Troublemaker by Linda Howard (thoughts)

Summary from Goodreads:

"For Morgan Yancy, an operative and team leader in a paramilitary group, nothing comes before his job. But when he’s ambushed and almost killed, his supervisor is determined to find out who’s after the members of his elite squad—and why. Due to worries that this unknown enemy will strike again, Morgan is sent to a remote location and told to lay low and stay vigilant. But between a tempting housemate he’s determined to protect and a deadly threat waiting in the shadows, keeping under the radar is proving to be his most dangerous mission yet.

The part-time police chief of a small West Virginian mountain town, Isabeau “Bo” Maran finally has her life figured out. She’s got friends, a dog, and a little money in the bank. Then Morgan Yancy shows up on her doorstep. Bo doesn’t need a mysterious man in her life—especially a troublemaker as enticing and secretive as Morgan.

The harder they fight the intense heat between them, the closer Morgan and Bo become, even though she knows he’s hiding from something. But discovering the truth could cost Bo more than she’s willing to give. And when Morgan’s cover is blown, it might just cost her life."

My Thoughts:

I wanted to read this book mainly based off the fact that it was written by Linda Howard, and I've been meaning to read her books for some time now.  Also, I'm a sucker for the romantic suspense genre so that of course made me want to read this book more.  Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this book although I would classify it as more of a romance if I'm being honest.  There were some elements of suspense but really this book was more focused on the romance developing between Morgan and Bo.  And what a romance that was!  One of the things that I love for my romance books to have is a realistic feel to them.  I am not huge on when relationships happen overnight or when there is insta-love with no build up.  In this book, Bo takes Morgan into her home not because she wants to but because she can't turn him away in the shape that is in.  Their relationship develops over the course of the book (I don't really feel that this is a spoiler thanks to above summary) in a way that actually feels natural.  Also, their relationship didn't just solve all of their problems either- another pet peeve of mine in romances.  I just really loved the way the author set this book up in a way that you couldn't help but want to root for their happy ever after.

I also really, really loved how much of this book was focused on Bo's dog Tricks.  As my family just recently got a puppy, I adored how much of this book focused on Tricks and what an important part she played in Bo's life.  This is definitely a dog lover's type of book which I found to be just perfect.  There was never a time when Tricks didn't play an important part of the story which just really added to the story for me.  I also loved that the author really brought the small town that Bo lived in to life.  There were a bunch of secondary characters that I enjoyed reading about as well.  I found this book to be the perfect read during a stressful time of year.  I was able to just lose myself within this book's pages and the romance that was brewing between Bo and Morgan.  Sometimes that is exactly what you need especially when life is hectic and busy.  I liked that the ending tied everything up although I didn't find it to be as suspenseful as I expected.  Really by that time I was okay with the lack of suspense.  I was more focused on the romance and seeing how Morgan and Bo would work everything out.  

Overall, I enjoyed this book and found it to be a solid romance.  I'm planning on reading more by this author, and I believe that she has an extensive backlist so I have a lot to look forward to which makes me happy.  I'm glad that I finally took the plunge to give this author a try because it was a great reading experience.  I think that both dog lovers and romance fans will enjoy this book.  I can easily recommend this one!

Bottom Line:  A slow building romance that I really enjoyed!

Disclosure:  I received a copy of this book thanks to the publisher and Edelweiss.