I have been a long time fan of the troubleshooters series. Once again, another installment that had me reading every free moment I had. I love the fact that each story in this series will have an undercurrent of real time "living" troubles; as I like to call them. Always more than one story line going on.! Really great read.

Action at the onset, romance at every turn, I loved Some Kind of Hero. The characters are developed and real, their communication refreshing and witty, and the situations they get into are intriguingly suspenseful. Brockmann delivers a multi faceted story with in-depth characters that steal your heart and your mind. A definite read, and I'll be going back to seek more Brockmann novels immediately.

Ms. Brockmann hits another home run with this long awaited installment of her popular Troubleshooters series. Peter and Shayla make an engaging couple and I enjoyed updates on Izzy and the rest of the SEALs. The only weak point was that Peter's daughter ran away because she thought her Dad would not be able to help her.

Excellent, excellent,excellent!!! Suzanne kept the plot moving and my attention constantly throughout the book. Great blend of drama and real life emotion. Definitely a book I would buy and recommend to everyone.

You won't be disappointed. There are returning characters but they don't steal the spotlight from the protagonists. The synopsis on the back is perfect without giving anything away. I will say this: I need a short story of how Harry met his husband.

I don't understand why so many rave reviews. .. I'm thinking about stopping at 25%. The plot line, while interesting has been slow to pick up speed. And honestly the diversity of the characters ethnicity is distracting me from the storyline. Eh, we'll see. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for a honest review.

I had some high expectations for this one; I love the Troubleshooter series so much! And having devoured the latest novellas starring my fave Seal of all time, Izzy Zanella, I was really excited for this one.

However, for me this one fell a bit short. I feel like in the beginning it dragged a bit, and after a while it was becoming a struggle to keep reading, and I get the slow build to action but this was a bit too slow IMO. I kept waiting for the action to get here! And I did like the end part because finally something was happening, but felt there could have been more build up I guess. I’ll admit the few Izzy POV chapters were what intrigued me the most, but as I said earlier he is my fave so team Izzy for life!

Things that irked me: I get that people are flawed creatures, we sometimes say and do some reallyyy cringe worthy stuff BUT I could not get past some things Shayla said/thought, I just couldn’t. For instance when she goes to Peter’s house and some of his friends are there and she just literally met Adam (at this moment she’s unaware that Adam is actor Adam Wyndham) and her first though is he’s adorable and probably gay????? Um say what??? How did she land on gay? There was nothing in her thought processes that even indicated why she would think this. Is she just assuming this because of how Adam’s dressed? He’s just sitting there, so what makes her assume this? Because, yeah I know IRL people make allll sorts of assumptions about others but really Shay? You’re just gonna assume this right off?

Another thing that really bothered me was when Shay much later down in the book says that Maddie’s mom/Peter’s ex: “was probably seriously clinically mentally ill…” again what is Shayla even basing this on?? She’s never met Lisa, only knows anything about her from Peter’s story and yes, while it’s clear Lisa was a cheater and a perhaps a liar too how does Shay deduce Lisa’s supposed mental illness from anything Peter says? She backs up her assumptions with nothing, just assumes this and Peter doesn’t call her on it either so does he agree or just not care what she’s saying?? >.> I’m no expert on mental illness at all and I could be very wrong, but this seems like a huge assumption on Shay’s part.

Now onto the whole Dingo and Maddie situation. Dingo is twenty, Maddie is fifteen. We see that Dingo realizes he likes Maddie and he’s very aware that she’s underaged, he says this to himself and won’t give in to his attraction to her, except he does by kissing her after the earthquake >.> She is fifteen!!! And they supposedly love each other (Maddie says it first). But did we forget she is fifteen???? So there was the kiss after the earthquake and the one where he was sleeping and Maggie kisses him, supposedly after Dingo kisses her (he was sleeping and thought he was dreaming this then wakes up like wtf she’s kissing me). I’m reallyyy glad we get Dingo letting Maddie know that no that wasn’t cool cuz he was asleep and couldn’t consent to the kiss so kudos to Dingo for that but really? This whole thing between them just had me sighing in a not good way! Dingo who I might remind you is an adult and twenty, and Maddie who is freaking fifteen?? Yeah no. And even though we see Dingo telling Maddie nope we’re not gonna do this, he’s not gonna give into his supposed love for her I’m like…was it even necessary to set up this whole we can’t be together cuz you’re underaged thing in the first place? They could’ve just been strictly friends and later on, in another book perhaps, when Maddie is an actual adult you see the friends to more grow. But right now? With her being fifteen? I just could not get past that fact.

I don’t think Dingo’s a bad guy at all…he risked a lot to help Maddie, hell he jumped in front a gun for her and at least he didn’t take advantage of her (side eyes him for that first kiss tho) but he’s an adult, she’s fifteen! And yes at the end there’s the whole he’ll wait til she’s of age and meantime they’ll be chaperoned visits etc etc but Yes I’m still gonna be stuck on that! I feel like that still shouldn’t go un-acknowledged. So when Maddie is an actual adult I look forward to their story, if there will be one written.

I did like that Shay does call Peter on his bossy “you need to do this thing I’m telling you to do” by letting him know right off that yeh no do not tell her/command her what she has to do and challenges him on this. Good. Lots of books I see the hero telling the heroine what she has to do like she doesn’t get a choice in the matter. Even if done out of worry for her safety he got called on it so yes, go Shay!

So while I’m sad to say this one wasn’t my fave I am looking forward to what’s next in this series. *cough* please Jay Lopez’s book please. Also want to see more of Boat Squad John, those guys are awesome! And as always more Izzy Zanella please and thanks!

This story was touching and well-paced with enough action and the touches of humor that I expect from Suzanne Brockmann. It made me want to go back and re-read the earlier Troubleshooters novels - I missed this world and can't wait for more.

Loved this book! Peter has to find his daughter , Maddie, before it is too late. He hops in his neighbor's car and chases after a car he sees Maddie get into. Shayla is a romance writer with two sons of her own, so she happily chases after the getaway car. It doesn't hurt that her neighbor is a hot Navy Seal. Enter Izzy and the book is an instant hit. The banter between Brockmann's characters has always been a drawing point for me! Love all the Toubleshooter characters and I for one hopes she keeps them going.

So great to see the Troubleshooter series back! Loved this latest installment- a heartfelt, thrilling romance that develops amid a thrilling race to find a missing teen! As always, love the special appearances by some of my favorite characters. SOME KINF OF HERO is some kind of romance!!

Wow! Hard to put this one down. Shayla, who writes for a living, notices her new neighber, a hunky Navy Seal, who is frantically trying to stop someone to help. When she does he jumps in and the adventure begins. His daughter Maddie has disappeared, and together they work on finding out what happened and where she is. The story alternates between Shayla and Pete, and Maddie and Dingo, so the story gets told from several POVs. The only thing I found a little irritating was the voice inside Shayla's head at times, but other than that a great story. Highly recommend this book and author.

I was sent an advanced copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

I'm a big fan of Suzanne Brockmann. Can't remember how I first started reading her novels, but it probably had something to do with cute Navy SEALs.

I was very happy to hear that there was a new Troubleshooters Inc book out, even though I have not finished the series. It's my go-to series (one of several authors), when I don't know what to read, or want familiar characters to enjoy.

Suzanne Brockmann's writing is easy, well-written, and, definitely in this case, funny. Her characters are well-rounded and believable without going overboard on the he-man unfallible hero, and dim-witted damsel in distress. Her female characters are just as strong as the men in the books, not ones who need rescuing because they don't have a clue.

It's nice to see that Suzanne continues to broaden the franchise with new characters rather than keep with the same small band of characters she starts with. As much as there are characters I'd like to read more about, the additional characters grow the franchise and keep things fresh.

This book starts out with the main female character nearly running down her neighbour, the Navy SEAL. She gets embroiled in looking for his missing daughter while trying not to fall for him, and of course, he fights his attraction to her.

Love the character, Shayla. She's quirky, funny .... after all, who doesn't have conversations with imaginary characters in their heads, full-blown like Athena from the brow of her creator? Those are, after all, the best characters to read; the ones that stay with you after the book is finished and closed. Ones that you continue to imagine in different plots (never as good as the author's of course). In this case, Shayla is an author, and it is, literally, one of her characters in her head. I like books that educate as well as entertain.

Another thing I like about Suzanne's writing is, she includes a bit of history in a lot of the story. In this case, it was about internment camps in California during the war. The missing daughter's grandmother was one citizen interned, so we learn about about that.

Nothing like stressful situations to emphasize what's important in a person's life, and who your friends are. And Peter's friends certainly have his six.

Funnily, emotional, sweet. Well done I expected nothing less.

loved it.

This was great! I have been a longtime fan of Suzanne Brockmann and this book reminded me a lot of some of her earlier romances. I love all of her books but this was a refreshing change of pace. I hope to see many, many, many more books from Ms. Brockmann in the future!

I loved this book! Part of the Troubleshooters series, Some Kind of a Hero, has it all. A great alpha Navy SEAL who is struggling to be a father to a 15 year old girl; a smart kick ass writer raising two teen age boys; suspense, action, and red hot romance. It is also laugh out loud funny which makes reading it a joy. A must read!

Suzanne Brockmann specializes in romantic suspense novels. The ones I like best find that balance between the romance and the action, which is not an easy achievement. Every reader draws a different line, but for me, when the hero and heroine meet and fall into instant lust (like one where they were in a dungeon about to be shot as spies) and go on and on about how hot each other are, then the so-called danger diminishes to a paint-by-numbers plot. Nothing bad is going to happen. There will just be just enough mustache-twirling threat to transition between the long sex scenes, with maybe a dose of miscommunication aaaaangst.

Some readers adore that, but not me.

So, here we have Peter Greene, newly become a single dad, flagging down Shayla Whitman, a few years older, and mom of two teenage boys. As soon as Greene (who she notices is super hot) says that he just saw his kid get into a car with two unknown guys, she goes instantly into mom mode, and helps him because the man needs help. Not because he's hotter than hot.

And aside from one obvious blunder at the very beginning (without which there would be no story) the balance between rising tension, character development, and romantic slow-boil heat, is expertly managed.

Teen Maddie, Peter's daughter, is not only three dimensional, but so is her loser boyfriend Dingo. Shayla is a writer, and the writerly meta sometimes had me laughing out loud. Peter's struggle between his Navy SEAL persona and becoming Dad to a girl who hates him was beautifully handled, and in short, this was a terrific, atmospheric, tender, funny, fast-paced read with nail-biting tension at the end, and a sobering dose of real California history that I thought excellently handled.

Suzann Brockman is a magician with words in the way she weaves a tale full of suspense and romance that will make the reader laugh out loud or cry over the emotion that she elicits when she puts pen to paper. In her latest artistic endeavor, “Some Kind of Hero,” the reader is invited to San Diego, home of SEALTeam Six a familiar place to readers of Ms. Brockman. Pete Greene is a lieutenant in the United States Navy and he has lost sight of his teenage daughter and with the help of his neighbor, he begins to follow the car that he believes she is in. Shay Whitman is an author and neighbor to the sexy SEAL and when he flags her down to follow his daughter she jumps into action. The two soon realize through clues and threats to their homes that Pete’s daughter is in significant danger, and with the help of member’s SEAL Team Six they race against time to save the young girl. This novel is fast paced with well-developed characters that will keep the reader on the edge of their seat until the heart pounding end. I was given an advanced copy of this book, and all of the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I would like to thank Suzanne Brockmann, Ballantine/Random House Publishing Group, and NetGalley for allowing me to read an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Lieutenant Peter Greene’s daughter, Maddie, goes missing, and Shayla Whitman offers to help him find her. Over the next few days, they use every resource available to them to track her down, but Maddie is on the run with her friend Dingo and doesn’t want to be found. As Pete and Shayla spend time together chasing leads, they find themselves struggling to resist the attraction growing between them. Their lives don’t need any more complications…but the heat between them may melt their resolves.
________

I was going to rate this four stars, but by the time I got done overanalyzing it, I realized it really wasn’t all that impressive. Coming after Do or Die, it was disappointing.

Now, I liked this book. Every time I had to step away, I was eager to get back to it. It was fun while I was reading it. But…

I still have a love/hate relationship with Brockmann’s very conversational writing style, with all the unnecessary yeahs and okays and oh Gods that most authors would edit out to sound more sophisticated. It sets her apart, though, and makes her writing identifiable, which is good, so more power to her.

The characters were sympathetic, relatable, and lovable, but I cared more about Maddie and Dingo than Shayla and Pete. I’m not sure why; maybe because they’re closer to my age, or maybe because they were on the run while Shayla and Pete were relatively safe. Maddie’s attitude was annoying, of course, as it was supposed to be, but she’s so smart, and there were glimpses of maturity that drew me into her arc. And Dingo was an idiot who was involved in drugs and living in his car, but he was such a sweetie, I was more in love with him than Pete. I think what made the younger set so attractive was their potential to evolve into extraordinary people. Maddie could bloom into an intelligent, confident, and strong woman; Dingo could find his spine and learn to use his brain. Shayla and Pete were already established adults with firm convictions, just horny and lonely and emotionally conflicted enough to be self-conscious.

The plot was far less complicated and more predictable than Brockmann’s other Troubleshooter books, and it was noticeably shorter than the others. That’s not necessarily a bad thing; it just seemed like an unusually simple and straightforward plot for her. However, there were several things that bothered me. First, while many aspects of the story gave me the feels, I felt the narrative overall wasn’t very exciting, or even particularly dramatic. It had everything it needed to be both, but it never managed to get my blood pumping with anticipation. It was intriguing enough to keep me hooked, but the few action scenes were kind of low-key and bland, which means the climax of the story was disappointing: I expected a team of SEALs to bust in and open a can of whoop-ass on a drug cartel, but Shayla and Pete just had to take on a couple of dumbass thugs. I don’t think they even broke a sweat. I remember I finished reading the scene and thought, That’s it?

Also, the Manzanar bits felt forced. I know Brockmann usually works in an entire WWII-era subplot, but apparently she couldn’t think of a way to incorporate one this time. She still wanted to reference the horrors of that time period, however, because she’s always knocking America upside the head, so she shoehorned it in there. But it just wasn’t necessary, at least not to that extent. It could have been removed, the script tweaked, and the same ends would have been achieved.

Then, I’m really confused about how Pete was in the position he was when he and Shayla met at the beginning. I went back and used keywords to search for an explanation I might have missed, but I couldn’t find one. If it’s there and I’m just oblivious to it, I apologize and please skip past the following paragraph.

But from what I can tell, Shayla and Pete only get together because he needed a ride to pursue the car Maddie was in. Because for some reason, Pete didn’t drive to the school, he “hiked.” He was at home with his friends, worrying about Maddie and “getting more silent and tight-lipped as each hour passed, until [he] announced that he was hiking over to the high school because he couldn’t just sit still any longer.” I’m not sure what Brockmann meant by that; did Pete just get restless and go for a walk, or did he go to the school to look for Maddie and search for clues? If the former, then I guess it makes sense that he was on foot and unexpectedly needed a ride, but I can’t imagine him wasting energy going for an aimless walk when he’s frantic about his daughter’s whereabouts. It wouldn’t have been in character for him. But then if he went looking for Maddie, why on earth didn’t he take his truck? Also, would he seriously have thought he’d find her at the school at seven o’clock in the evening? It was very, very lucky for him that Maddie got cold and wanted to fetch her coat from her locker, even though there were blankets in Dingo’s car, and went to the school at seven because she thought that was a time when her father *wouldn’t* be at the school looking for her. Major irony there. And I’m confused about what Maddie, Dingo, and Daryl had been doing at that time, too. No agenda was mentioned, and there are a million possibilities for why three young people were out driving at seven at night, but it’s implied that the trip was made so Maddie could get her coat…(what self-respecting runaway leaves her coat at school?)…and I have a hard time believing they would have made the trip just so she could get her coat. Homeless Dingo couldn’t afford to waste gas—but he didn’t seem to worry about it much, so maybe he was too ignorant to realize or too busy worshiping Maddie to think practically. But I really can’t imagine Daryl indulging her, especially when there were blankets in the car that she could have wrapped up in to keep warm. I think I’m supposed to assume that they were out looking for Fiona, as well as evading Nelson, and made a detour to the school, but they go on to do things in their search that I would think they’d have already done… And why would Daryl have wanted to get involved in that? … I don’t know, I’m tired of puzzling over it.

The point is that the beginning confused me. I feel that it was weak and convenient and Brockmann could have done a much better job setting things up.

There was one other issue that was introduced, then never really got resolved. Pete’s friend Izzy was incredibly hurt that his supposed best bud never told him he had a daughter. Pete apparently never even hinted at ever having had relationships other than one night stands. But Izzy got over it because his friend needed his help, which is awesome and incredibly mature…but I think it needed to be addressed at some point for Izzy’s peace of mind. Or at least my peace of mind. It wouldn’t have ever come between them, of course, they’re completely loyal to one another, but when the dust had settled, I think even Izzy wouldn’t be able to resist asking, maybe over a beer, “Hey, so how come you never mentioned your daughter?” It’s kind of a big deal. And no, the book wasn’t about Izzy and Pete’s friendship, it was about Pete and Shayla falling in love, so it isn’t relevant, right? Then why mention it AT ALL?? Why did Brockmann bring it up if she was just going to gloss over it? I haven’t read the last few Troubleshooter books, but I have a feeling it might have been a way of allowing Pete to have a surprise daughter that was never mentioned before.

I wonder if Shayla’s writer’s block was inspired by Brockmann’s personal experience, because this book was pretty darn lazy…like this was all she could manage to write while her creativity wasn’t firing on all cylinders. There’s the baffling beginning, the unresolved issues, the token explanations—and the fact that Shayla was a romance novelist. There is nothing lazier than a novelist writing about a novelist, unless the character needs to be a novelist in order for the plot to work, and here her occupation wasn’t integral to the plot. It was more of a running gag.

Also, the earthquake was just an excuse to get Shayla and Pete together so they could have sex, and Shayla’s fear of earthquakes was just an excuse to make the earthquake sort-of matter. Honestly, she seemed like a pretty fearless person and did things that someone who professes to be afraid of “literally everything” wouldn’t do. Wouldn’t even think to do. Maybe I’m supposed to think it was part of her arc, that she faced her fears and evolved as an individual, but I don’t buy it. A civilian who’s afraid of “literally everything” wouldn’t have the guts to jump the curb and drive down the sidewalk to get around a line of cars. That was “explained” by her maternal instincts going into overdrive, but I think that was an excuse for her to be uncharacteristic. Shayla had to be afraid of “literally everything” in order for the earthquake sequence to work, but then she needed a reason to override her fear of “literally everything” when Peter needed her to.

Okay, okay, I’m done. I’m just…done with this book.

You probably won’t believe me at this point, but this book IS fun to read…if you don’t think about it too hard, as I just have. I gotta stop doing that.

PS - I would sell my soul for more Maddie and Dingo.

A romance writer with a writer’s block. A gorgeous navy seal. An out of control teenager. What can you expect? Stop it there. It’s a Suzanne Brockmann’s book. Be prepared to laugh and cry and enjoy.

If you are into Brockmann’s books, and hell yeah, I am, you will recognize a lot of what’s happening there: the writer talks in her mind with one of his characters (a gay FBI agent named… Harry) and shushes him out loud. Strong and sensitive women, strong and sensitive men… Izzy Zanella’s point of view… A lot of plots (and how generous Brockmann is with the amount of argumental threads): we have again a Historical thread, American's of Japanese origin imprisoned during WWII; the teenager’s thread (she is the daughter of Peter “Grunge” Greene); the love story in the past of Grunge and the girl’s mother; the plot with the bad guys; Shayla, the writer’s storyline… the windows to the rest of Team 16 and Troubleshooter's life…

Does it mean it’s the same all over again? Nope.

Suzanne Brockmann transcends the typical HEA with the construction of her books. Narratively, they are always rich in points of view from which the story unrolls and they are narratively complex. Here there is another turn of the screw. One of the characters is a writer and a lot of the others are readers. There is even a character that is a character. The game of reality/fiction in this book is played as in a mirrors house. The characters talk about “if this were a romance novel…”.

This genre is not widely respected or valued, maybe because it’s considered to be a woman’s thing, I don’t know. If the work is labeled as a romance… it does no probably amount to much, does it? Yeah, well… If the book was academically commented, we could be talking about “misse en abyme”, like in Hamlet, the different points of view of the narration would be called free indirect speech in some instances and we would be relating them to Flaubert… bit it’s just a romance novel, is it?

Brockmann breaks labels. In form and content. Thank you.


There are thinks I didn’t like? Yes, they are. I don’t quite buy the part of Katherine, I felt it was not well linked to the plot(s), that it was a loose thread, but maybe it’s just me.

Is it the Brockmann’s I enjoyed most? Not really, no. Did I enjoy it? Yes, I did, a lot.

And now to wait for the next one. Torture.

**I received a copy of Some Kind of Hero from Net Galley and Random House Publishing -Ballantine and Net Galley in exchange for a voluntary and honest review**

Some Kind of Hero by Suzanne Brockmann is book 19 in her Troubleshooter's series. I have read the other series by the author and was able to read this as a stand alone without problems as it also included a few of the previous books characters and some new ones.

Shayla Whitman is a romance writer who has hit the writer's block wall but when driving home one afternoon, she sees her new handsome neighbor, Lt. Peter Greene waving down anyone who'll stop. When Shay stops and realizes that its her very hot Navy neighbor, she doesn't hesitate to go on a hunt to help him find his 15-year-old daughter, Maddie. When they come up with possible suspects, it will take Peter's team and new recruits from Boat Squad John to find Maddie who is on the run from her ex-best friend's drug dealer. I'd loved the banter between Shay and her detective character, Harry Parker, who kept giving suggestions on what he'd do.

Lieutenant Peter Greene is still trying to find his way around the complex job of raising his 15 year old daughter, Maddie, whom he hasn't had contact with since she was an infant. But when she runs away and joins up with two of her friends, he does what he can and turns to his new neighbor for how to make things right with Maddie. But her boy friend, Dingo, isn't really who he wants in her life so with Shay, Izzy, Time bomb, Seagull, and his other SEAL Team 16 team mates they will find a way to get Maddie home to her dad. When both Shayla and Peter finally give into their feelings for each other he'll do anything to get Shay, her two sons, Tevin and Frank, and Maddie to be a family together.

Great book and a wonderful story line with all of the old characters from previous books and new characters.