I had very fond memories of older books by Ms McKenna; I am sorry to say that this one did not live up to them. The treatment of PTSD is sensitive, and I was very glad to see consent (sexual and otherwise) front and center. Also, it's always refreshing when the main characters talk honestly with each other about their feelings and issues, rather than wallow in fabricated angst.

However, there was too much use of "SEAL intuition" and "SEAL feelings" in lieu of actual characterizations; the characters felt more like stand-ins for some quintessential "military veteran" person, rather than people in their own right.

There were also a number of plotlines that were set up which ended up fizzling, rather than having a proper resolution, from Gray's guilt over his first wife's murder to the suspense/threat from the town bully. I assume the later is part of the overarching plot of the series, but the way it's handled here detracts from what could have been a really good book.