superbly suspenseful: concealed by kate serine

concealed is the second book in kate serine's dark alliance series, and even though i eventually figured things out, it's one of those books that should be read after book one in the series. this is like an episode of alias, with the dark alliance serving as the secret government agency, in this case they are connected to the knights templar and are a global organization, and the illuminati are the sd-6 like bad guys.

this story also picks up a lot of threads covered in the first book, so it was definitely harder to follow or in some cases care too deeply about certain plot points. that being said, as a romantic suspense, this book did a good job of both ramping up the action and the sexual tension. jack and maddie's love story spans years, and there are reasons and secrets that make things difficult for them.

working closely and keeping their hands off each other doesn't really work. but in order for things to work between them, jack needs to fill maddie in on his past, especially since it seems to be catching up to him in a spectacular fashion. but by letting her in, letting maddie get to know him, it's possible that jack will finally be able to lay some of the ghosts from his past to rest. and then he and maddie have an amazing future to look forward to.

someone who should be taking a lesson from jack and maddie's story is will asher, their commander. a woman from his past, claire davenport, has reappeared and has been digging into the dark alliance and their missions. she has diagrammed out a whole chart full of information on the dark alliance and the illuminati in her quest to learn more about will. it might get her killed, and will wants to keep her safe. and i suspect the next book in this series will be about the impossibility of keeping her safe and in the dark.

**concealed will publish on march 28, 2017. i received an advance reader copy courtesy of netgalley/kensington books (zebra) in exchange for my honest review.