Kiss Me While I Sleep

Rating:
Summary: A spy with a sense of humor!
Review: For that alone I could kiss Lucas Swain, never mind that he is a secondhand version of John Sandford's fabulous cop Lucas Davenport. Because of the rather ripped-off version of Davenport (one of my all-time favorite fictional characters)and because the intrigue isn't terribly intriguing, I gave this only 3 stars. That isn't to say I hated the book or that I didn't enjoy it: The banter between hero and heroine is pretty funny - but just a little too much like Davenport and one of his ladies to feel original. If I hadn't read 'Cry No More' right before this one I might have liked this book better, but CNM was a top-notch and very moving story. My expectations may have been a little too high coming off that book. I think I'll go re-read one of Sandford's books now!

Rating:
Summary: Good, but...
Review: I am a true blue Linda Howard fan. I read ANYTHING she writes. Her best is better than any other romance writer; her not so best is still really good. I would rank this in the good category. Even though the mystery is probably not the most important aspect of the book, I was disappointed that I figured out the culprit early into the story. I was delightfully surprised though by the resolution of the conflict between the main characters (really good), though I would have liked a longer ending to fully appreciate this resolution. Unlike some Linda Howard readers, I enjoy conflict between the hero and heroine with aspects of humor, and don't enjoy the "funny" Howards as much as some do. I was pleased this was more in the first category. I wish we could have seen Swain being pushed a little more at the end in the emotion department.

All in all, recommended. I probably won't read it again, but will definitely read Ms. Howard's next book.

Rating:
Summary: Howard does it again!
Review: I have read all of Linda Howards books and reread many on my Howard shelf. Her books are always page turners with different characters to stimulate our imaginations in a believable fictional scenerio. "Kiss Me While I Sleep" was no different, it was a page turner with real characters as hero and heroine.

I was truly suprised by the ending which was terrific. Tears were necessary, but usually are at one time or another during a Howard book. I was shocked to tears at the ending.

Laughter, great dialogue, good plot, steamy romance, real people, good vs evil, saving the world, exacting revenge, duty, loyalty to family and country. What more can you want? It was worth the price of hardcover. It is definately on my keeper shelf.

My only wish for this would have been more resolution in the epilogue and more passion in the romance. I compare the passion in Linda Howards "Dying to Please" with these two lastest Howard books, "Cry No More" or "Kiss Me While I Sleep", and they do not equal the steamy passages from "Dying to Please". But then again, it may not be fair to compare.

All in all this was a great read and I would recommend it with 5 stars!

Rating:
Summary: More like 4 1/2 stars, but wonderful none-the-less
Review: I'm a big fan of Linda Howard. She's about the only author I read that I shell out for a hardcover. I wasn't disappointed when I bought Cry No More, but this was a different story, different mood, different characters. Personally, I liked Cry No More much better, but this one had its moments. For instance, I got a pleasant surprise to find out how Medina was doing (although indirectly). The love scenes were much different than her usual and now I know how they got the cover art. I also liked the originality of this one, but at first, I wasn't sure how I would like a 37 year old female assassin as the main character. I have to say that she grew on me; I thought she suffered enough and needed a way out. It was also easy to follow her train of thoughts and helped me relate to her as a person. Swain was another story. He was a little too easy going and light hearted. Not what I expected of a CIA man sent to "terminate" her. But they worked well together and it helped lighten the mood of the book. The more I think about it, the more I realize that he was the only type of guy matched for Lily.

Reasons why I thought it fell slightly short of 5 stars...one, the way she was too trusting of Swain - not a characteristic that I would attribute to a 19 year veteran in the game. Two, I didn't think there was enough heart stopping action. For a CIA contract assassin and a CIA field agent, I sort of hoped for more cliffhanger type action. Three, the ending felt rushed. Personally, I like the end wrapped up nice and neat. Not to say this didn't end the way I wanted, but that I'm not into such an abrupt ending. Or maybe I wasn't ready for the book to end.

Overall, I liked the book because I'm a fan of Howard's writing style and I like the characters she develops. She tells a great story in a way that I like to read it. Can't wait for her next one.

Rating:
Summary: Another winner
Review: Linda Howard's Kiss Me While I Sleep is another riveting tale of intrigue, betrayal and love.

Lily Mansfield has been working as a contract agent for the CIA since she was 18. Lily is extremely good at what she does but after 19 years it's taking a toll on her. When close friends and their daughter are murdered, she goes out on her own to bring them down.

Lucas Swain another agent is called in to bring Lily back one-way or another. Higher ups are afraid that Lily is a loose cannon now. Lucas sets to track Lily but isn't prepared for the woman he meets. As they delve further into the reasons Lily friends were killed, it becomes clear that it is far more serious then Lucas first thought.

As they try to untangle the web of deceit, Lucas and Lily become more entangled with each other. Lily who has trusted few people in her life must put all her trust in Lucas. But will Lucas care for that trust or betray it.

Kiss Me While I Sleep is a book that will keep you clued to the pages till the very end. It has all that you expect from a Linda Howard book, the suspense, the intrigue and the passion.

Rating:
Summary: Okay
Review: This book had the intrigue, but I expected more intrigue, drama, suspense and emotion considering the plot involving CIA agents. The characters personalities just seemed out of place with the plot and lacked the depth that I expected from Ms Howard. Also, I didn't feel the chemistry or build-up between Swain and Lily before they became lovers and "fell in love." However, Ms Howard can switch from character to character on a dime in her books. Ms Howard's characters are never perfect, which allows her readers to relate and Ms Howard's characters are never run together as other authors tend to do. The ending was a nice surprise, if a little rushed. I would still recommend this book, but don't expect it to be as good as Cry No More, which tugged at my heart and made me cry...

Rating:
Summary: Kiss Me While I Sleep
Review: This book put me in mind of ALL THE QUEEN'S MEN with the CIA angle and the mentions of John Medina. That book wasn't one of my favorite Linda Howard's and neither is this one. I enjoyed reading it but it's just not one that will be a book I will read and re-read over & over.