Katie Ruggle

In the remote Rocky Mountains, lives depend on the Search & Rescue brotherhood. But in a place this far off the map, trust is hard to come by and secrets can be murder... As the captain of Field County's ice rescue dive team, Callum Cook is driven to perfection. But when he meets new diver Louise "Lou" Sparks, all that hard-won order is obliterated in an instant. Lou is a hurricane. A walking disaster. And with her, he's never felt more alive...even if keeping her safe may just kill him. Lou's new to the Rockies, intent on escaping her controlling ex, and she's determined to make it on her own terms...no matter how tempting Callum may be. But when a routine training exercise unearths a body, Lou and Callum find themselves thrust into a deadly game of cat and mouse with a killer who will stop at nothing to silence Lou-and prove that not even her new Search and Rescue family can keep her safe forever. Search and Rescue: On His Watch (novella) Hold Your Breath Fan the Flames Gone too Deep In Safe Hands

Hold Your Breath

Lynn Braden

Louise Sparks does not question her decision to leave her parent's Connecticut home and become a rescue diver in Colorado, even though during her first cold water training exercise, she kicks a headless corpse that floats to the surface.  The mystery of who this dead body is and why he is there begins to consume Lou's thoughts.  Lou's boss, the handsome Callum Cook, agrees to help her conduct an unofficial investigation into the death of this man with whom Lou feels a connection.  However, Lou's stalker has other ideas about the way Lou spends her time and starts to escalate his unwanted attention.

Hold Your Breath is a fairly average romantic suspense with dialogue that seems a bit stiff and unrealistic.  We learn some information about the characters as the book progresses, but for the most part, they remain flat and static.  Some of the banter does add much needed interest to the story, but it isn't enough to make the characters come to life.  The resolution to the stalking mystery is fairly obvious from the beginning, but there is a minor twist at the end that adds a little more to the story.  Overall, however, Hold Your Breath is a disappointing romantic suspense with nothing new to offer the genre.  

Samantha Emery

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★Book Basics★ 


  Genre
: - Cont. Romance 

  Series
: - 1 in the series.

  Love triangle?
 - (view spoiler)[No (hide spoiler)]

  Cheating?
 - (view spoiler)[No (hide spoiler)]

  HEA? -
 (view spoiler)[Yes (hide spoiler)]

  Would I read more by this author/or in this series? 
- Yes

  Rating 
- 5

★Review★

After book 0.5 being a bit of a dud for me, I loved this story.

I adored the hero, he is a bit taciturn, nicknamed "The Iceman", has a need for order and neatness.

And the heroine was funny, a touch messy, endearing, and brave, trying to make a new life for herself after running away from her previous life.

And while the romance was a bit slow building, I enjoyed it, and the efforts Lou went to make Callum smile.


And even though book 0.5 was a bit disappointing to me, the hero from that book, was a great secondary character here.

And the suspense part of the story was well done. There was a part specific to this story (Lou's stalker) and another that appears like it will be an ongoing story arc over the series.

Some might feel the romance part of the story fades into the background while the suspense takes the front seat, but for me it worked. The romance was slowly bubbling away, and the suspense part allowing that to move forward, Callum getting protective, partnering up with Lou to help her. It worked very well for me.

And with a whole cast of Fire Crew, or Dive team characters that all just scream "future hero" this is a series I am really looking forward to reading.

A great 5 stars. I was just happy reading this book, and in that place where you cannot wait to read on and see what happens while at the same time wanting it to slow down so it would not end!

"Vivid and charming."—CHARLAINE HARRIS, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Sookie Stackhouse series Lou is a hurricane. A walking disaster. And with her, Callum's never felt more alive...even if keeping her safe may just kill him. Lou's new to the Rockies, intent on escaping her controlling ex, and she's determined to make it on her own terms...no matter how tempting her new ice dive captain Callum Cook may be. But when a routine training exercise unearths a body, Lou and Callum find themselves thrust into a deadly game of cat and mouse with a killer who'll stop at nothing to silence Lou-and prove that not even her new Search and Rescue brotherhood can keep her safe forever. In the remote Rocky Mountains, lives depend on the Search & Rescue brotherhood. But in a place this far off the map, trust is hard to come by and secrets can be murder... "Gripping suspense, unique heroines, sexy heroes." —CHRISTINE FEEHAN, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author Search and Rescue Series: On His Watch (FREE novella) Hold Your Breath (Book 1) Fan the Flames (Book 2) Gone too Deep (Book 3) In Safe Hands (Book 4) After the End (FREE novella) What People Are Saying: "I love Ruggle's characters. They're sharply drawn, and vividly alive. I'm happy when they find each other. These are wonderful escapist books."—CHARLAINE HARRIS, #1 New York Times Bestselling author of the Sookie Stackhouse series "Sexy and suspenseful, I couldn't turn the pages fast enough."—JULIE ANN WALKER, New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author for Hold Your Breath "Chills and thrills and a sexy slow-burning romance from a terrific new voice."—D.D. AYRES, author of the K-9 Rescue Series for Hold Your Breath

Hold Your Breath

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