Washington, D.C. & Seattle, Washington – Present Day

Former teen model and vigilante Charity Keone works with an elite group of women at an organization called Liberty Investigations. Alongside her friends and co-workers, Justine and Anna, she works for Sam Liberty as a bodyguard to the rich and famous. Charity even jokes that Sam is their "Charlie" and they are his "angels" since he only communicates with them via a speakerphone. Charity is fast on her feet, Justine uses her fists first and takes answers later, and Anna is the computer and technical expert.

Charity just broke up with her fiancé because he was becoming sick of her Alias bodyguard-wanna-be job. She is ready for another assignment, which comes in the form of multi-billionaire and shipping magnate Daniel Williams. Daniel has been receiving death threats and blackmail for months, and finally has decided to come to Liberty Investigations for a security and bodyguard expert. And since Charity is the best that Sam has, he puts her on the case. But what she doesn't know is that Daniel has something else planned for Charity.

Daniel Williams has quite a shady past. He grew up on the streets and became a hit man for a Japanese mobster called Sekijima. Daniel used to be Sekijima's second in command, and when he left his gang, he believed he had finished off his debts and was able to break free. Unfortunately Sekijima didn't agree with this, and now, even years later, he wants Daniel dead. When Daniel meets Charity, he is enthralled by her beauty and intelligence but feels she will get herself killed guarding him, because she is a woman after all. Even when Charity saves him from a bullet, he still doesn’t like the idea of Charity putting herself in danger. But now his nemesis knows who Charity is, and Daniel will keep her on to protect her. And if he can seduce her, all the better.

In a blink of an eye, Charity and Daniel are having an affair. They come to trust each other and tell about their pasts and why they both have much to hide. Before they can even think of the possibility of a future together, Daniel has to get to Sekijima before he can get to him and Charity. And when one of Daniel's close friends and employees is kidnapped by Sekijima, Daniel decides to put himself up as bait. Charity refuses to let Daniel act on his own and will be his backup whether he likes it or not.

Katherine Garbera has taken a different route with her new series about three women who can kick some major butt. Charity is much like a Sydney Bristow from the show Alias. She has a background in guns, self-defense and, because she lost her parents in a gruesome way, that helped pave the way to her present work. She is an equal to Daniel, who is also quite an enigma. He is so secretive because of what he had to do to survive and get to where he is today. He is just like a typical male, though, because he can't believe that a woman can protect him; he thinks it should be the other way around.

All the action in BARE FACTS happens very quickly and in a matter of a few days. And of course Daniel and Charity fall for each other rather fast, even though they have to watch their backs. But they still have time to enjoy their immediate attraction for each other. We also get some insight into Charity’s co-workers, Justine and Anna, who, even though no future books are planned as yet, I can assume that these two will have their own stories in the future. Plus, I also enjoyed their mysterious boss, Sam Liberty, who sounds like a force to be reckoned with.

If you are a fan of action and intrigue along with a super heroine like Charity, definitely strap yourself in for a wild and fun ride with BARE FACTS.

Kate Garrabrant