I loved this story. I enjoyed the characters. ☆☆☆☆☆ rating.

My review can be seen at RT Book Reviews

I received a complimentarily copy of this book from NetGalley and I am voluntarily reviewing it.

What a great read. This was such an endearing, heartfelt book. I felt for John. He had his canine partner adopted out from underneath him, the heartless reaction from the woman at the bar and PTSD. His suffering was never ending til Katie. Their love story is one for the history books. I highly recommend.

Oh my, I felt this story and I felt it deep..might or might not have cried ;)
John is trying to get back on his feet after his injuries that caused his military career to end. He starts working at a ranch but between Katie, the ranch manager, the owner's daughter, and his PTSD, he doesn't have it easy.
Both Katie and John have issues and the attraction between them causes more problems than not, since neither can cope well with it.
But as they are forced to work together their relationship start to change, but there are still secrets betweem them and strange things happening.
I have to say it took me a while to warm up to the characters, but while I took to John easily, Katie was the hardest for me..once I got the hang of it tho I was all in.
I loved the story and the twists, it made me feel for the characters and cheer for them to be better and happy.

When an IED kills his best friend and leaves John Rathborne with a career ending injury, he struggles with PTSD as well as adjusting to military life. He makes it his mission to find his military dog, Koda, who was mistakenly given to a civilian family to adopt in the hopes to return a bit of normalcy to his life. When he discovers Koda is living in a ranch in Montana, John applies for the job of foreman in the hopes of not only finding his lost dog, but making a new start.

Katie Locke was brutalized at the hands of an unknown attacker and struggles with the traumas and fears left over from that attack. Her new dog, Koda, helps to ease those moments of panic and helps her get through her day to day duties on the ranch by being by her side. The last thing she needs is a stranger showing up to destroy the little piece of mind she has.

Katie truly wants nothing to do with John and can’t quite understand why Koda has warmed up to him so quickly. John has hidden his past from Katie and her father in the fear that they will fire him, when he not only needs this job, but also needs to be around Koda. When Katie’s father has a heart attack, however, she must gather her courage and put her trust in John to save the ranch she so dearly loves.

All is not as it seems, however, and danger lurks in ways that Katie and John can’t even imagine, as someone is definitely out to get the ranch, and will stop at nothing until they have it. It’s up to John to discover the threat before it’s too late.

Hearts Unleashed was truly a beautiful story of healing. Both John and Katie are suffering from PTSD and, as readers, we see just how debilitating the fears and flashbacks can be. Koda is the thread that binds both together. Her love, loyalty and support offer both a steadiness that they are currently missing in their lives.

Both Katie and John are extremely independent people and their chemistry sparks immediately, even though they both dance around it for a time not willing to explore what is before them. I enjoyed watching them learn about one another and come to respect their boundaries and gain an understanding of how what they both were going through and how to work through it, first as co-workers, then as friends and finally, as something more. It’s a fabulous slow burn with enough suspense to really keep readers invested and turning page after page. 4.5 stars.

This is a voluntary review of an advanced copy.

At first, it was hard to see John and Katie together as they both has so much trauma to overcome. As the story progressed, you could see that they would be good for each other but Katie just kept her walls up and was so prickly toward John. I almost felt sorry for him that she was so grouchy but then they had been burned so many times before with men who took advantage of them.

Along with the budding romance, there was some intrigue to the story along with a few twists. It was not hard to figure out who was the bad guy but his motive was unexpected and all that he had planned and done was a surprise.

In the end, they have grown and pushed past some of their hurts to start healing and can begin a relationship. I loved that Koda can now have both the people that she loves in her life!

The premise had all the things I like wounded veteran, dog, ranch/farm setting. I liked that on touched on PTSD and struggle. John mostly his portrayal was well done. While Katie may have trauma of her own she acts tough. Both of these two characters are scarred emotionally and physically who struggle in their own ways.

As I read on though I wasn't keen on the heroine she can be mean. Yes I know you experienced something horrible but I don't think being nasty. I don't know why it's not until later we find out what happened while John we know. The secret of Koda being his partner I don't know why either, Katie knows she has past.

John and Katie can be like bickering and rude to one another which goes on till the end. It doesn't scream I like someone or romance to me. Sounds like a headache. There were things that were glossed over that could have made it better in some aspects. It was easy to guess who the villain is well for me anyway.

As a debut it's not bad. It started slow and picked up and rushed to the end. The writing ok, a little sharpening and refining of the flow and dialogue. I really did like the dog best, the premise was good just needed more likable characters.

I read about 3/4 of this book. While I usually like a great enemies to lovers tale, this one fell flat for me. As much as I understand that the heroine went through trauma, I found her to be too childish, nasty, and unlikable for most of what I read.

In this debut novel, both the hero and the heroine are shoved through the wringer over and over before they reach their well-earned HEA. Both are suffering from PTSD, but from far different causes. Katie Locke, co-owner of the Three Keys Ranch with her father, was attacked and brutally beaten at the hospital where she used to work as a nurse. John Rathbone, the ranch’s new foreman, is a wounded veteran who still suffers flashbacks from the IED that killed his human partner and wounded his canine partner. A dog who now serves as Katie’s therapy dog.
As both are damaged, and neither feels themselves either capable or worthy of loving another, both the humans fight their simmering attraction as the dog does her best to let her humans know that the other is worthy of trust. Meanwhile, someone seems to be bent on destroying either the Three Keys Ranch, Katie Locke, or both. As the assailant hides in plain sight, John and Katie find themselves on a rocky road to a love that neither thought they’d ever find.

VERDICT: Recommended for romance readers who really want to see their protagonists suffer to earn their HEA, and fans of military romances that include heroic canine companions.

Hearts Unleashed had the potential to be a wonderful story with depth and conviction, unfortunately there were parts of the story I had trouble connecting with.

The story is about two emotionally and physically scarred people, who struggle to connect due to their own personal issues and the unnecessary secret John is keeping about his K-9 friend. I really didn’t understand why he felt the need to hide his relationship with Koda; after all, Katie knew the dog had a past. And the constant bickering and nasty comments became childish and seemed overdone, as this type of behaviour does not inspire romance.

That said, there were enjoyable aspects to the story and I did finish the book.

This was an odd one for me, because I typically love reading about the military, scarred heroes/heroines, and those who love them. Unfortunately, I just didn't find much to like about either the hero or the heroine. The hero comes under false pretenses, because he wants the dog back who was with him in the war. Even though it was given to a family who really needed her. He has *serious* PTSD issues, which honestly were too unresolved to make me consider him a good romantic hero (he references a recent moment where he gets drunk and threatens his own mother). Katie was an extremely rude woman, with PTSD issues as well, so it's understandable. However, it didn't really make me warm to her at all. I made it to the 50% mark, when the author threw in a random masturbation scene where Katie does it in front of supposedly asleep John, and I'm done. If it made sense in the course of the story, it wouldn't have bothered me. But the author was trying to make a romance work where there wasn't one. Didn't work for me.

Poor thing. I know it's hard, but she should give him a chance. If she doesn't, the bad guys win.

Yep, she's friendly. Not.

Go away, Melissa. Witch.

Peter is definitely the culprit.

She's doing that with her employee asleep two feet away? Really?

I liked Joanne. Linda and her father are definitely a couple.

Overall, a good story. I liked the characters of John and of Katie, and Koda the dog was sweet. I did struggle a bit with Katie's aggression in the beginning, and going from that to love seemed like a leap. It makes sense at the end, but a bit more detail would have helped. Maybe a bit more on the other ranch hands would work better too. No surprise about Peter, whereas a few more mentioned would have given a few red herrings. These are minor issues though, and I did enjoy the book. Highly recommend this book and author.

This was an easy and enjoyable read with a wounded hero (a former soldier) and a wounded heroine. I loved the part about the relationship between the dog, Koda, and the main characters, John and Katie.
But what I found most admirable about “Hearts Unleashed” was the depiction of John’s PTSD, sense of guilt and panic attacks and the painful lingering effects of his extensive physical injuries. Paris Wynters wrote the character in such a realistic way that we, readers, see and feel how he hurts, how he feels beaten and worn (the analogy with an old man is quite effective). The wounded veteran’s struggle to overcome all his serious problems and get on with his life is realistic and powerful and the author doesn’t sugarcoat it, so, kudos Ms. Wynters!
The novelty here is that the heroine isn’t a character I really liked, but, in spite of that - or perhaps because of it - I appreciated the way the author crafted this cantankerous, sometimes hostile young woman. Katie is dealing with serious issues too (“Everyone has their own pain”, John remarks).
I liked that the heroine made a move on John. The romantic storyline was slow in the beginning and then, suddenly, felt a bit rushed for my taste.

A beautiful and heart-wrenching story-line about an ex-soldier experiencing PTSD and a tough rancher girl with some terrors of her own to deal with. She wants nothing to do with this new foreman her father just hired, but soon she'll have to acknowledge he's a great asset for their ranch because he works his ass off and in the meantime he keeps falling in love with this ranch and it's owners. Right after John starts working at the ranch little 'accidents' starting to happen around the ranch with the cattle and later on with Katie and John has a gut feeling something's way off about the new farmhand he hired for Katie's dad, Peter. Is John able to keep Katie safe? Or are his secrets about his past and his connection to Koda gonna get him fired?

I wanted John and Katie getting together so much and for them to be each other's anchors and I loved how real it all felt to me. I wanted to find out who was targeting them and to see how everything would develop after John's past with Koda would be out in the open and known to Katie and her father. Like I said, I couldn't stop reading, because I was dead set on getting my answers hehe.

John and Katie warm up to one another and form a deeper growing bond, that'll have your heart melt at the spot. And the sexy times are just perfect, prrr! The connection and growing bond between these characters is so intense, deep and felt so real and beautiful. I loved reading their stories and see how they intertwined. This was just a really, really great developed romance!

And to top it all of there's this Ex-army dog present that stole my heart big time. Koda is amazing <3 I loved how the author reserved 'room' for this dog's character in the story and I couldn't get enough of it. The way Koda is a key line in John and Katie's story is so beautifully written and developed as well. It's obvious the author has a love for dogs and really knows how to write them down in a way you feel you are truly connected to the animal you're reading about, and I loved it so much!

Throughout the book there's just enough angst in the story-line to keep you on the edge. All the elements in this book - the writing style, romance development, character development, story-line development - are in great balance with each other. I'm in love with the settings as well. I've never been to Montana though, but I've seen movies and stuff online about these ranches out there and it's been a dream of mine to go to a ranch like this some day. I could really picture myself out there in the pastures, on horse back, between the cattle and admiring the view all around. Everything's beautifully and visually written, amazing!

This was such an amazing read, damn! I'm really sad I've already finished the story- but I just couldn't stop once I started. I really can't wait to read more of Paris Wynters! For every romance reader out there who loves an amazing (ranch) setting, a great romance developing, great characters and a fast-paced story-line; You need this book in your life!!!! I don't have any flaws to talk about so this book definitely deserves it's 5 star rating. I had my fair share of teared up moments, knots in my stomach and butterflies flying around in it as well. Just LOVED it!

DNF at 30%

I cannot stand the characters, especially Kate. I get that she had something traumatic happen to her in the past (30% in and it has only been vaguely referenced), but I don't think that gives her an excuse to be a bitch. Cautious of new people, yes; rude and spiteful, no.

Also, at 30% in absolutely nothing has happened. Basically John goes to work, both he and Kate secretly think each other are cute, Kate's rude to him, and then they think about their tragic pasts. Sleep and repeat.

It's a sweet story. Two damaged characters plus a dog with issues too.
They both had issues so it was difficult for both of them to get close to other people.
A good storyline and we'll developed characters.