Just too intense. And this is probably more about me than the book, but I struggled with how one-note the emotions were and how very intense those emotions were. Just couldn’t find my way into the story.

This was my first Megan Crane, I had heard such great things about her other books and was really excited. Unfortunately I did not realize this would be closed door and only have "clean" language. I think her writing would be great for others, but I like my romantic suspense a little steamier!

After an official operation turned deadly, Jonas Crow began a new life in Grizzly Harbor with Alaska Force. But when fellow soldier Bethan Wilcox joins the group, she forces him to remember things he actively prefers to forget.
Bethan Wilcox, one of the first women to make it through Army Ranger school, didn't join Alaska Force to deal with Jonas's foul temper. Or her own errant attraction to him.
They are forced to work together as boyfriend and girlfriend during her sister's upcoming wedding. This made it a fun read and the chemistry is strong between them.
Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC to review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story. There was action and romance, which are all the things that I love to read. Jonas and Bethan have a traumatic twisted past. They are now working together again at Alaska Force, but there is tension between them that others can see and feel. You would think that this was sexual tension, but there are circumstances that happened in their past that has Jonas acting very strange. When the opportunity arises for them to team up as a couple at Bethan’s sister’s wedding, all the feelings and emotions come out; as well as their mutual attraction. Racing against the ticking time clock of a madman bent on revenge, Jonas realizes that maybe he has been holding Bethan at a distance because he has feelings for her. There were lots of twists and turns in this story, but the ending was so good. Really enjoyed reading this book.

This Alaska Force novel has reaffirmed my love of this series. Bethan is an amazing soldier. She’s one of the very few women who have been through Army Ranger school. Jonas doesn’t have a problem with women in combat. But he does have a problem with Bethan being on the Alaska Force team. He won’t tell anyone what it is, least of all Bethan. He’d rather they all think he’s a sexist pig, than tell his teammates what his actual problem is.

When a mission goes…well not wrong, but not right, the team focuses on figuring out why the op was “too easy.” Their main suspects? Luckily will all be at the wedding of the year in California…Bethan’s sister’s wedding. So she and Jonas go undercover as themselves…but not. Jonas is funny, charming, and the perfect boyfriend. Nothing like he is at home. Bethan had known he was good undercover, but this was beyond what she’d expected. She has to force herself to remember that Jonas isn’t actually her boyfriend.

Bethan’s father is a general and the main suspects are all his cronies. So while this wedding was the perfect excuse to investigate without seeming like they are, it’s also the perfect place to plan an attack. There are a lot of higher-ups in one place. Jonas and Bethan are certain one of them is the villain, but are worried about what could happen if they can’t find him. Except that they are able to clear all of their suspects leaving Jonas and Bethan back at square one. Until something pops up changing the entire course of their investigation.

Heading back to Alaska to regroup, Bethan and Jonas finally get to the bottom of both their attraction, and his seeming anger at her. Bethan and Jonas had met before Alaska Force. In fact Bethan had saved Jonas’ life. (small spoiler) His true problem with her is that he’d been vulnerable with her once. He is truly the stoic and silent type, but she makes him feel. And he doesn’t know how to handle that. He knows war, he knows training. He knows absolutely nothing about love.

I’ve really enjoyed this series and one of the things I love the most is how each character is very different from the others she writes. Each book has different challenges, each character has different life experiences, and yet this author never sacrifices plot. She creates character driven romance while still keeping the book interesting and suspenseful.

If you want an exciting romantic suspense with unique characters and well-written plots, this series is for you. I’ve enjoyed every book so far, and I look forward to her next one.

***Review copy courtesy of the publisher via Netgalley

This series has one of my favorite first lines ever and I’m sad to see it end. Crane definitely takes us out with a bang with Jonas and Bethan. Tightly crafted with interwoven pieces you won’t see coming, I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. Crane is one of my go-tos for romantic suspense and this only cements that status.

Veena’s review of Special Ops Seduction (Alaska Force, Book 5) by Megan Crane
Romantic Suspense published by Berkley 12 Jan 21

Opposites attract and that’s definitely true here. Jonas Crow is a special forces operator, but he’s been shaped into a weapon way before he set his foot into the army. Bethan, on the other hand, is a true princess, daughter to a 4-star general, brought up on a beautiful estate in Santa Barbara. Regardless of her upbringing, Bethan is one of the first women to go through ranger school and is a special operator who competes as an equal with the other men on the Alaska Force team. She also has the dubious honor of having once saved Jonas’s life, which seems to be the reason why he hates her and keeps his distance. Then they’re teamed together on an operation that takes them to her own backyard.

Bethan feels like she has to compete all the time and, therefore, hides her softness and femininity from her male teammates but also from the wives and girlfriends who are fast becoming her own inner circle. However, all bets are off when she’s on home ground as matron of honor at her sister’s wedding and dressing like a princess in soft flowing gowns and fancy shoes. Jonas Crow, while still keeping her on a pedestal, is floored by his lust and other softer emotions she raises in him.

The stakes, however, are high. At the wedding they are in search of a traitor who has kidnapped a scientist with the formula for a deadly strain of anthrax. A scientist they once rescued and lost again. Bethan is haunted by a promise she made to the scientist’s sister promising safety. It’s bad enough they can’t find the scientist, but then they find there may be personal elements to play that go back to the pivotal event when Bethan saved Jonas. Someone sure has a hard-on for them, amongst other things.

Can they run down the clock, rescue the scientist, save themselves and bag the bad guys? Settle in for a wonderful thrill ride and see how it all comes together. This series has been superb. Each story has been that perfect bead on a string of pearls. If my vote counts, I certainly hope we’re not done with the Alaska Force team, even though the key people have found their HEAs.

Grade: A

I loved this book! I have been waiting for this book for what feels like forever and it did not disappoint! If you are a romantic suspense fan, pick this series up ASAP!

Special Ops Seduction is the fifth book in Megan Crane’s Alaska Force series. And what a seduction it was! I was sucked in and seduced to the point where I just couldn’t put it down. Jonas and Bethan were complex, intriguing characters. I loved Bethan’s secret girlie lair where no-one else was allowed. And it was a glorious pleasure to watch Jonas slowly unravel. The growing attraction just waiting to explode, combined with a suspenseful plot, made this a very exciting read.

I can highly recommend it if you’re a fan of romantic suspense. It’s not necessary to read the books in order.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Special Ops Seduction is the fifth book in Megan Crane’s Alaska Force series of romantic suspense novels and I picked it up mostly because I’d enjoyed the previous book (Delta Force Defender) and because I liked the premise of the romance in this one – two tough-as-nails special operatives who have an uneasy history have to pose as a couple in order to gain much-needed intelligence pertinent to their current mission. Unfortunately however, the suspense plot, while quite compelling, doesn’t really get going until around three-quarters of the way into the book, the hero has as much personality as a plank of wood (which is partly intentional, but still makes him very difficult to relate to or like) and the middle section of the book is kind of all over the place and failed to hold my attention.

Bethan Wilcox is the only female member of the elite Alaska Force, which is comprised of former special forces operatives who wanted to continue to fight the good fight after they left the military. As one would expect of a former Army Ranger, she’s strong, tough and fiercely competent; a woman operating in a man’s world, Bethan works harder, longer and with more intensity and determination than anyone, conscious she can never let her guard down and compartmentalising the different sides of her personality. A fearsome hardass is the face she shows to everyone on the team; behind the locked door of her cabin home is the only place she allows herself to indulge in her softer side and be wholly herself.

Big, brooding, taciturn and deliberately unknowable, Jonas Crow is a perennial thorn in Bethan’s side. He’s one of the founding members of Alaska Force and is known for his ability to be almost invisible – in the sense that he somehow does the exact opposite of attract attention – and for being utterly implacable and completely unemotional; more machine than man. He and Bethan have a history that goes way back, well past the eighteen months she’s been with Alaska Force – a past he refuses to talk about or acknowledge, but one which clearly makes him uncomfortable (insofar as he feels any emotions about anything). I have to admit here that given the way it’s built up, I expected this history to be something incredibly shocking – but it isn’t. Bethan saved Jonas’ life following a bomb attack in the desert and kept him alive until help arrived; he apparently told her all sorts of things he now regrets saying as he drifted in and out of consciousness and – er… that’s it. He behaves like a total dick to her for eighteen months because Mr. Big, Bad ‘n’ Broody is pissed he got saved by a girl.

Moving on.

The book opens really strongly with Bethan, Jonas and other members of the team on a mission to rescue Iyara Sowande and her brother – a brilliant biochemist widely touted as the world expert on a new form of chemical warfare – and get them both well away and to a safe-house. Their mission is successful – although not without a couple of hiccups – and all goes to plan afterwards, until a few days later, they learn that the Sowandes are missing.

Here’s where the plotting gets a bit… tenuous. There are apparently five men who could either have arranged for the Sowandes to be kidnapped OR have made a deal to gain access to Tayo Sawande’s research – three high-ranking military officers and two Fortune 500 CEOs – and by a stroke of luck, all five of them are to be present at the wedding, in two weeks’ time, of Bethan’s sister, Ellen. (Bethan’s father is also a high-ranking military officer, so they’re all members of that particular Boys Club). Bethan doesn’t get on with her family and spends as little time with them as possible; her father is Air Force (she joined the Army to rebel against him), her mother disapproves of her because she’s not good at “the serious girl stuff” (telling her once that she was worried Bethan would show up at an event wearing fatigues) and her sister, well, they don’t have much of a relationship because Bethan’s hardly around. So Bethan is about to go undercover in her parent’s home – as herself. When Jonas volunteers to be her date for the week, Bethan is as surprised as everyone else.

Around half the story is taken up with the visit to Bethan’s home and the lead-up to the wedding. We – and Bethan – finally get to see a different side of Jonas, although his one-of-the-lads act is just as much of a fake persona his usual day-to-day one. He’s starting to struggle to keep his mask in place around Bethan though, and it’s not long before tempers flash and walls come tumbling down; but desperate, heated kisses and wall-banging sex aren’t enough to keep those walls from going up again almost immediately afterwards. There’s definitely chemistry between Jonas and Bethan, but their relationship is severely underdeveloped, and while I could see what Jonas saw in Bethan – her competence, her abilities, her big-heart – I was at a loss as to what Bethan saw in Jonas, other than he’s hot.

In fact the best part of that section of the story was watching Bethan reappraise her family situation and realise that perhaps she’d misread it and misread them; I was pleased she found a way she could be herself and have her family back in her life.

As I said at the beginning, the final section is where pretty much all the action is, but as with the previous book, the lead up to the HEA had me scratching my head. It’s hard to say much without spoilers, but Bethan makes an assumption that directly contradicts something she and Jonas had said to each other just hours before, and it’s such an obvious way of manufacturing a delay to the HEA that it made me really cross.

I dithered a bit over the grade for this one, because while I really liked Bethan and her journey towards reconciling with her family and realising she could have both them and her job, this is supposed to be a romantic suspense novel and neither of those elements works all that well. Jonas is one of those typically strong, silent, alpha types, but he’s almost entirely a one-note character – all about being dead inside and having no feelings and not wanting to think about Bethan in any way, shape or form. It’s like he’s TOO badass to have an actual personality, which made it hard to root for them to be together, because I couldn’t get a handle on him – and Bethan deserved better than someone who treated her like shit for years, especially considering she’d saved his life.

So I’ve reached the conclusion that while Special Ops Seduction has its good points, there aren’t enough of them – and certainly not enough of them in the romance or the suspense departments – to merit a recommendation.

Rating: C+ / 3.5 stars

SPECIAL OPS SEDUCTION is the fifth book in the ALASKA FORCE series, and I hope we return for more since there seem to be more stories to tell. We meet new members of Alaska Force, and there are more recruits they are considering hiring!

This is Bethan and Jonas’ story. The story hops to many places, from Alaska to a desert in Chile, to Canada, Philadelphia, upstate New York, and New York City, just to name a few. The story is fast-paced, filled with suspense and a satisfying romance. The descriptions of the many locations are well done, putting the reader right there. Bethan’s sister’s wedding turns into an assignment and is a big part of the storyline. The surly Jonas volunteers to be her date, which no one sees coming, but he fills the role quite well. And the wedding serves to let the hero and heroine come together.

The story has a nice flow, and it’s entertaining to catch up with the various members of the team and their significant others. Ms. Crane is an author whose books I’ve enjoyed, and she is one of my favorite authors of books with lots of action and adventure that definitely have an edge. She also writes books with more of a contemporary feel as Caitlin Crews. I look forward to reading more of her work.

I rated it 4.5 stars but rounded to 5 stars here and on other sites.

He grew up neglected on the streets and made himself into an elite warrior. She grew up not fitting into the mold her wealthy parents wanted for her. Joining the Army started out as a rebellion but she made herself into the best of the best. Now they are working together at Alaska Force and things are tense between them.
Jonas is a hardass. He is tough on everyone but he is especially cold and tough on their one female operator even though she meets and often exceeds expectations at every turn. Bethan has never met a challenge she couldn’t meet except Jonas. When they are forced together on an undercover mission will they be able to adapt and overcome past animosities or will they let the past ruin their future? I loved Bethan and always wanted to be her. This book sucked me in and kept me flipping pages till the very end. Though it’s part of a series it can be read standalone.

✦Review: SPECIAL OPS SEDUCTION by Megan Crane https://wp.me/p3d0RZ-bG1
Publication Date: January 12, 2021
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Reviewed by: Reading in Pajamas/ Donna
Rated 4 Stars

Another exciting edition to the Alaska Force series. I wondered how the author would handle the surly Jonas, sure that Bethan would be up to the task…and she was. I like her. She’s strong and capable, an over-achiever in a “man’s world”, yet human and likeable. Too many times a woman is made out to be a bit witchy to show strength, Bethan held that line quite well. Although they made a great couple, I couldn’t understand her feelings for him until almost midway into the story. He was such an ass to her, and his reasons never made sense to me. Thankfully, his inner self showed through and made him worthy.

The suspenseful story was intriguing and provided some fun action. I completely enjoyed how their romance blossomed during their joint mission to her family home. That was my favorite part of the book and had me wondering quite a bit about the antagonist. I must admit that I never did figure out the bad guy’s motivation regarding Bethan and Jonas…but I enjoyed the read none-the-less.

One of my favorite aspects of this series, is the group dynamics of the Alaska Force Team. The camaraderie seems effortless and pulls me into them, caring about them, and wishing I were part of it all. It was a fun read, leaving me anxious for the next installment.

*Review copy provided by Penguin in exchange for an honest review.

~*~*~*~

Kindle https://amzn.to/38AryGU

I really wanted to love this story, but instead I found myself frustrated more than anything

I wanted to slap our H more than once for his attitude, and that took me right out of the story

Well, I enjoy tropes and this one made my heart sing - enemies to lovers. During an incredibly difficult operation, Jonas Crow and Bethan Wilcox were the only survivors, with Bethan having saved his life. After recovering, Jonas joined the Alaska Force team in Alaska. Eventually, Bethan also left the military and also joined Alaska Force. The two are like oil and water. However, something imminent is before them and they are forced to work together as boyfriend and girlfriend during her sister's upcoming wedding. This mission will soon change everything for them.

Things are not going to be easy for either of them. For one thing, Jonas is as prickly as a bear and the last person he wants to work closely with is Bethan. Regarding Bethan, she is only one of two women on this special team, Proving herself more than capable during Ranger School was challenging enough. Now being on the team - and working way too closely with Jonas - is a much bigger challenge.

While acting as boyfriend and girlfriend during this current mission, they must act as if they are madly in love. However, things soon transition from acting to what just might seem real, all while the danger from that mission that almost cost Jonas his life is suddenly creating very real threats right now. Will they live long enough to explore their growing feelings?

What an exciting story! Suspense, danger, romance and friendship all play equal roles in this thrilling addition to the Alaska Force series. I love the continuity that flowed through the pages of this book with other members of their team and their now significant others. I especially loved Jonas and his tough exterior and truly enjoyed watching him transform when it came to him recognizing his feelings for Bethan. This fabulous book was a great read and kept me eager to see how the danger could be resolved all while watching Jonas and Bethan find their way to happiness.

Many thanks to Berkley and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

This is the first book I've read by Megan Crane. It's a great standalone. I am tempted to go find the others to read just so I know the backstory of the other couples mentioned in this one. I struggle with the star rating. I loved the characters as a whole. Jonas was a brooding, alpha man that didn't know how to love or be loved. Bethan was a strong, confident female that struggled with relationships as well. We were able to watch both of them grow through the story. I loved what was revealed.

But the beginning and some in the end had a great amount of repetition. It was like the author was afraid we wouldn't remember what was revealed prior. And her eluding to a past encounter between Bethan and Jonas was disjointed and confusing. I didn't understand his reaction and thought it to be over the top. Also that does make Jonas seem sexist although we were told over and over he was not. His actions showed otherwise.

These issues were mostly the first of the book. It was easy to put down and struggle to pick back up the book to finish. But I pushed through and was glad I did. And from the wedding on, it took off to where I didn't want to put it back down. That's where I started to love the characters.

*I thank NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC of this book.

The latest in Megan Crane's Alaska Force series follows former Army Ranger Bethan and the ever-stoic, ghost-like Jonas as they fight for their lives, and for each other, in this fiery romantic suspense. Jonas learned to turn off human emotion a long time ago. His childhood was rough and his time in the Navy even tougher. He has seen a lot of death and destruction, and after his own brush with death he's felt very little for anyone - himself included. Bethan saved Jonas years ago and he's given her icy stares and hostile silences ever since, and it's been driving her mad. Now that they serve on Alaska Force together, it's gotten more difficult for Jonas to ignore her presence and for Bethan to withstand his hostility towards her. So when Bethan has to attend her sister's wedding while also going undercover to find a ruthless killer threatening the safety of our country, Jonas sees an opening to clear the air and to bury his true feelings for her once and for all. But things don't go exactly as planned, and both of them find themselves faced with emotions neither of them can control.

Thoughts: Megan Crane delivers another off-the-charts chemistry romantic suspense with Special Ops Seduction. This is the latest in the Alaska Force series but can be read as a standalone without feeling like your missing a lot of backstory. Bethan and Jonas have a past, and it's not a pretty one. Jonas is the epitome of the strong, brooding soldier just oozing danger and darkness, while Bethan is the pinnacle of the female soldier - lethal, beautiful, and confident. If I wasn't already pushing 40 years old, I'd wish I could be Bethan when I grow up. Their chemistry jumps off the page and you just wish you could shake Jonas and tell him it's okay to feel human emotions already. I really enjoyed watching them progress emotionally, both individually and with each other. So why the three stars? Well, to be honest, the suspense portion of the plot left me feeling a bit confused at times. There were a few unanswered questions, or at least weak answers to go along with them, and the suspense doesn't really pick up until at least halfway through the story. But the second half of the book is action-packed and a page-turner, even if I was left wanting a few more answers. And I just crave Megan Crane's endings -- she always gifts readers with satisfying conclusions with a hint into the future of the characters we've fallen in love with. This author is still an auto-buy for me and I look forward to the next Alaska Force adventure!

**Thank you to NetGalley and publishers for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.**

Bethan Wilcox is a new addition to the Alaska Force team, making Jonas Crow remember his military past. Pretending to be a couple, they not only have to face secrets from the Army Rangers but the attraction building between them.

It's not necessary to have read prior novels within the Alaska Force series of novels. In Special Ops Seduction, two members of the Alaska Force team up to go undercover, pretending to be a couple. The fake dating trope is a fun one to play with, and it forces our frenemies to stay in close proximity, learn more about each other, and then get to look past their differences. There's a lot of tension between the two of them; Jacob doesn't want to rely on others or have big displays of emotions, and Bethan was there when he nearly died. She not only saved his life, she helped soothe him and shot at the attacker that killed the rest of their team.

The thriller plot that placed them together, the missing scientist that could create a super version of anthrax, is always there as a concern for them. It's as important as the romantic plot, and both get resolved by the end of the novel. The emotional tension gives way to a cat and mouse game in the second half, so there are still plenty of surprises before reaching our happily ever after. For these overachieving Army Rangers, that's just the way they like it.

I liked Bethen I thought she was this hard @ss but also had this sweet side to her that only the very privileged got to see. The story was very predictable and to me sometimes all over the place. I found it hard to keep engaged in the story over all. I liked the Alaskan Force team and being able to catch up with those I have read about. I felt like the book seemed to have a lot of detail but also seemed to lack something. There was a situation between Bethan and Jonas that the author seemed to build on but when it came to head it really seemed minimal to what was really going on and made no sense for Jonas' attitude to the situation. This book does have sexual content in it and may not be suitable for all.

I have liked this series overall, but I found this book super hard to connect with. The first quarter of the book I spent struggling to make sense of the allusions to what had happened in the past. It got better and overall ended decently, but not my favorite in the series by far.