Searching for Redemption by Tonya Burrows #TonyaBurrows

the setup…
Podcaster Alexis Summers got frustrated waiting for the sheriff in Steam Valley, Arizona to devote resources to investigate the possibility of a serial killer at large and decided to pursue it on her own. But she awakens to a nightmare, her last memory being grabbed in front of her motel room. After being held captive in the mountains for a week, her abductor has set her loose only to cruelly chase her…predator and prey. Former Navy SEAL Shane Trevisano has lived in isolation in those mountains for nine years, living off the grid. He and Alexis’s paths are now destined to cross.

the heart of the story…
Shane’s last failed mission not only left him disfigured with burns over seventy percent of his body but just about destroyed his sanity. As team leader, he suffers from guilt, PTSD and shame about his appearance. When he returns to his cabin after delivering a lost dog to the clinic in town and finds the wounded Alexis, little did he know that she would become his lifeline back to some sense of normalcy. It was heartbreaking to see these two wounded people fail to trust one another initially but equally heartwarming to experience their evolution from that space. The bond they formed out of survival felt realistic and had me rooting for them to land in a good place. Meanwhile, the killer was still out there and the town was convinced it’s Shane.

the bottom line…
The last book ended with Alexis’s abduction so this starts with a horrid bang. Between the elements, the killer and the biases of some of the people in town, Shane and Alexis were facing multiple threats to their lives and livelihoods. It was exciting and nerve wracking but the romance held its own. And, the service dogs continue to be prominent in the story. The crazy twist at the end has me yearning to jump right into the next book.

Book Info

• Release Date: October 17, 2023
• Series: Redwood Coast Rescue #4
• Page Numbers: 316
• Publisher: Self

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