Review: The Defender (Sons of Texas #4)

The Defender (Sons of Texas #4)

by Donna Grant

Blurb:

Their love knows no borders.

A loner who exudes danger, Lev Ivanski has spent his life in service to one man, someone he loves and respects. But things are changing. Rapidly. Lev and his boss have allies and friends and a new mission more important their than business, all because of the Saints. This clandestine organization needs to be taken down, and Lev has the skills to help. What he doesn’t expect is to be at the mercy of a woman who makes him crave more than he ever thought to want.

Determined and dedicated, Reyna Harris is used to danger and living on the edge. An ex-CIA operative, she’s been embedded with the Saints for years, trying to take them down from the inside. When her cover is blown, she is forced to trust a man she just met, fighting their way out of one battle after another. But there’s something about Lev that Reyna knows she can trust. And love. She needs Lev – and not just to take a swipe at the Saints. Together they’re an unstoppable force. And with their friends, they just might succeed in their mission.

Themes: Contemporary

Rating: 4.5 stars

Heat Rating: 

Review:

A fantastic and fraught journey across Eastern Europe as two people make a run for their lives and find a way to trust in one another. This series continues to be seriously scary in the fact that it could be so easily true, simply because of the way Donna Grant leads the readers around the world and into the dark deceptive world of espionage and secret societies. The secrets continue to pile up while more and more come to light, but Lev is on a mission to protect and thwart on the orders of his boss when his world goes sideways.  Lev is in Russia on his mission when he is captured by a sexy woman and taken away to the countryside. Reyna has been on mission undercover for almost two years and the lines are beginning to blur when she runs across the sexy man sneaking around and risking her mission in Russia.  Reyna and Lev are on opposing sides, until suddenly they learn that there enemies are one-and-the-same and they are on their tales.  They are on the run and their lives are on the line, but they learn quickly that they are a match in more ways than one, including in the bedroom and with a gun. Will they decide to work together and take a stand against their enemy or will their enemy finally find a way to bring them down? Lev is a seriously hot badass alpha bad boy, but he is so sweet and loving at the same time.  His brain and heart combines with his killer instincts and willingness to do anything to protect those he loves and considers his, make him a true hero in my eye and I love seeing him kicking ass and taking names.  There was so much danger and sadness throughout this story, but ultimately Lev finds a way to overcome his weakness and become the man he was always meant to be.  Reyna is on a mission to bring down the people responsible for killing a man she loved and is determined that nothing stand in her way, but when she has to work with Lev to find safe haven she learns the truth of love and partnership on a whole new level.  I enjoyed getting to know her and seeing her grow as a woman and an operator, learning more about herself as she got to know Lev and he got to know her.  The two of them together were brilliant, deadly and intriguing to watch in action, but my favorite moment were the times when they were able to be calm and quite together, just two people living and loving, in between the bullets and assassination attempts of course. The heat between them was amazing and was there even at the moments when they were kicking each other’s asses and when they were sparring verbally, but the best times of course were when they let down their walls and shields to let themselves enjoy their passions.  I am dying to read the next (and maybe final) story in this series, but this story itself was sexy and fast-paced enough to make me want to go back for seconds.  Donna has cast another spell and I am all too happy to have been caught in her web of magic.

*ebook provided by publisher (via netgalley) for the purpose of an honest and unbiased review.  No compensation was provided.