Review: A- rating....
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 10 25, 2012
My Review:I absolutely love Jake, and have loved him from the very beginning of book #1 in this series, Spy Games: Trained in Seduction. It was set up way early that his feelings for Kate are bordering on problematic. The issue...she's his partner, but married to his best friend, whom he also loves dearly. After a birthday present that got to be a little too much (Spy Games #1.5: Birthday Games), Jake has suddenly found himself in love with Kate. A situation that has to be rectified immediately, because Chase will kill him for that, best friends or not. Kate's suggestion: fall in love with someone else. Not that easy since he truly doesn't normally develop feelings for the women he's involved with.Enter Tia...the agent who has been occupying his thoughts almost as much as Kate since they hooked up a few months ago, but he kind of left her hanging so she's not his biggest fan. After a series of events though, Jake finds out that Tia is his new partner. It just happens to coincide with a time that he has to get away to home, so he takes Tia with him. This is an event that's never happened before. Jake doesn't take women to his home....ever.Tia....how to explain her? She has a few issues that go way back into her psyche. She's learned to deal with her mental trauma through sexual games....extreme sexual games that almost killed her once. On the one hand, Tia is this extremely tough, cold agent...but on the other, she is this completely vulnerable hot mess of a person. Jake truly wants to love her, but she refuses to let him in. *sob*This is where Mia excels at her story telling. Your heart just aches for Tia....and then it just aches more for Jake. These two characters are so perfect for each other because they understand the other's pain. Honestly, there are scenes in this book that just made me want to curl up and cry for the pain that these characters are feeling (OMG, the card-game scene), but that's what makes it so good!! There are lots of really hot sex scenes, but intermixed within them are the most heart-wrenching emotional moments that make your heart simply sigh with the beauty of them. Seriously, there is such a good balance in this series of both the sex and emotion.As an aside, there was also a great sub-plot happening in the background of Jake and Tia's story. Chase did something really dumb, and Kate is NOT happy with him. I loved getting to see more of their story evolve and how their relationship continues to develop. I swear Kate just gets tougher and tougher. I love that kick-butt chick! And of course, Jake is best friends to both of them so he gets into the middle of it...something that is definitely causing problems for him and Tia and their fledgling relationship.Another GREAT installment in this series that once again left me alternately crying, laughing, and searching out my husband. I adore Mia's writing ability and this book absolutely did not disappoint.