This book evoked so many emotions and reactions including admiration and compassion for both Colin and Dana. The situation they find themselves in confronting later in the book had me gnashing my teeth and deepened my appreciation for this couple’s inner strength and fortitude. Both have suffered terrible losses and have seen first hand the evil mankind can inflict. Their wounds and scars are not visible. Instead they are marked on their souls as both suffer from PTSD. At any moment, memories and flashbacks take them back to the point of trauma. Fate has brought them together as Dana tries to move forward in life on her newly purchased farm, hopefully leaving the terrible pain behind her. Colin becomes her right hand man in her new venture and with his help, and that of the whole community, she sees her plans for the farm come to life. Their close proximity leads to shared secrets and the lowering of guards around their hearts, but Colin’s severe PTSD makes him believe that anything other than friendship is not possible between him and the beautiful, resilient Dana. It takes a dangerous and deadly incident for both to realize just how much they love each other and that they want a chance at a future together. Will they get their chance to have a happily ever after?

I found the characters of this book to be fascinating, relatable and memorable. I was immediately immersed into their story and couldn’t stop reading until I had finished the last page. I loved reading about the very close knit community that helped and supported each other without expecting anything in return. We need more of that sentiment or attitude in this world. This book is one I will re-read time and again. I received an ARC of this book via NetGalley and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

Sigh. I wanted to like this but found myself hung up on something an editor should have caught. Vegans don't eat butter. And then there's the dinner when the women are given vegan meals and the men meat. I know that's small but it really annoyed me because this tale of two damaged people who find one another by chance and help each other heal (as well as fight bad guys) should have been a win for me. Regrettably, it's a pass and I DNF. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

Two wounded ,fragile people meet and with the help of the amazing Silver Creek ,begin to fall in love and heal. A lot more to the story than just romance,a good read.

Book three in the series, can be read as a standalone but the characters from previous books are in the story. Colin is a broken down wrangler who suffers from PTSD after working Black Ops in Afghanistan. Dana has left behind her home in Oregon to start anew in Wyoming. She buys a broken down cabin on a abandoned old farm, just the way she feels. The town of Silver Creek come to her rescue and gives her a helping hand…..a lot of helping hands. I really hope that there is a place like Silver Creek! Sounds unrealistic to me. And this is how Colin and Dana meets, he is on loan to help Dana with the farm. Dana is mourning the lost of her parents and Colin is trying to deal with his PTSD. The two have more in common than they thought. Going through the cabin Dana foot goes through the floor board and finds a bank money bag. Once again the dialogue of their feelings is drawn out, but the action and mystery kept me reading the book. As before probably just me, but the in depth talking, discussions due drag on.
Thank you NetGalley for this ARC. I am voluntarily posting an honest review after reading an Advance Reader Copy of this story.

Non-stop action and suspense in the latest Wind River Valley story. As the new owner of the Wildflower Ranch, Dana is overwhelmed by the support and assistance provided by local ranchers and townspeople.

But evil has invaded the sanctity of her new home and with Collins help as her borrowed wrangler, they'll face the dangers ahead. They learn to communicate and help heal each other of their pasts. The author has a unique knack to bring you to the heart of the story, so you can imagine the setting and circumstances that unfold. A great read!

I received a free ARC eBook from Net Galley and the publisher, in addition from Goodreads in exchange for my honest opinions.

Strength Under Fire (Silver Creek, #3) by Lindsay McKenna
This is Dana Scott and Colin Gallagher's story they both have PTSD her from her parents brutal murder and his from his time as a Ranger in Afghanistan. We catch up with some of our Silver Creek friends. There is angst, danger, violence, laughter, trusting, mending, tears, bravery and steam getting us to a HEA.
Reasons I enjoyed this book:
Entertaining Happily Ever After Scary Romantic Tear-jerker Haunting Witty Steamy

I have been reading books written by Lindsay McKenna for many years but Strength Under Fire (Silver Creek #3) had a different feel to it from others that I remember. In the past men and women characters may have been different but each was capable no matter whether they were in the military or in the private sector. This time there seems to be more of a line drawn in their differences, likes, dislikes and general treatment. This was odd since both character suffer from PTSD having survived treacherous situations.

While Mary is Queen in Silver Creek there is a division that I found difficult to understand. Such as “Wait till you taste Louise’s cooking. She’s made a vegetarian meal for us women, and a meat meal for the guys.” Why were only the women vegetarians, could anyone be or not be? There also seemed be a lot of almost trying to persuade the reader that chemical fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides, or GMO seeds were bad but we couldn’t possibly understand that unless it was pushed in this story. Along with this is a huge amount of text given to farming concepts and matters. While interesting to some it did not always move the romantic suspense story along. Still I enjoyed the romance and the suspense of the story when the focus was on Colin and Dana.

3.5 Stars
An ARC of the book was provided by the publisher through NetGalley which I voluntarily chose to read and reviewed. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

ARC received for review

DNF

I don't think I've ever had a book piss me off so much that I didn't want to finish it. I've read multiple books by Ms. McKenna before and some I've like and some I haven't. This one....the heroine is vegan, not an issue I've been known to eat vegan once and a while, but they sit down to a big dinner and it's announced that all the women will be eating a vegan meal and the men will have meat....What The Feathers!!! I don't know why but that made me mad, if a woman wants to eat meat, let her. I can't read any more of it, and I've tried.

Strength Under Fire by Lindsay McKenna is the third book in the Silver Creek contemporary romantic suspense series. Dana Scott’s parents were murdered and she has moved from Oregon and purchased the small Wildflower Ranch near Silver Creek, Wyoming. She wants to restore the old log cabin and farm the fallow acreage. Wrangler and former Army Ranger Colin Gallagher is hired to help her. Both are suffering, but when dangerous criminals come to the valley, will they even survive?

Both Dana and Colin are likeable characters with friendship and chemistry that builds slowly over time. There is a comfortable energy between them, despite both of them suffering from PTSD. Their resilience and courage as well as their need for time alone made them feel more real and relatable. This was a slow build romance where two broken people suffering from horror, shock, and trauma slowly build friendship, trust, and a feeling of safety.

The secondary characters played background roles with several of them being in the previous two books in the series. This helped with continuity and added to the feeling of community that abounds in this series.

The writing and discussions gave me a strong sense of the Wildflower Ranch and the Silver Creek community. While it is portrayed as very idyllic and somewhat unrealistic, I wanted to believe in it and enjoyed it. This is a community that lives and works as a close family. Neighbor helps neighbor. Of course, this is offset by the introduction of the criminals to bring suspense and danger into this close knit community. The suspense part of this book started somewhat later in the book than I expected, but once it started, there was plenty of action and danger.

This book has a lot of details in it on topics as diverse as beekeeping, crop rotation, organic farming, and medicinal herbs. I felt this added depth and made the book more realistic. Additionally, I learned a lot while reading the novel. While it may have been a little over the top in some respects, it left me feeling good that people are finding innovative ways to save family ranches. The author did a great job of transporting me to this community with great world-building. The only steamy scene in the book is very near the end of the story. One quibble that I had was with the interchangeability between vegan and vegetarian. Early in the book, Dana says she is vegan. However, she uses butter and eats eggs which is more appropriate for a type of vegetarian. The other tendency that I noticed was the repetition of some topics when it wasn’t necessary to progress the story line.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. It was an entertaining book that was emotionally intense at times. The author did a good job of meshing the romance and the suspense without either suffering. If you are a fan of contemporary romantic suspense without instant love, then you may want to check out this series. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

Kensington Books – Zebra and Lindsay McKenna provided a complimentary digital ARC of this novel via NetGalley. This is my honest review. Opinions are mine alone and are not biased in any way. Publication date is currently set for September 28, 2021. This review was originally posted at Mystery and Suspense Magazine.

Strength Under Fire by Lindsay McKenna is the third book in the Silver Creek series. I have read the two previous novels in the series. The series focuses on an area in Wyoming called Silver Creek. The valley has a microclimate that is great for growing food and with the small town and help from other ranches, each novel opens another storyline between a couple.

Dana Scott, after the death of her family moved into the valley and bought a farm to start over again. She is determined to move forward with her life. From the beginning the valley farms embrace her and help her with supplies and other supports. Colin Gallagher is a hired hand at a local ranch but is lent out to her as her hired hand. He is kind, caring, and a hard worker, but there are shadows from his time in the military. Dana understands as she too has shadows from her parents death.

Together Colin and Dana find their way forward to start her new farm, put in crops and investigate the land. All is well until one day Dana’s foot goes through the floorboards of the old cabin on the property and finds money - lots and lots of money. Suddenly everything changes and there is fear.

I think I have enjoyed this novel the best so far. I didn’t find anything too preachy about the environment like I have in other novels in this series. I do think the valley is a bit of a dreamlike place and isn’t possibly real, but I don’t care in this series. Strength Under Fire by Lindsay McKenna is a romantic suspense novel with a great story line.

Strength Under Fire by Lindsay McKenna is another novel in her Silver Creek, WY series. Dana Scott is devasted when her parents are murdered. She uses money she inherited to buy a rundown ranch in Silver Creek, WY, as an opportunity to start over. With the help of a wrangler from a neighboring ranch, she works to turn it into an organic vegetable garden and farm. The wrangler, Colin Gallagher, has his own past to deal with after serving his country in Afghanistan and suffering from PTSD. Together, they wrestle with their individual demons to find love with each other.

I have enjoyed Lindsay McKenna’s books in the past and will read more of them. This one is a bit too sweet for me. The danger during the second half of the book with drug smugglers helped make it more exciting. Silver Creek is a community where everyone comes together to help each other out but, in this case, Dana was given everything instead of having to work for it. It was too unrealistic for me. There were also numerous inconsistencies that I hope will be corrected prior to publication.

Thanks to Kensington Books and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC for an honest review.

The ending was the best part of this book. I skimmed through a lot of the beginning and some of them. Readers that are into gardening and farming especially organically might get more out of the beginning of the book. It was a lot all facts on organic gardening. Way too much. The ending pretty much made up for it though.

Dana is trying to start over after a traumatic event in her life. She buys a small rundown ranch planning to support herself growing organic crops. The story was a little unrealistic. Dana didn’t have enough money or any realistic plans on how she was going to accomplish her goal. The community steps in and unrealistically donates everything she needs. Colin is suffering from PTSD and works for her as a ranch hand. This story never really grabbed me. I struggled to stay interested. Thank you to net galley for an advanced copy.

Ahhhhh... I love a good lady buys a ranch and hires someone to help and well what do you know they end up falling in love!, book. Yes the storyline has been done before but it was still entertaining, funny and sweet! It was like a hallmark movie in a book and i really enjoyed that!

Dana and Colin have both suffered a tremendous amount of trauma in the past and are each looking for a new lease on life. Working together on Dana's Wildflower Ranch brings them closer together and helps them heal. Unfortunately, trouble follows Dana and she's going to need all the help she can to survive. I enjoyed this story but thought the constant narrative about farming and growing organic food was distracting.
.

I really wanted to like this one but gave up pretty quickly. The immediate hand outs to the heroine became super redundant and annoying plus unrealistic. Make her work for it or give her the means to supply these things herself. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Two broken people, who have been injured by life and are looking to start anew. Colin served his country but bears scars daily. Dana grew up on a farm and relocated due to past hurts. Both have been enveloped by the community. I liked the huge support base and the tight knit community in the book. There is also danger and Colin has to resurface his training in order to catch the culprits. I liked the energy of the book and the characters. I liked the promise of the relationship between Colin and Dana. It makes one feel positive for the future after reading it.

Strength Under Fire is the first Lindsay McKenna book I've read. The story had potential but failed in many ways.

Things I liked:
The setting. I enjoyed the mountains of Montana, the horses, the farming, the organic farming (even though it might not fit with the area.)

The characters. I liked the internal conflict for both main characters. They fit the story idea even though they weren't well fleshed out. I didn't feel a connection to either character.

The Plot. I enjoyed the plot idea. The idea of a community coming together to help one another was good, but not realistic in the way it was done. I still appreciated the time put in to pull the story line together.

Things I didn't like:
The writing. The writing was so very simplistic and repetitive. Any time the author made a point., she repeated that point several times. It became so annoying. The emotion wasn't realistic and didn't pull me into the story. I read because I had given my word that I would read the book and give a review.

The dialogue was so stilted and awkward. I can't imagine people talking this way. And the internal dialogue was just as bad. It was like reading a beginning author who is just starting to learn, not a multi-published author.

Perhaps McKenna was in a hurry writing this book and rushed every thing too much. There were several details that were wrong, but that could be because this is an advanced copy. The changing elevation drove in the mountains drove me crazy. (You don't get to 9,000 ft. elevation, climb further, and end up at 7.000 ft. elevation.)

I do not enjoy giving a negative review, but this book needs major work. The ideas are good, but the execution is lacking.

I received a copy of Strength Under Fire from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Lindsay McKenna brings us back to Silver Creek, Wyoming. Dana comes to Wyoming and is determined to make Wildflower Ranch her home. Her neighbors and the town are welcoming and are equally determined to help Dana with this. Wrangler Colin is sent to help her out. As they work together on rebuilding the ranch, a friendship is formed. A threat that killed her parents have found her and now that her life is on the line, Colin and the rest of the town will protect one of their own. Will this bring Dana and Colin closer together or will this only scare them to stay apart?

Lindsay McKenna brings us a story of two people who are thrown into a situation where they work together and they not only respect each other, but they also feel a kinship to each other. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I would like to thank NetGalley and Kensington Books for this privilege.

Dana has bought a rundown ranch that she feels can be restored just like she needs to be restored after her parents brutal murder. Colin is a Vet and a loner suffering from PTSD who comes to help her on her ranch. Slowly they become closer. While fixing up an old cabin on the property Dana stumbles onto 4 bags of drug money. Next they are being targeted by a criminal White Supremacist group and Dana gets kidnapped by the drug cartel. Can Colin use his army skills to rescue her?
This is a poignant tale of love between two fragile people combined with a tension filled thriller to add spice. I would recommend this book to my patrons.