Deserving Reese by Susan Stoker

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

He never expected to fall for his best friend’s sister, but now that he has…he’ll do whatever it takes to keep her safe.

Having a crush on one of your brother’s friends is so cliché. But Reese Woodall isn’t too worried…it’s not as if she’d ever have a chance with the former Delta Force operative. For one thing, he lives in New Mexico, and she’s in Missouri. For another, since Woody and his team chaptered out of the Army several years ago, she hasn’t seen Gus even once. She’s free to lust after him from afar…but with her brother currently missing, Reese has far more important things to worry about.

Gus “Spike” Fowler doesn’t think twice before heading to South America when he learns his old Army buddy has disappeared—and his younger sister has gone to Colombia to find him. Though he hasn’t thought much about Reese in the last five years, he certainly remembers her. The curvy, sexy, stubborn engineer is hard to forget. He liked what he saw years ago. And now? After she surprises him in the best way during a high-stakes bid to rescue Woody from a drug cartel? He likes her even more.

Safely back at the Refuge, the sparks Reese and Spike experienced in Colombia quickly ignite, and they both find everything they’ve ever wanted in a partner. But they might lose it just as quickly…when the trouble they escaped in South America crosses the border.

Deserving Reese

A High Stakes Rescue and a Hard Won Romance

The following ratings are out of 5:
Romance: 💙💛💚❤️🤎
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️
Chemistry: 🧪🧪🧪🧪
Story/Plot: 📕📗📘
World building: 🌏🌍🌎🌏
Character development: 😋🙂😁
Narrator(s): 🎙🎙🎙🎙🎙
Narration type: Dual Narration

Character Backgrounds and Plot Summary

One thing I have really enjoyed about The Refuge series is that every book gives a different kind of heroine, and Reese Woodall stood out immediately. When her brother Woody disappears in Colombia while looking for a woman named Isabella who was a translator he worked with but hadn’t been able to forget, Reese refuses to wait for someone else to save Woody. She books a flight and heads straight into cartel territory herself. Reece met Gus Fowler years ago because he and Woody were Army buddies who were in Delta Force together, she has had a crush on Spike ever since.

Of course, Gus “Spike” Fowler is horrified when he learns that Woody had disappeared and Reese went after him. He has known Reese for years, mostly as Woody’s beautiful little sister, but following her to Colombia forces him to see her as the brave, stubborn, capable woman she’s become. Their search for Woody puts them in one dangerous situation after another, from dealing with unreliable contacts to trying to stay one step ahead of cartel members who have no problem eliminating witnesses. I especially liked that Reese wasn’t simply along for the ride. She contributed to the search, made difficult decisions under pressure, and proved more than once that she wasn’t someone who needed rescuing every five minutes.

Highlights and Limitations

The rescue mission gave this book a much faster pace than the previous books in the series. Once Reese arrives in Colombia, the tension rarely lets up. I found myself completely invested in every lead they followed because it always felt like they were racing against time before Woody disappeared for good.

One of my favorite moments came when Spike finally admitted that his feelings for Reese had been changing long before this mission and that he had been thinking of her on and off for years. Because they already knew each other through Woody, the romance had a believable foundation instead of feeling like instant love. I also appreciated how protective Spike was without constantly dismissing Reese’s abilities. There were several moments where he clearly wanted to lock her somewhere safe, but he also recognized that telling Reese what she could or couldn’t do was never going to work.

The scenes involving Woody were surprisingly emotional. Even though he isn’t present for much of the story, the loyalty between the former soldiers and the lengths they were willing to go to bring one of their own home, added real weight to the plot.

If I had one complaint, it would be that Reese is a curvy girl. I hate books where the heroine is a BBW because like this one, the character is often thinking about how overweight she is and denigrating herself because of it. I like books where the weight of the woman is a non-issue. I don’t mind the heroine being curvy, if it isn’t mentioned or she isn’t self-conscious about her weight. The Hero is always muscular and without any extra weight so why does the heroine have to be? Though I do like the fact that Gus likes women with a bit extra weight.

Narration

This audiobook had an excellent cast. Maxine Mitchell gave Reese exactly the determination and vulnerability I imagined while reading. She made Reese sound intelligent and fearless without losing the emotional moments when the fear of losing Woody became overwhelming.

Teddy Hamilton was a perfect choice for Spike. His calm, confident delivery fit someone used to taking charge during military operations, but he also softened his performance during the more personal scenes. That balance made Spike feel protective rather than overbearing.

Gregory Salinas rounded out the production nicely with the supporting male voices. Together, the three narrators kept the suspense high during the action scenes while still giving the emotional conversations room to breathe. I never found myself distracted by the narration, which is exactly what I want in an audiobook.

Final Opinion

This was probably the most action heavy book in The Refuge series so far, and I really enjoyed that change of pace. The combination of a dangerous international rescue mission, cartel threats, and a friends-to-lovers romance kept me hooked from beginning to end. I also liked that Reese never became a passive heroine. Even when Spike wanted to protect her, she continued proving she belonged right beside him.

For me, the rescue mission was the biggest highlight because every success felt earned, and the emotional payoff surrounding Woody made the journey worthwhile. If you enjoy romantic suspense with capable characters, military teamwork, and enough danger to keep your heart racing, this audiobook is an easy recommendation.

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