Average : 2,41 stars

Cruise Control by Kerry Adrienne - 1.5 stars
Blake is an asshole, his change of heart appears from nowhere. Parker is not well-defined.

Resilient Heart by Annabeth Albert - 3,5 stars
Realistic approach all along, that was excellent. Despite being all stated, something didn't work for me when it comes to make me feel the MCs's emotional state, most of all regarding Xander and his medical condition

Arctic Fire by Keira Andrews - 4 stars
Very well written. A fantastic work of immersion in a geographically determining background; the action side was excellent too, even scary.

Storm Out by Brit Blaise - 1 star
Bad to the max.

Civilian Master by Cassandra Carr - 1,5 stars
It would have been sort of more tolerable without so many «holy moly» internal thoughts to set what was obvious.

His Guarded Heart by Lia Davis - 1.5 stars
It was so rushed that I couldn't believe the story.

Hometown Hero by Sasha Devlin - 2,5 stars
This light comedy was nice, specially after three fiascoes.

Blood & Peyote by Rhi Etzweiler - 2 stars
Tiring as a result of an overdose of mystic melange.

Desert Heat by Lucy Felthouse - 2 stars
I didn't buy too much the CO's willingness in the event of the risks that interpreters confront; the same with the implied easiness to move between countries for Balkhi.

The Houseboy: Initiation by Amelia C. Gormley - No rating
Not my kinks at all; hence, no rating.

The Only One Who Cares by Cat Grant - 3 stars
This is the last of a trilogy, and I have not yet read the two previous books. Even so the story is well structured and, although there're hints to said books, it admits to be read as stand-alone.

Irresistible Forces by EM Lynley - 3 stars
The reconnection between the MCs, after six years, is too smooth. Besides, the last part was very mushy to be about soldiers and considering my low tolerance for purple prose, that influenced on my rating a lot.

Flight Risk by L.A. Witt - 3,5 stars
Sexy and emotional, with very interesting MCs and an even more interesting conflict core, even if the lack of alternatives for Aaron was exaggerated. -there're alternative therapies to painkillers such like chiropractic, acupuncture et al-. Obviously that lack sustains the plot, but that omission in a allegedly realistic story is no mean feat. ( )

A copy of this book was received by the authors in exchange for an honest review

HOLY COW!!!! First of all, this book is a MONSTER! Approximately 900 pages is HUGE. And yet? I wanted more! Some of the stories just made me want to know more about the characters and want it to keep going. Just the mere volume of writing, along with the great quality of writing, is worth the price. They could have gotten away with charging a lot more for this. It is such a great value!

As for the work itself, like any anthology, some stories were better than others, but they were all pretty dang good with some stories just downright amazing. So many topics were covered: active duty soldiers, retired soldiers, PTSD, injuries, reacclimation to civilian life, Afghanistan, the Arctic, in the closet, out and married. It was so nice to see so many different aspects of romance in the military world.

Cruise Control by Kerry Adrienne--I really enjoyed this story about Blake (a retired soldier) and Parker (a mechanic). They wouldn't likely meet in ordinary circumstances but being thrust together and helping each other out led to a nice friendship and eventual relationship. It was a sweet start to the book.

Resilient Heart by Annabeth Albert--Such a heartbreaking story with PTSD as a major theme. Xander thinks that Mackey, his friend with benefits, is only there to help him out of pity and Xander is not handling his injury and return home very well. Xander's struggle was well written and made my heart break for him.

Arctic Fire by Keira Andrews--A story in the Arctic? So cool! I hadn't read one with that setting before so this felt fresh and new to me. Captain Jack goes out to scope out an area in the Arctic and has a great connection with his tour guide, Kin. I do wish I had more with this couple and more of an epilogue to know how they were able to make everything work (Kin is in the closet at home).

Storm Out by Brit Blaise--This story had a lot of promise but I was disappointed in how it ended. Sam (a tour guide) and Cowboy (a soldier who is on forced leave) meet when Sam is left in a snow storm by poachers and luckily comes across Cowboy's tent. The story takes them back to where Cowboy lives and eventually travels to find the poachers where they live. Cowboy is struggling to figure out what he is going to do for his future. The story ends rather questionably. Do they stay together? I have no idea. But we are told that they have a cameo in a different book...a m/f romance book that I am not likely going to read, so I am disappointed in not having a follow up on them.

Civilian Master by Cassandra Carr--Ahhh--Clay and Flynn. Former best friends who had the hots for each other in high school but never said anything because they didn't want to lose their friendship. Clay then goes into the Army and loses touch. A few years later, Clay comes home and decides he wants to try the Dom/sub scene and who does he find? His dream Dom, Flynn. They were so great together. I really enjoyed this story.

His Guarded Heart by Lia Davis--I admit that I ended this story liking Senator Beau and Agent Judd together...but I had a hard time understanding how the heck they ended up together in the end. Judd claims that he had never been able to stand the Senator but 10 minutes in the same room with him and all of a sudden he can't live without him. The story moved too fast to be believable.

Hometown Hero by Sasha Devlin--JJ has had a crush on his best friend's brother, Colin, for years. He picks him up from the airport after returning home from war and they finally connect. I liked these two together. JJ's insecurities made him adorable and Colin was a likable character. I would love to see more of these guys together.

Blood & Peyote bu Rhi Etzweiler--Apisi and Char were buddies who were separated when Char asked for space. Char has been in a bad place but didn't want to bring Apisi down. Realizing that Apisi could be what he needed and then working to bring that together was nice.

Desert Heat by Lucy Felthouse--Hugh is in Afghanistan and meets an interpreter, Rustam, who knocks his socks off. It was a cute story of two guys meeting in a place where not much great happens and being able to make something grow from it. It was nice to hear something good in Afghanistan, even if there was awful stuff (war) mixed in.

The Houseboy: Initiation by Amelia C. Gormley I admit that this one was not my cup of tea. It was a story of Bryce, an 18 year old virgin who needs a place to live. He finds a place living with a retired veteran, Vale, who agrees to help him pay for school and room/board with no sex until he finishes college. Bryce finds Vale's erotic books and makes note of all the things he wants to try (bareback, BDSM, gang bang). Vale decides that rather than have Bryce go out and find it with idiots, he will arrange for it to happen for him. So far so good, but I just felt that it went a little too far over the top for me. It was totally hot, but the further it went, the more I got turned off by it.

The Only One Who Cares by Cat Grant--David and Josh are a married couple who used to serve together. David is out due to an injury and working towards getting his degree in psychology to be a therapist, Josh is still active duty. There was a lot to this story and it was FABULOUS! This one had me in tears at one point and was so beautiful. Loved this one.

Irresistable Forces by EM Lynley--Another story I absolutely loved. Logan and Brody were training buddies years ago who had a chemistry and desire to be together but never acted on it. They then went their separate ways. They come together again when Brody's Special Forces team is brought in to rescue some soldiers who were captured. Logan ends up being the sole survivor of the captured group and they rekindle their friendship. This story had some touching moments and made me want more of these guys.

Flight Risk by LA Witt--Wow. Another interesting topic. Aaron and Bennett are Fighter Pilots and Aaron hurt his back and has constant pain. This was a story of two friends/co-workers who finally come together to have one night, but then Aaron has difficulty advancing any relationship because everyone leaves because his pain is so bad. So sweet. Loved this one too.

See? Amazing stories. Definitely a 5 star read all together. I would definitely recommend taking your time to read this and absorb the individual stories. It is very much worth it.

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