Sandy S.
TOTAL BRAVERY is the fourth instalment in Piper J. Drake’s contemporary, adult TRUE HEROES romantic suspense series. This is US Army veteran Raul Sa, and researcher Mali Siri’s story line. TOTAL BRAVERY can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary. We were first introduced to Raul in book three-ABSOLUTE TRUST. Told from dual third person perspectives (Raul and Mali) TOTAL BRAVERY follows the building relationship between US Army veteran Raul Sa, and researcher Mali Siri. Hawaii was the perfect destination for Mali and her team of researchers to look into the human trafficking problem befalling the region but our heroine never expected to be caught-up as potential victims. With her team missing, and Mali on the run, our heroine contacts her sister Arin, US Army Sniper and a member of the Search and Protect Organization mercenary group stationed on the island of Oahu. Enter Raul Sa, newest member of the group along with his canine partner Taz, and the man with whom Mali will fall in love. What ensues is the building romance between Raul and Mali, as the members of the Search and Protect group set a plan into motion to rescue Mali’s team from a potential human trafficking ring. A genius since a young age, Mali Siri has been bullied most of her life but had the benefit of her older sister’s protection throughout her earlier years into present day-a protection that also frightens our heroine in that she questions her sister’s darker side, and what it is she is truly capable of doing. Raul Sa is a bit of a loner whose first day with the Search and Protect Organization in Oahu found our hero going on a solo mission to rescue the woman with whom he would fall in love. The relationship between Raul and Mali is one of immediate attraction but Raul knows that to get involved with a client, especially his best friend and fellow US Army veteran Arin’s younger sister, could mean immediate dismissal from the group he recently joined. Mali is a bit of a fragile butterfly; to some extent naïve and sheltered from who, what, how and why of her sister’s life, that pulls at the alpha in our story line hero. The $ex scenes are limited but passionate. TOTAL BRAVERY is a bit of a departure from the first three instalments and the Hope’s Crossing K9 group, in that the story introduces a new team of Special Ops mercenaries for hire, living and working in the Hawaiian Islands. We are introduced to Mali’s sister, and Raul’s best friend Arin Siri and her K9 King; communications specialist Pua; computer specialist Kai; founder of the Search and Protect mercenary group Zu and his dog Buck; kennel master Todd Miller and his wife Kalea; police officer Kokua; and Kenny, a man with his ear to the ground about the illegal goings on in the Hawaiian Islands. TOTAL BRAVERY is a story of romance, suspense, betrayal and love. The premise is well-paced, intriguing and thrilling; the characters are colorful and energetic; the romance is captivating and sensual. TOTAL BRAVERY is an engaging and edgy story line.