review || RUNNING FIRE { blog tour }

Taking Fire by Lindsay McKenna

Publisher: HQN Books (5/1/2015)
Series: Shadow Warriors, book 8
Genre: Military Romance
Source: TLC Tours/NetGalley
Purchase || amazon || add to goodreads

Rating: ★★★★★

He was a haven in the midst of Hell… 

Temporarily assigned to the Shadow Squadron in a troubled region of Afghanistan, Chief Warrant Officer and pilot Leah Mackenzie is no stranger to conflict—even if most of her physical and emotional scars are courtesy of her vicious ex. Still, she's got a bad feeling about picking up a team of stranded SEALs. A feeling that's all too justified once enemy fire hits their helicopter and all hell breaks loose… 

SEAL Kell Ballard's goal was to get the injured pilot out of harm's way and find shelter deep in the labyrinth of caves. It's a place of dark intimacy, where Leah finds unexpected safety in a man's arms. Where prohibited attraction burns brightly. And where they'll hide until the time comes to face the enemy outside…and the enemy within their ranks.






about Lindsay McKenna || Lindsay McKenna is proud to have served her country in the U.S. Navy as an aerographer’s mate third class—also known as a weather forecaster. She is one of the original founders of the military romance subgenre and loves to combine heart-pounding action with soulful and poignant romance. Her latest book is the romantic suspense Taking Fire.

connect with Lindsay || website | facebook | twitter | goodreads

{ review } .

I haven't read many of the SHADOW WARRIOR books, but the ones I have read I've been impressed with. Lindsay certainly has a way of painting the war picture, and she puts two people together very well.

...I suppose she should, she's the author and all. But she just does it well.

Sure, I had issues in my TAKING FIRE review, but really? I guess my biggest one in RUNNING FIRE is one that irked me a bit in all of the SHADOW WARRIOR stories I've read, and it's a simply writing style/grammatical preference thing -- her use of the exclamation point.

But like I said... that's the only thing I could pull out that annoyed me.

Leah is a helicopter pilot, and right away at the beginning of this story, she and her team are on their way to extract a SEAL team. Unfortunately, the Taliban spot them and with the aid of RPGs, shoot them down -- Leah is the only survivor.

In a turn of events, Kell ends up rescuing Leah -- on the same mission that Leah was sent to rescue him. I love these little plays on plot. Kell goes to rescue the lone pilot and is a bit taken aback when he realizes he's a she. No matter, he needs to find them a safe place.

I was appreciative of the fact that Kell thinks that nothing can come between the two of them, once he realizes she's female -- a pretty one at that; his being enlisted and she an officer, therefore fraternization laws would apply. Good for you, man, for thinking that that's going to be able to stop you for falling for this ginger-haired beauty. Hey, at least he tried.

I loved Kell's Southern charm; I loved his upbringing and his family, as well (surely there can be a side series with Cody and Tyler). I enjoyed the battles that Leah had faced -- her life certainly hadn't been a walk in the park. I felt she was a strong individual, and while she did things she did in hopes of pleasing her father, she ended up a very strong woman in light of it all. Of all people to get the chance to live in Kell's little Kentucky world, I think that Leah deserved it most of all.