Born to Darkness (with bonus short story Shane's Last Stand)

Starred review from January 23, 2012
Bestseller Brockmann (Breaking the Rules) takes readers on a pulse-pounding ride with the first installment of her new futuristic paranormal series. In the not-too-distant future, Boston is a war zone. A new drug, Destiny, keeps people in perfect physical shape while driving them insane. It’s manufactured from the hormones of preteen girls procured by the nefarious Organization. Trying to combat the tide are empath Michelle “Mac” Mackenzie of the Obermeyer Institute, which teaches “Greater-Thans” to harness their supernatural powers for good, and blacklisted former Navy SEAL Shane Laughlin. The Greater-Thans race to save the girls before the Organization discards them. While a departure from Brockmann’s romantic military suspense novels, this story does contain some of her trademark elements—a military hero, a same-sex romance between secondary characters, and sizzling connections to explore in future titles—but never feels formulaic or stale, and the drama pulls readers in from page one. Agent: Steven Axelrod, the Axelrod Agency.

December 1, 2012
This work of paranormal romantic suspense launches a new series, set in an economically devastated, politically corrupt America of the near future. Destiny extends life and youth and, as a bonus, grants psychic powers--but it also grants its users violent insanity. Worse still, Destiny is derived from the blood of kidnapped, pubescent, naturally psychic girls, who are kept in a constant state of fear to encourage them to generate the necessary hormones. The "Greater-Thans," powerful psychics employed by the Obermeyer Institute, desperately seek to shut down the cabal synthesizing Destiny, even as romance starts to serve as a potent distraction to their team. Michelle "Mac" Mackenzie believes that her psychic power of seduction has ensnared one of the Institute's new recruits, blacklisted former Navy SEAL Shane Laughlin, despite his efforts to convince her his feelings are genuine. Mac's partner, Stephen Diaz, finally rejects the celibacy that he believed would hone his abilities and decides to act on his long-held feelings for Elliot Zerkowski, the Institute's research director; and the team leader, Joseph Bach, still tormented by his wife's death, is surprised to find himself attracted to Anna, the sister of the most recent Destiny kidnap victim. Which of these couples will allow themselves to accept the love they so richly deserve? Brockman tries a bit too hard to emphasize the other characters' lack of military training so that Shane will earn his place at the Institute. (No doubt he'll come in handy in future volumes.) The story is less than innovative, but she makes it appealing, action-packed and sexy. The B romance between the two men earns progressive social points and is both natural and charming. Satisfying on several levels.

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April 15, 2012

A chance bar hookup results in a sizzling, circuit-blowing night for strangers Michelle "Mac" Mackenzie and Shane Laughlin. Mac, a mental superhuman "Greater Than" at the shadowy Obermeyer Institute (OI), has no idea that they share a link--until Shane reveals he has been taken on by OI as a "Potential" trainee. Mac, realizing that any relationship between them is doomed by OI's long-standing taboo against sex, reacts in her typical, impulsive way and bolts. But Shane has no intention of letting Mac avoid him, and as they are thrown together in OI's fight against an unspeakably depraved syndicate that kidnaps young girls to use their blood to make Destiny, a deadly mind-enhancing drug, the connection among love, strong emotion, and brain power is cast in a surprisingly new light. Now the couple, as well as the institute, must deal with the implications. VERDICT Gritty, fast-paced, and loaded with explosive, violent action, Brockmann's new series launch is an action-packed adventure that combines plausible futuristic genetics with her trademark Navy SEAL heroes and provides a sinister organization to fight, an innocent teen to rescue, and a riveting cast of characters. Thrilling, classic Brockmann, with a paranormal twist. Brockmann (Breaking the Rules) lives in Sarasota, FL.

Copyright 2012 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from February 15, 2012
The premise of Brockmann's thrill ride of a series-launcher is complex, involving a highly addictive longevity drug (which stimulates the part of the brain that produces superpowers), human trafficking, torture, a mysterious institute, a kick-ass heroine, a bad-boy hero, hot sex, missing children, secret crushes, and so much more. Not too far in the future, the Obermeyer Institute researches what makes a select few individuals Greater-Thans. In addition to studying this phenomenon, the institute recruits workers with high integration levels. Destiny, an addictive and expensive drug created from the hormones found in young Greater-Thans, allows users to stay young and healthy. But there is a side effect. Some users develop superpowers and go homicidally insane. Dr. Michelle Mac Mackenzie, a diminutive, forceful operative for OI, has discovered that sex magnifies her abilities to heal herself. When she breaks her foot trying to subdue a jacked-up first-time Destiny user, she looks for sexual healing at a bar and meets Shane Laughlin, a disgraced Navy SEAL. Brockmann's winning tale, part romantic suspense and part science fiction, will leave readers eager for the next in its series.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)