REVIEW: Fractured Honor by Kaylea Cross

Sammy’s review of Fractured Honor (Crimson Point Series, Book 1) by Kaylea Cross
Romantic Suspense published by Kaylea Cross Inc. 25 Sep 18

I have fallen down the Kaylea Cross book hole. Boy, am I a happy reader. After finishing this book, I wanted to locate Crimson Point and take up residence. This hit all my reader buttons. Angsty, but not too angsty. Small town living, retired military men, with the added bonus of a hot Sheriff. Beautiful cottages and Victorian houses littered among the cliffs with the ocean as a backdrop. Throw in a character out for revenge and we have an edge-of-your-seat setting.  Yep, book nip for this reviewer.

SF Captain Beckett Hollister is on a mission. It’s a mission that would break even the toughest of the tough. It’s during this scene where he decides he needs to get out. The horrible things he’s had to do and witness has taken its toll on this hardened soldier. He goes home during Thanksgiving  to see his dad, who is dying from cancer, and drops by to see Noah Buchanan, his childhood friend. Beck is like the adopted son, and when Sierra answers the door, he’s having a hard time with the woman standing in front of him versus the little girl who annoyed him in their youth. He tells everyone he has three months left on his tour and then he’s out to take over his father’s business. Sierra and Beck are very aware of each other.

Sierra Buchanan is the town vet, and after dumping her fiance she moved back to Crimson Point to be near her family. She has the hots for Beck, but she also knows that Beck would be worried about her brother and her family. Thank goodness Sierra doesn’t worry about it. Sierra meets up with her good friend Molly, who is married to one of Beck’s teammates who is out of the military due to an IED explosion that has greatly impacted his brain. Carter and Molly are having issues and Molly begins to open up to Sierra.

We move forward to Beck being home and carving out a place for himself as a civilian. Thankfully, Beck has a group of great people surrounding him. His dad is in the hospital. Beck is taking over the family business that restores old homes in Crimson Point. He’s dealing with Carter and his blowups, and then we have an unknown person watching his every move, hell-bent on revenge. Beck comes home to find his six-year-old neighbor Ella on his porch. Beck’s wondering why Tiana, Ella’s mom, is alone, and finds her writing up a list to adopt a senior dog named Walter that she found. Beck is dragged into her scheme and, fortunately for the both of them, he adopts Walter and takes him to see the resident vet.

Beck and Sierra are getting to know each other as adults. Okay, Sierra is in love with Beckett and eventually Beck will admit he loves her too. There’s a lot of stuff going on with Carter and Molly that’s heartbreaking. Ella has something huge going on as well and Beck is keeping all the balls in the air. Beck has to fire Carter, which really makes things harder. With the help of Jase and a call-out to his Scottish buddy, hopefully he can get things back on track. Beck spends a lot of time with Sierra and things start to heat up. A big revelation about why Ella goes to Beck’s house. Everything comes to a boil, especially when his past meets up with his present.

Sierra and Beck are off-the-charts good together. When things turn steamy, he shows her he’s very alpha in the bedroom. Sierra will not leave his side when tragedy strikes. These scenes are heartbreaking and beautiful all at once. It’s in the hospital when Noah finds out what’s been going on between his sister and Beck, and, thankfully, there are no hard feelings and Noah just tells him he better not hurt her. I love the grown-up approach to a sticky situation. Sierra and Beck settle in to a nice romance when his past catches up. Sierra is in danger and Beck will stop at nothing to protect her.

Beck is struggling, but with his friends and the love of Sierra, it helps him immensely. This was a great book and I am glad I picked it from my huge TBR pile. When I was done reading, I moved onto Buried Lies, which is Noah and Poppy’s book, and I am happy to report that it is just as good as the first. I hope you take a chance. Family, friends, new love, heartbreak, senior dogs, cute kid, hot sex, scary suspense, and a cast of characters that you feel are part of your life when you’re through.

Grade: B+

Summary:

An elite warrior struggling to find his place in the civilian world.

Weary from his years on the battlefield, SF Captain Beckett Hollister has returned home to Crimson Point to take over the family business for his dying father. But adjusting to life outside the military is harder than he imagined, and being back home forces him to confront things he’d rather not face. Including the one woman he shouldn’t want and can’t have—his best friend’s little sister.

A love that was always meant to be.

Town vet Sierra Buchanan has known Beckett her entire life. She’s crushed on him for years, but because of his relationship with her family, the stubborn man refuses to see her as more than the girl he grew up with. As tragedy brings them together, neither of them realizes that the sins of Beckett’s past have come home to haunt him. When Sierra becomes the target of his unforeseen enemy, Beckett must vanquish his demons to save her.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series: