RATING: 8/10 – Brilliant, couldn’t put it down

SUMMARY:

Former Delta Force operator Rhys Sinclair defied the odds by recovering from a traumatic brain injury that should have killed him. Given the chance to repay the beautiful doctor who saved his life by guarding hers, he can’t say no–even if it means facing an unknown threat from the cunning terrorist his CIA-sanctioned team had been hunting in Afghanistan. The catch is, she can’t know about it without blowing their cover. 

Trauma surgeon Neveah Adams is finally putting her life back together after her horrific experience in Afghanistan. Giving the keynote speech at a medical conference in Vancouver is her starting point. With Rhys there to watch over her she feels safe for the first time in months, and her biggest problem is trying to hide her intense feelings for him. 

But Rhys knows something Neveah doesn’t. The terrorist who targeted her in Kabul is coming after her again, and he’s relentless enough to ensure all his past mistakes are erased with one final strike. Now that the nightmare from her past has resurfaced, Neveah has no choice but to put her trust in the one man who has the ability to break her heart, never knowing an assassin is closer than they realise. (Goodreads)

REVIEW:

‘Relentless‘ is the second book in Kaylea Cross’s suspense series that I have read. Having picked up ‘No Turning Back’, book number three in the series, earlier in the year. Each of the books reference the different characters in the other and our two leads for ‘Relentless‘ are Rhys and Nev (Neveah), who were important characters in ‘No Turning Back’. But I still think you could pick this up as a stand-alone novel in its own right, although perhaps having read the former would give you a slightly richer reading experience.

Nev is a doctor and in ‘No Turning Back’ was working to set up a hospital for the poor in Afghanistan, when she and her colleagues were kidnapped by Al Qaeda terrorists. Here she was tortured and suffered a horrendous ordeal until she was rescued by an elite armed forces team. Rhys was one of the soldiers that rescued her, but just as they were trying to escape his vehicle drove over a land mine, setting himself on fire and giving him severe neurological damage. As a doctor on the scene, Nev then saved her rescuer’s life.

‘Relentless‘ takes off as Rhys is finally released from hospital following on from his injuries. But almost as soon as he’s released his his boss calls him to let him know that a terrorist cell has been activated in Vancouver, which also happens to be where Nev is due to give a speech at a medical conference and he knows that he must go to protect her, whether he’s physically ready or not.

Both Rhys and Nev are great characters. They have both suffered both physical and psychological ordeals during their time in Afghanistan, but while this makes them vulnerable, they are both very tough and resilient at the same time.

Rhys has been a solider all of his life, and when he’s not protecting civilians and his fellow soldiers, he is protecting his twin brother Ben. Additionally Cross’s physical description of him, despite his scars, had my mouth watering on several occasions! Rhys believes himself not capable of love and his resolved himself to a single life:

He’d always known he’d spend his life alone. He wasn’t cut out for relationships, let alone one that ended with happily-ever-after.

Which makes the romance all the more sweet, and the romance in this novel really is absolutely captivating, I so wanted Rhys and Nev to come together.

Nev is intelligence, tough and brave. Despite everything that has happened to her she is determined to get on with her life and not let the terrorists win and I couldn’t help but admire her for that.

The plot is a perfect mix of suspense and sizzling romance as Nev and Rhys fall for one another and the terrorist plot unfolds around them. I was impressed with the couple of surprising elements Kaylea Cross managed to throw in that I genuinely didn’t see coming at the end.

VERDICT:

If you’re a fan of romantic suspense, then I would definitely recommend you add Kaylea Cross books to your reading list. I enjoyed this book much more than ‘No Turning Back’ simply because I had some issues with the heroine’s decision making in that book! But this really is a fab read.

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