3.

D.G. ~The Devil's Harlot~ wrote: "She's not as bad as other heroines I have seen and you have to give her some leeway because she's an investigative journalist and those people sometimes have to take big risks to get their stories (and once they get on the scent of a story, they are like pitbulls.) If they were concerned about their life all the time, they really couldn't do their jobs.

I still think she did a lot of stupid shit and I don't care about her arguments but at least she didn't do them to prove she was 'feisty' or because a 'man shouldn't tell her what to do' crap. "

Hmmm, not sure i buy that excuse for her. The heroine on the first book was an investigator journalist as well, and she did not make those crazy decisions. If anything she was not as stubborn or thought herself a super-woman.lol

Rossy wrote: "D.G. ~The Devil's Harlot~ wrote: "She's not as bad as other heroines I have seen and you have to give her some leeway because she's an investigative journalist and those people sometimes have to ta..."

Well, they are different people and in a different situation. :) I think if any of the other journalists/heroines had been in her situation, they would have acted similarly (maybe except Kara because she had a child.)

Hmmm, true. Looking at things in that context makes me not think she's totally crazy. Besides the same could be said for those journalists in Iraq, while the bombings were happening.

Well, D.G., you bring up an excellent point, its just that, after specifically being warned by the police and being provided with police to keep watch, and just the overall circumstances, it was ridiculous for her to think that bringing the truth to the public BEFORE the case was over will bring the villain out of hiding. It makes absolutely no sense when it was already an underground operation that few people had any power to do anything about.

Nisha wrote: "Well, D.G., you bring up an excellent point, its just that, after specifically being warned by the police and being provided with police to keep watch, and just the overall circumstances, it was ri..."

I totally agree with you Nisha. I kept screaming at her...are you nuts? You're putting the investigation in peril!! Who cares about the story!!!

As you said, it didn't make any sense for her to assume that breaking the story before they had any proof would bring the villain to justice. UNLESS her motivation wasn't catching the villain but getting the scoop which I think was closer to the truth. She cared more about breaking the story than whatever the police or Julian said, not because of justice for that poor girl but because she wanted to see her name in that byline. And that's the part that I thought it was a bit hypocritical. The author (who was previously a journalist herself) tried to put this behavior as 'the public has a right to know' when in fact, Tessa's behavior was motivated by ambition plain and simple.

I need to start the second book! I need to check out this heroine for myself. In fact, I think that is what I will read next! =)

I really need to jump in here! I read the first book a couple of weeks ago (and loved it), and can't wait to get into the next one - just have to figure out how to fit another series in among all the pre-existing challenges! ;)

That makes so much more sense, D.G., the author being a journalist herself. No one ever really sees themselves as a bad guy.

Nisha wrote: "That makes so much more sense, D.G., the author being a journalist herself. No one ever really sees themselves as a bad guy."

That's why the series is so real. The author really knows what she's talking about and I heard that some of the stories are based on stuff that was covered in the newspaper she worked.

BTW...I finished Unlawful Contact and it was AMAZING. Wow, what a book!

Looking forward to #4, although I may not be able to read it for a month or so - I already have in my mini TBR more books that I can read in April. :)

I am not quite halfway through Hard Evidence and I am loving it so far! I haven't felt that Tessa is TSTL at all (yet), at the point I'm at they haven't really told her what is going on. Sure, she knew there was an undercover cop involved and they told her it was dangerous, but I can imagine that would sound pretty standard to an investigative reporter. She has just been doing her job and dealing with the trauma of witnessing a murder. I guess I'm saying that I find her behavior understandable up to now. Things could change though...

@MountainKat - well, she wisens up closer to the end, but the real stupidity begins after the halfway mark, I think.

I was afraid of that.... She seems to get it now that the situation is more than just gang related and the opportunity for stupidity is growing.

*nods* Don't worry, I personally think that Julian makes up for Tessa's lack of a brain quite well. *sigh* I love him

I'm reading the first one right now and if this series gets better after this, they must be pretty fantastic - I'm loving the first! Since I'm only halfway through I only skimmed the posts so far but will come back and comment when I'm finished.

@Sara - yay! I think you'll really like it.

My copy of Extreme Exposure arrived yesterday but postponing the reading of it for April so I can use it for a couple reading challenges starting then. ;)

I finished Hard Evidence last night! I loved it! IMHO, Tessa had one moment and after that she got it. But I think the author did a good job making me understand her motivation. It was still stupid, but I was more scared for her than mad at her. And oh my, what a hero! ~sigh~ Julian was just awesome!

Oh dear! Another series I clearly HAVE to read...

Yay! So glad to hear so many of you are joining. Don't worry about taking another series, because i timed it so that we have a full month to read 1 book. So you can read 1 book each month, or read them all in one go.

I'm going to start book 2 after am done with the book i'm reading right now. Provided i do not get distracted with a new release. This is what happens when i don't follow up with the second book right after the first.LOL

I love this series, and yes, I do feel that she researched it well. As a matter of fact, she's an investigative journalist IRL and many of the stories in her books are stories she's worked on or broken herself. Great stuff!!!

OK - I'm off to see if I buy (ebook or MMPB) or library this series. :)

Does anyone know if thi series is in audiobook, and if so, how the narrator performs??

Not available in audio, but you won't regret reading them!

MountainKat wrote: "Not available in audio, but you won't regret reading them!"

I agree! They're all keepers!

As I typed my query, I was thinking that the series sounded more like a 'reading' series, than something I would listen to on audio... But just thought I'd throw the question out there :)

Thanks for the prompt responses!!

Okay, I'm in. I read Extreme Exposure on my i-Phone in January and gave it 4-stars. I am very excited now to have the motivation to read the rest of the series. I will begin Hard Evidence in the next couple of days when I finish the book I'm reading now.

I've finished reading Extreme Exposure and gave it 3 stars. The story itself was interesting but the heroine kinda annoyed me. I'll check out the next book -Hard Evidence - maybe I'll like it more than the first one.