Hard to Come By

By: Laura Kaye

Narrated by: Seraphine Valentine

Length: 11 hrs and 38 mins

Publisher's Summary

Five dishonored soldiers.

Former Special Forces.

One last mission.

These are the men of Hard Ink.

Derek DiMarzio would do anything for the members of his disgraced Special Forces team - sacrifice his body, help a former teammate with a covert operation to restore their honor, and even go behind enemy lines. He just never expected to want the beautiful woman he found there.

When a sexy stranger asks questions about her brother, Emilie Garza is torn between loyalty to the sibling she once idolized and fear of the war-changed man he's become. Derek's easy smile and quiet strength tempt Emilie to open up, igniting their desire and leading Derek to crave a woman he shouldn't trust.

As the team's investigation reveals how powerful their enemies are, Derek and Emilie must prove where their loyalties lie before hearts are broken and lives are lost. Because love is too hard to come by to let it slip away.

©2014 Laura Kaye (P)2014 Harper Collins Publishers

THE ABSOLUTE BEST SO FAR IN THE SERIES!

This is the best one so far! Again, I feel like I'm late to the party on this series and author. I won't make that mistake again, because I'm now a lifetime fan. This installment of Hard Ink was jammed with action, suspense, HOT HOT HOT sex, and I listened in one sitting. I can not wait until June when the next book is out. One thing to note, is that, I think this is ACTUALLY the 4th book as opposed to the 3rd based on a few references throughout the story. Each book could stand alone, but, I enjoy listening in sequence. I don't think I missed much or any major spoilers revealed by the incorrect sequence so I'm not too miffed.

Great 5-star listen, and definitely worth a credit!

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Wonderful story telling!

The story is riveting from the first line as are all of Laura Kaye's books. I expected no less then to be enthralled and I wasn't disappointed. The performance, timing, voices and emotion were all evident from the beginning. Overall a fantastic read and listen.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Great story and narration

What made the experience of listening to Hard to Come By the most enjoyable?

The continuation of the series, the author leaves just enough cliff hanger for the next book.

What did you like best about this story?

The characters.

Have you listened to any of Seraphine Valentine’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes, the narrator sounded great from the 1st book

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The deaths of the loved ones, it made you feel just like you knew them.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

MORE EXCITING CLUES/ANSWERS/ACTION & ROMANCE

This is a great series to get into… a band of ex Army Special Forces men who were mysteriously set up while on duty, caught in a deadly ambush and unceremoniously kicked out of the Army with bad records. They're trying to find out the who, what and why's of the day that changed their lives in order to restore their, and their 7 killed comrades, reputation and honor. But along the way there's nail-biting action, mystery, suspense, twists, new characters and a sexy, passionate love story.

Handsome, tattooed and honorable Marz has to get close to Emilie, the Sister of a gang member who they think may be able to give them some more information, but this proves to be easy and hard to do…. easy because as soon as they meet Marz and Emilie 'click' and the attraction's strong and hard because he's always been honest so doesn't like lying to her. But unsuspecting Emilie is worried about her Brother's erratic and more violent behaviour, she's a Psychologist so contacts the Police to get him taken into care because she thinks he's delusional. Once these wheels are set in motion she has unknowingly put everyone's life in great danger - including her own…….. which results in kidnapping, a high speed car chase, murder, a deadly explosion and everyones secrets are found out.

Dual POV's, great narration but this is part of a building storyline so, to get the most from the series, it would be best to start at book 1.

Worth a credit? A well-written, action-packed edge of your seat romance with loveable characters and an emotionally damaged Heroine and a physically and mentally damaged Hero…….. so YUP, very creditworthy.

8 of 12 people found this review helpful

Great series

I love this narrator. I think she is my fav. Great series full of action, love and a pretty good storyline. I would recommend using your credit for this book.

Controlling Alpha Jerk - Weak Woman

Unlike the first 2 books in the Hard Ink series, this book featured a self-absorbed, controlling jerk (Derek) and an incredibly weak woman (Emilie). What a disappointment!

What did macho Derek do a few hours after Emilie suffers a devastating personal tragedy/? Derek slapped her, then screwed her so hard she was covered in bruises. For a man who experienced a painful war injury, why would he choose to inflict physical pain on a woman he claimed to love, after trying to protect her in a fire fight.

Likewise, Emilie was a clinical psychologist who should recognize an abusive man she meets one. Hint: he lies, he ignores your requests, he says he owns you after a few days, he hits you, he pushes your personal boundaries. Sadly, Emilie allowed her ex-husband to make her believe she was unworthy of gentleness and respect.

The continuing mystery/drama of gang wars and covert military forces was incredibly unrealistic. While the some of the Baltimore police might have been corrupt, no one thought to contact the state police, US Marshalls or FBI when they had solid proof of drug smuggling and human trafficking.

Although the author is obviously talented, the plot of Hard to Come By stretched the bounds of credibility to the ridiculous, then ended with no resolution. Thankfully the narrator was excellent.

1 of 2 people found this review helpful

I am obsessed with this series

This book especially was super hot and the hero is super sweet and funny. Theoretically they can be a stand alone but they are better when you read them together.

Very good addition to the series :D

4 stars

This was a very good story and addition to the series. I liked Derek and Emilie and thought they worked well together once they got past their rough start.

Emilie is a therapist in a small town outside of Baltimore. Emilie was married at one time but her husband cheated on her and now they're divorced. Emilie lives on her own in a house on the lake and is relatively happy in her life. Emilie's main concern right now is that she's been worried about the increasingly erratic and paranoid behavior her brother, Mannie, has been showing and is considering having him forcibly brought in for a mental evaluation before he hurts someone or himself.

Derek is ex-special forces who (along with 4 other team mates) was framed and discharged from service (and not honorably). Derek lost a leg in the ambush that they were framed over but does pretty well with his prosthetic leg. Derek grew up in foster homes all his life and his SF team was the closest to family he had. Losing them was rough on Derek and now he's determined not to lose them again.

Derek and his team have been working on finding evidence to prove that they didn't do anything wrong and clear their names. In this search, they found another ex-SF named Mannie that had something to do with their situation and could answer some questions. After some creative information gathering, Derek is able to find addresses for Mannie's mother and sister. Since the sister lives near, they decide to check her out and see if she's in contact with Mannie. They scope out her house but don't have much luck. During their observation of Emilie, Derek goes to the same restaurant and they strike up a conversation. The situation ends up requiring Derek to use the attraction between them to keep Emilie busy and Derek's not too happy about lying to her since she seems really nice. Derek's even more unhappy about the whole situation when he starts to develop feelings for Emilie and realizes she's developing some for him in return.

The lies between Derek and Emilie make things rough on them...especially when Emilie finds out what's going on and has to figure out if she can trust Derek. It does help that Mannie's crap blew up in her face and so when she finds out about Derek, he had just saved her from a dirty cop working for a gang that wanted to use her against her brother before selling her off in a human trafficking scheme. With a bit of time and some effort on Derek's part, Emilie ends up trusting him again and their relationship progresses. The action storyline (that pretty much spans the series) progresses a lot in this book and there's quite a bit going on and a big surprise as well. While things still need resolved in the action storyline, Derek and Emilie end the story together and working on starting their HEA.

This was a very enjoyable story. I liked Emilie...she was nice and smart and didn't do stupid/annoying things that made me want to tear my hair out. Derek was a good hero...he was a bit injured due to his past and all he'd been through, but it worked for the story and made his bonding so closely with Emilie more believable. Overall, I was very pleased with this addition to the series and I can't wait to see how things end. I'd recommend this story and series. :D

Book hog

Excellent series. They are all different for time frame of a month time frame. Crazy talent writing for that to happen yet all can 98% of each book is stand-a-lone.

This is absolutely the best I've read in a long ti

If you really love a meaningful story and the wonder of what happens next...with a lot of true meaningful relationships then this is a great choice. Can't wait for the next book!

Loved

Any additional comments?

Book 3 in the Hard Ink series, again this book didn't disappoint. This book follows Decker, who is the brains behind the computer operations in the group. Decker has lost his leg while trying to protect best buddy Bailey in the line of duty. Love, lust, troubled pasts, awesome characters, writing and chemistry, oh and intrigue . Loved X

And the plot thickens

Would you consider the audio edition of Hard to Come By to be better than the print version?

I like the fact that the characters come to life while I am driving

What was one of the most memorable moments of Hard to Come By?

The trip on the water taxi and the visit to the lighthouse were pretty revealing about the characters

Did Seraphine Valentine do a good job differentiating each of the characters? How?

Not as much as the previous books. I found that the different voices tended to become a blend rather than remain individual like in the other books.

Any additional comments?

IF this is the first of the Hard Ink books you read, go back and read the other 3 immediately! These men are what we all imagine soldiers should be, loyal, honourable with need to defend and protect and, of course, struggling with their own flaws! Their bond and their need to restore their honour make them stronger as a unit, and of course, their newly acquired women make them even stronger and more likeable as characters. The underlying tension between Marz and Beckett makes this so much more realistic too. What started as a rescue op, is now a seriously dangerous affair with real casualties for the good guys...where will this all end?
If you have not finished reading this novel or have not read the others, stop reading this review now or otherwise, deal with the fact that there are spoilers in the next part of the review.

By the start of this novel I could slowly see the pieces fall into place. For every problem to boys come across, the seems too girl who can help, in the last story we learn about Easy's PTSD and suicidal thoughts, now they rescue a psychologist who can help without risking their safety. No doubt the Rixey boys' sister with her legal back ground and Jenna's knowledge of international finance and business affairs will become useful in the last two novels before the cross-over with the Raven Riders. I have to say, I did start to suspect that 'The Colonel' may have been judged unfairly but the emotional responses of the characters made me bury this suspicion just to dig it up again now that there are new developments.
I have to be honest, I cannot wit for Jeremy and Charlie to confront their emotions in an environment of love and acceptance and of course for the sparks to fly between Becket and Katherine.

loved it

Where does Hard to Come By rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

top 5

Who was your favorite character and why?

marz most deffinatly funny man but serious in the bedroom

Have you listened to any of Seraphine Valentine’s other performances? How does this one compare?

i've listened to the other had ink books & shes very good with them all

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

when Marz is talks of his life

Any additional comments?

loved it can't wait for the next !!!!! the plot thickens