A couple's future is under fire in New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Lindsay McKenna's Shadow Warriors miniseries
When her Black Hawk helicopter is shot down in Afghanistan, Army medevac pilot Sarah Benson does what she must to survive. Hiding by day and hiking through the mountains by night, Sarah manages to save a mother and daughter before being taken captive. Even then she fights. She has to get back to the base—and to the man she loves
Once Ethan Quinn learns that Sarah has survived the crash, he refuses to stop until he finds her, though the battle-hardened Navy SEAL knows the odds are against him. For him, it's more than a matter of courage—it's their future he is fighting for.
I've lived six lives in one and it all shows up in the books I write, one way or another.
I was always a risk taker and broke mustangs at thirteen years old in Oregon. I learn to break them with love, not threat or pain.
At 17 years old, I picked night-crawlers (worms) out in our Oregon orchards from 9pm to midnight, every night. I earned enough money to buy my school clothes and book. I also plunked down $600 to a flight company at the Medford, Oregon airport and asked them to teach me...a girl...to fly. I soloed in 12 hours, which is average. From that time until I left for the US Navy at 18, I had accrued 39 hours of flight time in my Cessna 150 single engine airplane.
I was in the US military and was an AG3 (weather forecaster). There was no airplane club, so I couldn't fly when I was in the Navy. But I could look at the clouds in the sky ;-).
Later, I flew in a B-52 bomber for a day and night mission (18 hours total), a T-38 Talon jet, USAF, where I was riding in a "chase plane" on a test flight in a Dragonfly jet.
I was one of the first AFLA (American Fencing League of America) women fencers to fence with epee and sabre. These weapons were closed to women because they were too 'heavy' for a female to handle. I said baloney and fought the males and won half my bouts. I was part of a surge of women fencers on the East Coast in the 1970's to push for equality in the sport. Together, we changed the sport and changed the mind of the men. Today? In the Olympics? Women now fence in foil, epee and sabre, thanks to what we did as a vanguard showing the world it could be done.
I then became a volunteer firefighter when I was a civilian once more, the first woman in an all - male fire department in West Point, Ohio for three years. I became a local expert not only in firefighting, driving the engine and tanker trunks, but also had training in hazardous material (Reynoldsburg Fire Academy, Columbus, OH).
My books always reflect what I experienced. If you like edgy, gritty, deeply and emotionally intense love stories with sympathetic heroes and heroines, check out my newest series that will be available mid-Oct. 2015, and it incorporates much of what I have lived.
Wonderful sequel to Risk Taker. This one is a little less of a romance, as Sarah and Ethan's love is well established, but it is a testament to the strength of their love and the strength it gives to each of them. It starts out with Sarah and Ethan struggling to find chances to be together, not easy with their schedules. It's even harder with the way Sarah's CO has it in for her and schedules her more than anyone else - until the SEAL Master Chief steps in. Sarah and Ethan have a rare two days off together to recharge their relationship.
When not flying Sarah spends her downtime with her new SEAL family. One night, as she prepares her Army issued emergency pack, her SEAL brothers intervene, giving her one like those they carry. This ends up being a very important gift. A few days later Sarah and her copilot are shot down while delivery ammunition to a forward operating base. Sarah's copilot is killed, but Sarah escapes, taking her emergency pack with her.
This scene was incredibly intense as we see it from two points of view. First, we have the attack from Sarah's perspective. There is the tension of the flight itself, dangerous because of the weather conditions which force them to fly low. There is also the ever present danger of attack by Taliban forces. When they are shot at with a missile, the efforts made by Sarah and Tait to evade are heart pounding. As the helo crashes, Sarah is desperate to escape and to live to make it back to Ethan. On the other side, Ethan and his team were in that same area and witnessed the attack and crash. Ethan's grief at the possibility of her death and his fears for her safety if she escaped are heart wrenching.
As we follow Sarah in her efforts to escape detection by the Taliban and make her way to safety, her strength of will is amazing. She deals with her fears that she is presumed dead and that no one will be looking for her by calling on the independence she built up during her growing up years. She tries to remain hopeful that Ethan and the others will believe in her survival. As she does her best to evade capture, she witnesses a brutal attack on a woman and young girl and risks her own safety to save them. When she is captured, the man in charge brings flashbacks of the foster father who abused her. The skills she learned back then came in handy during her captivity, enabling her to stay relatively safe while trying to find a way to escape.
Meanwhile, Ethan and his team refuse to accept the Army's insistence that Sarah is dead and go on the hunt for evidence of her escape. Ethan's relief when they found it was palpable. The involvement of all of Sarah's "brothers" was exciting to watch as each one put their own unique talents to work. Even the Master Chief got personally involved in this mission. Ethan had to work very hard to keep his focus on what he was doing, as his mind tried to wander through all his memories of their time together. The tension as they got closer to Sarah, hoping that they would be in time, kept the story flying forward.
The final showdown had me hoping that all would go well. The chaos that ensued as Sarah's actions blended with those of the SEALs had me on the edge of my seat. When all the shooting was done, the reunion was so emotional. I loved seeing her favorite combat medic arrive on the medevac chopper, and the interesting twist that came with his examination of her injuries.
The conclusion of the book was a wonderful statement of the strength of the love that Sarah and Ethan had for each other. The ceremony involving all the SEALs was incredibly moving and showed just how much Sarah had come to mean to them all. It also showed the huge strides that Sarah had made in her own life.
This is the much anticipated sequel to Risk Taker, HRS, Feb’14. The saga of Chief Warrant Officer 4, Sarah Benson and Navy SEAL, Ethan Quinn continues. Sarah was called “Blue Eyes” but there are many more layers and much more depth to her. Ethan intuitively feels it. She has a Warrior Spirit just like SEALS. Due to abandonment and abuse at a tender young age she is a determined Medevac Pilot who pulls out all the stops in order to rescue the wounded. No one is deserted or left behind.
At age 12 Sarah was taken in by Hank and Mary Benson. They were aware of her years of abuse and tried to make up for it. They couldn’t love her enough to heal her invisible wounds. To create a safe bond with Sarah, Hank introduced her to the helicopter that he flew. Flying became her lifeline, her one constant that helped her survive and thrive.
Only with Ethan does Sarah feel free to open up and reveal that she feels dirty, unclean and undeserving of someone like Ethan. She sees herself as “Damaged Goods”, he most definitely does not. Ethan understands that she lived through darkness and survived with a splintered heart and fractured soul. She appears fearless but Ethan sees into her sensitive side. He affirms that her nurturing ability to care wasn’t harmed. It’s only been hidden. Her sense of mothering & love of all children is intact & strong.
Due to her budding relationship with Ethan, SEAL Master Chief Gil Hunter and the entire platoon treat Sarah with the respect she has earned and deserves. They prepare a room just for her at SEAL HQ. Although extremely wary of men she’s comfortable being surrounded by these warriors. One evening while she’ readying her Army survival Go Bag her SEAL brothers stepped in to tell “little sister, Sarah” that her supplies were pitiful. With Master Chief Hunter’s full support they assembled a 65lb SEAL E & E (Escape and Evasion) ruck to be used to keep her alive and ahead of the bad guys.
Sarah’s next assignment came while she was the standby pilot on duty. This mission entailed transporting a load of 105mm rounds to FOB Thunder. Things quickly deteriorate when her Black Hawk helicopter is shot down by a Stinger missile meant to blow them out of the sky. Co-pilot Tait doesn’t survive the hit but Sarah does. She’s able to escape taking her new life saving ruck with her. With Taliban surrounding the area she knows she has to outsmart them to in order to make it to safety. Upon hearing that the helicopter went down, the SEALs believe Sarah is alive and mount a direct-action mission to get her. This is personal for all of them. Besides being Ethan’s woman, she’s a gutsy pilot who saves lives and they will stop at nothing to rescue her.
Lessons of survival learned early on are deeply ingrained in her being. The supplies in her ruck allow Sarah to tend to her wounds and press on. Her hidden location is compromised when she fires shots in order to save a mother and daughter from a brutal Taliban attack. She took action in spite of the fact that no one had ever protected her. Sarah gets captured by Mustafa Khogani, Taliban Chief of the hill. While she is a prisoner, she offers to trade herself in order to spare a young boy from torture. This incident became a stellar moment as she deftly fended off Khogani’s attack. You can still hear me cheering for her!!! The SEALS invade the compound and liberate her.
Ultimately Sarah and Ethan are married surrounded by his SEAL platoon. Master Chief Hunter gave her away. If Sarah could have picked a father it would have been him and she reminds him of his spitfire oldest daughter. SEALS have had Ethan’s back and he now has the woman he loves at his side. A new chapter in their lives begins. They know that as long as they’re together, with their love flourishing everything is right with the world.
Both characters are very maudlin. They're constantly gushing inside about each other's emotional fragility or tenderness/vulnerability. It got boring after a while. I was relieved every time the action interrupted their thoughts of each other.
This book is a sequel of the previous one and the main characters are the same. Sara has been ambushed and she has to run, fighting agaist Talibans to save herself. A very brave woman. I so loved her.
I read this to finish their story that started in an earlier book, #3 I think. There isn't much suspense. The writing is good, characters and story is good.
Degree of Risk by Lindsey McKenna is a Shadow Warriors book. It follows Risk Taker. Chief Warrant Officer Sarah Benson is an Army medevac pilot in Afghanistan. As the only woman in the squad, she endured an unfair share of harassment. She used her fighting instincts to stay out of trouble by complaining. She knew things would only get worse if she complained. She knew how to be tough, her entire life was rough. Raped at a young age for several years by a foster father, she learned to fight. Finally she was free of him but still damaged; but working on fixing herself. Now she is engaged to Ethan Quinn and he is helping her. She loves the way he romances her and tries to protect her. In fact, his entire SEAL squad has surrounded her with protection from her “big brothers.” That is until she is shot down in an area hot with the Taliban. Without any means of communication, she has no idea if they are even searching for her. She must make the twenty miles through Taliban held territory to the FOB she was headed for. Can she make it out alive? Ethan Quinn is a communications officer with a SEAL team based at Camp Bravo. From the first sight of Sarah, he has felt a definite need to know her and to protect her. Now that he finally persuaded her to marry him, he is more protective than ever. His SEAL team has adopted Sarah and before her last mission had created an emergency rucksack for her to replace the dinky one the Army had issued her. Will this rucksack be enough to help her stay alive? When her plane is shot down, the Army believes both the pilot and copilot were killed; but Ethan and his team do not believe that. They head out on a mission to rescue Sarah. Can they reach her before the Taliban does? Or will they find out the Army was right? Lindsay writes with a lot of suspense. Her characters get into many stressful situations. They come alive through her writing. This was a very suspenseful and fun book.
Degree of Risk is the conclusion to Lindsay McKenna’s Risk Taker. We pick-up where Risk Taker left off with Medevac Pilot Sarah Benson and Navy Seal Ethan Quinn engaged to be married and living in a war zone. We learned in Risk Taker that Sarah had been abused in the foster care system. Ethan, a Navy Seal, through his dedication and patience, taught Sarah how to love. As with any military novel that Ms. McKenna writes, we encounter a tragedy of sorts. This time we see Sarah’s helicopter shot out of the sky while Ethan watched from afar. As we waited for the stinger missile to hit the helicopter, Ms. McKenna wrote in such detail the events that led up to and after the encounter from both characters perspective. I felt Ethan’s fear as he watched the missile approach the helicopter while you felt Sarah’s angst as she tried to evade the missile strike. True to Ms. McKenna’s form we are touched by the lives of characters previously written about in prior novels. This was a great conclusion to the series. I would highly recommend this book along with Ms. McKenna’s other series Black Jaguar Squadron.
This continues the story of Sarah Benson, Medevac pilot and Ethan Quinn, SEAL. The pair has overcome some obstacles in order to be together in a forward combat unit. They also need to overcome Sarah's childhood, which has left her scarred emotionally and unable to trust. Ethan has overcome most of her fears with his unconditional love and empathy for her. They are connected to the extent that each knows when the other is in danger.
When Sarah's helicopter crashes and explodes, Ethan can't believe that she is gone. He rallies his SEAL team (who have adopted Sarah as a little sister) to find her. Master Chief Hunter of Ethan's platoon is their father in all aspects except biologically. When Sarah needs them, they com through for her.
Another emotional story and a very good one. Note: These stories are found in Harlequin Romantic Suspense monthly bundles, February and March 2014 respectively).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I totally fell in love with this story. It had all the elements I love in a military romance book. Suspense, romance, danger, emotional turmoil... Sarah Benson is one heck of a medevac pilot. She's met and fallen in love with Ethan Quinn, a Navy Seal, and with his love and understanding, she's risen above personal issues and is on a better path emotionally than she was. Their love for each other builds up the other. So little taking and so much giving. Sarah really shows her core strength when she goes on the run from the enemy after her chopper crashes. Ethan's mission, with the help of his Seal team mates, is to find her, get her back safely. The story unfolds, danger ensues, love conquers.
Per Amazon:When her Black Hawk helicopter is shot down in Afghanistan, Army medevac pilot Sarah Benson does what she must to survive. Hiding by day and hiking through the mountains by night, Sarah manages to save a mother and daughter before being taken captive. Even then she fights. She has to get back to the base—and to the man she loves.
Once Ethan Quinn learns that Sarah has survived the crash, he refuses to stop until he finds her, though the battle-hardened Navy SEAL knows the odds are against him. For him, it's more than a matter of courage—it's their future he is fighting for.
"In a world of dangerous military ops, McKenna brings us two strong, appealing characters in Ethan and Sarah. This sequel to Risk Taker is an action-packed, compelling story, and sizzling chemistry between Ethan and Sarah make this one good read". (RT Book Reviews, rated 4 stars)
Medevac pilot Sarah Benson is shot down while carrying a load of ammunition to a foward operating base. Her lover and Navy Seal Ethan Quinn happens to be on patrol in the area and sees the crash. He and his fellow Seals soon find evidence that Sarah survived the crash but can she stay alive until they find her? Each takes risks to reach the other one. Great story.
Love seeing more of Ethan and Sarah. Great adventure to add to their story from Risk Taker. My favorite scene was when her SEAL brothers redid her ruck. And a little sneak peak of Gabe in the next book. I really thought it would be Annie instead of Emma.