Running Wild by Linda Howard and Linda Jones

Title: Running Wild
Author: Linda Howard and Linda Jones
Series: #1 in the Men From Battle Ridge series
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Publisher: Ballantine Books (November 27, 2012)
Source: NetGalley
Rating: ☕☕☕☕

Synopsis: In book 1 of this steamy new contemporary Western romance series by two blockbuster authors, a cowboy and a woman on the run take a stand and fight for love.

Carlin Reed lives in fear, off the grid, moving from place to place. So Battle Ridge, Wyoming, a small town in the middle of nowhere, seems like a good place to lie low for a while. But after becoming cook and housekeeper to cattle rancher Zeke Decker, Carlin suspects that she’s made her first mistake. Rugged, sexy, and too distracting for his own good, Zeke is pure temptation mixed with something deep and primal that makes Carlin feel almost safe. Soon things are getting way too hot in the kitchen.

Zeke doesn’t challenge Carlin’s terms: cash, dead bolts, and no questions. It is easy to see that she’s a woman in trouble. Problem is, he’s so blindsided by his attraction to her he can’t think straight. Zeke tries to stay all business, no complications—but that game plan is sabotaged the second Carlin gets under his skin. And when her terrifying past follows her to the ranch, Carlin faces a heartbreaking choice: run away from the man she loves, or put him in the crosshairs of a madman.

My Thoughts: A really great contemporary romance with ok romantic suspense elements.

The Good, The Bad, and Everything Else: So what I really loved about this book was the honest romance that took it's time to blossom between Zeke and Carlin. Both Zeke's and Carlin's characters are pretty great and their banter between each other and with the secondary characters were highlights of the story. I did like the suspense aspect of the story but wish it would have more prominent in the middle of the story. The book started out so good with Carlin's stalker hunting her down. The climax of that plot thread was really well done as well. The middle lacked much in the way of the suspense. However, the good romance that built throughout the middle almost made up for it.

In a Nutshell: I really liked this book a lot and wish there was a second book already out in the series. Not sure when there will be a second book in the Battle Ridge series but since it's been so many years since the first one came out a new one doesn't look like it's coming, unfortunately.