Riding For Redemption

Riding for Redemption

Desperate to find her place in the world, Sara Beth dreams of applying for the Miss Wrangler Montana competition that tours with the rodeo circuit. Riding horses has become her anchor until a near fatal accident takes more from her than she’d ever willingly sacrifice.
Determined to prove his business training, Johnny seeks out the Rourke family to call in an old favor. When he embroils himself in Sara Beth’s life, he has to prove they’re nothing more than friends. Seeking independence, both Sara Beth and Johnny lean on each other more and more, until love threatens their friendship. Will they seek out each other or be confused by their dreams? Can either of them leave their past and embrace their future?

Author: Bonnie R. Paulson
------------------------

This is an interesting, quick read.  It explores themes of healing, friendship, recovery from tragedy, and growing wiser.  I love that the romance is founded on friendship and not on superficial things like appearance or money or being rescued (although those certainly play a part).  Sara Beth is a strong character on her own and watching her grow and develop is a pleasure.  The author uses dry wit and a subtle sense of humor to excellent effect in this story.

Spoilers:
This is the second book in the series and I was a little worried because I had not read the first one.  It was not a problem, though.  I understood everything that was going on.  I did go back and read the first book in the series, "Romancing Redemption" and some of the story made more sense, but I was fine without having read it first.  That being said, the book is part of a series, and those seeking closure to the story will be wonderfully disappointed.  There is a little profanity scattered throughout the book, but no smut.

I received a download of this book for my honest opinion.

Outsystem

Outsystem

Major Richards needs to get out of the Sol System Demoted by the military and hung out to dry, the media labels her the Butcher of Toro. Despite her soiled record, Tanis still one of the best military counter-insurgency officers in the Terran Space Force. And they need her to find the terrorists responsible for trying to destroy the GSS Intrepid, a massive interstellar colony ship in the final phases of construction at the Mars Outer Shipyards. It’ll be her ticket out of the Sol system, but Tanis discovers she is up against more than mercenaries and assassins. Major corporations and governments have a vested interest in ensuring the Intrepid never leaves Sol, ultimately pitting Tanis against factions inside her own military. With few friends left, Tanis will need to fight for her life to get outsystem.
 

Author: M.D. Cooper Facebook / Website / Amazon

---------------------------------------------

I really enjoyed this book!  The combination of sci-fi that is thoroughly grounded in science and politics that are equally well grounded in reality was refreshing and kept my attention.  Major Tanis Richards is a strong, intelligent, and charismatic woman who has a good sense of humor, and is able to navigate the treacherous grounds of military hierarchy and politics very well.  The story kept me reading long after I should have gone to bed, and absorbed my lunch breaks until I finally finished the book. I highly recommend this book to fans of the David Weber's Honor Harrington Series, and Elizabeth Bear's Jenny Casey Trilogy.

Spoilers:
As if the banner above doesn't give it away... There's a sequel!  But the good news is that it's available now.  Some readers have said they had trouble understanding when the Tanis' artificial intelligence implant was "speaking" and when it was actually Tanis' internal monologue, but I think that's kind of the point.  The blurring of the real and the virtual is crucial to the setting and the way people interact with their environment.