Actual rating is 3.5 stars.

May I just say that Sabrina is a breath of fresh air. It's always nice when level headed, capable women are featured in a romance novel instead of the useless twits or the smart-until-it-suits-the-storyline-for-her-to-be-stupid women. I feel like it's such a disservice to women to constantly have TSTL heroines who need a 'strong man' to save them. How about no. Sabrina is the answer. And I appreciate that.

Speaking of Sabrina, this ex-military girl is smart, capable, confident in herself, knows what she wants, and adorably sassy. She's got a bit of a mouth on her and a chip on her shoulder. She's out to prove to herself and the world that she is back and capable of everything she was before.

Connor made less of a positive impression on me. May have been a bit of the point though. Ex-SEAL, Connor was discharged after something somewhere went sideways. He decided to make his living doing search and rescue, living in the mountains and mostly ignoring the outside world. That is until the real world reality comes to crash his party by bringing up the past. Never mind the fact that a hot capable lady just appears and intends to save HIM from a hitman on the mountain.

So what did I think?

I think I had a bit of trouble getting through all the walking and talking they were doing before they figured out what the hitman was trying to do. It's about 46% of the book. They walk, they talk. Yes they get to know each other a little bit, and yes they get a mostly solid theory on what is going on and how many they might be up against, but honestly? It was a lot of walking. Sabrina's smart mouth was mostly the only thing that held it together for me. Once you actually get into the action though, it's a pretty good time.

This is apparently the third book in the series, so at some point I will have to go back and read the others. You can, however, read this as a standalone. The author does a pretty good job of giving you some of the threads you need from the previous books in order to fully understand what is happening in this one fully. I quite enjoyed this one and I hope the others have equally strong, capable and compelling women in them.

Sabrina is undercover and on the trail of a hitman and manages to run into Connor Lindstrom who is also after the target when they soon realize they might be getting hunted themselves.

To be honest there was alot of confusion going around the place for me. Sometimes I was on and off again of what was going on but what I did like was the presence of being hunted and when the person might strike. There was so much at stake and it was hard to figure out who they can trust after all thats happen but I will say there was never really a dull moment. This book kept me hooked even if at times I found it hard to follow but it was overall an enjoyable read.

Thrilling romance, edge of your seat action!

Connor and Sabrina have to fight each other, the harsh elements, and a murderous conspiracy in about a week's time before they find their future together. I loved Sabrina's take-no-prisoners attitude and found her more than a challenging match for Connor, who was probably the only man strong enough to successfully stand up to her when she needed it.

The action starts strong and never lets up, and the connect-the-dots flow of the investigation was beautifully paced throughout the book. I loved getting to know the North Star operatives, and couldn't be more pleased with the way the HEA came about.

A small content note: even though there are too many murder attempts to count, no one dies in this story. If you're afraid of a high body count, don't worry here. If you still want to see lots of intense action with plenty of life-threatening attacks, you won't be disappointed.

I was enthralled with this story from start to finish, and I highly recommend it for anyone who loves sensual and suspenseful romances. I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.

This is a Romantic Suspense, and this is the third book in the North Star Novel Series. This book is action pack with a lot of suspense with some instant love/romance. I really loved the characters in this book. I love the action in this book as well. I saw some of the twists coming in this book. This book pull me into this story from the beginning and kept me wanting to keep read. Great read. I was kindly provided an e-copy of this book by the publisher (Harlequin Intrigue) or author (Nicole Helm) via NetGalley, so I can give an honest review about how I feel about this book. I want to send a big Thank you to them for that. This book is schedule to be release on November 30-2021.

I've never made it a secret that I love Nicole Helm's Intrigues, and Mountainside Murder has kept that streak alive. What I like about Nicole's series is the consistency of the writing coupled with the diverse personalities of the characters. While you have met all the characters in previous books in the series, you only get a tiny taste of who they are until their book comes due and then, Nicole opens that character's heart and soul to the reader; the good, the bad, and the ugly. In the case of Sabrina, she's got a smart mouth, a chip on her shoulder, and a fighter's mentality, but she's also a brilliant operative who isn't afraid to take chances to complete her mission. The ugly side of Sabrina is something she never suspected could be tamed until she came up against a guy living with the same ghosts she had.

Connor was an ex-Navy SEAL turned search and rescue who liked living off the grid in a cabin on the Tetons. He could be anonymous there and do his work without being bothered by the real world unless he wanted to be. What he didn't know was the real world wanted to bother him by way of reminding him of why he was discharged from the SEALS and who might be responsible for it. He just wasn't expecting a sassy ex-military woman to be the one to come to HIS rescue.

When North Star moves in on the hitmen, they go to desperate measures to obtain what they need from Connor. The problem is, Connor doesn't have it. What he does have is a woman willing to fight for him because that is her mission, but also because she is drawn to him like a moth to a flame. Connor isn't faring any better when it comes to holding Sabrina at arm's length, so he stops trying.

When push comes to shove, Sabrina, Connor, and all of North Star must decide how far they will go to save one of their own and one who isn't theirs but is the love of one of their own. Tempers flare hot, jealousy is rampant, lies are abundant, and nothing is as it seems. When bullets fly with deadly accuracy, Connor has to decide if he's going to put it all on the line for love or play it safe with his heart.

Once again, Nicole has written two perfectly balanced characters who apart are all hard angles, but together, can both reach beyond themselves for the bigger picture. A well-written, fast, often laugh-out-loud Intrigue that will give you all the urgency of the mystery that needs to be solved and all the feels of a new love trying to take flight under desperate circumstances.

This is part of a series but I have only read this one and I don’t feel as I missed out. I love snarky MCs and suspense and this one was well balanced between the relationship/romance developing and the mystery.

I also liked that heroine was not a useless twit who constantly needed saving. 😉

I was kindly provided a free copy by NetGalley, publishers and author for an honest review and I want to thank them very much.