Army veteran Cameron Pope arrives back in Jubilee, Kentucky with his dog Ghost when his niece gets kidnapped. When he joins the hunt to find his niece, Cameron soon discovers there might have been more to her kidnapping and draws interest from the FBI to help them uncover a human trafficking ring in his own town.

Meanwhile, the agent he gets assigned to work with is none other than the very woman he has been pining for, for years.

This was an okay read for me. The premise while interesting is very surface-level as far as human trafficking goes, so while I do appreciate that it was easier to read about - I think in general it's a hard subject to write about on many levels. Party due to reality that is much darker than what the author touched on - which wasn't as impactful as it could have been.

There are a lot of characters in the book and it took a while for me to finally place all my ducks in a row as to who is who and have that stick with me. It kind of read like a movie.

The romance was super instalove, so while I adored Cam and Rusty - the romance felt a little cheesy but was probably not entirely the point of the book.

The audiobook was narrated by a male, which took me by surprise - but I think it worked, in the end, either way.

Overall. It was okay. I didn't hate it. My favorite part of this was definitely Ghost.

This was a wild ride
Action pack, excitement, and a little love on the side as well
Rusty is an FBI agent. She is asked to go back to her home town to catch who's behind a human trafficking crime. When she gets home she is greeted by family and an old time flame. And together they try to stop the crimes that are going on in Jubilee County

Don’t Back Down by Sharon Sala
Book One in the Jubilee, Kentucky series
Narrator, Tim Lounibos
For Cameron and Rusty it was more lust at first sight than love at first sight. Then they are reunited several years later and the suspense begins. I am familiar with this author from her Blessings, Georgia series which is finished now. So this is the first romantic suspense novel of hers for me. It may have been a bit melodramatic but it was a good story anyway. Although, if I never read or hear the phrase “come apart in his arms” ever again, it will be fine with me. The sex scenes are not very explicit but were a bit cringe worthy, however there were only a so I could live with it. I did love Ghost, the dog.
The narrator was not so great. His women’s voices were often too high pitched and annoying sounding. Rusty sounded okay most of the time. I would not listen to the next book with the same narrator but might read it. It was good for day’s light entertainment.

Rusty and Cameron had a one night stand years ago and Cameron snuck out and went off to the Army. It has been years since they have seen each other but neither one has ever forgotten about the other. Now, life has brought them back together and they refuse to be separated any time soon! But, once again, life is throwing curve balls and they each have to come out of this investigation alive!

This is a bit overly dramatic and I did roll my eyes in places and I honestly believe it was the narrator. I just was not a big fan of Tim Lounibos. For instance, there are places a character cried and I could not understand him during these parts.

That being said…I did love Rusty, Cameron and the dog Ghost. Cameron is definitely a strong character with a soft heart. I fell for him hook, line and sinker. Plus, he owns the best dog in the book world, Ghost! Add in the human trafficking and the who did what to whom and this is a pretty good tale!

Need a thriller with great characters…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.

Sharon Sala is a phenomenal author, I was excited to have the preview of the audiobook before it was released. The narrator was unbearable and monotone. The narrator's voice did not match the tone and pacing of the story. Despite the poor narration, the book was still engaging and suspenseful.

This is the review of the audiobook of “Don’t Back Down”. If you like Insta-Love and a lot of melodrama this might be for you!

First off I have to state that I think the narration for the book could certainly have been done better. To have one narrator for multiple voices seldom works well for me. In this case the male voices were done alright but the female voices were awful!!

This also is a case of the blurb telling too much of the story with not much left to discover. Partial of the blurb:

“Army veteran Cameron Pope arrives back in Jubilee, Kentucky, for the first time in years. He barely has time to catch his breath when he becomes embroiled in a race of life or death for his little niece and a deadly hunt for the human traffickers who are destroying the peace of his mountain town. When he's reunited with Rusty Caldwell—a woman from his past who he's never stopped thinking about—he wants to believe they can finally be together . . . they will have to find a way to end the feuding and take down the human trafficking ring . . .”

I listened to the audiobook at 1.5 speed as I found it extremely slow. I wished I hadn’t read the blurb because that is pretty much the entire plot of the book!!

I felt as if this was a story that I had heard before: small town setting for big drug or trafficking ring, reunited lovers, somewhat cheesy romance, heroics by Cameron Pope and his trusty dog “Ghost” which were hard to believe. (I did love Ghost).

I think I may have enjoyed this one more if I were reading rather than listening to it.

In the end I give it 3* for entertainment but I can’t really recommend it.

I received the audiobook of this novel from the publisher through Dreamscape Media through NetGalley.

Don't Back Down by Sharon Sala is a suspense novel with some romance included in it also. I thought the story was pretty interesting and the characters were well-developed. I did like the backstories for the 2 main characters and a really cool dog, Ghost. I listened to the audiobook narrated by Tim Lounibos and he did a great job with the male characters and the general narration. However, I did not quite like the portrayal of the female voices. I think it would be better to include a female narrator. Or, have just a female narrator that is good at portraying male voices. It was not too bad and it did not make me give up on the book. I enjoyed the story and I'd like to read more books by this author. Jubilee, KY reminded me of Gatlinburg, TN which is very close to where I live and we go there often, so it was kind of cool as well.

Thank you, NetGalley and Dreamscape Audio, for providing me with an advanced copy of the audiobook ahead of its publishing day of 3/7/23. My review is voluntary and was not influenced in any way.

I really liked this and I loved Ghost, the dog. Great characters with a satisfying plot and a sweet romance. I threw myself into this one and it made me a nervous wreck.
I chose to listen to this as an audiobook and liked the narrator. I can’t wait to listen to book 2.
Thanks Dreamscape Media via NetGalley.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This was an interesting and compelling thriller. I enjoyed the romance that was happening in the background.

Narrated by Tim Lounibos ⭐⭐⭐
Tim Lounibos normal talking voice is very sexy and soothing, but when he does other characters such as Danny (and I few females) he sounds ridiculous and over the top. When I would hear those voices it will pull me out of the story.

Story by Sharon Sala ⭐⭐⭐

The premise of this book is really good. Ex military, kick ass female agent, kidnapping and human trafficking, but the cheese factor was a little strong for me in between Cameron and Rusty. I'm dying to know if this is actually how American country men really speak to women?

While I personally wouldn't continue with this story, there are a few people in my book club that will absolutely love love love this book so will definitely be recommending it to them.

Don’t Back Down by Sharon Sala
Jubilee, Kentucky series book 1. Contemporary romantic suspense. Second chance troupe.
Veteran Cameron Pope returns to his home town of Jubilee, KY just in time for he and his trained dog Ghost, to rescue his niece from human traffickers. The FBI gets involved since it wasn’t just one child missing and Rusty Caldwell flies in for some undercover investigation. Having met and fallen into each others arms before, Cam and Rusty reunite and work together to track down all the people involved in the kidnappings.

Compelling and involved, the story moves quickly uncovering one suspect after another while also tying extended family together.

🎧 I listened to an audiobook version narrated by Tim Lounibos. The story and performance is told in third person and flows quickly from romance to suspense and back. I liked the clear emotion and differences for characters you can clearly hear. I think the narrator does a better job as the male character but that’s as expected. The elderly female voices are a bit amusing to me. I found the story intense and gripping as a listener.
I sped the playback to 1.5 as this is my preferred speed that is closest to a midwest conversation.

I received a copy of this from NetGalley and Dreamscape Media.

This is my first book from Sharon Sala and I really enjoyed it.
I loved the setting of Kentucky and the incorporation of the lifestyle of the area. Not only writing down a beautiful picturesque backdrop of the area but also describing the people and their culinary preferences very well. I feel I have visited that area myself never had set foot in the place! LOL
The main characters Pope and Rusty are very likable and their romance story is so sweet it will give you toothache in the most pleasant way. I love the fact that a clever dog (Ghost) is incorporated in the story. I want a dog like him for myself!!!! ;)
The murder mystery is satisfying and well written.
The narration part performed by Tim Lounibos is well delivered and the whole story narrated by him came to life for me whilst engrossed in my weeding outside in the garden.
Superb....

Action packed and well paced. I listened to the audio version and loved the narrator for the male voices, for the female—not as much. Can’t wait for the next book in this series!

Thank you NetGalley, Dreamscape media and the author for the #gifted ALC in exchange for honest review. I loved the pieces of Canada mentioned i almost.had an idea what the twist would be but i was wrong. The first third flew so fadt the second 2/3 dragged on a bit i expected to be shocked and wss left underwhelmed.

Rusty and the Army Vet

Army Vet Cameron and his dog Ghost just return to Jubilee Kentucky when his niece is kidnapped and both he and Ghost are thrown into the investigation of human traffickers targeting this small Kentucky town.

He finds out he is to work with an FBI agent to help with the investigation. He does not believe it but the FBI agent turns out to be Rusty a girl he briefly met a few years before and had a one night stand with. As the investigation moves forward so does the relationship between Rusty and Cameron.

Danger, suspense and a lot of action in this story about a small town in Kentucky and a whole lot of suspicious people....some of them law enforcement. Trying to figure out who to trust and who to investigate is one of their hardest jobs...that and staying alive.

The narrator did a great job, although I had to laugh when he did the ladies. It was quite the voice he used for them. It really did inject a bit of humor into the story...sorry narrator.

It is a great story with action and romance. I enjoyed reading it and I think you will as well.

Thanks to Sharon Sala for writing a great story, to Tim Lounibos for the narration, to Dreamscape media for publishing it and to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of the audio book to listen to and review.

Cameron Pope receives the worst call imaginable- his three year old niece has been kidnapped. He rushes to join the search party, along with his dog, Ghost. After she is recovered safely, it turns out that kidnappers are part of a human trafficking ring. The FBI sends Special Agent Rusty Caldwell, a woman from Cameron's past, to gather information. Cameron, former Army Special Forces, is tagged to help her. They work to take down the trafficking ring, all while getting to know each other again.

I liked this, but did not love it. This type of book is typically like candy to me- I eagerly devour it. I think part of the problem is that this is told from many POVs. I think it may have been better if limited to fewer people. I listened to the audiobook, and I also feel that the narrator may have negatively impacted my opinion. However, I am looking forward to the next book in the series.

Tim Lounibos narrates the audiobook. A lot of the time, it is perfectly fine. Then we get to the dialogue. It was often painful. Especially, but not only, the female characters.

I received an audio copy in exchange for an honest review.

A suspenseful romance with an adorable yet badass crime fighting duo/couple. I found this boo really interesting with two strong leads and a balance of dark elements: human trafficking, murder and crime mixed with more light-hearted moments mostly between the main characters. I also thought the main plot was really interesting with this bigger darker secret occurring in this close knit small town =, I felt this was a nice twist on usual small town crime stories with the typical single murder. This was very faced paced apart from the very beginning, with lots of action and twists and turns to keep you engaged and of course my favourite part had to be Cam's dog Ghost who sounds adorable. This is the first novel I've read by Sharon Sala but I'll be sure to check out more of her work.

I've read a couple of Sharon Sala's contemporary romances and found them to not be my cup of tea. So, at the suggestion of another reviewer, I thought I'd give one of her romantic suspenses a try in audiobook.

Sadly, still not my cup of tea...

I will say I did enjoy the suspense part of this book - the action kept the story moving and the plot was well developed. It didn't keep me guessing (I've read far too many books and am seldom surprised anymore), yet there was enough going on to keep me interested.

But for the most part, I found the writing in this story to be laughably melodramatic. The romance was equal parts refreshing (the hero had been pining for the heroine - and she for him - even though they thought they'd never see each other again), but also a little too insta-lovie. There were a couple random storylines that didn't seem to have a purpose in the book (like the heroine's cousin and the relationship with her boyfriend? and what was the deal with the aunt going out of town? what was even the point of that???). Also, from the synopsis it sounds like there's a major "wrong side of the tracks" vibe in the town that really wasn't a big deal. Like at all.

And to top it all off, the narrator didn't help with the laughable melodrama or the often cheesy dialogue in the least - and made things even worse with his female voices.

I wanted to like this one - I'm a huge fan of romantic supspense stories. I'm just not a fan of this author.

* thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for providing a copy of the audiobook in exchange for a review

I have to start off by saying that this book started off extremely slow, and I was almost tempted to DNF, but I’m so glad I stuck it out because that ending was completely not expected and it threw me for a loop!

Book 1 in the Jubilee, Kentucky series

Featuring ~ multiple 3rd person POV, romantic suspense, assault, police procedural, FBI, veteran, references to r@pe & s8x trafficking

My heart was pounding right away when Rachel is knocked out and 3 year old, Lily, is kidnapped. Before the police even finish questioning Rachel, a search team, headed by Cameron and Ghost, is out looking for her.

After the hunt for Lily is over, we have the FBI trying to bring down a s8x trafficking ring, which is headed up by Rusty, Cameron's one night stand from 5 years ago before his deployment. When they see each other again they are all in right from the start and it was cute.

This fast paced thriller was jam packed with action from beginning to end. Ghost, the hero German Shepard, was my favorite character and Cameron was a close 2nd. I enjoyed my first experience with this author and will definitely be back for more of this series, but only if Ghost is there 😜

Narration:
Tim Lounibos ~ 10 hours 29 minutes ~ his regular voice was perfectly fine, but his female voices were pretty rough.