REVIEW Breaking Point (I-Team #5) by Pamela Clare

 

Author: The wonderful Pamela Clare

Pages: 384

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Berkley Sensation

AMAZON: Breaking Point (An I-Team Novel)

From the Blurb.

Denver journalist Natalie Benoit and Deputy U.S. Marshal Zach McBride find themselves captives of a bloodthirsty Mexican drug cartel. Working together, they escape through the desert toward the border, the attraction between them flaring hotter than the Sonoran sun. They fight to stay ahead of the danger that hunts them as forces more powerful than they can imagine conspire to destroy them both..

REVIEW: 5 out of 5 Stars

**POSSIBLE SPOILERS**

I adore Pamela Clare as an author, she is amazingly talented and I have come to rely on her for delivering a heartfelt, emotional Romantic Suspense; Breaking Point was a long anticipated wait for me and absolutely worth it, it is by far my favorite in the I-Team series and that says alot considering how much I love the others.

As with all I-Team books, Clare delivers very real issues, the backdrop for this story being cartel border violence and the abduction, torture and murder of innocent women or in some circumstances, very young girls.

Deputy U.S. Marshal Zach McBride and Investigative Journalist Natalie Benoit meet under extremely dire circumstances; Zach is on his last legs having endured days of unbearable torture after being betrayed by a Mexican Interpol agent, drugged and then captured by a Mexican Drug Cartel.

Natalie is bought to a compound and placed in a cell alongside Zach’s after being captured by Zetas while on a bus with other journalists. Almost everyone onboard is murdered, but she is kidnapped for reasons unbeknownst to her, what she thought would be a bit of time away from work turned into her worst nightmare.

After witnessing Zach’s torture and being tormented herself, Natalie has a plan to break them free, but not knowing whether Zach is on the good or bad side and whether to trust him, she makes a deal with him to protect her and help her to get safely back to the states.

It was non stop action from the first to the last page that kept me absolutely riveted, I couldn’t put this book down. I was thoroughly engrossed in this amazing plot and the scenery/location seemed very real to me, it was detailed perfectly; so much so you felt you were there.

The suspense and reasoning behind who was after Natalie was definitely not what I expected; the lengths the bad guys went to were certainly extreme in order to protect their dealings.

Zach, a former Navy SEAL is a true alpha male who I adored as a hero, he was worthy in my books of all his achievements whether he believed them or not; he protected Natalie with all he had. He is suffering PTSD after losing his team whilst on a mission in Afghanistan, he feels he let them down and can’t seem to live in the real world having tried on previous occasion and seeming to think he failed; he also has issues with his father. Natalie has had to live through her own personal grieving, having survived Hurricane Katrina only to then lose her parents and fiancé, Beau whilst on their way to hospital to visit her after a murder attempt on her life. My heart hurt for them both.

I loved the chemistry and emotional connection Zach and Natalie shared, they were perfect together; he didn't feel worthy of love but she was certainly able to give it and Ms Clare certainly knows how to write a wonderful smexy scene, these two were absolutely scorching together!

Breaking Point had non stop gritty action, a sweet romance and two main characters that had strength and determination; there wasn’t a moment throughout that I wasn’t utterly enthralled. The appearance of other I-team characters was wonderful, they are a tight-knit team that truly sticks together; but I must say poor old Julian! The ‘big brother’ way in which they protected Natalie (and each other) was wonderful; I love their affection, banter and interactions.

Seeing the guys from the former books along with Zach to bring the bad guys down was great, they worked well together; I just wish Cardenas and Quintana had to suffer more than what they did after what they put Zach and Natalie (as well as many others) through, I think they got off too easily (I sound sadistic!).

The scene where Joaquin showed the team the images he shot during the aftermath of the take-down had me in tears! It was such a sweet moment and really showed the devotion and love these characters felt for one another.

I loved the epilogue and the HEA, they were touching and extremely sweet; Zach and Natalie both deserved great happiness.

Favorite quote: ‘I love you, Zach McBride. You’re not alone in this anymore. You fought the Zetas for me. I’m going to fight for you – even if the one I have to fight is you.’

Now, the cover; how HOT is Jed Hill! I could look at it all day long.

I could go on and on about Breaking Point, I absolutely LOVED it and can’t wait for the next book in the series.

I-Team books in order:

1. Extreme Exposure
2. Hard Evidence
3. Unlawful Contact
4. Naked Edge
5. Breaking Point