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Breaking Point (An I-Team Novel Book 5) Kindle Edition

by Pamela Clare (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

4.6 882 ratings

Book 5 of 8: I-Team

Goodreads Choice Award nominee

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Denver journalist Natalie Benoit and Deputy U.S. Marshal Zach McBride find themselves captives of a bloodthirsty Mexican drug cartel. Working together, they escape through the desert toward the border, the attraction between them flaring hotter than the Sonoran sun. They fight to stay ahead of the danger that hunts them as forces more powerful than they can imagine conspire to destroy them both...

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"Complex characterizations and a fast-paced plot filled with sensual romance and mystery make this a highly enjoyable [listen] for newcomers and series fans alike." ---Publishers Weekly Starred Review

From the Author

Breaking Point is a story about two very wounded souls played out on some of the most dangerous real estate on earth--the U.S./Mexico border.

The seed of the story was planted several years ago when I researched and wrote an opinion column on the femicides in Ciudad Juárez, where more than 400 women and teenage girls have been murdered, their sexually mutilated bodies found dumped on the outskirts of town or in the desert. Most of the murders remain unsolved, and more than 1,000 women and girls are still missing.

Try to imagine an American city--your own city, perhaps--having 400 unsolved sexual homicides and 1,000 missing women. It defies comprehension.

In the years since I covered that issue, the region has become even more dangerous as cartels fight with one another for control over the trade in drugs, guns and human beings. As is often the case in parts of the world where the truth interferes with people's ability to get away with crime and corruption, journalists have become targets. At this moment in time, Mexico is the most dangerous place on earth to be a journalist outside an active war zone.

I'm not sure exactly what prompted me to bring Natalie into this environment. My travel experiences in Mexico have been wonderful, involving long, lazy days on the beach drinking rum, riding horses, snorkeling and dining beside the ocean. Perhaps the story of las muertas de Juárez--the murdered women of Juárez--had a bigger impact on me than I realized. Regardless, this is where Natalie's story brought me.

As strange as it felt to write an I-Team story set far beyond Denver, the research for this book was fascinating. I focused heavily on the details of illicit border crossings and found that planning aspects of this novel was much like playing a desert version of that old computer game Oregon Trail. What would Zach have to bring with him if he and Natalie were to survive? What route would he take? What environmental and human hazards would they encounter?

I also focused on the work and experiences of U.S. Marshals. I interviewed a former U.S. Marshal for Colorado, Tina Lewis Rowe, and Larry Homenick, a retired deputy U.S. Marshal who once worked "the line," i.e., the border, crossing back and forth between his office at EPIC in El Paso, Texas, and Cd. Juárez. Not only did their stories fascinate me, but watching the two of them interact was highly entertaining as they joked and traded friendly insults. I've tried to honor Rowe with a walk-on part in the story. She shouldn't be hard to spot.

The result of all this research is my most action-packed love story to date. Zach and Natalie are strangers, both about to die at the hands of ruthless men who think nothing of human life. But the violence of this world only gives us a chance to see how truly courageous, strong and determined both Natalie and Zach are. As concern for one another blossoms into attraction and love, the two find the strength to triumph, not only over the bad guys, but also over their own personal tragedies.

As I wrote the book, largely planned in 2009, the wire headlines that came across my desk at the paper began to echo aspects of my plot--public shootings, macabre murders, the slaying of journalists and border agents. At times it was positively eerie. About an hour after I started writing these notes, news broke about a U.S. Border Patrol agent who was shot and killed by bajadores, the bandits who lurk on both sides of the border and which play a role in this story.

It has been a goal of mine for some time to write an I-Team story in which the past heroes all play a pivotal role in the action, in which the stakes are so high that all of the I-Team heroes have to come together to keep the heroine alive. I was finally able to write that kind of story in this book. Fans of Julian, Marc, and Gabe will find their favorite heroes on center stage, together with Zach and Natalie. Reece, admittedly, is relegated to a minor role. (Sorry, Team Reece! Trust me. You'll like it anyway.)

Breaking Point is my tenth novel. Finishing it felt like a milestone to me, even though I know authors who've written more than a hundred novels. Thanks for sharing yet another journey with me. I hope you enjoy the story.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B004Q7DQJ0
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Berkley (May 3, 2011)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 3, 2011
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 2116 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 370 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #644,409 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #8,405 in Supernatural Thrillers (Books)
- #10,260 in Military Romance (Kindle Store)
- #29,234 in Romantic Suspense (Kindle Store)

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4.6 882 ratings

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Pamela Clare

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USA Today best-selling author Pamela Clare began her writing career as a columnist and investigative reporter and eventually became the first woman editor-in-chief of two different newspapers. Along the way, she and her team won numerous state and national honors, including the National Journalism Award for Public Service and the Keeper of the Flame Lifetime Achievement Award. A single mother with two grown sons and three grandchildren, she writes historical romance, contemporary romantic suspense, and contemporary romance within view of Colorado’s beautiful Rocky Mountains.

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Rhonda R.

Perfect!!

Reviewed in the United States on May 24, 2011

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I savored each word of every page thoroughly. Ms. Clare is a gifted wielder of words, spinning a story with suspense, intrigue, sexy heroes, strong heroines, and emotion I feel in my heart as well as my tear ducts. Ms. Clare has provided me with many hours of reading pleasure, novels that I could continue to read long after the last page. This story is no different, it is exactly the kind of novel I have come to expect from her. Thank you Pamela for introducing me to the world of romantic suspense novels, you have set the bar high.

This story starts with a bang, and drops us right in the middle of Ciudad Juarez where drug, and human trafficking cartels are prevalent and rule the streets. Natalie Benoit is there for a convention and tour, when the tour bus is taken over by Zetas, one of the drug cartels, and Natalie is captured and imprisoned, with the promise of sexual slavery and death looming. She is thrown into a dark, dirty arachnid infested cell, and quickly discovers that she has a neighbor, Zach Black (McBride) who is a highly decorated war hero, turned US Marshal. Zach has already been there days ahead of her, and has suffered extreme torture at the hands of the Zetas. With her impending future of rape and death, and Zach's certain torturous death to come, they must find a way to escape.

After escaping from their prison, and on the run from the Zetas, Zach has promised to get Natalie safely home to US soil. Not able to trust the government officials in Mexico because the Zetas have many of them on their payroll, Zach and Natalie set out on an incredible journey of survival. Along the way, they find that they have more in common than circumstances that have brought them together.

Natalie is such a strong character, mentally and physically, but her heart has been through some trauma that has left her alone for the past 6 years. And Zach *sigh* is a war hero, who doesn't feel heroic at all, due to events in Afghanistan in which he blames himself. He has no concept of the hero he truly is. Can Natalie make him see the man he really is? Can Zach help Natalie overcome her past?

I don't want to give up too much of the story, one of the best things was unraveling this page by page. It was fast paced, perfectly written, the characters were excellent, swoon worthy, both Natalie and Zach were heroic. And I loved that the previous characters; Gabe, Julian, and Marc were all in this book, not just a brief appearance.

This book is Romantic Suspense perfection!!

[...]

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FaithOryx

Words cannot describe how amazing this book is. But I'll try.

Reviewed in the United States on May 4, 2011

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I laughed and I cried. Pamela Clare has brought tears to my eyes before (Unlawful Contact... Naked Edge) but never have I literally bawled like a baby when reading one of her books. The fifth in the I-team series definitely touched my heart in a huge way. I laughed outright from beginning to end and yes, I broke down into tears during the last 20 pages or so. My husband gave me "the look"... especially since he was aware that, even though I pre-ordered a copy of this book which will arrive tomorrow, I couldn't wait for my copy and gave in and downloaded the Kindle version. Ah well... I'd have paid for it 4 times over if it meant I got to read it sooner.

I won't waste time capturing the plot, since it's been done so well already. But yes, we have the incredible heroine Natalie. Her bravado, her history, what she's been through... so amazing. She survived Hurricane Katrina, an attempt on her life by a sociopath, then suffered a loss so terrible it broke my heart for her. Her resilience, sense of humor, her dignity, and her ability to maintain control made her, perhaps, one of the most memorable I-team characters. I thought Kat from Naked Edge had that role, but Natalie trumped her through and through. Natalie had the ability to be strong and independent and helpful while still maintaining a beautiful femininity and vulnerability. (And her kicking some serious a** in the beginning made my heart swell with female pride. YES!)

I will admit that I was surprised by Zach. He's not your typical Pamela Clare character. Yes, he has all the good qualities: heroic, loyal, protective, alpha, gentle-when-need-be... but he was also more.... I'm searching for the word.... immature? Not sure if that's it. His humor and language was more crass than any of the other heroes PC has written about. And I just LOVED every single second of it. It was obvious he hadn't been around women a lot. He was much more at ease with the other men, perhaps because he worked in military operations for so much of his life. This made him authentic and interesting and different. I blushed and was surprised when he made a joke about his "gun" (yes, with a pelvic thrust to boot). Again, this is a different type of character for PC but I'm glad she experimented with a different type of man. I just loved that about him. Natalie broke him down, made him realize that he COULD love, deserved to love, and could be an equal with a woman. It was just amazing how he developed and changed. Like I said, I bawled like a baby when his "healing moment" finally arrived. (Don't want to give anything away.)

The action is over the top in this one and it was super fun to have all the boys in the story. In prior stories they had cameos but in this one... they are truly the co-stars. I could have swooned so many times when Julian and Marc and Gabe had their moments. I WON'T give it away... but they brought such a warm feeling to my belly (ovaries?). =) Even though this could be read as a stand-alone, I'd recommend reading the other books in the series to really understand the friendship between Julian and Marc.

Something that is so unique to Pamela Clare is her impeccable research. Maybe it's because she's a journalist and an editor. Maybe because she really, really cares about the quality of her work. Whatever it is... THANK YOU, Pamela Clare!! It is such a relief and a joy to read romantic fiction that is quality, authentic, realistic, accurate and deep. I feel like I am there and that the story COULD happen. I don't mind waiting a year or more for her books because I know they will be perfect. Perfect from page one to the last page. It's so rare in this genre... maybe even just simply not done. Pamela Clare is in a field all her own.

I could go on and on and on about how much I loved this book. (And her other books!!) When I get my copy tomorrow I will read it again, I assure you. And then again, and again, and again... and pray that one day they make movies out of these incredible books. You've done it again, Pamela Clare!!

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Catherine

So Good!!!

Reviewed in Canada on November 14, 2023

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This is the first book (not in order) from this series that I read and I just loved it! Very suspenseful and the main characters (Zach and Natalie) were so great together. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

Avidbookworm

Readable

Reviewed in Australia on October 9, 2018

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Generally gripping story consistent with other I-team novels. Lots of detailed sex detracts from plot and romantic tension, especially when implausible (ie in desert while escaping after six days of brutal torture). Impossibly beautiful, super humanly heroic characters with tortured pasts save each other, leading to babies.

ptit lutin

Un des meilleurs I-Team

Reviewed in France on March 18, 2014

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Waouh ! Comment Pamela Clare peut-elle encore écrire d’aussi bons livres, sans que cela ne semble se répéter ? Rien que la couv’ donne envie de se jeter dessus, je m'imagine assez bien Zach comme ça! Et dès les premières pages, la magie opère.

Pamela Clare a un talent fou pour nous faire pénétrer dans ses univers, que ce soit ici ou en romance historique. En lisant je pouvais presque m’imaginer aux côtés de Nathalie dans le bus, ou ressentir la souffrance et les interrogations de Zach. Elle arrive à rendre vraiment réels ses personnages de telle sorte que je n’ai pu que partager ce qu’ils vivaient et enduraient.

La rencontre entre Zach et Nathalie se fait assez rapidement. J’ai aimé, malgré le contexte assez dur, les voir s’appuyer l’un sur l’autre, trouver du réconfort dans la voix de l'autre. C’est une rencontre assez particulière, qui se fait d’abord par la voix. Ils ne font connaissance initialement que par ce biais là, par le soutien qu’ils s’apportent dans cette épreuve. Ils vont se faire confiance à cause des circonstances et s'attacher face à ce que l’autre subi. Dans ce cadre, l’alternance des points de vue permet bien de percevoir la situation telle qu’elle est perçue par Zach et Nathalie. La rencontre visuelle est assez intense. Cet épisode avec les Zetas permet bien de voir les caractères de chacun et le début de leur relation.

La relation s’enchaine ensuite assez rapidement à partir du moment où ils arrivent à fuir. Tout est intense dans cette première partie, que ce soit la rencontre, la tension, la fuite ou leur relation. J’avoue avoir craint que cela ne s’essouffle après leur retour aux Etats-Unis, mais absolument pas. La deuxième partie laisse complètement se développer le suspense et les sentiments. Ici, l’on se trouve face à Nathalie dans son quotidien, entourée des gens qui l’aiment et dans son métier de journaliste.

J’aime aussi la profondeur des romans de Pamela Clare. Il y a toujours un véritable sujet, une véritable recherche dans les thèmes qu’elle aborde, ici le traumatisme sur l’après Katrina, la lutte contre la drogue… j’aime et j’adhère à ces univers qu’elle sait si bien nous dépeindre !

Retrouver Julian, Marc et Gabe a également été un vrai plaisir. On peut ainsi voir évoluer leurs familles respectives, et en même temps rester ces males qui m’ont séduit dans leur tome respectif, les voir protéger les leurs envers et contre tout. Ces quatre hommes ensemble… so sexy^^ Lire un tome des I-team c’est comme se replonger à chaque fois dans une famille. On découvre de nouveaux membres, et retrouve des anciens, le tout avec toujours autant de plaisir et de bonheur.

En bref, l’un de mes préférés avec le tome 3 ! Pas de points négatifs pour moi, il est juste excellent !! il allie à la perfection suspense et romance. Je vais maintenant devoir me freiner pour ne pas enchainer sur Striking Distance, surtout si je veux l’apprécier à sa juste valeur!

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Ruth Hans

The best so far of the I-Teamers

Reviewed in Germany on May 3, 2013

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I've bought all of the I-Team novels and a loved them all. They are complex and have an equal strong suspense as romantic streak. This one was no exception! But in my opinion it has been the best plotted, so far.
The story is sometimes hard to take, because the torture to human beings is described very detailed, but the plot is so conclusive that every other way of writing the same story with less cruelty, would have been a poor copy of this brilliant book.
It is very fast paced and I just couldn't put it down! I'm sure that I will read it again, and just as it has been with the first time, I will enjoy it tremendous.
If you like to read a good story, maybe even be a fan of Pamela Clare, you absolutely have to read this book!

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Gail T.

Five Stars

Reviewed in Canada on May 3, 2016

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This entire series rocks!!! I wish there were more stories for more members of the team :(

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Breaking Point (An I-Team Novel Book 5) Kindle Edition

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