Tanner Reynolds is the resident Breed playboy as well as an important liaison to the outside world.  The fact that he is a dangerous Bengal breed deters no female, and Tanner’s reputation with the ladies is not exaggerated.  Handsome, charming and quick-witted, he is essentially every woman’s fantasy rolled into one nicely put together package.  And best of all, it is the perfect camouflage for the real Tanner - a man unwillingly yearning for a mate.  A mate that he suspects is his and he has watched for years.  A mate that is a danger to him and all he holds dear.  A mate that has worked with his enemy and caused the death of countless Breeds: Scheme Tallant. 

Scheme Tallant has spent years working for her father whose organization has the singular goal of ridding the world of Breeds.  Dangerously living on a razor’s edge, Scheme has tirelessly worked at foiling her father’s plans and counteracting orders to save any Breed marked for death.  In fact, with her safety compromised more than once, Scheme realizes that the time for deception is over.  When she begins her plan to make her final exit, she does not count on attracting the attention of Tanner Reynolds, liaison to the Breeds and the one man that seems to despise her the most. 

Tanner decides that enough is enough and Scheme Tallant must be made to pay for the atrocities done to breeds on her orders.  Doing his best to plan her downfall under the nose of the Breed Council as well as her father, Tanner wants no interference when he finally has enough evidence to bring her in and enact Breed Law.  He does not anticipate having to take care of an assassin, nor does he grasp that every thing he has ever heard or read about Scheme might not be entirely accurate but a carefully conducted operation.  Fate is not playing into his hands however, because once she is within his grasp, Tanner is forced to make a split second decision in order to keep her alive long enough to get her to the breed compound.  Tanner steps back and rethinks his plans and does the only thing he can think of at the time; he kidnaps Miss Scheme Tallant and carries her away to a hidden location until he can get to the truth.  Trusting no one with her care, Tanner refuses to acknowledge the fact that the woman he has watched and wanted for years might not be the woman he thought she was.  It takes one instance of jealousy to bring Tanner’s Bengal tiger DNA to the forefront of his feelings for Scheme and once that happens, no one better stand between him and his mate.

The hardest part about reading Tanner’s Scheme is the fact that I know there is no way my review can do justice to this book.  Having read every breed book written by this extremely talented and prolific writer, I find myself searching for a way to appropriately tell readers how completely and absolutely astounding this story is.  Tanner Reynolds is one of the original Pride members introduced in Lora Leigh’s first breed novel, Tempting the Beast.  Fun loving, naughty, and very sexy, Tanner loves pushing limits- on the outside.  On the inside, Tanner is loyal, gentle, and has loved and wanted his mate for years.  His yearning for Scheme is apparent in every scene in this book and more than once, I had to sit back and remember to breathe.  If Tanner had an outside persona, then Scheme’s public persona was just as misconstrued.  For all everyone knew, she was scheming, hard, and enjoyed signing Breed death warrants.  Underneath, in her heart of hearts, Scheme’s heart broke every time she couldn’t deter orders from her father and more than once risked life and limb to save the men and women that she secretly cared about.  As for Scheme and Tanner’s love affair?  A match made in mating heaven. Their sexual encounters were hot enough to singe my fingers and made my palms sweat.  Each touch, each kiss, each emotion displayed by these two characters is simply magnificent.

Tanner’s Scheme is a must read.  I highly and joyfully recommend visiting the world of Tanner and Scheme and if you haven’t already, visiting and reading the rest of Lora Leigh’s Breeds.  You will be glad you did.  Tanner’s Scheme releases on August 7, 2007 and I for one will be first in line to get my print copy.