THE END OF ME (The Single Lady Spy Series #1) by TARA BROWN

Review by Jenny & Gitte

Gitte: Okay, I officially love Tara Brown. I think she could write anything and I’d buy it, actually I know she could. Her style is so original; her storylines are crazy unpredictable and refreshing. She manages to inject just the perfect combination of humour, suspense and ‘unusual romance’ into one hell of an addictive read. The End of Me is book one and I know I’m hooked until this series ends.

“You make me want to be worthy of you. That’s a dangerous effect to have, on a man like me….I don’t want you to be anything but mine.”

This book is not only very sexy and hot. It’s also disturbingly dark and thrilling with more twists and turns than should be allowed in one book. I was inhaling every word and fell in love with all the characters. I definitely want to be the meat in a Cooper and Servario sandwich.

“Don’t make me love you…….Because it will end badly for us both.”

What did you think Jenny?

Jenny: What did I think?  I’m with you! I officially have, not only a readers crush, but a huge big girlie crush on this author because she wrote one very funny, strong, upfront and kick ass heroine and she also had me guessing at every turn just what the hell was going on, not to mention, all while making me laugh out loud at times.  Tara Brown certainly knows how to turn a story on its head and leave the reader hooked!  And yes! How refreshing it was to meet someone like Evie! It had it all…thrills, spills, hot sex and……Evie’s droll take on situations could certainly make you cringe uncomfortably while tittering at the same time. It was thrilling ride, laced with humor, heat and suspense. The the quips between her, Coops and Servario  definitely kept the giggles coming…not to mention having to fan yourself every now and then over the sexual tension and hot scenes.

“You’re not really my type. I get the whole cougar thing is huge, but I’m not into it. I like when I’m on top and all forty-types always want to steer.” – Coops

Don’t even get me started on that Cooper and Servario butty! I want in on that one! How the hell would you ever make a choice?  You’d have to have them on a time share schedule or something!

Gitte: So we meet our heroine Evie; a thirty-six year old widow with two young children, just as she is coming to terms with the fact that not only is her hubby dead but apparently her whole marriage was a sham.  Her husband was a cheating lying bastard who has now landed her in a heap of trouble which could cost the lives of Evie and her loved ones.

“You are in danger. Your husband is dead and his debt is now yours.”

Evie is proper kick-arse with a wicked past in the military but has settled into the Mummy and wife role….until now.  She suddenly has to revert back to her role in the military and fight, play dirty, kill and umm shag in order to save the day, unravelling one mystery, deception and ‘cover up’ after the other . The way she gets pulled back into ‘that’ life comes in the shape of the gorgeous, arrogant, funny and extremely shag’able Cooper….

“I tried not to notice the way his pulse beat rhythmically in his neck. It was like neck porn. I licked my wrist and sucked back the drink. I grabbed the lemon and sucked, all while watching the neck porn.”

I have to say I LOVED Evie; she’s my kind of heroine.  She has a fab sense of humour with sarcasm, she’s real and I completely connected with her.

“I readjusted my boobs cause they were not nineteen anymore either. At thirty-six, sometimes they got a little excited about what we were doing, and ended up out of my shirt. I was pretty sure they tried to jump in Coops face at one point.”

She rocked and I kind of wanted to be her…well minus all the violence and drama. Okay, if I could just be her…on a plane….sat in between Coop and Serv…hang on I’m just going to contemplate that…BRB!!

Oh and having found out her Husband cheated on her, well you can’t blame her for a lot of her sexual antics. This woman wakes up from the lull of being a housewife and settles right back into her previous role. She refuses to be a cougar; it makes her feel old…but a sex kitten, yeah she’ll take that but with who? They’ve all been watching her…they all want her!

“I’m here because my vagina wants to be…”

Jenny:  Eyes on me Gitte! Stop with the Coop and Serv fantasies…we’ve got a review to write here!  Coop & Serv…..sigh….hmmm where were we again! Sorry…you mentioned Coops, Serv and shagging in the one sentence and you lost me! Evie rocked alright!  When we first meet her she seems so down and so broken, so lost, but wow! What an absolute revelation she turned out to be! This “ordinary” Mum soon kicked it up a notch when her previous military training came into play. Although her world was turned on its head, Evie handled it with aplomb! She was sharp, beautiful and witty. Oh, and couldn’t this girl make you squirm (in a good way lol) with what came out of her mouth…..I will never…ever…read an anal sex scene without thinking of Evie again….and no folks, I don’t mean that in a weird sexual way, but in a funny way….well, read the scene and you’ll see what I mean.

He cocked an eyebrow, “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I don’t know what a hoohoo is. Focus!”

The banter between her and the other characters was priceless and I particularly loved how she wasn’t afraid to take the mickey out of herself, all while deflecting derogatory comments from young hot Coops, dealing with an insatiable sexy alpha domineering baddie and kicking some major backsides along the way.

“I assumed it was a heat of the moment sort of thing. He would get over it when he saw me watch a chick flick with snot running down my face, and Ben and Jerry keeping me company.”

Even though Evie had it all going on, she didn’t take herself seriously and she was definitely someone you connect with immediately.  Yep, I loved Evie alright!

Gitte:  And then we have Cooper and Servario. Two alpha males who kick arse as well, literally. I loved them both for different reasons and wish Evie was into sarnies. Because this is one double decker I’d have! How do you choose? Do you have to? I was back and forth like a yo yo, if you’d asked me at blah % into the story I would say Coop….ask me five minutes later I’d say Serv.

“You deserve a love like no other person has ever had.”

One’s a goodie, the other’s a baddie…I think.

“He was a bad man. A bad man my vagina crazy loved.”

But then what does that mean anyway when you fall in love with a fictional character. They’re both HOT and bring something different to the table so I’m not going to choose.

“I don’t want to have to kill you to make this feeling go away, Evie.”

Most of the scenes with the bang on humour between Coop and Evie and also Serv and Evie had me in absolute stitches. The discussions they had were sarcastically funny and frankly so honest covering every aspect of normal daily life and routines. I think we covered most topics and what to share and not to share….from haemorrhoids to anal to bathroom routines to when it’s okay to have sex…or not. Bloody hilarious! They were nicely placed in amongst the suspenseful chase of the end game.

The storyline is truly a ‘game’ of power and cunning. Who’s going to come out on top? Who’s going to win the chase? The motto of ‘Trust No one’ could never be truer than in this story. Everyone has an agenda and Evie seems to be the pawn.

“I just got whored out by the fucking military to the arms dealer….”

It was like watching a game of players using seduction, intimidation and violence to reach The End Of….

”Don’t hate the player, hate the game.”

So yes…YES I loved it…Loved pretty much everything about it. Just one thing though, in my opinion, part of the ending confused me right good and proper and I felt a lot of ‘reveals’ were rushed out and not explained properly. A lot suddenly happened in the shortest space of time. This meant that I didn’t fully get the crux of the end game….something important didn’t make sense to me. I hope book #2 explains it and I can’t wait.

Jenny:  Yep I agree. I got whiplash from going between these two. I don’t think you can choose. Impossible.I absolutely loved this story.  I have to be honest and say when it started out I didn’t think it was going to hold my interest but at 15% I was hooked and dying to know just what the hell was going on and what that douchebag husband James, had got Evie into.  I will agree with the ending. The writing was fast at that point and it did seem to all wrap up so quickly in a small amount of time and I’m hoping book #2 End of Games will enlighten us about what is going down! This was certainly a great introduction to the series that’s for sure and there’s something for every reader in this book.

“Do you have any idea what you husband has been doing for the last ten years, while you were having kids and driving them to play dates.”

This was a fun, thrilling, intriguing, no holds barred, hot adventure that I’m glad I signed up for.  Oh the intrigue and mystery, and did I mention the heat…wow! What a good read this was.

“You okay?” I nodded, “Yup.” I would be, after years of intensive therapy and the possible misuse of red wine and vodka.

This was one sexy spy thriller. I was invested, loved it, giggled like an idiot and can’t wait for more! Just one thing. DO NOT ask me to choose between Coops and Serv…..unless that timeshare thing can be nutted out.  hmmmm……  Gitte get back here, I think I have a solution to our Coops and Serv dilemma *wink, wink*

Gitte: 4.5 stars
Jenny: 4.0 Stars

Arc provided by the author for an honest review.

THE SINGLE LADY SPY SERIES by TARA BROWN

THE END OF ME – BOOK ONE
amazon us || amazon uk

THE END OF GAMES – BOOK TWO
amazon us || amazon uk

THE END OF TOMORROW – Releasing soon!