*Sigh* It was nice to be back in the folds of the KGI crew. To be embraced by all that testosterone. To be once again reading about those hunky brothers with hearts of gold and big burly muscles. (Let’s take a moment to imagine being surrounded by men with big burly muscles…) *Sigh*

No Place to Run is the second installment in Maya Banks’ KGI series. These are books about the Kelly brothers and their crew of mercenaries who go and ‘get the job done’ when even the government won’t. This time around she focuses on Sam, the eldest brother and the leader of KGI. Picture this: You are a man. A studly strapping man. You are on an undercover mission in Mexico. Your job is to take down one of the most dangerous arms dealers in the world. You are not concerned because you are Sam Kelly and you have big burly muscles…and a heart to match. You walk into a little restaurant and you see her. She is lovely. She is magnetic and immediately you know you have to have her. She is yours. *swoon* So you have lots and lots of sex with her while you’re in Mexico. Then you finally get a break in your secret case and you just leave. Like that. You’re a dumbass. After your mission is over, you go back for her but she is gone. You are sad because you left her. You’re a dumbass. Months later, you’re hanging out with your handsome and manly brothers on your dock next to your ridiculously fabulous house by the water when you notice a woman float by, seemingly unconscious holding on to a log (very convenient those logs in the river…). You pull her out. You push the hair from her face only to *gasp* because it’s HER! The girl who you had lots and lots of sex with in Mexico. And she’s been shot! And…she’s pregnant! And she looks to be exactly far along that it’s probably YOUR baby! WTF?!

The story continues with Sam and his brothers finding out that they are in danger and that Sophie (the chick from Mexico) is also running for her life. It’s a decent ‘what’s going on?’ and ‘what’s going to happen next’ story, and that’s good seeing that it’s a Romantic Suspense book. I just didn’t love how Maya built up the suspense.

Before I get into that, let’s talk about Sam. Sam is YUM. Plain and simple. Your typical alpha male. He used to be in the Army and now runs KGI. He’s not afraid of being a hard ass if that’s what needed. But there is such a tender side to him! He’s so strong yet this one little woman can totally undo him. I love heroes like that - men who are men, but who aren’t afraid to show a human and affectionate side. Those are the heroes that make me *swoon* the most.

Sophie. It is through her that Maya tries to build up most of the suspense in this story. The book starts with a really steamy love scene. Yes, on page one you are already into the hot and heavy! After Sam and Sophie’s encounter, we follow her and see her accomplish something super brave and a little bit stupid. What she does becomes her big secret. Once she meets up with Sam again, she starts to divulge some information to him and his brothers, but not all. The guys aren’t stupid. They know she is hiding something from them. Then for 70% of the book, Sophie continues to withhold her big secret (the one that we the reader already know) and even now I don’t understand why she kept it hidden. So for most of the book, instead of enjoying Sophie as a character (because really, she is a good one) I was too busy being annoyed by her and not understanding what the point of her not telling the guys everything was. Then, when something quite severe happens, she thinks maybe she should share her secret. You Think?! I’m sure the suspense in this book would have been more, well…suspenseful if we didn’t know the details of what she was hiding. That way we would just have been wondering ‘what is she hiding?’ until finally, once she reveals it, we would have been ‘OMG No Way!’ And that wasn’t even the most bothersome part about her. What annoyed me even more what that Sophie kept going on and on about how Sam and his brothers didn’t fully trust her! Seriously?! *smacks forehead*

There were a few *gasp* worthy moments I didn’t see coming. A few times, Maya had me totally convinced of one thing only to find out that wasn’t case. Those moments were very well written and I enjoyed them. It was nice to feel a surge of excitement after wanting to shake the book and scratch my head through much of it.

I don’t want you to think this was a terrible book. The story was good. The hero was great. The supporting characters were also great. And the book ended very well. Oh, and the lovin’ was steamy! I just didn’t mesh well with the heroine. I’m hoping we’ll see more of Sophie in future installments though because I do believe she has the potential to be a great character. And don’t worry; I am still going to check out the next book in the series. Hidden Away is Garrett’s book. I LOVE Garrett! *fangirl squee* His book is due out in March 2011. It should be a good one.

3.5 stars