3.5/5.0

The premise and overall storyline in this romantic suspense was unique and enjoyable. I loved that Harlow was a chef for a woman's shelter, that she loved her job and seemed to be more of an "every-woman." I love that Black saw all the goodness that is in Harlow was attracted to it and pursued that attraction.

I just never did feel any depth in the story. It read,at least for me, as a great surface-only book... a great story but with no real depth. That may be because it is the fourth in the series but the first I have read. Even still, though, the situations, people and suspense never really sunk in to "experience it" level.

This is book four in the Mountain Mercenaries series and can be read as a stand-alone. The series does not contain an ongoing plot arc to which the reader needs to be aware. The narrative is straightforward and typical for the genre. The characters served their purpose but those looking for a deep connection may feel slighted. There is intermediate level of tension rather than suspense throughout the novel. This may be due to the slower pace and the procrastination of major events. Overall, it felt anticlimactic and predictable.

Thank you to #NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

DEFENDING HARLOW by Susan Stoker. Well, what can I say? Ms. Stoker sure has a knack for writing tales with strong alpha Heroes and, independent heroines, that need a little help once in a while from those strong Heroes. Harlow and Lowell, a/k/a Black, have reconnected and their connection is evident. Harlow, having had many, many horrible dates, has sworn off dating. Lowell, being the smart and suave character he is, manages to slip under her defenses without her even realizing it. I loved it! His "non-dates" were awesome! Of course, it wouldn't be a Susan Stoker story without danger and there is that too. I did feel the danger wasn't at quite the same level as some of her other stories, but Lowell and Harlow made up for it tenfold. Cannot wait for Ball's story next (fingers crossed)! (received ARC for honest review)

I read ARCs of the other books in this series and I loved the first three books a lot, so I was excited when I heard about this book releasing! I then received an ARC and made it my next read because the synopsis sounded amazing! After reading this book, I have to say that I loved it a lot! The plot had me hooked right from the first chapter and I had a hard time putting it down! This meant that this book only took me a few sittings to read! The plot had plenty of romance in it and the romance allowed for some very sweet and hot scenes! There was some action and suspense too, which added a lot to the plot! There wasn't as much action and suspense as there have been in other books in this series, but there were a few heart stopping moments! The characters were also amazing and made this book even better! Harlow was the main female character, and I can't remember if she made appearance in the third book in this series, but I think she did! I loved Harlow in this book! She was very sweet and it was easy to see how much she cared about the women and children in the women's shelter! Harlow was also easy for me to connect with and she was grew a lot in this book and put herself in danger to protect others! Lowell “Black” was the main male character and love interest of Harlow! I loved Black in the other books in this series, so I was really excited to read his story! Black was such an amazing guy in this book! He was such a gentleman and I loved the way he was with Harlow! He was protective of her and challenged her to do things that she wouldn't normally do! Black also worked hard and he did work a dangerous job, but he did it because he wanted to look after others and help them! This made me have a lot of respect for him! I loved that this book was written from both Harlow and Black's point of views! I was expecting this because the other books in this series have been written from dual point of view, so I'm really happy that this book was too! It helped me connect more with both Harlow and Black and understand them more! It allowed for more things to happen in the plot too, especially as both characters didn't spend every minute of the book together and were going through their own situations! This book was also written in third person, which I normally don't like, but this author's books are so good that I've been able to read quite a few of her books without any problems, which makes me so happy! I'm assuming that there's going to be another book in this series because of the ending of this book! I can't wait to read it! I can't find any information on the next book on Amazon or Goodreads, but I hope that it releases soon! I still have quite a few of this author's other books to read though, so I have plenty to keep me busy until the next book in this series! The cover for this book is also seriously hot! I love how well it matches the covers of the other books and it would definitely draw me to it if I didn't recognise the author's name! The cover model is also the perfect Black! Big thank you to Susan, Montlake Romance and Netgalley for an ARC of Defending Harlow!