RATING: 4 out of 5 Stars
DEFENDING MORGAN (Mountain Mercenaries Book 3) by Susan Stoker is another exciting romantic suspense addition to the Mountain Mercenaries series. All of these books can be read as standalones, but there is character crossover with each book adding another HEA to the group of friends.
Ex-Navy SEAL Archer “Arrow” Kane is part of a team sent by Rex, the leader of the Mountain Mercenaries to the Dominican Republic to rescue a kidnapped child. The team is surprised when they find the child, they also find an American woman who has been missing from Atlanta for over a year.
Morgan Byrd was abducted and disappeared while out with friends. Her father kept her story in the news and never gave up hope of finding her. Arrow recognizes her and has an instant need to protect this strong and brave woman. He wants to know how and why she ended up in Santa Domingo and so does Morgan.
Arrow offers Morgan a safe place to stay until the Mountain Mercenaries can find out who wanted Morgan gone, but not dead.
This book is not what I was expecting, although I should have. While Morgan was abducted, she was sexually abused and tortured. The descriptions are not graphic and mainly handled behind a psychologist’s closed door, but as you can imagine there is a very slow build up to any type of intimacy. I cheered every step forward Morgan made. Arrow is amazing in his respect and patience. The talks the couple shared displayed their intimacy. Their relationship builds at a realistic pace with the inclusion of professional help. I was shocked at the end when the villain of this story was revealed and I had a hard time accepting it. It was a surprise that left me unsatisfied.
I still find this series to be entertaining and I love watching each mercenary meet his perfect match. These books all have strong, alpha male heroes and heroines who have been through terrible circumstances, but remain resilient and loving. I am looking forward to reading many more HEAs in this series!
Thanks very much to Net Galley and Montlake Romance for allowing me to read this ARC.
