Scary -- the one word that aptly describes the opening
scenes in MONTANA HEAT: ESCAPE TO YOU -- the second book of
the Montana
Heat series by Jennifer Ryan.
It's all about looks as in what does normal look like.
Perception is what television and the movies are all about.
And in MONTANA HEAT: ESCAPE TO YOU we quickly and
alarmingly learn that what you see isn't what you get.
Sadly that is the rude awakening for movie star Ashley
Swann who often appeared on the television show After
Midnight hosted by Brice Mooney.
To their mutual fans these two appeared to share a deep
friendship and probably many thought more. Despite their
vast age difference they were a likeable couple -- although
not really one -- at least in one of their minds. The mind
is a powerful weapon -- for good or evil and a sick one can
become violent and controlling. Brice as it turned out is a
sadistic beast who was fixated on Ashley.
So when Ashley seemingly disappeared a year ago the buzz
was all over the place with possibilities. But no one
expected the truth. Brice had her prisoner. His goal was to
make Ashley his. In truth it was her character Aurora he
wanted and he was willing to do anything to have her.
Sick -- depraved -- violent -- scary and Ashley realized her
death was imminent. Finally though luck was on her side and
using this one last opportunity she ran. And she took four
year old Adam, Brice's other hostage with her temporarily
saving them both from the fate of many before.
Beck -- Trigger -- Cooke as an undercover DEA agent thought
he knew a lot about human depravity. Still recovering from
wounds both mental and physical Beck had retreated to the
seclusion of his property in part to decide what his future
held. Then he finds Ashley and Adam.
Ashley's first words of He Can't Find Me, along with the
physical signs of abuse told Beck everything he needed to
know. First feed and warm them. Second help Adam and Ashley
recover from their bruises. And third protect them with his
life. No doubt about it. Beck was not going to put these
two people in peril again. Not on his watch.
Beck -- Trigger knew what it meant to have a target on your
back. He lived with those fears daily. Now it seems he has
to put his own worries on a back burner. The world can't
know about Ashley until he has figured out just who
tormented her, why and how to prevent him from ever getting
his hands on either Ashley or Adam again. Ashley has trust
issues needless to say. But this larger than life cop seems
to be the real deal. Could it be time to relax her
defenses? Can she really depend on this stranger to keep
both Adam and her safe from what she knows is a totally
demented man. Only time can tell and Ashley isn't certain
that time is on her side. The only thing between Ashley and
Brice right now is a blizzard and a DEA agent. Both
candidly unknowns.
First off -- great story with so much going on you just
can't close the book. ESCAPE TO YOU keeps you enthralled
from page one to the ending -- clearly Jennifer Ryan had a
great time constructing this story. And Ryan incorporated
some wonderful characters from Protected By Love the
novella that introduced this series. Who knew that Jennifer
Ryan could conjure up some of the craziest characters? Now we
do.
He discovered her during a Montana blizzard, freezing cold,
impossibly vulnerable, a little boy by her side. Undercover
DEA Agent Beck “Trigger” Cooke is astonished to recognize
Ashley Swan—award-winning actress, famous beauty—and missing
for over a year. To keep her and the child hidden from a
sadistic madman, he secrets the pair away to his isolated home.
No longer a prisoner, and protected at Hope Ranch, Ashley
recovers and learns the tall, tempting federal agent may
have a dark past, but it hasn’t destroyed his sense of honor.
As they shed past roles and find common ground, Ashley and
Trigger can’t help but fall slowly, carefully, in love. But
danger still lurks outside the boundaries of Hope Ranch, for
until her crazed captor is brought to justice, and Trigger’s
undercover past is laid to rest, none of them will ever be
truly safe…