Floodgates

Title:  Floodgates

Author:  Mary Calmes

Publisher:  Dreamspinner Press

Length:  234 pages

Rating:  A List

Up All Night Satisfaction

 

Blurb:  Tracy Brandt considers himself a lucky man. He has a wonderful family, good friends, and a dependable job. His love life, however, features a cheating ex who, though out of the house, is not yet out of the picture—with a past that just might get Tracy killed.

 Homicide inspector Cord Nolan wants nothing more than to show his best friend’s little brother that he’s a reliable man, but to do that he’ll have to get Tracy to look past the player he used to be. It’ll be a tough sell; reputation is everything, and Cord’s is tarnished by his past indiscretions.

Tracy and Cord have spent five years trying to suffocate their fiery attraction under a blanket of grudging antagonism. When Tracy finds himself with a target on his back, Cord finally has the chance to ride to the rescue and break through the dam of Tracy’s reserve. But he’d better be careful: if Cord is breaking the floodgates to wash away the past, he’s going to have to hold tight to Tracy to make sure they’re still standing when the tumult recedes.

 

Reviews:

Beans:  Mary Calmes and her dark edge always draw me in. From the first page you are pulled into a fast paced story with vicious enemies, confusion, a creepy ex, and just everything you need to get lost in her world.

Tracy comes from a big overprotective family, but has learned to live his life his own way. He loves and takes care of his family. I love that he was the center and glue of the family, he might be slight in physical build, but he was integral to all of their lives.

Cord changed everything when he found Tracy. Even if Tracy didn’t see it or know it. There is this beautiful backstory of growth throughout the book that we only get glimpses of but which pulls you in to care deeply for Cord and cheer him on.

The secondary characters are brilliant and add incredible depth to the story as well as push the mystery along at a fast pace. We are left on the edge of our seat wondering and watching the lives of these men.

The relationship Tracy has with his family is beautiful and touching. The banter and teasing, but most importantly the complete understanding and acceptance will hook you in and make you fall in love with the Brandts and wishing that like Cord, they would make a place for you in their unbreakable circle. There is this scene where the family has rallied around a hurt Tracy and he is home in his father’s house sitting on the couch surrounded by his brothers. It reminded me of small children, before the world has told them how to express love and acceptance, they understand that sometimes being close, sharing warmth, being touched, simply means ‘I love you, you are safe, you are never alone, you will always be seen and protected by me”. It breaks my heart a little that we lose that understanding as we grow up. That we lose the ability to take care of each other so sweetly.

I loved every page. I fell completely in love with Tracy’s brothers and boss. I would love to see more from this world because I felt so invested in their lives. Thanks again for a great read Mary.

 

 

Nina:  I am a big Mary Calmes fan.  I love the emotional tension she creates between her characters.  I adore the luscious and irresistible allure of her hot men.  I like that there is always a little drama and action mixed in with the sweet and intensely sexual love story.  This book hit all of the classic and beloved trademarks of a Mary Calmes story.

Tracy is adorable.  He is silly, sweet, funny, loyal, charming, underestimates his own appeal, and in a real mess.   His close bond with his family and close circle of friends are what keep him grounded and happy.  He’s had a rough few months and things just keep getting worse and more dangerous as they begin to realize that someone seems to want him dead.

Cord is delicious.  He is hot, gruff, sarcastic, heroic, intense, possessive, funny, sweet, protective, and everything that Tracy has always wanted and needed.  Little did he know when he became partners with Tracy’s brother, Alex, that he would find not only a new family but the love of his life.

Cord is so much more than we get to see at first glance.  He messed up the very first time he and Tracy met and Tracy stopped seeing him.  No matter how many years passed or how much Cord changed all Tracy saw was that guy he met and dismissed.

I found myself quickly enamored with Cord and wanting Tracy to open his eyes and see what everyone around him already knew. I was so glad that Tracy had the sense to recognize that he needed to let go of the past and move on with a better and much more worthy partner.  There were times that I wanted to smack him for trying to be friends with the evil ex, but he has a big and sweet heart and he didn’t want to be the bad guy.

Tracy’s family and friends are great.  They added a lot to our understanding of who Tracy and Cord are as well as adding depth to the story.  I wish that we could have gotten to know Tracy’s business partner Dimah better, there is definitely more to his story that I would love to see.

This was a great love story full of sweetness, sex and fun.  These guys only got better as their relationship developed and I really enjoyed where they were at by the end of the book.