When the newest title, Acceptable Risk, became available on NetGalley, I knew I needed to get my hands on a copy! Without giving away too much of the storyline, the series is lauded as {clean} romantic suspense. Each title is packed with intrigue, twists, turns, conspiracies, and cover-ups that just keep coming – these are non-stop fast-paced works of fiction. Beyond that though, the character work is superb. Flawed, courageous characters lead the charge for justice and truth and along the way, find some romance.

I’m not a big fan of military-themed novels on the whole, for no other reason than it just isn’t my thing – but Eason creates such a fantastic fictional world with each page that you can’t help but be drawn into the drama and the mystery as it unfolds. The layers and risks of each step in the journey are balanced with easy to read dialogue, well-crafted backdrops, and heart-pounding action. The lead characters are complex and each has a rich history that entangles in a strong, gritty, emotional read dealing with difficult, but real, issues such as PTSD, suicide, family tragedy, and reconciliation. I can’t wait to dive into the next title in the series to see where the author takes us next. My recommendation is to get your hands on your own copy of each for yourself!

My thanks to the publisher for a complimentary ARC of this title via NetGalley. Opinions are my own.

Acceptable Risk
by Lynette Eason
Revell
Christian
Pub Date 04 Aug 2020



I am reviewing a copy of Acceptable Risk through Revell and Netgalley:




Sarah Denning a Military Journalist is with the Army in the Middle East when her convoy is attacked and they are taken hostage. After Army ranger Gavin Black is asked by his old unit commander (who also happens to be Sarah’s imposing Father, ) is asked to do an extremely dangerous rescue mission, Gavin reluctantly agrees and is thankfully able to successfully execute the plan.








After she is Back in the U.S, Sarah becomes livid after being discharged from the army based on a false psychiatric evaluation, she vows that she will return to the army. But after learning of her brothers suspicious suicide a suicide she knows her brother is not capable of she puts her plans on hold and enlists Gavin’s help to find out what really happened to her brother. What Gavin and Sarah uncover could be the biggest story of Sarah’s career, that is if she survives long enough to write it.





If you are looking for a fast paced, nail biting, thrill ride, you can’t go with Lynette Eason’s Acceptable Risk.



I give this book five out of five stars!



Happy Reading!

The second book in the Danger Never Sleep series which follows Sarah Denning and Gavin Black, who were side characters in Collateral Damage. I adored them in book one, so I went into this book extremely excited and it did not disappoint me at all! I adored this book to pieces!

The romance is definitely second chance as they previously dated, but throw in some action and drama that followed them from their time in Afghanistan and you get a beautifully written story that will blow your mind.

There was mention of God and faith, but not much. This book touched on topics of death, suicide and PTSD in great way. It's not easy to read, but it's articulated beautifully.

Overall, I enjoyed this romantic suspense and I'm excited for the third book, Active Defense, to release in 2021.

Give me a good suspense book and I’ll happily spend the day reading. Give me a great one and I’ll stay up half the night finishing it. This one falls into the “great” category, without a doubt.
Though there are several authors of suspense novels whose works I very much enjoy, I’ve yet to find one who keeps me turning pages like Ms. Eason does. She always leaves me guessing and wanting to rush on to see what’s going to happen next! Her stories are definitely on the opposite end of the spectrum from boring and I’ve learned to never start one later in the evening, unless I want to be up reading until well past midnight. I do have to say, I was surprised that I actually guessed correctly “whodunit.” I’m not typically right when it comes to Ms. Eason’s stories, but this one did seem a little obvious, even though I didn’t quite know the “why?” behind it. Though that didn’t hinder my enjoyment of the story at all. It just gave me more questions and reasons to stay up and keep turning the pages despite knowing my baby would be up a lot earlier than I would like.
Sarah Denning is a compelling character. I so appreciated her strength and determination, despite her life being quickly upended in more ways than one. She hasn’t had an easy go of it and willingly admits that some of it has been her own doing. The story focused a lot on her, which I found very fitting. Not that Gavin Black doesn’t have his own issues, they just weren’t at the forefront like Sarah’s were. This book tackles family dysfunction, PTSD, suicide, and other mental illnesses. My heart broke with Sarah, for the grief she battles and the internal war with forgiveness. Gavin’s level-headedness, compassion, and integrity were much needed in light of everything she was dealing with. He obviously cares for Sarah and does his best to protect her and be the friend she needs during a very difficult time. I really enjoyed the fact that he’s not entirely the stereotypical suspense novel hero. He has a few of the usual traits, but I found it was his foibles that made him instantly likable. I also really enjoyed getting to see some familiar faces from “Collateral Damage.” As soon as I turned the last page, I was online, looking to see whose story would be next . . . I have to confess, I’m slightly disappointed that it’s not Caden’s. But I’ll still just be over here, waiting for the next one to come out . . . .and probably binge reading her previous books until then.
Overall, I can’t think of a single thing I would change about this book!

*My thanks to the publisher for my copy of this book! I was not required to write a positive review and have not been compensated for it in any way. All opinions expressed are my own.

This was a nail-biter! I couldn’t put this story down. I am a fan of Lynette Eason already, but I think this is her best yet. Lots of great suspense, twists I didn’t anticipate, and great character development. Highly recommended if you’re a fan of Christian suspense.

From the first page, I was sucked in by the action. And then the emotions—anger, resentment, heartbreak, grief, longing—and Sarah’s stubborn refusal to give up on a girl who she just knows needs help. I love a strong heroine, but not many authors really pull off headstrong well. Eason does so with Sarah, who’s both emotional and steel, headstrong and vulnerable. And then she gives Sarah a hero who’s perfect for her. Gavin saves her hide, shields and protects, but also recognizes her capability, intelligence, and strength without being intimidated or going alpha. They balance and strengthen each other, which makes their romance all the more captivating as they put the pieces of the puzzle together.

I enjoyed Collateral Damage, but this one’s even better. Can’t wait for book 3 and PLEASE tell me Caden gets a book eventually? I received a copy from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions are my own and freely given.

"Acceptable Risk" is a military/romance/suspense fiction book that is well written with intense scenery, giving great detail on subjects I find difficult to read at the moment, including gruesome war/terrorist attacks, as well as serious depression, anxiety, and suicide.

In its opening chapter, a woman named Helen Craft is suffering from severe PTSD after experiencing unspeakable war crimes resulting in the death and dismemberment of many children at an orphanage. As a doctor on the scene, Helen did all she could to save the surviving children, but many of them died of their injuries anyway, resulting in 60+ child deaths. This causes Helen to lose her will to live, and she commits suicide, right in front of her sister.

This scene was gut-wrenching to read.

The second chapter opens with Sarah Denning sitting in an Afghani prison cell, "fighting the fear that had been her constant companion" since the previous day—when the Taliban attacked the school where she was a guest teacher, and captured her with plans to "use her and kill her."

The terrorist attacks, at least in the beginning of this book, seem to be primarily targeting children, which is quite disturbing.

With all that has been going on in the world recently, and the steady bombardment of negative news, I can't bring myself to read a book like this right now. That being said, from what I did read of this book, it appears to be very well written and Lynette Eason seems to be quite a good storyteller, so I will keep this book on my shelf to revisit some time in the future.

Note: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Revell and NetGalley in exchange for my honest thoughts, for which I am very grateful.

Acceptable Risk by Lynette Eason – Mixed Review – Action Packed, Intrigue, Suspense but had a Character Issue

Acceptable Risk, the second book in the Danger Never Sleeps series. Author Lynette Eason is relatively new to me, but after reading Collateral Damage, I was excited to read her latest book.

Journalist Sarah Denning is stationed in Afghanistan, where she was kidnapped along with children from the school where she had been teaching. Desperate, Sarah attempted to send an SOS message for help. That help comes through former Army Ranger Gavin Black who has been hired by Sarah’s father, Lieutenant General Lewis Denning. If she had known who had sent the help, she might have tried something different. When Sarah is back stateside and recovering, Gavin remains by her side to protect her from unknown threats that keep on coming.

Acceptable Risk is a fast-paced book, packed with action from the get-go. My favorite character was Gavin Black, a kind, decent, caring, brave man who will do whatever it takes to protect Sarah. I liked Sarah’s brother Caden, who was introduced to readers in the first book.

What I struggled with the character of Sarah Denning. That character had a lot of anger and bitterness toward her father, which got old real quick. It seemed like every decision she made was to spite and hurt her father for perceived wrongs. So much so that she was willing to dismiss anyone who believed differently. Ninety percent of the book Sarah was bullheaded, arrogant, a know it all and ready to put herself and anyone else at risk for what she deemed an acceptable risk. There was nothing about this character that reflected her being a Christian. This character’s personality flaws outweighed her good qualities like being diligent and persevering to uncover the truth. One other thing I didn’t care for was that Sarah was always feeling like the victim. But she never seemed to connect that some of what happened to her was because of choices she had made that put herself (and others) in danger.

Factoring out my dislike of Sarah, I did like this book because of the other characters and thought the storyline was interesting. The ending was a bit over the top and not very realistic or logical.

If you are a Lynette Eason fan or like action-packed suspense with a little romance, you may want to read Acceptable Risk by Lynette Eason.

I would like to thank Revell Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to read Acceptable Risk by Lynette Eason. I was provided with a complimentary copy of the book and was under no obligation to give a favorable review.

I received this book through my NetGally account and have promised to review it for the copy. I also have seen it on Amazon and other sites but not for free.
Oh my this is book two and now I have to wait for book three. This series is a real page turner on how women who are strong and can handle things and are military but due to others determining where their lives should be or how they should be handled things go completely wrong.
Lynette takes us on journeys where she lets the woman be tough but also vulnerable and we can't wait to see how our heroins will solve their and others problems.
In all the stories there is one person who is lying and creating the whole mess for the soldiers and they must figure out what is really going on. They also are allowed to love and have the person who will stand by them no matter what their decisions are and how they want to handle things.
This is another must read book and I can't wait to be able to get book three.

Sarah Denning is a military journalist with the Army in the Middle East when her convoy is attacked and she's taken hostage. When former Army Ranger Gavin Black is asked by his old unit commander--Sarah's imposing father--to plan an extremely risky rescue, he reluctantly agrees and successfully executes it.

Back in the US, Sarah is livid when she's discharged on a false psychiatric evaluation and vows to return to the Army. Until she learns of her brother's suicide. Unable to believe her brother would do such a thing, she puts her plans on hold and enlists Gavin to help her discover the truth. What they uncover may be the biggest story of Sarah's career--if she can survive long enough to write it.

Strap in for another breakneck nail-biter from bestselling romantic suspense author Lynette Eason that will have you up turning pages long into the night.

Such a suspenseful story!
The story begins with a school in Afghanistan being attacked by terrorists. Sarah, an Army journalist, and all the other females are taken captive.
Gavin is asked to go and rescue Sarah by her father who is his former commanding officer. He succeeds and returns her to the US. The story continues on US soil but is no less suspenseful.
The story is fast paced and has so many twists and turns that I couldn't put the book down, I had to find out what happened next.
The dialogue is well done and the internal thoughts are very believable.
The whole story is very well done and I highly recommend it.

Acceptable Risk is another fast paced novel by author Lynette Eason that you can't put down. You will enjoy reading the story of the strong independent journalist, Sarah as she investigates her brother's supposed suicide. Sarah has been through so much herself and fights recurring nightmares of her past days in the military. She unwilling teams up with Gavin, a former Army Ranger who she had a relationship with in the past, Together they try to discover the reason for the death of her brother and other's. Gavin has to learn to work with Sarah without her knowing he was hired by her father to protect her. He also tries to hid his feelings for her knowing that his love would scare her away from her.
Throughout the story someone is trying to kill one of them. but they aren't sure which one. Plenty of close calls, excitement and mystery. You will enjoy it.
I was given a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions are my own.

Acceptable Risk by Lynette Eason

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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Story Notes

Lynette Eason brings readers the second in the Danger Never Sleeps series that looks into the harsh realities of PTSD and what happens when those who are supposed to help use others for their own gain.

Before I begin this review, I have to let you know that the Publisher’s Description is incorrect. Sarah Denning was a guest speaker at a school when she was kidnapped, not in a convoy. Now that that is cleared up, on to the review. I really enjoyed how this story talked about how people deal with PTSD and what it looks like for those formerly in the military. They see so much danger and horrifying happenings that they come home with lots of mental and emotional baggage that very few people are able to understand and sympathize with. This particular story begins with the kidnapping of a military journalist named Sarah Denning. She is taken by Taliban soldiers along with a teacher and twelve of the girls from the school where she was speaking. Helping keep herself and everyone calm is her first priority, quickly followed by the prayer for help to come rescue them soon. An SOS signal from her satellite phone makes it out of the compound they are held in and aid will come in form of former Army Ranger turned Private Security contractor, Gavin Black. But Sarah never dreamed that her injuries sustained in the rescue would lead her to father forcing her out of the military under a diagnosis of OPDMC connected with PTSD. Furious that her father would abuse the powers of his rank as Lieutenant General to take away both her job and her life, Sarah forbids him from accompanying her home. Fearing for her life, the general offers Gavin the job of keeping her safe. He reluctantly agrees, more so he can get to know her better and see why she broke things off between them last year. But getting Sarah home is just the beginning of all the danger they will be facing. While recovering in the hospital, Sarah is told that her brother has committed suicide. Dustin wasn’t the type of person to even consider that option and Sarah is devastated at the news. Add to this the disappearance of a girl named Brianne who had been in the room next to Sarah’s and she is not positive what is going on with her mind and emotions. Determined to prove that Brianne was real and that Dustin didn’t kill himself, Sarah asks Gavin to help her find answers. As they delve into the two situations, too many things begin to show up as coincidences for there not to be something terrible going on. But can they find the answers they need before more people die? This fast-paced journey towards the truth will bring Sarah and Gavin closer than before and will make them face their greatest fears. If they can over come it all, they just might save their own lives and get a chance at a future together. There was so much to unpack throughout this story. From the compound rescue to the race to find answers, the tension underlying the story was incredible and very well done. I loved that Ms. Eason made her characters very relatable with real emotions, courage and strength. The issues they faced both personally and professionally were given plenty of page time to be worked out and didn’t stray into the “okay, let’s move on” area that some stories do. Plus, the conversations that Sarah and Gavin had with each other and other former military members gave readers a good look at PTSD and how differently each person is affected. The careful crafting of the dangerous situations and the slow reveal of those responsible really allowed the story to draw me in with every succeeding chapter. I had suspicions about who might be responsible but I needed to understand the whys and hows for the crimes that were committed. And the ending was one of the best I’ve read in quite a while. Just when you thought the story was winding down, Ms. Eason added a twist that made it even better than you thought it would be. I will certainly be recommending this book to others in the hope they will enjoy this suspense story just as much as I did. I also hope to add a copy to my shelves soon so I can reread it later. Well done, Ms. Eason!!

I received this temporary complimentary E-book from Revell Publishing via NetGalley in order to provide a fair and honest review. I will receive no fiscal compensation for this review and the opinions expressed herein are entirely my own.

Title: Acceptable Risk

Author: Lynette Eason



Ch: 28



Pg: 320



Series: Danger Never Sleeps



Genre: Christian Suspense with a hint of romance



Rating: 4 Stars



Publisher: Revell



Acceptable Risk by Lynette Eason is the second book in the Danger Never Sleeps series. And though it’s the second book in the series it’s a standalone story. Though If you read it out of order you will be slightly spoiled for how the first book ends.


When Sarah Denning loses her army career and ends up with a target on her back it’s up to Former Army Ranger Gavin Black to protect her and find the people who want her dead. I enjoyed this one the suspense kept me turning the pages but it wasn’t my favorite of the series. I have to admit it because Sarah got on my nerves at first and it took me at least half of the book to warm up to her. But the secondary characters the hero and the plot kept the book moving.


I will continue the series as soon as the next book releases. If you enjoy suspense I recommend this one and the first book in the series.





I received a copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine alone.

I really loved this book. It was not an Insta love, but there was a connection. I loved how the main characters tried to understand each other and respected their strengths and encouraged them, instead of trying to twist the other into being what suited them.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.

Get ready for another non-stop action-packed read from Lynette Eason.
This book starts with a bang and the punches just keep coming till the very end! Literally at every turn something crazy was happening or being discovered and it made the pages turn quite quickly.
The characters were both likable (besides Sarah’s issues with her dad that made her come across as irrational at times) and they made a good couple. I liked that they’d had a bit of a backstory before the book started so their relationship had some ground to stand on outside of the adrenaline fueled days that they had in the story.
The case was unique and interesting and I was definitely curious as to how it was all being pulled off, which kept me hooked till the end!
All an all a good read that is sure to have readers on the edge of their seats!

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are my own.

I am definitely loving this series. I liked the first one but this one was even better. I had a feeling from the beginning what might be going on but it was fun to watch it play out and unfold throughout the story.

Sarah and Gavin are a perfect pair and I love how Lynette makes sure her characters have flaws, often ones others have dealt with and we can see God’s redeeming grace in their lives.

I can’t wait to see who she feature next as I am sure all of these characters we have been introduced to will have an equally interesting story.

If you like romantic suspense I have no doubt you will thoroughly enjoy this read!

A copy of this book was given to me through Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Excellent read! From the very beginning, I was hooked. Military personnel struggling with PTSD, seek help through counseling and medications to help them control their symptoms. But why do many go from a growing, hopeful, positive outlook to sudden suicide almost instantly? That is what Sarah, her brother, and Gavin, a close friend seek to find out. Sarah, an investigative reporter in the Army, has already escaped a kidnapping in the Middle East and the death threats continue. Sarah’s relationship with the General, her father, has been in tatters for years. What are her fathers true motives?
Get ready for a suspenseful ride.

This is another book that just won't let you rest. The first chapter leaves you wondering what it has to do with the rest of the book. But the reader finds out at the appropriate time. The characters are well developed and the action is nonstop. I love the way this author finishes her books. At around 90%, you think you know how it will end. But she throws in more twists and turns than a Twizzler has. Her endings are well thought out and explained. The book doesn't end suddenly. The reader has a feeling that all the loose ends have been tied up and accounted for.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC for an honest opinion and review.

PTSD, suicides, drug trials, and families, provide the ingredients for a tightly wound suspense novel that has roots in the mountains of Afghanistan and ends up in an east coast VA hospital.

For one family to experience so much pain was unfair and Sarah Denning was determined to find out where it was coming from. It would not be an easy search - she would need to convince her friends and family that she was on the right track. That would not be easy - she had been on serious pain killers that could disrupt her memories and emotions. And there were powerful men and women who did not want her to discover the truth. Could she survive her own demons and those being thrown at her by a corrupt medical community?

Though published by a faith-based publisher, faith has but a small part in this story, leaving this reader a bit disappointed. Also, as I often suggest, when a fiction book deals with issues that real people face daily (in this case PTSD), I would hope that a resource or two (phone number and/or web page) would be suggested to find real help in our broken world.

Though I would see no problem putting this book into a church library, its lack of a serious spiritual focus may allow some to reconsider. It would easily belong on the public library shelf and would be enjoyed by any reader who enjoys suspense or medical thrillers. I give it a 4-½ star review.
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This review is based on a free electronic copy provided by the publisher for the purpose of creating this review. The opinions expressed are my own.