Nico Rosso | Carina Press | Romantic Suspense | 2/22/16
When Hayley Baskov, a down on her luck chef takes a job as the private chef for The Orel Group, a powerful Russian mob organization, she has to keep her cool while dodging guns, knives, and dangerous men. None more dangerous than Art Diaz, the head honcho’s bodyguard who has a penchant for sharp knives.
Except, there is more to Art than it appears, he is actually an undercover soldier for hire. For Art setting up a strike against the Russians isn’t just a job, it’s personal (yeah, I said it) because the Orel Group is responsible for the death of his father.
Hayley and Art are cooking up sizzling chemistry, but can they both keep their wits about them alone in the desert with some of the most dangerous men in the world? Even though it has a meandering middle, Countdown To Zero Hour has a tense action-packed ending where nothing is off-limits.
Hayley’s role felt more like a love interest and less like a heroine. Her main motivation in this story is to cook well and get paid so she can open her restaurant. This is in contrast to Art who is this highly trained and skilled super solider who has this weighty backstory. H also bares the brunt of a lot of racism from the Russians because he’s half Mexican.
It seems like all Hayley has to do in this book is stand around and be protected, which might have been fine if the chemistry between Art and Haley had more follow-through. I don’ think this book is setting out to be a great romance, but I just wanted the characters to have a bit more emotional investment with each other.
SIDE NOTE
Yes, I may have read this book because of how JACKED the covers are. I also like the naming conventions the next one is called One Minute To Midnight. I just want to know what happens at midnight.
*received via NetGalley
