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Shattered (High Risk #3)

by JoAnn Ross (Goodreads Author)

3.96 of 5 stars 3.96 · rating details · 447 ratings · 23 reviews

More than a year after his red-hot affair in Baghdad with Army doctor Kirby Campbell, Army pilot Shane Garrett is trying to rebuild his life stateside. Kirby is also stateside, but when she learns a friend is being held hostage in Central America, she works with Phoenix Team to organize a rescue?and Shane isn?t about to let them leave him behind. Or let Kirby get away. But...more

Mass Market Paperback, 377 pages

Published February 3rd 2009 by Signet

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Dec 05, 2010 Buggy rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: scars-r-sexy, shelf-10, war, rom-susp, men-in-uniform-af-spc-op, reunited

I love romantic-military-suspense and this was a good one, in fact it was almost a great one. Running along the lines of Cindy Gerard or Suzanne Brockmann SHATTERED opens up in Afghanistan with an amazing action sequence that’s based on actual events.

This is no fluffy romantic action either; it’s realistic, harsh and filled with accurate military terms, mind bending acronyms and real locations. Soldiers use the f-bomb, get wounded and die here. In fact our hero (Shane) winds up losing his leg f...more I love romantic-military-suspense and this was a good one, in fact it was almost a great one. Running along the lines of Cindy Gerard or Suzanne Brockmann SHATTERED opens up in Afghanistan with an amazing action sequence that’s based on actual events.

This is no fluffy romantic action either; it’s realistic, harsh and filled with accurate military terms, mind bending acronyms and real locations. Soldiers use the f-bomb, get wounded and die here. In fact our hero (Shane) winds up losing his leg from the helicopter crash and ensuing firefight and his subsequent transfer while injured to the military hospital and extraction behind enemy lines is WAY exciting.

Now while this is book #3 in the ‘High Risk’ series I read it as a stand alone and did just fine, never feeling lost or like I was missing anything. And if you are reading in order you’ll be happy to know Zach and Quinn are back as well as updates from their spouses. Speaking of which, Army Doctor Kirby Campbell is a very likable heroine here; strong, not physically perfect and relatable. And her gradual falling back in love with injured pilot Shane Garrett feels natural. I enjoyed getting to know both our leads through flashbacks to their MASH beginnings in Baghdad; and jeez that scene in the German hospital when Shane lets her go will just break your heart.

I also should mention (because it really impressed me) the amount of research that’s gone into this book, with loads of information and background down to the smallest of details. Unfortunately this is also where Ross lost me as she often gets sidetracked, moving away from the main story with irrelevant factoids and reminding me of Stephen King in that you’re reading something 3xtimes removed from the story.

So while I really, really liked this it just didn’t flow very well, leaving me often frustrated by moments of greatness and then a story that wandered off all over the place. Ross also had an annoying habit of letting our reunited couple talk through their love scenes (most of which are done in flashbacks) having full on conversations while poised, condom in hand. This was distracting and ruined the moment particularly because we had to wait forever for them to finally get it on.

My biggest disappointment of all though would have to be the ending which is a rescue set in Central America that we’d worked towards for the entire book. I was expecting another intense action scene instead its hurried and even silly with our strong leads going all Harlequiny, rescuing child soldiers and worrying about abandoned dogs in the brief pages given. Shane’s sweet proposal almost makes up for it though.

Highly recommended for romantic suspense fans *Zosia* (less)

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Feb 10, 2009 Isis FG rated it 4 of 5 stars

Recommended to Isis FG by: continuation of a series

Shelves: 2009, info-full, reviewed, genre-romance-suspense, published-2009, stars-4, series-high-risk-shelter-bay

I'm debating between 4 stars and 3.5 stars for this one. I was leaning solidly in the 4 star area, but then the ending fell a little short for me. Maybe I should say it was 3.75 stars, LOL. But aside from the somewhat lackluster ending, I enjoyed this book a lot. I loved Shane. Wanting to read his story is what kept me reading this series after the first book didn't do much for me.

Shattered is the third book on Ross's High Risk series which is about a bunch of former Spec Ops military men who ar...more I'm debating between 4 stars and 3.5 stars for this one. I was leaning solidly in the 4 star area, but then the ending fell a little short for me. Maybe I should say it was 3.75 stars, LOL. But aside from the somewhat lackluster ending, I enjoyed this book a lot. I loved Shane. Wanting to read his story is what kept me reading this series after the first book didn't do much for me.

Shattered is the third book on Ross's High Risk series which is about a bunch of former Spec Ops military men who are now trying to adjust to civilian life and dealing with the demons of things that happened on their last military mission. Shane Garrett is the hero of this book. He was the SOAR helicopter pilot who was seriously injured during the tragic Afghanistan mission. His injury caused him to have to have his leg amputated.

The book is divided into 3 sections. The first part, about 80-90 pages takes place in the past. It tells how Shane met Army doctor Kirby Campbell and how they started a hot affair and how Kirby ended up being the doctor who helped save Shane's life after he was shot. It goes through the Afghanistan mission again, this time from Shane's point of view. And finishes with how things went wrong with Shane and Kirby.

The second section, the longest one, moves into the present and tells what Shane and Kirby are doing now...Shane is teaching flying to civilians and Kirby is a doctor with a relief organization in an unstable country. When Kirby's partner doctor is kidnapped by terrorists, she ends up joining with the Phoenix group to go in and rescue her, which is how she and Shane meet up again. Though Kirby tries to deny it, the feelings are still there and Shane makes it clear that he screwed up before and wants Kirby back. But first they have to rescue her doctor friend.

And the third section of the book moves on to the rescue part of the story where Shane, Kirby, Zach, Quinn, and Michael Gannon go to the Central American country to rescue Rachel, the other doctor. And of course, there's an HEA for Kirby and Shane.

Though this book is a romantic suspense, its what I call a low-intensity one. There's not a lot of action. Most of the scenes are planning and talking and whatnot. But I found it easy to read. I enjoyed Shane a lot. He was a cool, very together kinda of guy. Alpha without being over the top. And I liked him and Kirby together. They had great chemistry. Though, like the last book, the present aspect of their relationship doesn't pick up until very late in the book. But considering parts 2 & 3 of the story only cover like 3 days time, that's kinda understandable (even if a little disappointing).

And also, like the last book, I thought the ending was a bit abrupt. The "suspense" aspect of the story and the HEA for the H/H covers only like 15 pages. I would have liked something a little more drawn out. And I was really disappointed with the wrap-up of the Michael/Rachel storyline.

Michael Gannon has been in several Ross books. He's the brother of some of her other lead characters. He was a military doctor who then became a priest (called by women Father What-A-Waste) who then went back to being a doctor. In this book, you learn Michael had a past relationship with Rachel, the doctor kidnapped. And that both still loved the other. So you know they're going to end up together. But all Ross gives you is one scene between them in the middle of chaos, then a short few lines between Shane and Kirby telling readers that Michael is going to join Rachel as a relief doctor. It was so disappointing. Michael was an endearing, recurring character and then to not get a full reunion, HEA scene with him and Rachel...well, it was more than a small let down.

But aside from the subpar ending, I liked this book. The characters were engaging, the romance was pretty good and the plot was interesting enough to keep me reading. I wouldn't call it a super great book, but it was good. I'm glad I decided to stick with the series.(less)

6 likes · like · see review

Mar 31, 2009 Wendy rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: contemporary-romance, hot-military-characters, joann-ross

I just finished Shattered, can I just say that Shane Garrett is HOT! I really loved this story. The hero and heroine are not typical to the other two in the series that I've read. Shane is recovering from the lose of his leg and Kirby is a Doctor that he had an affair with in Irac, but after his accident didn't feel he could burden her with his disability.

When Kirby's friend is kidnapped they are brought together again trying to rescue her and must face their feelings for each other.

This is n...more

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Aug 15, 2011 Michelle rated it 4 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Feb 05, 2009 Cherise rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: romantic-suspense

Book #3 in the High Risk Series

Army Night Stalker pilot, Shane Garrett, and Doctor Kirby Campbell engage in a short but steamy war time romance. When their lives change course, they go their separate ways. Then while Kirby is working in Pakistan she gets the opportunity to see her one time lover again, briefly, to save his life and send him on his way. Eighteen months later they are forced together again when they team up to rescue her friend from being held hostage in Central America.

I am a lon...more Book #3 in the High Risk Series

Army Night Stalker pilot, Shane Garrett, and Doctor Kirby Campbell engage in a short but steamy war time romance. When their lives change course, they go their separate ways. Then while Kirby is working in Pakistan she gets the opportunity to see her one time lover again, briefly, to save his life and send him on his way. Eighteen months later they are forced together again when they team up to rescue her friend from being held hostage in Central America.

I am a long time fan of JoAnn Ross, but she has really let me down with this series. I wasn’t crazy about the first book; I liked the second book a little more, but barely. This third book is probably my least favorite of the bunch. This was more of a recap on military action, than a romantic suspense. That wouldn’t have been bad had the action been believable. But I just found it really hard that a team of retired SEALs would bring along an ex-Army Doctor to rescue a civilian hostage from drugged up rebels in the midst of a violent civil war.

Ms. Ross has so many anagrams and military sayings in this book, I felt like the use of it was unnecessarily excessive. If the main character said “Night Stalkers don’t quit” one more time I was going to scream.

The romance is virtually non existent. The author establishes said romance by a brief reminiscing done by Kirby and Shane in the beginning of the book. Kirby and Shane don’t actually see each other in the present day till chapter 25, they don’t get together in the biblical sense until the book is almost over and in the middle of all that they never have a real conversation. Meanwhile we are supposed to believe that these two are in unrequited love with one another from a romance that happened about 2 years ago?

The whole book just moved so slow, I found myself skipping over most of the military mumbo jumbo hoping to find it pick up the pace somewhere. It never did. There was a secondary couple involved, Michael and Rachel, that I hoped would spice things up, but their romance was even more invisible than Shane and Kirby’s. I can only hope she will give them a proper story in a future book.

Like the previous two books in this series, the author has moseyed her way through 360 pages only to wind up the entire story in a frenzied last 10 pages. She gets you to their destination, solves the problem and then fills you in on all the characters futures. It’s not smooth, and it comes off as borderline ridiculous. All in all this was a below average book from a usually above average author. I am not even sure if I want to read, let alone buy the fourth one.

Cherise Everhard, January 2009
(less)

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Dec 21, 2010 Ns rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shattered was all action; fast-paced and thrilling. As such, I quickly realize it's also the kind of story you really want to devote reading time to to appreciate. It was evident with the terminology and detailed accounts of the characters' adventures that much research went into writing this story. Something that makes the High Risk series very appealing and authentic feeling.

I was impressed with the author; other books I've read by JoAnn Ross were nothing like this one. They were contemporary...more

1 like · like · see review

Feb 06, 2009 farmwifetwo rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: joann-ross

Initially, I thought I'd dislike this book. For the first 70pgs we went in reverse, telling the story of our HEA couple and their romance and break-up. It also tells the rest of the story that we get in the front of each of the 2 previous books. About Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, relief work, death due war, heroism, special forces, and SEAL's.

Then we started into the story. This is the story of a couple who met in Iraq. This is the story of the couple who one was badly injured, the other saved...more

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Mar 18, 2009 Anne rated it 2 of 5 stars

As another reviewer said, a good read for fans of contemporary romantic suspense. Especially for those who like it military-style.

Ross' stories spend a good deal of time on the background of the characters and the action. This leads to a little more telling and a little less showing than I prefer.

Let us into the character's thoughts. Also have the action help propel those thoughts. Then let the thoughts develop into feelings and more action. In Romantic Suspense, the focus is, of course, on the...more

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May 26, 2010 Jacqueline rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: from-work-borders, romantic-suspense

Another book based on the Robert's Ridge story. They aren't the action verbatum but trust me, if you read it you'll see the basis. This one spends more time on that mission actually on an extrapolated story. It is the one of all this series I like best. Probably because there was a lot more military action. The romance was good too. Plenty of angst which I personally like.

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Jun 08, 2012 Lhenry rated it 3 of 5 stars

There's a lot to like about this one. I liked the format starting with the background and then heading into the current action. Liked both of the main characters, Shane and Kirby and liked their relationship and the way they questioned the war-time aspects of it, whether that made it a real deal or not. ALso liked the comraderie between Zach, Quinn and Shane as well as the girly girl bonding scene.

But I have noticed with Jo Ann Ross that I tend to skip the secondary romance because for some reas...more

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Sep 19, 2009 Brandi rated it 3 of 5 stars

The story itself wasn't bad, but I'm not a fan of the way she writes. Also, I thought the rescue mission would be a bigger part of the story.

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Jul 10, 2012 Tina rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: contemporary-romance, romantic-suspense

Readers who like this series will probably also like the KGI series by Maya Banks.

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May 08, 2012 Karen is currently reading it

so far i think its awesome,it defintely holds your attention.

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Feb 26, 2009 Lady Danielle aka The Book Huntress marked it as to-read

Shelves: owned-copy, action-adventure, romantic-suspense, soldier-or-military, part-of-a-series

I have to read this because my boy cat is named Kirby.

1 like · like · see review

Mar 28, 2009 Sara rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: suspense, romance

This is the 3rd book in a series about former special ops guys who have come back after Afghanistan to solve crimes and work as mercenaries to rescue people. In this book, a former SOAR pilot and army doctor join forces with the Phoenix team to rescue a friend taken hostage by rebels in South America. Throw in some bad weather, political upheaval, and an erupting volcano and you've got a story.

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Mar 03, 2009 Cheryl rated it 5 of 5 stars

Thoroughly enjoyed Shattered! Great read

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Jan 02, 2011 Cindi rated it 4 of 5 stars

I love this very professionally-researched book, and thru each and every of the novels in this series, I find myself more and more appreciative of the enormous task our military performs and the sacrifices they are willing to make. The storyline is tight and thrilling, the SOAR hero super-hunky (but realistic) and the love story is more important than the sex. What more could I ask for in a book?

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Sep 02, 2009 Kim Johnson marked it as to-read

Shelves: ross-joann-high-risk

Kirby Campbell and Shane Garett

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Nov 09, 2012 Linda rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: ebook, ex-military-r-s, 4-half-stars

4 1/2*

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Aug 16, 2012 Michelle rated it 3 of 5 stars

Good, not one of my favorites. I put it down for a little while, because it wasn't holding my interest...

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Nov 12, 2009 Sherri *Mistress of Laundry* rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: those who like military romance

Shelves: military-romance, hero-to-die-for, heroine-i-loved

Gutsy heroine who wasn't pushy or too "tough". Terrific alpha hero with a heart. Great storyline. I loved this book from start to finish!

1 like · like · see review

Jun 24, 2012 Tina rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: joann-ross, adrenaline-rush, seal-fireman-military-alpha

I totally loved this book!!

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May 20, 2013 Marie Aurigemma rated it 4 of 5 stars

May 15, 2013 L. marked it as to-read

Shelves: own-q-r

May 14, 2013 Jo Ann rated it 4 of 5 stars

May 13, 2013 Whitney Littleton rated it 4 of 5 stars

May 13, 2013 Erica rated it 3 of 5 stars

May 13, 2013 Jenn M marked it as f-romantic-suspense

May 11, 2013 Julie Mckinney miller rated it 4 of 5 stars

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About JoAnn Ross

New York Times bestselling author JoAnn Ross has written around a hundred novels for a bunch of publishers. Two of her titles have been excerpted in Cosmopolitan magazine and her books have also been published by the Doubleday, Rhapsody, Literary Guild, and Mystery Guild book clubs.

A member of the Romance Writers of America's Honor Roll of best-selling authors, she's won several awards, including...more

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Shattered (High Risk #3)

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