New Cover Reveal for SECRET MANEUVERS, an Ex Ops novel by Jessie Lane

Back on June 15, 2013, I reviewed a fabulous suspense romance by Jessie Lane – a writing duo – called SECRET MANEUVERS, the first book in the Ex Ops series. It seems a lot of folks weren’t too thrilled with the cover, although as I said in my review, once you read it, you’d understand the strange filter color – well, Jessie Lane decided to give it a new cover and re-release it with its new showstopper! Feel free to stop by my review of SECRET MANEUVERS by Jessie Lane to get my thoughts, simply click the title. This is one to read – whichever cover graces it.

Blurb for SECRET MANEUVERS:

Some mistakes from the past haunt us forever...

One 'dear John' letter haunts Bobby Baker's every living moment. It’s the letter he stupidly wrote to his high school sweetheart, Belle, right after he left to join the Army. The letter that he told her that he wasn't so sure if they were ready for forever yet. But before he can let her know that the letter, and his second thoughts, are nothing but a mistake, she up and disappears from the small Georgia town they were both raised in.

unless fate steps in with a second chance.

Fifteen years later, Belle unknowingly walks back into Bobby's life when her job as an ATF Agent forces her to work with a group of men secretly headed by the CIA to help her track down whoever is involved in funneling black market weapons to a drug cartel in Mexico.

Bobby will use this mission to try and soothe Belle's hurt feelings while proving to her that their love is still meant for forever. He'll use every dirty trick he's learned since he joined the Army to maneuver her back into his life for the long haul. But Belle's not making it easy as she keeps him at arm's length in the hopes that mistakes of her own never come to light.

*                *                 *                  *                   *

Excerpt from SECRET MANEUVERS:

Belle headed out of the room first to disappear in the parking lot while the guys proceeded to file out a few minutes later. Being at the back of the group I missed what made the guys catcall and laugh until I came into full view of Belle leaned up against a black jacked up Ford F350 decked out with a ram air hood, brush guard, monster-sized tires and a banner on the top of the windshield that read ‘G.R.I.T.S.’.

Lucas’s slightly New York accented voice sounded confused as he asked, “G.R.I.T.S.? Isn’t that like a food or something?”

Logan clapped him on the shoulder as barks of laughter echoed in the parking lot. “Naw, buddy. That stands for ‘Girls Raised In The South’. You could say that Agent Roberts is showing off her southern pride a bit, that’s all. It’s a damn good thing to be proud of, too.”

Belle climbed up into the cab of the truck. Still hanging out of the door a bit she yelled, “Come on Sullivan brothers. We’re gonna have some fun before we head to the bar!”

Declan and Riley Sullivan looked wary. “What kind of fun exactly?”

“Muddin’ and Jason Aldean. Let’s go, baby!” The heavy rumble of her engine came to life as ‘She’s Country’ blasted out of its open windows.

The Sullivan brothers looked at each other nervously. Riley spoke in a low voice to Declan, “You think she’s alright upstairs or should I be worried?” Declan clapped his brother on the back before hopping up into the passenger side of the truck.

I was insanely jealous as the truck tore out of the parking lot to head down the highway while the rest of us piled into our respective vehicles to leave. It almost felt as if she was trying to rub my nose in one of our best memories. When you lived in a small southern town, out in the middle of nowhere, muddin’ with your buddies, your girl, and pilfered beer where you could cut loose and be free was one of the few options for entertainment. There went my buddies. There went my girl. Here I still stood, looking like a jackass.

Jaxon watched the retreating vehicle with a mix of amusement and trepidation. Turning to Sheriff Jenkins he asked, “Should I be worried about any of that?” His finger pointing in the direction of where Belle’s truck had already disappeared.

The Sheriff’s easy smile didn’t seem to convince Jaxon. “Not at all, Commander Wall. Annabelle is harmless. Swear.”

I snorted. “Tell that to the guy she knocked unconscious her senior year. He was twice her size.”

Sheriff Jenkins’s eyebrows shot to his hairline as he turned to face me in the back seat. “You knew Annabelle in high school?”

My mouth kicked up in a half smile. “Yeah, you could say that. We grew up in the same small town. Belle and I were as close as you could get until I left for the Army just after graduation.”

The Sheriff’s eyebrows pulled down into an intense expression as something flashed over his face before he could cover it up. He quickly turned around to start the car. “I’m just going to turn on the radio. Hope you don’t mind.”

The radio kicked on and a local country station came on. All conversation in the car stopped. The last look the Sheriff had made bothered me. There was something there that made my instincts flare up. The Sheriff knew something. What in the hell could that possibly be?

*             *              *              *              *

About the Author:

Jessie Lane is the writing team of Crystal Leo and Melissa Pahl. The two sisters-in-law share a passionate love of naughty romance, cliff hanging suspense, and out-of-this-world characters that demand your attention, or threaten to slap you around until you do pay attention to them. Because

Crystal Leo and Melissa Pahl - aka JESSIE LANE

really, it is ALL about the characters. (They’re kind of megalomaniacs – but don’t tell them that we said that.)

 

Crystal lives in Kentucky with her husband, little 7 and 9 year old Rock Chicks in the making, and her Dad who likes to play the air guitar while listening to George Thorogood’s Bad To The Bone. Melissa just moved to Minnesota with her husband and giant furry Rottweiler baby named Yuffi. Crystal is now trying to talk Melissa into “polar bear” swimming in Lake Superior, but so far Melissa is adamantly telling her no.

  

Their first YA novel, THE BURNING STAR, was released in May 2012. BIG BAD BITE was their second novel, but their first adult paranormal romance, and released in January 2013. Their third book, SECRET MANEUVERS, just released this past June, and will be the start of a new adult contemporary romance series (Ex Ops Series). They are now working on their next three novels, WALK ON THE STRIPED SIDE (Big Bad Bite Series #2), STRIPPING HER DEFENSES (Ex Ops Series #2) and THE FROZEN STAR (YA Star Series #2).With these projects underway, they are looking forward to showing the rest of the world their crazy stories, heroes and heroines that often plague their minds until written, and hope you will join them on their journey!

Feel free to visit the Jessie Lane website, follow them on Facebook, Twitter, at Goodreads, and their Amazon Author page.

Happy Reading Everyone! This is a good one!

TOUR WIDE GIVEAWAY:

Signed paperbacks, custom glow in the dark swag bag, Ex Ops dog tags, $20 gift card – lots of goodies to win, so use the rafflecopter to enter and Good Luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

SECRET MANEUVERS, an Ex Ops novel by Jessie Lane, self-publish, in re-release and available in print and ebook formats at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobobooks, All Romance EBooks, and Smashwords.

***click on links or cover below for purchasing information

   

Unwrapping: Review of SECRET MANEUVERS, an ExOps novel by Jessie Lane

Most of you already know how much I enjoy sharing series and authors that are new to me, well, have I got a good one for you this time. SECRET MANEUVERS, book one in ExOps, by Jessie Lane is not only a first in a series, but written in a such a way that you might get spoiled by the format. Not only that but Jessie Lane is actually two sisters-in-law, the writing team of Melissa Pahl and Crystal Leo.

***eARC provided by authors in exchange for an honest and unscripted review.

Blurb for SECRET MANEUVERS: 

Some mistakes from the past haunt us forever... unless fate steps in with a second chance.

One 'dear John' letter haunts Bobby Baker's every living moment. It’s the letter he stupidly wrote to his high school sweetheart, Belle, right after he left to join the Army. The letter that he told her that he wasn't so sure if they were ready for forever yet. But before he can let her know that the letter, and his second thoughts, are nothing but a mistake, she up and disappears from the small Georgia town they were both raised in.

Fifteen years later, Belle unknowingly walks back into Bobby's life when her job as an ATF Agent forces her to work with a group of men secretly headed by the CIA to help her track down whoever is involved in funneling black market weapons to a drug cartel in Mexico.

Bobby will use this mission to try and soothe Belle's hurt feelings while proving to her that their love is still meant for forever. He'll use every dirty trick he's learned since he joined the Army to maneuver her back into his life for the long haul. But Belle's not making it easy as she keeps him at arm's length in the hopes that mistakes of her own never come to light.

                            *                     *                   *                     *                     * 

 

Bobby Baker has spent the last fifteen years of his life regretting one terrible mistake. He thought he’d never be given a chance to atone for it when the girl of his dreams, the one who got away, the one who haunts his heart, the one who still holds his heart, walks into a ops briefing. Wearing a gun and a badge, Belle looks hotter than ever and is a sight for sorrowful sore eyes but when she’s introduced to his Special Ops group, her name is Annabelle Roberts. Having lived the last fifteen years of his life confused, hurt, and worried that she'd moved on without him after she disappeared from their hometown, his hope has been to find her so that he might rescind the sentiment sent in that regretful letter. So when she strolls back into his life acting as if she doesn't know him, Bobby is determined to get the chance to tell her his true feelings and discover where she’s been and what direction her life has taken and how far away it is from his own.

 

Belle has a secret that she’s carried with her since she left home after having her life, and the love she believed would protect her always, pulled out from under her after receiving a letter from Bobby Baker that told her she wasn't worth loving or protecting. Now he’s back in her life and she's determined to stay as far away from him as possible even though the boy she once knew has grown into the most incredibly handsome man that she suspected he always would be.

 

SECRET MANEUVERS by Jessie Lane surprised and impressed me with its first person point of view from the angle of two different characters. We not only experience the events of this story that puts two people with a past back together from Belle’s point of view, but also from Bobby’s point of view. It is a refreshing take on a first person-writing format but it’s also a wonderful and unique way to experience the emotion and passion of two people who never stopped loving each other even though so many things have driven them apart. I expected a story with action, alpha males aplenty, and danger lurking in the background and got all of that, but the passion that plays out between Belle and Bobby is incredible, touching, heart wrenching, and at times very poignant. We experience a woman’s insecurities that she still carries with her since her youth yet sees her demonstrate strength and compassion that helps her survive a dangerous and life-threatening situation. After surviving that, she faces the pain and heartache of forever losing the man she loves because of the secret that she kept from him for fifteen years. Belle is her own woman yet still struggles with the effects of a brutal father and the world she came from even as she proves herself as strong and tough as any man.

 

I highly recommend SECRET MANEUVERS, an ExOps novel by Jessie Lane to anyone who can appreciate the duty that drives men and women who put themselves in the line of fire to halt illegal activity and save the innocent. I recommend this book to anyone who loves a second chance romance that will have you hoping that a happily ever after can still be had even after the pain of betrayal seems beyond recovery.

 

Oh, one more thing – if you’re wondering about the strange green tint to the cover, don’t worry, it will all make sense after you read the book. : )

 

Happy Reading Everyone!

Also, dear readers, Jessie Lane is hosting a huge tour wide giveaway that will run through July 15, 2013 so feel free to enter today!

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/e9a8cb1/ /a

 

SECRET MANUEVER, an ExOps novel by Jessie Lane, self-published, available now in print and ebook formats at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, and All Romance Ebooks.

***click on cover below for purchasing information.