Okay, okay, I was going to lose it with this book... I liked it well enough in the beginning, I suppose. But!!! A pet peeve of mine?! Is when the heroine scoffs at the mindset of a military man and has a disdain for the very things that make him a good soldier, the fact that he would use a gun to protect the innocent. I highly dislike when a woman is so... Stupid, I suppose is a word to use when she thinks all military men are killers and bring violence. It's just sheesh stupidity to think that especially when faced with warlords and such overseas. So, yeah... I did not like the start of the book and that took a good bit off of the rating.

Updating on what I've already written... I did not finish. I can't I'm not sorry (sorry. ;)) and I do not understand the hype around this book.

I regret requesting to review the second one and I am not sure how my review of it is going but after about 25% of this book and my attention not staying on what I'm reading, content that is seriously annoying the heck out of me, and the just.... UGH, wrong mindset from the heroine, whose-name-i-don't-remember, I just couldn't do it, so I checked other reviews and none of them encouraged me personally to finish reading this one.

I honestly, and I am sorry here, don't understand how it was published from Revell with the slow pace, repetitive thoughts, and the lack of spark between the lead characters in what is supposed to be a romance, I also found the lack of faith and just prayers thrown with great whining to be quite enough that I wouldn't read Mrs. Bridgeman's books again if I didn't have the second book to review.

This was quite a disappointing read, sadly.

I must admit. The Christian thread of this book influenced the rating I gave. But if I did not enjoy the book so much and/or did not learn a lot from it, then it would not have received the stars. I do not usually read books about our military, but the high ratings it garnered made me give it a try. I am glad I did. The story seemed realistic. The mission, motives, and mindset of all the characters set the tone for all the action and banter amongst the characters. The thinking processes of the hero and heroine made for good explanations of all the plots. I will read a story by this author again. ( )

Honor Bound is the first book in Hallee Bridgeman‘s Love And Honor series. I read book 3 first, but I don’t recommend that. 😉 The series features a Green Beret unit assigned to very special operations, including exfiltrations (getting good guys away from bad guys). In Honor Bound, the reader is introduced to the whole squad with lots of backstory for those who will have their own book later. I never felt overwhelmed by the many characters or their life details. It is all presented so naturally. Book one features unit leader Rick and a very important doctor who does not want to be rescued. Set in a fictional African nation, you get jungle and terrorists. The first half of the book is intense, as the group seeks to exit the jungle alive. The second half of the book is set in the US as the two main characters navigate their budding relationship. I really liked this. It is very different from most romantic suspense novels where danger follows the characters up to the end. It actually makes a lot of sense and allows the romance to develop, or not, in a natural way, not influenced by adrenaline. There are, as expected, ups and downs for the two, but it isn’t really a spoiler to say there is a happily-ever-after. This is Christian romance after all.

I expect my book club to like Honor Bound. It ticks all the boxes we look for — interesting story and setting, a faith message that is natural and not preachy, and a good bit of action. I think they are really going to like the fresh storytelling. For myself, I give it a recommended rating.

Recommended.

Audience: Adults.

(I received a complimentary copy from NetGalley. All opinions expressed are mine alone.) ( )

This was the 1st in a series and I can’t wait to read the others! It has romance, action, and all that comes with both. It in nonstop, action-packed excitement. It is also a Christian fiction book that expertly weaves the word of God into the lives of the characters. Cynthia and Rick have their ups and downs but begin to understand and respect one another. I highly recommend this book. ( )

Honor Bound was pretty good. I think this is the first book I've read about a medical missionary, and I liked the romance trope of enemies to friends.

Dr. Cynthia honestly seemed a bit spoiled at first, but her character developed better as the story went on.
You could tell she truly cared about her patients and loved doing a job that made a difference.

Rick was a nice character. Who wouldn't love a tough but kind soldier with a heart of gold? He was a good example of a servant leader.

His fellow soldiers were a hoot to read about, especially their team nicknames such as Sanders, Drumstick and Pot Pie. And Team Daddy was pretty snicker-worthy.

There is so much Army lingo though in the very beginning, and it made for a super slow start to the story.

Negative Elements-
A character later on in the book refers to Rick as sounding "very se*y".
So inappropriate. I'll fix this with a dab of white-out, and that'll take care of it as this was the only language issue.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this e-book. A positive review was not required of me, and the thoughts above are my own. ( )