Deadly Descent

This was a really great romantic suspense, one of the best I have read in a while. It's set within active duty military, and the sense of place is remarkable. Both mains were awesome and not at all stereotypical. He's a special forces soldier, but isn't over the top alpha; he's sweet and loving, like an actual human being. She flies helos to medevac wounded soldiers, but she's not ridiculously independent or prickly, or too-stupid-to-live. She's a strong woman doing her job, like a real person. I think that's where this book excels - the characters are like actual people and not characatures; and the action is well researched and feels much more real than a lot of other books in this genre. Well done, and I will definitely be reading the next book in the series!

Tags: Romantic Suspense, Military, Friends to Lovers, Standalone, No Cliffhanger First of all, I love military romantic suspenses where the heroine is not a civilian, but holds a position that makes her more than just arm candy or a uniform groupie, if you know what I mean. Devon “Spike” Crawford delivered on that front as an officer and pilot flying Hawks in medevac missions. Career-wise she was solid, but her personal life was complicated. She had dated Ty, a PJ, under the radar for a short time before he was deployed to Bagram. They were casual about it, and instead of a clean break, she’d just let things fizzle out after he left. That, compounded with the fact that she’d fallen in lust with Ty’s best friend Cam from the moment Ty introduced them, left her feeling guilty about the whole situation. Even though Cam felt the same way, they never acted on it. And after Ty’s death, it seemed even more inappropriate to Dev. I didn’t care for her much in terms of the romance—she wanted Cam but worried about her career. The risk vs.reward was a constant factor in regards to her hot and cold behavior that I often wished she would make up her mind. The revelation that she learned to fly because she was afraid of crashing (a plane crash is how she had lost her father) was pure foreshadowing. I LOVED Cam! If he hadn’t brought up the fact of their mutual attraction, he would most likely have remained in the friend zone forever. He didn’t push her to give in but reassured her that he would be there when she was ready, and he was mindful of her concerns about fraternization and how they behaved in public. The suspense portion of the story was so good! It was a lot like Black Hawk Down, but in the mountains of Afghanistan. My heart was thumping the entire time Dev, Cam and co. were on the run. I didn't dislike the villain's POV per se, but I did end up skimming a lot of his ramblings. And with that said, don’t expect a lot of sex with the romance (there was only one steamy, and one sex scene at the very end). The story didn't need sex to make their feelings believable. The romance was fueled by the type of people they were, the high-stress of their jobs, honor and loyalty. I enjoyed the side characters, and it seems they all had a little set up for future stories. I look forward to reading more about these men and women.

Fantastic Read! Kaylea Cross writes her characters so well and has just the right amount of suspense/romance to keep you hooked from the very beginning. My heart broke for Devon and Cam at the beginning, because they both had lost someone very close to them and that kept them from acting on their feelings for each other. In the end that about cost them both what they truly wanted so much and that was each other. Cam new from the beginning that Devon was his, but he knew that Devon had to admit to her feelings to herself and that he wouldn't push her. Such a powerful story with so much incredible emotion and once you start reading it, you don't want to put it down.

Captain Devon "Spike" Crawford is a Blackhawk pilot and mainly flying medical evacuations in war zones. She is involved with Ty, a pararescueman but falls in love at first sight with his best friend Cam who is also a pararescueman. After a failed medical evacuation for which Devon was responsible, the "life" of all above persons changes in very dramatic ways. Shortly after these tragic events Cam confesses his love to Devon. How will she react to this confession and how will they work together in a war zone since she is a higher ranking officer and fraternization issues might endanger her career? An interesting and thrilling plot that just didn't allow me to switch my Kindle off! Additionally, the descriptions of the war zones and the circumstances in which the armed forces live on base or go out to do their jobs was more than impressive. I was very much impressed that Cross tried to maintain objectivity throughout the book by focusing on the local warlords and insurgents, their motives and the implications of these on the local population. The main characters were simply great. Cam is from this day forward one of my absolute heroes! His sincere feelings for Devon and the way he tried to win her over right after the horrible incident with Ty showed a man with absolute strength of character. His protectiveness of Devon without neglecting any other injured soldier underlined his devotion to his profession and consequently his respect for human life. Absolutely great! Not that Devon was less likeable! She is a self-confident, intelligent woman who has managed to pursue a successful career in a very difficult and mainly male dominated environment, by being a member of equal value to her profession and team mates. She struggles hard to cope with her daemons in order to proceed with Cam. Again this process is described very realistically and gripping. A military romance as it should be! For Cross-fans and others a highly recommended read!!! (Attention! This is not a sequel to her previous series: "Out Of Her League", "Cover of Darkness", "No Turning Back", "Relentless", "Absolution") but the beginning of her Bagram Special Ops. series )

This is a great lovestory in the middle of a wartime. If you love suspense there is enough in it. A strong woman in a men's world flying a helicopter.

Once in a while a book/series comes along that completely changes your opinion of what you "want" from a book, gone are your beliefs of what constitutes the "perfect" romance book and suddenly your world is completely opened up to something far more incredible than you have experienced. The Bagram Special Ops series was "that" series for me. For so long I have stayed true to my ideals when it came to militray romance - alpha military man and a sweet damsel in distress. Whilst I loved that style of writing I shied away from stronger heroines as two book I read in the past had the "strong" heroine honestly acting more like a bitch than bad ass. So, obviously I was not expecting too much from this book when I picked it up. In fact at about the 8% mark I was ready to jump ship, the establishing of characters felt a little too dramatic and I worried the h was going to take the cold bitchy path..... I am so glad I held in for like another 10 pages because the story that unraveled was nothing short of amazing! This book was so much more than your regular military romance, the relationship mixed with the heart stopping action and harsh realities of military life (for both men and women) had me racing through the pages and so caught up in the story I barely had time to come up for air. It has been such a long time since a series has managed to captivate and control me so deeply and I cannot praise the author enough for her incredible writing skills. The characters are sensational and I must say it was a rare treat to actually experience active duty through not only men and women but also through the eyes of other very important members of the military. So often these books purely focus on the "typical bad ass" you know, SEALs, Rangers, Deltas etc. It was great to garner some insight into the amazing and equally important world of PJ's and helo pilots. The attraction between Cam and Devon was off the charts but I really appreciated that whilst they were head over heels for each other that was not always the primary focus of the story nor did they act like reckless idiots, they were always professional and aware of not only their jobs but the fact they were in a war zone. The action was fast paced, heart stopping and intense. This book was the first in a long time that has drawn so much raw emotion from me and I loved every heart pounding moment. Devon was an incredibly capable women, she was strong, brave and smart but she also had a lovely soft side that she let shine through...... oh and of course she can also fly blackhawks into the middle of war zones and kick some serious ass.... perfect woman right? Cam was still a tough alpha-male but never really came across as an alpha-hole which was refreshing. I truly felt like Cross achieved the perfect balance with his character, PLUS his job is to save the lives of the people who save ours..... how hot is that?! The book is written so well that from the very outset you can't help but make a connection with all of the secondary characters too. I am not sure words can adequately describe just how excited I am to read each of their stories and after reading Deadly Descent I have absolutely no doubt this will be one of those series' that just keep getting better. So, if like me you read the synopsis and was a little worried you may not like this book because the dynamic isn't usually what you go for, DO NOT BE A FOOL LIKE I WAS, READ IT NOW!!! I promise you will not regret it!

I was so excited to find this author recently. I'd long read Suzanne Brockmann and Lindsay McKenna, but there seemed not many authors who would go the gritty distance. This is an excellent book.

Me gusta mucho esta autora, peroooo, este libro no me gustó...no conseguí conectar con él.... El principio me gustó...la tensión entre los protagonistas, como reaccionan, sus trabajos... Una mujer piloto....genial! pero a medida que la historia avanza me pierdo más y más.... (spoiler:Volvemos a la prota insegura, guapa para todos menos para ella, "uno de los chicos", no casa mucho con la idea de una piloto, que debería ser fuerte, independiente...por dios, se supone que se juega la vida a diario, desplazada en medio de una guerra....) Tampoco me resulta muy creible la facilidad con la que interaccionan cuando se supone que está prohibido...se repite mucho..."está prohibido", "no podemos", pero...sigue pasando y sin consecuencias. Y el suspense me pareció demasiado forzado...enreversado...en fin...es una opinión personal, este no funcionó para mí, pero sí que me gustaron sus 2 primeros libros de la serie Titanium Security. :(

"Love is like war; easy to begin but very hard to stop." - by Henry Louis Mencken - 4 1/2 stars. 4 or 5 stars? I'm rounding up to 5 stars because Kaylea is one of my favorite authors. :) Tech Sergeant Cameron Munro is an U.S. Air Force pararescue jumper, the best trained search and rescue teams in the U.S. military. Their motto - That Others May Live - says it all. They are highly trained to save lives and on the other hand PJ's also know how to kill if necessary. Captain Devon 'Spike' Crawford, Black Hawk helicopter pilot commander flies medevac missions. She has to deal with guilt issues after the death of her 'boyfriend' Ty on a mission in Afghanistan. Ty was also a PJ. Dev and Ty dated only for a few weeks before he deployed. She cared a lot for him but she wasn't really in love with Ty. They had fun together but nothing really serious. And then Dev met Ty's friend Cam Munro. Dev realized that she felt much more drawn to him than she was to Ty. However, there's this problem...both their careers could be in jeopardy if they're caught in a relationship since Dev is an officer and Cam is enlisted. When they both end up stationed at the same base in Bagram, Afghanistan, things start to move and the sparks are flying between Cam and Dev. And they are falling for each other quite hard! Aw, Cam is a gorgeous alpha male hero! He's tough, hot, sweet, and tender all at the same time. He's a protector and throughout this book his first priority is Dev and her well-being and safety. I really appreciated to read about a strong heroine as well who's holding her own and is really brave. Dev is no wuss at all! The women in Deadly Descent know how to kick ass! Loved them all and I know that the next book in the Bagram Spec Ops series is about Ryan and Candace 'Ace'. I really liked their bantering/teasing. It was sweet. And I am on pins and needles to read their story. Kaylea, please hurry up and keep the good stories coming! I am not a military expert, therefore I cannot say if the operations in this story are authentic. But it certainly reads realistically, and I think Kaylea did a fine job with her research - as always. And we all know she's a Spec Ops addict! Loved this main and very long action part of Deadly Descent. This was simply OUTSTANDING! I think the book title fit perfectly. The action and tension kept me on my toes, and as I already mentioned in my review of "Special Forces - Soldiers" war isn't pretty. Please, be prepared for casualties, gory scenes, and violence. Ok, this is my subsidiary censure...I'd like to have a bit more romance. I have to assume that it was a tad difficult to fully develop their relationship/romance because of the length of this book. I think the book should have been longer. Whatever, this was a really engaging and thrilling read! Devon said once "I admire the hell out of all of you." Yes, so true. I can't say it any better. And I think that every enlisted man/woman deserves our appreciation. Enjoy!