His to Defend by Sharon C. Cooper

January 12th, 2022 Kimberly Guest Post, Review 14 Comments

12th Jan

Grab a cup of hot cocoa and read Sophia Rose’s thoughts on the steamy, engaging romantic suspense novel, His to Defend by Sharon C. Cooper.

His to Defend by Sharon C. Cooper
His To Defend
by Sharon C. Cooper
Genres: Romantic Suspense
Source: Publisher
Purchase*: Amazon *affiliate
Goodreads
Rating: One StarOne StarOne StarOne Star
Heat Level: One FlameOne FlameOne Flame

A romantic reunion

…threatened by their past.

Amina Kelly broke Sergeant Maxwell Layton's heart when she married his best friend. But the detective never forgot her…or the sizzling attraction they never acted on. Years later, while Maxwell and Amina work together to find her ex's killer, Maxwell finds his desire for the nurse stronger than ever. As he puts his life on the line to keep Amina safe, Maxwell realizes that the greatest risk of all might be to his heart.

Sophia Rose’s Review

He sees his one-time best friend gunned down in the line of duty and now he has the mystery of the man’s life and death to investigate.  But, the investigation that has him feeling the most danger is into his feelings for the man’s ex-wife.  Danger lurks in Vegas and I was eager to plunge in with my first full-length book by the author who has been catching my interest for some time.

His to Defend is the start of a new series, but the author’s note does explain that the hero was an important (aka fascinating) character in her earlier Sin City Temptation with Max’s sister’s story.  One can start here easily though now I’m curious to get Trin and Gunner’s story after the mentions.

So, Maxwell is a stellar police sergeant and up for lieutenant.  Max has lost all patience and all respect for his former best friend and now patrol partner.  This latest incident between Jeremy and another officer fist fighting are nothing compared to the seething anger and betrayal Max feels because Jeremy Kelly stole the woman Max saw first, married her, and then destroyed his own marriage.

Jeremy is killed in the line of duty.  Max has mixed feelings, but grief and loss are there with the hurt and anger.  Surprising himself, the first person he goes to for comfort is Mina, the woman who chose Jeremy over him.  He can’t go there and knows it- too complicated.  He also can’t stop wondering about what was really up with Jeremy who turned mean and temperamental which got him divorced from Amina and nearly kicked off the force and if the disturbance call and subsequent shot were specifically meant for Jeremy. 

Amina connected with Max, but then fell for Jeremy’s sexy smiles and attention.  It wasn’t long before she knew she made the biggest mistake of her life the way he put her down and grabbed at her- especially when she learned of the way Jeremy tricked her and cut out his own best friend.  It was Max who helped her realize she didn’t have to take Jeremy’s abuse or let him reduce her to nothing and now it is Max who is there when Jeremy’s death is the beginning of the danger now dogging her.  Amina’s nursing is her calling, but she didn’t grow up the daughter of a decorated police officer for nothing.  She and Max must get to the heart of Jeremy’s secrets to keep her safe.  And, she wants to delve into other heart-related issues and put the past aside for something new with Max.

His to Defend jumped right in and moved swiftly through an exciting opening scene to the intro and background of the characters.  The romance was dominant for much of the book as were the complications because of the dead man and their shared past that stood between them.  But, the suspense is simmering in the background and the investigation is what ties them together.  It came to an exciting head at the end.

I enjoyed both Max and Amina.  He’s a dedicated officer, but he’s a natural protector and knows how to respect, care, and even love a woman tenderly as well as passionately if he can get past the whole ‘best friend’ rule and Mina not choosing him first.  Mina, like Max, struck out at love so is married to her job as a compassionate and fun pediatric nurse who is great with her patients.  She’s not as fiery as her sisters, but her emotions and thoughts smolder a little deeper.  Jeremy hurt her and did a number on her heart.  She knows Max isn’t Jeremy and she gets with the program first about giving them a chance.

Amazon

His to Defend , the first in a new series by Sharon C. Cooper delivers romance and suspense that came an exciting end. #bookreview #SophiaRose #HQN #romanticsuspense Share on X

About Sharon C. Cooper

Sharon C. Cooper

Award-winning and USA Today bestselling author, Sharon C. Cooper, loves anything that involves romance with a happily-ever-after, whether in books, movies, or real life. Sharon writes contemporary romance, as well as romantic suspense and enjoys rainy days, carpet picnics, and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. She’s been nominated for numerous awards and is the recipient of an Emma Award for Romantic Suspense of the Year 2015 (Truth or Consequences), Emma Award - Interracial Romance of the Year 2015 (All You’ll Ever Need), and BRAB (book club) Award -Breakout Author of the Year 2014. When Sharon is not writing or working, she’s hanging out with her amazing husband, doing volunteer work or reading a good book (a romance of course)

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About Sophia Rose

Sophia Rose

Sophia is a quiet though curious gal who dabbles in cooking, book reviewing, and gardening. Encouraged and supported by an incredible man and loving family. A Northern Californian transplant to the Great Lakes Region of the US. Lover of Jane Austen, Baseball, Cats, Scooby Doo, and Chocolate.

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About Kimberly
Kimberly is a coffee loving book addict who reads and listens to fictional stories in all genres. Whovian, Ravenclaw, Howler and proud Nonna. She owns and manages Caffeinated PR. The coffee is always on and she is ready to chat. BlueSky | Facebook | Instagram

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14 Responses to “His to Defend by Sharon C. Cooper”

    • Sophia Rose

      They sure did. I was glad that much of the real barriers were out of the way early on and they just had to give their second chance a try.

  3. Lorna

    Sounds like you’ve found a good new to you author to read! I love that when it happens. This one sounds good!

  4. Katherine

    I love romantic suspense and it’s been far too long since I’ve read any Harlequin titles. This sounds great!

    • Sophia Rose

      They have really been bringing in some great authors and series to their romantic suspense line. I’ve tried a few new to mes, but also some old favs that haven’t been duds. 🙂

    • Sophia Rose

      Agreed. I wasn’t real bothered about their spark of attraction from the first night he went to her for solace. 🙂

    • Sophia Rose

      Haha, yes, coming to get you from all the blogs. 😉

      I’ve read a novella by her and seen Sharonda really enjoying her stuff so I was glad to see she had a new series started with Harlequin.