Jacked by Tina Reber

JackedNarrated by Cooper North and Molly Glenmore

In Jacked, book 1 in Tina Reber’s Trent Brothers series, we are introduced to Dr. Erin Novak, a driven physician with a dark past, and police detective Adam Trent, a man determined to bring justice to the streets of Philadelphia. These two come together amidst police corruption, auto theft, and their own secrets. Will they be able to claim their HEA, despite everything that stands in their way?

When she was sixteen, Erin was accused of murdering the infant daughter of a close friend of her parents. Even though police quickly cleared her of the crime, Erin’s life was forever changed by the accusation. Now, she works long hours in a Philadelphia emergency room, doing her best to save as many lives as she can.

One night, she is pulled over by several police cars. Cops and TV cameras surround her, and Erin sees her dreams going up in smoke. Certainly, the hospital won’t award a fellowship to a woman being investigated by the police.

Detective Adam Trent doesn’t know what to make of the reserved young woman he pulled over. Her car is sporting stolen plates, but Erin denies all knowledge of the crime. Adam’s partner was killed in the line of duty, and, ever since that day, Adam has been intent on clearing the streets of criminals. Is Erin one of them, or, is she being used as a pawn in a game of cat and mouse?

Slowly, Adam and Erin join forces to figure out what is going on in Philadelphia. At first, their alliance is rocky. Neither one is super willing to trust the other, especially since both are hiding bits of their pasts. Adam hates lies, and he seems almost hard-wired to accuse Erin of lying at every turn. For her part, Erin has quite a few rather irrational fears which cause her to blow up at Adam for what seems like no reason at all. Even so, I was pulled into their story, and I rooted for them to get themselves together and admit their feelings for one another.

Many people refer to Ms. Reber’s books as “slow burn” romances. I didn’t find this to be true at all. I was aware of the chemistry between the leads almost right away, and the story progressed at a nice pace, neither too fast nor too slow. If anything, I’d say things progressed a little faster than I expected them to, given the amount of baggage both Adam and Erin are carrying around. Still, I found the romance quite believable.

This was my first experience with both Molly Glenmore and Cooper North. Both are competent narrators, capable of creating believable character voices.

Mr. North did an excellent job portraying Adam and the other men on the police force. He gave each a distinct sound, making it possible to know who was speaking, even in scenes with several men present. Occasionally, he slipped into a bit of a falsetto when speaking for Erin, but it happened only a handful of times. He corrected it quickly, and I didn’t find it overly distracting.

Ms. Glenmore was equally skilled. I was particularly fond of her portrayal of Erin. She really seemed to get the character Ms. Reber created. I sometimes felt as if I knew her, and was feeling all these riotous emotions right along with her.

The sex in this particular book might be problematic for some listeners. Adam is into some pretty kinky stuff, and, unfortunately, he always wants to have sex with Erin after they’ve had a disagreement or even a full-out fight. This made me slightly uncomfortable, as it seemed like he was bound and determined to teach her a lesson. It made some of their encounters seem like punishment, rather than consensual expressions of their feelings for one another.

Jacked is longer than most romantic suspense books. At just over eighteen and a half hours, it could look overwhelming. However, the author created a spell-binding story with characters I wanted to relate to. The suspense kept me glued to my iPod, and the romance possessed just the right amount of sizzle. I am excited for the next book in this series, and I also plan to check out Ms. Reber’s backlist.

Shannon


Narration: B+ North/ A- Glenmore

Book Content: B-

Steam Factor: For your burning ears only

Violence: Escalated fighting

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Publisher: Tantor Audio

Jacked was provided to AudioGals by Tantor Audio for a review.

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