Sandy M’s review of Cover Me (Elite Force Series, Book 1) by Catherine Mann
Romantic Suspense published by Sourcebooks Casablanca 1 Jul 11

This is my first Catherine Mann book, and, wow, what a way to start. She’s taken the wilds of Alaska and made them beautiful and horrific at the same time. She’s written two very strong-willed characters who know they can’t tame those wilds but wouldn’t give them up for anything but an undying love. She’s come up with a storyline that’s different from anything else out there, at least that I’ve read. I enjoyed every action-packed moment of Cover Me.

Wade is a pararescueman whose rigorous training takes him a step above a Navy SEAL. He’s on his last training mission when a call comes in for his team to locate and extract lost climbers in the Aleutian Islands. Parachuting through a blizzard, Wade comes face to face with Sunny, the last to be found. Or so he thinks. The more he gets to know this close-mouthed, independent woman, the more he has a feeling something just isn’t right. Now just to find out what that is.

But Sunny has her reasons for being evasive when this handsome military man asks his questions. She’s just handed off a couple who chose to leave their isolated village, a place where folks live off nature and all it has to offer and who can never return once they’ve experienced the rest of civilization. Sunny and her family have lived there for years and she’s happy as can be with the way her life has turned out, all due to her determination and hard work. But that world is about to come crashing down, and thank God Wade is by her side.

When it’s discovered that someone has been manipulating the village and its citizens for years, all for ill-gotten and bone-chilling gains, disbelief wars with a need to keep those she cares about safe, so instead of staying with Wade while the military and law enforcement investigate, Sunny is determined to return home to warn everyone of the danger in their midst. Wade refuses to leave her side, whether she wants him with her or not and despite the fact the woman can take care of herself – in most situations. She and her townspeople have never been up against someone as evil as this villain, who knows just how to get people to do his bidding to further his own selfish needs. I love how he’s eventually taken down, a surprise to him as well, in more ways than one.

The attraction between Wade and Sunny starts early but slowly. They’re drawn to one another because in one sense they’re so much alike, knowing how to survive against the elements, while everything else in their lives are so different from the other. Even so, they complement one another quite well. Sunny has to learn to trust, especially after the awful discoveries in her backyard. I like that Wade doesn’t give up on her, keeps working to build that trust. When they finally do come together, their loving is intense but sweet, and I like that we didn’t have to wait for three-quarters of the book for that to happen. Sometimes sexual tension is taken a little too far, but Ms. Mann does it perfectly here.

The action is done very well, keeping your heart pumping till all is said and done. We meet a number of Wade’s brothers-in-arms. Their teasing and joking within the team is fun, giving us a closer look at those we’ll meet again later. So I’m definitely looking forward to more books in this series.

Grade: B+

Summary:

It should have been a simple mission… Pararescueman Wade Rocha parachutes from the back of a helicopter into a blizzard to save a climber stranded on an Aleutian Island, but Sunny Foster insists she can take care of herself just fine…

But when it comes to passion, nothing is ever simple… With the snowstorm kicking into overdrive, Sunny and Wade hunker down ina  cave and barely resist the urge to keep each other warm… until they discover the frozen remains of a horrific crime…

Unable to trust the shady local police, Sunny and Wade investigate, while their irresistible passion for each other gets them more and more dangerously entangled…

Read an excerpt. (scroll down)