**I received a copy of Hard Target from Net Galley and the author in exchange for a voluntary and honest review. My opinions stated below are mine and not solicited in any way**

Hard Target by Pamela Clare is the first book in her new Cobra Securities series. If you've read any of her I Team series you'll recognize some of the men who now work for Cobra. I loved this book and am so glad to have the author go back to Romance suspense again. The research that Ms. Clare did to write this book is outstanding as it puts you the reader right there with Jenna helping to deliver babies and teaching her students at Kazi Women's hospital in a country that doesn't allow women education.

Jenna Hamilton is in Afghanistan for the next 18 months teaching the local women how to be a midwife. Her meddling senator father has sent her late brother's best friend to bring her home but she has no intention in leaving before her contract is up. Jenna makes one mistake when a young girl is in maternal danger (Not allowed) will have both of them fleeing for their lives. Little does she know that someone close to her will put both Derek and Jenna in danger and taken hostage. Will Cobra find them in time?

Derek Tower grew up in Foster Care after his mother ODs on drugs and joins the military after graduation. His friendship within his Green Beret unit but when his best friend James sacrifices his life to save Derek during a sniper attack now has the Senator demanding he bring his daughter home. He'll help Farzad with new security cameras after an attack and find out who the traitor is when both Jenna and Derek must leave to keep the hospital and the student safe. Derek's Cobra partner Corbray from the I team series will soon have to rescue both of them after being taken hostage.

Awesome book and can't wait to read about some of the other men of Cobra Securities.

Hard Target is the first book in a new series of romantic suspense novels from popular author Pamela Clare featuring the men (and maybe women?) who work for Cobra International Security, the high-end security firm owned and run by Derek Tower, who was a recurring character in the author’s earlier I-Team series.  I confess that I haven’t read any of those books yet, so I was pleased to be able to jump in on the ground floor with this new series. Hard Target is an exciting, fast-paced read set mostly in Afghanistan, a country that is still unstable and tearing itself apart, and the author does a great job of showing just how dangerous it can be and how people like the heroine – who have gone there to help – walk a tightrope every day in order to do their jobs and stay safe.

Derek Tower is furious when he receives a call from Senator Hamilton, demanding Derek personally brings his daughter – currently working as a midwife in Afghanistan – home to the US.  The senator sits on the Armed Services Committee and thus has the ability to make life very difficult for Derek and his company, but even so, Derek refuses to be intimidated.  He can’t just kidnap a US citizen and tells Hamilton so – but he agrees to fly to the hospital Jenna Hamilton works at to see if he can persuade her to come back to the States.  But he doesn’t do it for Hamilton or for Cobra. He does it because Jenna’s brother had been Derek’s best friend when they were both green berets, and had died saving Derek’s life.  He owes it to him to try to keep his little sister safe – although he doesn’t hold out much hope of being able to persuade the young woman to return with him.

And he’s not wrong in that.  Jenna is six months into her two-year contract working  with and helping to train badly needed midwives, as well as running in education and outreach programs to help women to understand more about the changes their bodies undergo during pregnancy.  Jenna is a spirited, independent woman who refuses to let her father dictate her life any more, and is determined to see out her contract and refuses to budge.  She’s doing good, much needed work; she’s saving lives and hopefully more will be saved in the future and she’s not about to give it up because her controlling father insists she should be sitting at home waiting to get married.

When Derek tells Hamilton Jenna refuses to come home, the senator goes ballistic – and then Derek finds out that he’s fired Cobra from the job.  He decides to stay for a while longer – on his own dime – to watch out for Jenna.  Her father wasn’t wrong when he said that extremists had been known to kill midwives, and now he’s got a feel for the situation at the Kazi Women’s Hospital, he’s reluctant to leave.  When Jenna gets herself into hot water by arguing in favour of a life-saving procedure for one of her patients – a girl of twelve whose body isn’t mature enough to be able to bear her child – Derek and the head of hospital security manage to smooth things over… but it’s a close-run thing.

I found the aspect of the story that addresses the situation facing women in Afghanistan really compelling – as well as depressing – as I read about the way women are treated in this once enlightened country, deprived of education, forced to stay indoors, isolated from the world, their lives controlled entirely by men.  When Jenna gets into trouble over the twelve-year-old girl, it’s not because she is rude, but because she dares to speak to another woman – the girl’s mother-in-law – in the presence of a number of men to whom she is not related.  As one of Jenna’s students says, “it is better to be a goat in Afghanistan than a woman.”

I was thoroughly caught up in the plot, in which the author creates an atmosphere of uncertainty with a real sense of imminent danger that kept me invested in the story and wanting to know what was going to happen next.  Unfortunately, however, the romance in the novel is almost non-existent; Derek and Jenna are instantly attracted to one another, and although Derek has to go through all that ‘shagging my best friend’s little sister would be breaking the Man Code’ and ‘I don’t do relationships’ stuff – none of it stops them from getting down to business at the first available opportunity.  It’s clear they like and respect each other – which is as good a basis for a relationship as any – but there’s nothing much beyond that; there’s no real emotional connection between them and not a great deal of chemistry either.

For the first three-quarters of the way through the book, I was confident I’d be awarding Hard Target a solid B grade, due entirely to the well-conceived and executed suspense plot and interesting background.  Ms. Clare is a veteran of the romantic suspense genre and really knows how to write an exciting action sequence, and it’s clear she’s done her homework on current Afghan society and on the science of midwifery. The trouble is, however, that when she turns her focus to the romance in the last quarter of the novel, the pacing collapses faster than an undercooked soufflé.  And because I didn’t feel there was much between Derek and Jenna other than a healthy dose of lust, I wasn’t particularly invested in the outcome of their (not)romance.

So I knocked off half a grade point for the fact that the romance (such as it was) failed to capture my interest.  If you’re a fan of the author, or if you like your romantic suspense much lighter on the romance than the suspense then Hard Target is probably worth a look.

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I'm so happy that Ms Clare is starting a new romantic suspense series because I didn't realize how much I wanted this. I loved this book. It was full of action and heat and emotion. More please!

Always excited to see a new book released by Pamela Clare and happy to see that it's the start of a brand new romantic suspense series. Even better, her new Cobra Elite series brings together some of my favorite characters from her I-Team series! As usual there is no shortage of action and romance that we have come to expect from a Pamela Clare novel. While I admit the I-Team series is still my favorite, in fact I might just go back and reread some of those, this was a very enjoyable start to what I hope will be a great series..

What a fantastic read! 75% of Hard Target is set in Afghanistan where our heroine, Jenna is volunteering to work as a Midwife as well as training the women of Afghanistan. When her father finds out, he calls up our hero, Derek to bully him into bringing her back home where it's safe.

This read was a bit of an eye opener. I was pretty fascinated to read the struggles Jenna had to teach the women of Afghanistan about their bodies and how to help prevent needless deaths in pregnancy. She willingly took risks to help these women who have so few rights. It's not an easy thing to read about.

Derek was just as compelling in this book. He's one of my favorite heroes. The way he navigated the shaky ground he and Jenna were on as Americans, and the way he was willing to protect Jenna with his life. You really can't help but fall for this guy.

I think I can officially say I am a fan of Pamela Clare. She has a way of capturing my attention from the first chapter to the last. I've also learned to read her acknowledgements and author notes first because it really shows she takes a lot of time to do the proper research for her books.

We meet some great side characters in Hard Target. I can't wait to learn more about them in their own books.

Hard Target is a book by Pamela Clare that brings us the story of Derek Tower - a man we met in her previous I-Team Series. Derek owned a company that was in charge of protecting a tv reporter in Baghdad. When tragedy happened, he blamed the reporter Laura and wanted to find out what really happened. However, he was portrayed as an obsessive and obtrusive man. To be honest, he didn't completely redeem himself in the last few I-Team books from how he behaved towards Laura in "Striking Distance". I was excited to start this story, because I wanted to know more about Derek and why he is the way he is.
In this book we travel to Afghanistan, where Derek is in charge of protecting a midwife volunteer Jenna Hamilton. The most interesting part of this story was actually the healthcare part of it, how women (especially pregnant women) are treated and how difficult it is for them. It was definitely eye opening and sad to learn how much their fathers and husbands control their lives.
Jenna and Derek pretend to be brother and sister in order for him to be able to protect her. Derek was hired by Jenna's father to bring her home but Jenna does not want that. Derek tries hard to win her trust and to protect her but it is made difficult by the fact both have feelings for each other. IF you want to know how to book ends, you have to read it yourself.
In my opinion this story was less brutal and suspenseful that the I-Team series. However, I still really enjoyed reading this, I found the love story believable and I wish we had been able to see more of the life and struggles people face in Afghanistan. Overall, I think this book is definitely a must read for Pamela Clare fans.

Derek had a rough childhood, in and out of foster homes until he became of age and joined the military. He was a Green Beret but now owns a security company with one of his buddies. He is contacted by a Senator who wants him to bring his daughter back from Afghanistan. Jenna is working as a midwife in Afghanistan and has eighteen months left on her contract. Derek tries to convince her to go back to the US but she is adamant about staying. But when a militia group try to kidnap Jenna, Derek must get her out of there fast. They have a compound close by and get her there. It’s getting her out of the country that’s going to be tricky. But if anyone can it’s the Cobra team. Derek doesn’t do relationships but finds himself falling for Jenna. Can he open his heart and finally love someone?
Great story with plenty of action and sexiness. I truly loved this story and hope more from these guys are to come.
* Voluntarily read and reviewed this for NetGalley *

Sometimes books with an unfamiliar setting start off a bit slow for me because so much information has to be presented to set the story up for the reader to really grasp the scope of what's going on. Though I liked the characters immediately, this was the case with this book for me. Thankfully, I hung in there because it really picked up the pace once it got past the initial introduction to Afghan culture. It was surprisingly sexy for such a setting and became quite action packed. Derek tried to be aloof and maintain his loner status, but Jenna brought out his need to feel a connection. She was selfless and strong but needed Derek's warrior capabilities when situations became more volatile than she could have imagined. They really made a fascinating couple. I ended up being really glad I read this story and also, after reading the forward from the author, I appreciate being made more aware of the devastating conditions for women in other parts of the world. Though fiction is inherently fantasy, it can often be the best conduit for sharing truths.

I received an ARC and have my honest opinion.

I received an advanced reader's copy of Hard Target by Pamela Clare from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was the first novel that I had read by Pamela Clare, but after reading, she is an author I would look for in the future.

Overall, I enjoyed this novel and I found it to be well written. The primary characters' romantic start seemed a little awkward (not believable or smooth), but it improved quickly. I enjoyed the primary and secondary characters' interactions and the steamy scenes were hot. A fun, quick read for a rainy day!

Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) provided by the Author and Publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an fair and honest review.

It's wonderful to have Pamela Clare writing Romantic-Suspense again. I've missed her unique blend of sweet, sexy romance and action. It was fun to "catch-up" with several I-Team couples. I enjoyed the way she has bridged the I-Team Series with this new Cobra Elite Series. I look forward to more books about these operatives.

Jenna Hamilton has had to fight her father, Senator Hamilton, to make decisions in her life. She is now in Afghanistan, against his wishes, and finding a fulfillment she never imagined. Her work as a mid-wife is desperately needed in a country that values neither life or women.

Derek Tower is an owner of Cobra International Security and no stranger to war, having been a Green Beret. When Senator Hamilton hires him to bring his daughter home, he flatly tells him he will not use force to bring her back if she refuses. Knowing he owes a debt he can never repay, he takes the job. Jenna turns out to be just as stubborn as her older brother, who died for him in Afghanistan. Of course, she refuses to leave and he refuses to leave her.

From the moment Derek and Jenna meet, sparks fly. Even though there is security at the hospital, Derek makes Jenna's safety his responsibility. When her life is threatened, he will do anything to protect her.

This is a voluntary review of an advanced copy.

It has been awhile since I read an I-team book so I was thrilled to see this new Cobra series with all the guess from previous books! I remember Derek Towers from an earlier book and loved to see him teamed up with Corbray. When Derek is ordered and manipulated into going to "bodyguard" a senator's daughter, things start going downhill.

Jenna was working as a midwife to help Afghani pregnant women when her father wanted her home. She saves a young girl and her baby but a cost. At this point, there is a lot of action as they try to stay ahead of a warlord that is trying to abduct her.

Derek and Jenna are so great together but it is hard for him to open himself up to another person. There is a few things that they need to work through but they do get a great HEA.

I loved that Jenna was such a strong woman and was able to help keep Cobra operatives live when they were attacked. Sure hope that we see more of these Cobra guys!

So glad that we also saw more of Holly and Nick - I LOVED their story!

I'm a Pamela Clare fan but this one just didn't do it for me. Derek and Jenna's story was missing the author's usual sexual chemistry, banter, and humor, leaving a fairly quick, dour, bare bones hook up between two people that say they loved each other after they barely met and spent a fwe days together trying to escape from an evil warlord. Hardly the formula for true lasting love.

For the first two-thirds of the book, Derek and Jenna are hiding out from the warlord, in precarious violent situations, and suffering multiple wounds. Not sexy or romantic. It didn't help with clunky moments between dedicated midwife Jenna and hardened former military-now private security operator Derek:
“What a funny pair we make. You bring life into the world, and I take it out.”

“I guess so.”

She drifted off after that.
Ok, that is the worst pillow talk ever. And speaking of pillow talk, I get why Derek and Jenna are hot for each other. After all, Jenna's been in Afghanistan under watch by conservative Afghan guards and she admits Derek is great eye candy after months of celibacy. As for Derek, he struggles (for a little bit) with the she's the little sister of my best friend who died trying to save my life bit but he gives in real fast to have sex with Jenna.

But outside of bed, Derek and Jenna barely get to know each before declaring their I love yous. Or, in the case of Derek, the I-love-you-but-I-don't-know-how-to-love-so-I'm-pushing-you-away speech:
What could he say—that he cared about her more than he’d cared about any woman and was terrified that he was going to hurt her?
But Derek never explains why he feels that way, he just stays silent while Jenna secretly wonders if he has feelings for her. They were like two high schoolers too afraid to ask if the other was in like like, too. Imo, if you just escaped from evil warlord and the clutches of your manipulative dad, then kids, you can definitely find your words.

Luckily, the author treated the reader to quick visits to other favorite characters. As always, so fun to see what Nick and Holly, Javier and Laura, etc. were up to.

3 stars

Note: I voluntarily read and reviewed the ARC generously provided by NetGalley and the publisher.

What a great start to a new series, I enjoyed every moment. This couple were meant to be and had a sizzling connection. This book is reality, bringing world events into a story and keeping us glued to the story. The story wasn't over shadowed by the romance, there was plenty of action and danger. Can't wait for the next book in this series, I loved it.

Hard Target is the first in a gritty new series by Pamela Clare. This story takes us to Afghanistan and a young midwife who is trying to help the (very) young mothers in the new reality of the women in Afghanistan. Sent to try and convince her to leave Derek Tower CEO of Cobra Elite is prepared for every contingency but her. His best friends little sister is all grown up and stubborn as the day is long. But when danger comes she knows she can count on him to keep her safe. This is romantic suspense at its finest. I really look forward to future installments of this series.

I have just discovered another romantic suspense author to read, and I couldn’t be more thrilled!

Of all the romance sub-genres, military suspense is probably my favorite. But it can be a dicey genre for me. I want at least equal parts action/suspense and romance. I don’t want a romance that throws in a quasi-suspenseful plot. I also don’t want a suspense that just throws in sex. Thank goodness Hard Target NAILED IT on the suspense AND the romance, and then some.

Derek Tower is former special ops military, and now runs his own private security firm. When he’s contacted by Senator Hamilton to kidnap his daughter - who’s working as a midwife in Afghanistan - and bring her home, he initially tells him no. Swayed by guilt over the death of the senator’s only son, Derek agrees to travel to Afghanistan to try and convince Jenna to come home.

Of course, Jenna isn’t convinced, and then things go sideways when unknown forces make her presence there dangerous, not only for her but for Derek and his men as well. As Derek and Jenna spend time together they decide to give into their burgeoning feelings, and before Derek realizes it, keeping Jenna in his life is as important as keeping her alive.

This was a heartstopping, breath holding, action packed story. I loved every page! So many times the author could have taken the stereotypical route with the love story and she didn’t. The heroine was the younger sister of the hero’s best friend - who died in combat protecting the hero. We could have gotten a boatload of guilt-ridden internal monologue about how he couldn’t be with his buddy’s little sister, how he didn’t deserve to be alive...but it was mentioned a couple times and then the hero moved on. He didn’t dwell on it, HALLELUJAH!!! Then we had the hero’s usual “I don’t do relationships because I’m not good at them and my life isn’t conducive to having one” storyline, but again...it was mentioned/explained, and that was all. No harping about it!!! There was no pushing the heroine away, no unnecessary angsty drama, no miscommunication that tore them apart.

Just a fantastic romantic military suspense.

I can’t wait to read more by Pamela Clare. I’ve been in a bit of a reading slump lately, and Hard Target reminded me why I love reading so much.

*thank you to NetGalley and Pamela Clare for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review

I received this book fee for review.
This book was great I love how each had a troubled childhood and over come this with true love. Would love to continue this with the stories of the men who helped save her life and vice Vera. A must read

I have to confess that it had been years since I last read a book by this talented author. A mistake I will not do again!
This story was awesome. It’s a spin off from one of her previous series, but if like me you have not read them, no worries since it was definitely a stand alone.
The story centers around Derek Tower and Jenna Hamilton.
Derek, a former Green Beret is now owner of a military security company with bases around the world. When he gets a call from Senator Hamilton to go and get his daughter back from Afghanistan , he is torn. Jenna’s brother died saving Derek.
Jenna ,a midwife , has signed up to assist Afghani women during labor and educate them as well.
When they meet the attraction is immediate, but he is there to take her home, and is posing as her brother in a world where women are second and third class citizens.
From that moment on , the plot thickens. A plot filled with action, bad guys, hunky good guys, unknown danger and of course romance.
We have 2 individuals whose upbringing couldn’t be more different. Your heart will break for Derek , while Jenna’s heartaches have not been due to abandonment, she too has suffered .
A story that will touch your hearts and keep you hoping for a happy ending. But Derek is willing to die for Jenna and the enemy has no mercy.
Looking forward to what else the author has in store for us in this series.
I was entrusted a copy of this book by Netgalley. The opinions expressed are solely my own.

Derek Tower and his partner, Javier Corbray, own Cobra International Security. They take on sensitive missions as well as others that the government can’t. Derek has been ordered by Senator Hamilton to bring his daughter, Jenna, home from Afghanistan…whether she wants to come home or not. Jenna is six months in to a two-year assignment to instruct the locals in prenatal care due to the high death rate for both mothers and babies. Derek insists he will encourage Jenna to come home, due to the danger for midwives in the country, but he will not force her to return to the United States. When Jenna’s actions cause a minor upset at the hospital, Derek smooths things over, but he knows that danger is headed their way. A wealthy warlord, who approved Jenna’s mission, may have changed his mind and Derek needs to get Jenna out of the country. Has Jenna’s relationship as the daughter of a Senator who sits on the Armed Services Committee, increased the risk to her safety? Derek and Jenna share an amazing attraction and he knows he must keep her safe for her benefit as well as his own. A thrilling beginning to a spin-off of the I Team series. I received an advance review copy at no cost and without obligation for an honest review. (by paytonpuppy)

Hard Target is the first book in Pamela Clare's Cobra Elite series. Hard Target tells the story of Derek, a private military company owner, and Jenna, a midwife working in Afghanistan. Derek served in the military with Jenna's brother who saved Derek's life while sacrificing his own. Derek is sent by Jenna's senator dad to bring her home. Obviously things do not work out that easily.

This is the first book I have read by Pamela Clare and it will not be my last! It was wonderfully written and I loved both main characters. You could tell that they had chemistry and I was rooting for them both the entire time. This was a fairly quick read - I read it in one sitting because I couldn't put it down. I definitely recommend it for anyone who loves contemporary romance/romantic suspense novels!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this free ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Great read. I was on edge this entire read. This book is one of the best romantic, suspense books i have read in a while. The author does an amazing job weaving the drama, violence and Pamela and Derek building a relationship amongst it. Also I cannot wait for the rest of the stories from Cobra Elite!