Exploited: A Zero Day Romance

A. Meredith Walters

Jul 2017 · Zero Day Book 1 · Sold by Loveswept

About this ebook

In this pulse-pounding novel from the bestselling author of Butterfly Dreams, a vigilante hacker plays a seductive game with the agent who’s chasing her online—and sharing her bed in real life.

At first glance, I’m nothing out of the ordinary. I am a daughter. A sister. A friend. When you look at me you won’t see anything that warrants suspicion. I don’t look like a criminal.

My name is Hannah Whalen, but most people know me as freed0mov3rdr1v3, or “Freedom Overdrive”—one of the world’s most prolific and notorious hacktivists. My goal—my purpose—is to shed light on the evil that lurks behind the corporate and government lies we have been force-fed for too long.

My story begins with the best possible intention. Devoting my life to exposing the corrupt. The dishonest. The unethical. For that, they label me a cyber-terrorist. Wanted by the FBI, I’ve always been one step ahead.

Until I fell in love.

Because I’m sleeping with the man who’s hunting me. And he has no idea that I am his prey. Now I have to decide what’s more important: my freedom or my heart.

Note: Exploited ends on a cliffhanger. Hannah’s story continues in Aftermath.

Praise for Exploited

“A high-stakes game filled with suspense . . . Fans of M. Leighton and Sierra Kincade will enjoy Exploited.”—Harlequin Junkie

“I found this book very intriguing. It had a different plot line that kept me turning the pages. A. Meredith Walters did an excellent job portraying the cyber world without making it too overly complex for readers to follow.”—Smut Book Junkie Book Reviews

“I was left in suspense at the end, dying to get the answers that I needed. I will read the next book because I want my answers!”—The Heathers’ Blog

“If you enjoy reads with a bit of suspense and crime (internet crime, in this case), then check this one out.”—Steamy Reads

“Exploited is a story of a woman’s journey in righting the wrongs. . . . I think cyber related stories are interesting due to the character’s life in two different worlds. I was intrigued by this duality and excited to dive into this one.”—Warhawke’s Vault Book Blog

“I enjoyed this story very much. The plot was great; I like the chemistry and the connection between the characters.”—Crazies R Us Book Blog

Includes an excerpt from another Loveswept title.

Ratings and reviews

3.5* I was really intrigued by the premise of this book, it looked like it would be an interesting change of pace from the contemporary romance books I read. I've only read one other book by A. Meredith Walters, one that I absolutely adored, so I was excited when I was offered the opportunity to read and review this one. Exploited is suspenseful and mysterious, it's frustrating, and in the end it will leave you questioning everything you thought you might have figured out. I was hoping for a fast-paced, edge-of-your-seat, exciting cat-and-mouse type story. But instead, this was a much slower read than I expected. Hannah was a tough nut to crack. She wasn't very likeable, honestly. I never quite warmed up to her, and I think that kind of tainted my whole outlook on this book unfortunately. I'm hoping in the second book we'll see a different side of her. I really liked Mason't character, but felt zero chemistry between him and Hannah. I felt sorry for him, that he was so easily manipulated by her because he really just needed someone to love, and to be loved. I cried for him over his brother, and was mad on his behalf because of his parents. But for someone who is supposed to be such a killer agent he sure didn't prove it when it came to Hannah. I'm not sure what else needed to happen before he realized what was going on right under his nose. Although this book didn't quite live up to expectations I am invested enough that I am anxious for the second book. There's a lot more to explore with these characters, and of course the mystery that was left hanging. Hopefully all our questions will be answered!

This story had so much potential and I'll admit, when I read the preface, I was all kinds of excited about it. That small introduction pulled me in and I was ready to be wowed. It is very well written and Walters has a great writing style. Unfortunately, it didn't take long for the story to fizzle after the preface. The book is rather lengthy, which isn't a problem for me as long as the story keeps a good pace and holds my interest. While the book does have a steady pace for the most part, it's almost agonizingly slow and even a bit repetitive at times, to the point that I found my interest waning. The story is suspenseful and Hannah's crimes were intriguing, but it would've benefited from a faster pace. I did expect more of a romantic element, but honestly, I didn't feel the romance with this one. Hannah comes across as cold and calculating through much of the story and while we're told on the page that she's falling for Mason, I didn't feel that. Mason could've been a truly great character, but he has to be the most gullible agent in the history of fictional FBI agents. Not only does he accept Hannah's excuses for her lies, but he justifies them in his head. There were so many red flags waved in his face that it became eye-rollingly frustrating. The cliffy at the end was a big one, but between Hannah's coldness and Mason's gullibility, I wasn't left with enough curiosity to read to the conclusion to this tale. The author is talented and I would read other books by her, but this one just wasn't for me.

Excellent story with a major cliffhanger! This is just the first part of Hannah and Mason's story. Hannah by day works for an IT firm. At night she's a bit of a hacker. She's determined to make the company responsible for the death of her father and her sisters debilitating injuries and the lawyers who represent them pay. Mason is an FBI agent working in the cyber crimes unit. He's good at what he does but past mistakes have put him in the bosses bad graces. He's given a case no one thinks can be solved. He needs to find out exactly who Freedom Overdrive is and take him down. These two meeting and being attracted to each other never should have happened and when the truth comes out about their true identities everything could fall apart. Definitely a book I recommend.

About the author

A. Meredith Walters is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of New Adult novels including Butterfly Dreams, Bad Rep, Perfect Regret, Lead Me Not, and the Find You in the Dark series. Before becoming a full-time writer, she worked as a counselor for troubled and abused children and teens. She currently lives in England with her husband and daughter.