cat Johnson | The Opinionated Woman's Musings

Synopsis

Now that all the SpecOps team members have their happy endings (this is the The Red, Hot & Blue series), Hank, the commander, is the focus of the story. Everyone looks up to and respects Hank. He has been a constant in their military career, like a father figure to most of them. Since he is larger than life for them, he cannot talk frankly to them about his feelings or what he wants out of life.

Lois is the mother to members of Hank’s SpecOps team. Just because she has adult children old enough to get married, does not mean she is some dowdy, old lady content to sit at home in her rocking chair waiting for the grandchildren to come. She is spunky, spirited, and energetic. She loves her sons, their girlfriends, and embraces everyone she meets with open arms.

Since Hank does not socialize with his direct reports, the image he had in his head about the way Lois (called Mama by his men) looked and how she actually looked was totally different. Before this book they knew of each other but had not met in person. When they finally meet, Hank was not prepared for the fact that she was hotter than his matronly mental image.

Opinion

I have mentioned in previous reviews that I like it when the characters are mature. I cannot remember reading a romance where the characters were in this age bracket; however it totally worked for the story.

Lois is a hardworking woman who was unfortunate the first time around when it came to love. At least she has her sons that will do anything for her. She spoils them but not too much. I think I liked her so much because she sounds like my ideal book mom.

Hank is a rugged, mature man who touches my heart too. I think he was realistic enough to admit that his failed relationship was partially his fault. Given his position, he did not really have anyone he could talk to about personal matters.

It feels funny calling the characters by their names since up until this point, they were Mama and Commander. I was as happy that Lois and Hank found each other as I would be about my parents (or my friend’s parents) finding romance. I skimmed over the love scenes though. Who wants to read about their parents making out? Ughhh. I rather not think about that. Oh the visuals.

Overall, I liked The Commander (Red, Hot, & Blue) because it was different from what I am used to reading in the sense that the characters were more mature age wise. Bravo to Cat Johnson for this storyline. Like the other books in this series, there is some graphic language and love scene detail.

Should you buy? It is worth the prices. While this story is full length, read the other stories in this series to get the full effect of who Lois and Hank are. Out of all the books, this is definitely the sweetest of all the story lines.

Book Details
ebook, 81 pages

Published December 31st 2013 by Samhain Publishing

Series Red, Hot & Blue #12

Red Hot and Blue series ♥♥♥

Sometimes there is a series that is interesting enough that I read all the books.
Red Hot and Blue series by Cat Johnson is one of those.

Synopsis x 6

Book 1 Trey: Red, Hot & Blue (Red, Hot, & Blue) – Trey – Navy Seal – and Carly

Trey and Jack (Trey’s best friend) have a crush on local bar owner named Carly. Circumstances create a situation where Trey and Carly have to work undercover on an assignment and they end up falling for each other.

Book 2 Jack: Red, Hot, & Blue, Book 2 – Jack – Navy Seal on rebound since his crush fell for his best friend in book 1 – and Nicolina (aka Nicki)

Jack is back home in small town Pigeon Hollow nursing his emotional wounds and ends up falling for Nicki who is hiding from her mob ex-boyfriend.

Book 3 Jimmy: Red, Hot, & Blue– Jimmy – Jack’s brother and also Navy Seal – and Amelia (aka Lia)

While on an assignment, Jimmy ends up having a one night stand with Lia, the state governor’s daughter. Neither person knew who the other was. The night of passion was so memorable that when the met again, sparks were popping all over the place.

Book 3.5 BB Dalton: a Red Hot & Blue bonus read (Red, Hot, & Blue) – Billy Bob (BB) Dalton – Navy Seal – and Katherine (Katie) (novella that was for a time free on Amazon)

Chosen for a Special Ops recruiting poster, BB is reluctantly pulled into the marketing campaign. Katie was his handler. There is a lot of chemistry but Katie’s hang up is that BB is 10 plus years younger than her.

Book 4 Jared (Red, Hot, & Blue) – Jared – Jimmy and Jack’s brother – and Mandy

Since his two brothers are in the Special Forces, he is helping their mother hold down the ranch and maintain the family business. Mandy is a Reality TV producer who came to Pigeon Hollow to film life on Gordon Ranch. She did not expect to find love as well.

Book 5 Cole (Red, Hot, & Blue) – Cole – an ex-professional baseball player – and Lizzie

After an injury forces Cole into retirement from baseball, he returns home to Pigeon Hollow to find that he still loves his high school sweetheart. Lizzie loves him too but is sabotaging their relationship by keeping secrets.

Book 6 Bobby: Red, Hot & Blue (Red, Hot, & Blue) – Bobby – Lizzie’s brother, sheriff, and Jared’s friend – Christy – Mandy’s friend

Bobby falls for Christy who is the assistant producer of the reality show filming in Pigeon Hollow.

Whew! That’s a lot of synopsis going on there.

Opinion

Judging from the time it took me to read, each book (with the exception of the novella) is about 150 – 200 pages. Besides Cole & Lizzie’s story, all the others feature variations of the love-at-first-sight trope as the basis for romance.

I do not think that is realistic, but it can be entertaining. Other than what I said above in each synopsis, there is not a lot to say about these stories without giving away the whole books. Since the books are short novels, there is not a lot in the character development department.

I rated these books as a set because even though each story is full on its own, it helps to read in order. I actually read Cole & Lizzie’s story first. It was good but once I read the preceding books, it made some of the little details mean so much more. Knowing the secondary characters provided an extra dimension to whole story. Each story helps to create the bigger picture of the town Pigeon Hollow and the camaraderie of the special ops team members.

Most inventive storyline – Trey (it was so complex)

Favorite – Cole (he was a sweetheart)

Least favorite – Bobby (the story seemed rushed at the end)

Should you buy? Cat Johnson has proven to be a consistent author. Buy one or buy them all and you will not be disappointed if you are looking for an average, light romance. I would not say that the books in this series are on the level of Jane Eyre or The Notebook, but simply said, it is a group of individuals who are part of fun romance stories. Plus most are NAVY SEALS!

Caveat: Love scenes are all graphic