Road to Victory

Dogs of Fire MC #5

by Piper Davenport

18+ for language and sexual situations.

Kimberly Church has led a privileged, but tortured life. In an effort to beat back her demons, she breaks away from her villainous family and creates a stable and safe life for herself, shutting all but her best friend out.

Aidan "Knight" Quinn is a well-respected and deeply rooted soldier in the Dogs of Fire Motorcycle Club. His dedication to helping animals leads him to a career as a veterinarian, but meeting the gorgeous and wholly unattainable friend of one of his brothers, threatens to distract him from his current path. Not realizing the dangers that truly lie ahead, he pursues her with an intense passion that surprises even him.

When Kim's deep dark secret comes back to haunt her, will she trust Knight enough to let him save her?

Will Knight be able to beat back the biggest demon of all in order to save Kim’s sanity, but most importantly, her life?

Genres: Romance, Contemporary, Suspense, Motorcycle, Drama

218 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 13, 2016

About the author

New York Times & USA Today Bestselling Author Piper Davenport writes from a place of passion and intrigue, combining elements of romance and suspense with strong modern-day heroes and heroines.

She currently resides in the Pacific Northwest with her author husband, Jack Davenport, and an obnoxious YorkiePoo named Pepper who may or may not be an international spy.

Reviews

[Liz F · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review copy courtesy of the author.

I've got to be honest here. I'm a fan of this author and of this series. I've read all of the books in this series so far and I've enjoyed them all. This one was no different.

Kim was kind of so-so for me as far as heroines go. She's survived a lot and I guess she's a strong woman. Strong-ish. I suppose heroines don't have to be perfect and they don't have to react perfectly to every situation. And Kim is extremely far from perfect. She sees a shrink on a weekly basis but her friends still worry about her "spiraling" and see her doing it fairly frequently. It seemed to me that "spiraling" meant Kim went out, got drunk, and tried to get laid and wasn't particular where that happened. I would say that her shrink was doing a terrible job but what do I know?

I really liked Knight. I loved how he had this sort of secret other life - being a veterinarian and loving horses. He's supposed to be a badass biker and I think he was but the biker part of this book was REALLY in the background. Knight wasn't very rough around the edges and he rode a motorcycle just as much as he drove his vehicle. He was so incredibly sweet and understanding and patient - it was entirely impossible not to like him. After what he puts up with from Kim, I thought he was an amazing character.

The Sexy Time was hot and plentiful in this book. It was never over the top or overly descriptive either. I think this author is excellent at writing sex scenes! For the most part, I enjoyed the progression of the relationship between Kim and Knight. This book spans probably about two years so they definitely took their time. But with all of Kim's baggage, I'm not surprised that it took them so long to work through things.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. The middle part dragged a bit - where Kim was accepted to be part of the US Olympic Equestrian Team. I didn't totally understand what the point was of all that except to show how much Kim and Knight had in common and give them time to spend together? It seemed a little random but all of the horse-related parts of the story seemed strange to me. All of the time spent guarding Kim's horse was super overkill but I'm an animal lover so I didn't mind it so much. Still, I love the world this author has created and I love the Dogs of Fire guys. I think this would be okay to read without having read the other books in this series first. I would highly recommend this book and the whole series!

[Sophia · Rating 4 out of 5]

After all this time, the fiery and wild Kimberly Church meets her match when Aiden 'Knight' Quinn. Riding a Harley made him hot, but then he proves he can see past her walls. Too dangerous- dangerous to her plans to stay aloof and free. I've been so curious for when Kimmie, the best friend of the heroine from book one, Road to Desire, would get her turn. She's the carefree, pampered princess, rich party girl of the group and I was always wondering if she would find her match with one of the Dogs of Fire brotherhood.

This story is book five and it really needs to fall in line after the others. It not only includes characters from the previous books, but it begins as a parallel read to all the other books so that all those swiftly connected short scenes only make sense if the reader got them in more developed form through the other books. Kimmie and Knight's story was running in the background of the others. It's been a while since I read the first ones so it was taxing my memories to pull up the events so I'm absolutely certain a newbie couldn't start here.

Kimberly Church lets the world think she is a high-maintenance, pampered princess no strings attached party girl. Only a chosen trusted few know the real woman under the attitude and walls. She is determined to keep it that way so has some sincere panic when quiet, confident Knight looks right into her eyes and sees straight to her soul. They connect and are an easy fit, but that is what terrifies her the most so Kimberly does the lowest of Queen B moves. She lies to his face by saying she doesn't trust him, he's just like the man in the alley, and he makes her afraid right after he saved her from an attack and near rape. The hurt and shocked expression on his face as he backs away is her new burden to carry and she lets him go.

Kimmie knows the instant she pulled her lying, hateful stunt that she just ruined a really good chance and even possibly her best chance. Her motives were to protect and restore her life to the control she needed, but learns that instead, she is now miserable and spiraling out of control.

Or, her actions should have destroyed the attraction, but Knight remains at only a watchful distance and is quietly faithful to looking out for her- waiting for her to get her mess together. Even Dani her best friend and sister of the heart, tells her to pull her head out of her butt and woman up. Dani makes it clear that Kimmie never gave Knight a chance and doesn't even know him if she thinks he gave up.

And through a series of encounters, Kimmie learns this is true. The man is not just a biker, but shares the same love for horses and riding. She gets a further shocking revelation that proves he is never going to be after her money or her family's power. He is intuitive about her and the connection is still there. Can she conquer her demons and let Knight in?

This one had some definite sizzle and connection between the hero and heroine. It took it's time as it set things up and it's got a rough pace as it works through a series of vignettes told over a couple years’ time that cover the couple's first meet and periodic scenes together up through the present.

At first, I thought I was going to be disappointed and not even finish the book. But I'm glad I gave it a longer lead. It is one that isn't all that it appears to be in the beginning and well worth the reader's patience to see it through. I say that because the heroine was dancing on my last nerve for several pages. I was not loving her. At. All. I could not figure out what her major malfunction was.
But I love the series and the broader scenes and story kept me going until I learned that the heroine has her reasons for her issues. Didn't excuse meanness early and that chip on her shoulder every time someone was trying to get her to be safe and smart, but did make me go from disappointed to totally into it and cheering for her.
When she stopped really resisting, I could totally appreciate the strength, intelligence, and assertive confident woman she was just as Aiden did. He is an alpha and he has his own way of doing things. He is the king in his area of expertise and that is hot on its own. But he respected Kimmie and supported and built her up. He was truly right there for her through everything. Incidentally, what is with those Quinn brothers all being such cuties? No complaints, though.

The last half of the book just got better from the first half. It settled into a nice pace and easy to follow story arc and development. There are a few things going on beyond the romance and personal character growth that make things exciting. Stalkers. Revenge seekers. Enemies from the past. Greed over an inheritance battle. Arson. And competition.

I know this is an MC romance series, but I enjoyed that the author took the story into the world of show horse events and cross country (in an Olympic year when I'm more geeked than usual for it, woots). I watch that whenever it’s on TV and out at the fairgrounds and am enthralled by the beauty and grace of the sport so yeah, that was a huge hit with me. I don't want to spoil the surprise, but this one has some excitement and fun of a different sort in the latter half of the book.

And as always, the strengths of this series is the camaraderie of the large cast of characters. I love the club moments or even the get-togethers. The group are there for each other in the hard times and the good times. I do enjoy that the previous books' characters are right there continuing with their lives. Babies are starting to come for those burly, gruff, and assertive biker men and their gals. And I grin.

So, all in all, this was another one to leave me satisfied though, as I said, it's one that has to be given a lot of lead to get going and the time to see the change and growth take place in the characters and the romance. Knight earning Kimmie's trust was a beautiful thing. And those horses, gah. Loved the equestrian back drop.
This is a nice series for someone new to biker romance that wants to start out easy does it and for those who prefer their biker romances mild and their romance fired up.

My thanks to the author for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Traci · Rating 1 out of 5]

I dont usually give 1 star reviews but Kim completely ruined this book for me .... There is no excuse for the way she treats people ... It isn't sexy or cute or even understandable ... I get she had a bad past but shes verbally abusive not to mention physically abusive to a man that she supposedly loves. He's a fool to even want to be around such a nasty, rude and obnoxious woman.
I struggled to finish this book.
Get rid of Kim and this is a 5 star.
I truly feel sorry for Knight (Aiden) and the abuse he puts up with.

[Daniela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved Knight - he's very patient and knows what he wants. Kim comes from a horrible family and has suffered greatly because of it. Yes there were times where her bitch factor took over but that's a defense mechanism. If someone threatens her in any way she drives them away with words, etc. She thankfully has Knight who saw past her armor and she has Dani who knows everything and knows who the real Kim is.

[Fiction Junkie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great addition. I loved it. Took them awhile to finally get together, but there was no one else for either of them which I loved. Faithful since meeting. There is talk of rape, not anything too descriptive. Great read.

[rhonda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my cup of tea. Story was good I know she has issues but man I couldn’t get over the bitch factor . Also I tried to relate to her . Plus the older then the hero thing and her being 6 feet tall . I couldn’t relate . I like to get lost in a book I couldn’t do that

[Smashing Kindle · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF - I struggled to like heroine, Kim. She went through a traumatic past, but made it hard to feel sympathetic. She was bitchy & just jumped into everyone’s bed to “cope.” Even going so far as lashing out at the hero when he refuses to take advantage of her while she’s drunk. Whatt.

Also, their love confessions came out of nowhere. I’ve read every book in the series so far, and hardly remember Kim and Knight interacting at all. But, apparently, they've been secretly in love with each other all this while. So much so that one kind word from Knight is enough to erase all of Kim’s trauma and “did more for her than six years of therapy.” Seriously??

[Kayread · Rating 4 out of 5]

I felt horrible for what Kim went through as a little girl. I have no idea how one copes with that but I felt like she was a bitch to Knight from the get go. She was my least favorite leading lady. I'm still not sure why the uncle tried to burn the grandmas house. I thought maybe there was evidence of him raping his sister(Kim's mom) and other girls hidden in the house. I think if the mom was really sending her away to protect her then she should have let Kim know instead of making her feel alone.

[Andrea Gillan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fab read

Wow what another great read from Piper.this series is excellent and highly recommended. This is feisty Kim's story. Kim is a briliant horse woman and is drawn to Knight who she thinks is a rough tough cowboy. Only his is not what he seems.

[Fatimama · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars for the cover coz he is so hot and Bijou Hunter also has a book with the same cover.

What I liked
- Knight (H) is 5 years younger than Kim (h)

What I didn’t like
- Kim... and her bullshit pushing Knight away

[French Press Bookworm Blog · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this whole freaking series... Enough said!

[Kim Brewing · Rating 4 out of 5]

It wasn't my favorite of the series, but I did enjoy it. We were all waiting for Kim and Knight's story and it does not disappoint. We also get updates on the other couples. A good read

[Marti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Road to Victory is the fifth book in a series called Dogs of Fire MC by Piper Davenport. This is a series about hot bikers, alpha males and lots of hot action. I just recently found Piper Davenport and fell in love with her writing and books. This is a new series for me and I was quite excited to start reading these books. Dogs of Fire MC is not a 1% MC that means that they are mostly clean according to its members.

Aidan "Knight" Quinn is working on working on becoming a vet. He also is training people with their horses. Kim wants nothing to do with Aiden. She is focused on her riding and finding distractions when she needs them. Knight is persistent and is willing to wait for Kim to open up to him. Then one day all sorts of things happen and Knight and Kim begin to understand each other. Kim’s disastrous past is a huge concern to both of them.

I like how this book focuses on real horses - not just motorcycle’s horsepower. Road to Victory was a fun read mixing old and new technology. I think Kim, despite her struggles shows a lot of fortitude to move forward to the future. I enjoyed how they found their way together and hoped they could find their way to each other permanently. Road to Victory by Piper Davenport was a good read.

[Jeni Clancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Could NOT Put This Book Down Till The Last Sentence Was Read...AMAZING!

I enjoyed this book so much that I stayed up all night long until the very last sentence was read and it was so worth the loss of sleep! Knight has loved Kim for a long time,but he knew that he needed to take things VERY slow because Kim doesn't trust easily and he doesn't want to spook her. Kim's past is something that she had kept hidden from everyone except her BFF, Dani. She wants to trust Knight, but it is so much easier to push him away. The only thing is Knight knows that they are meant to be even if Kim hasn't gotten the memo yet, now he just had to wear her down.

There is a lot to this book, and I can admit that Piper Davenport has a system that works for her with her writing style and if you like that style and I do, you will love her books, which, obviously, I do as I gave this a 5 star review and if you don't like that style well her books may start to run together after awhile.

But, I love my men Alpha and their women sassy and not taking their men's sh** and this is Piper Davenport to a T! So I will be a fan forever!

[Kerry · Rating 3 out of 5]

We first learned about Kim's feelings for Knight in book 1, so this story has been a long time coming. I have to admit that Kim wasn't my favorite character. Yes, she has been through A LOT, but I still just couldn't fully sympathize with her and her actions felt over the top. The pacing of this story also felt a bit off. The first 20% before we get to present day could have been condensed a bit -- for example, why exactly did we need to see the exact same scene from the previous book where Mack first meets Darien? The quick little scene from Dani's POV also felt out of place and unnecessary. It wasn't until Dani FINALLY opened up to Knight (I think around the 40% mark) with the little bit of danger that I finally connected to the story. However, it then jumped to the Olympic section, which again felt out of place and too drawn out. The ending was also a bit anti-climactic and I expected something a little different.

While this wasn't my favorite installment, I really like this series and am interested to see which couple will be featured next!

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! Kim’s family is something else. No one should have to live with a family like her, book character or not. Her uncle in evil incarnate and not too sure her mother isn’t far behind that. But when Aidan/Knight comes into her life, it’s just magical. He provides the amour she didn’t realize she needed. Knight has something up his sleeve for Kim that she had previously never dreamed of.

I loved this book from beginning to end, my only wish is that some of the horse terms and events were explained a bit more. Personally, I grew up a block from the city mall, horses were never really a part of my life. But my lack of that knowledge did not take away from my enjoyment of this book. The glimpses now to some of the other members of the Dogs of Fire MC, I’m really looking forward to the next book in this series.

[Amazeballs Book Addicts · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another hit out of the park for this author!! I am not an MC book fan normally, however this series I love!!! There is not one character in this series that I don't love. I have been waiting to get my hands on Knight's book and could not wait to start it. Kim is most definitely is perfect counterpart. This series has it all...a whole lot of heat and sexiness, a little mystery, and many humorous moments too. I highly recommend this whole series and at the end of every book I am left wanting more and more. And again I say normally I am not an MC fan, but this author has made me love it!! Can't wait for what comes next!!
Review by Tabitha

[Kelly C · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kim and Knight’s story..... Kim has been a apart of the Dogs of Fire family since the beginning as she is Dani’s best friend. Kim has had a terrible past and has some stuff she is working out. A night at Blush turns out to be a horrible mistake for her, but Knight comes to her rescue. Kim tries to hide the feeling she has for Knight by pushing him away. Knight knows better, but gives Kim time. Once Kim admits to herself who she feels for Knight she is a goner. Has Kim’s past come back to haunt her Knight is with her every step of the way. This was an amazing book which had me smiling and in places my heart-breaking, but love concur all in the end.

[Teresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 - liked seeing this story. these are two revolving characters the whole series so fantastic to read them in their own world. she is fighting some serious demons but has such a huge heart, and is insecure in her own worth, even being a "richie". he is ..... wow. smart, animal loving, definitely alpha, and very protective. they fit well. loved the sporting competition, and their roles in the training. wished for a better comeuppance with her family, but it still gave a happy feeling knowing what did happen.

[patrick Lorelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

really finding love

Kimberly from the first book has many issues from the past and though her friend knows she does not allow any guy to get close you thought her and Mack maybe but they are just friends but Aiden scares her because he sees her and actually knows her and worse of all she feels safe and protected when she’s with him a very good book with good characters and dealing with family issues and other personal issues from childhood still a really good book and worth the read

[Wendy Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Road to Victory

This was such an amazing read, it’s an awesome series. I absolutely loved Knight and Kim’s story ❤️❤️❤️ I loved how she gave him the runaround, even though it was done because of her trauma. He waited with patience until they finally landed on the same page. Being her armour was easily done with the Dogs at his back. They shared an epic adventure throughout the book. A definite page turner and a very entertaining journey. 100% recommend this book to everyone ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ you will not be disappointed 😎

[K. Ryner · Rating 3 out of 5]

it was an ok read.....
After 70% I was sure I'd kill everybody who would mention the words honey or sugar again!!!!!!!!😣😣😣😣😣 My Kindle counted in this 200 pages = 94x "honey" and 174x "sugar"!!!!!! Not to mention Sug and Hon and Babe and Baby and Sweetheart and Sweetie.......... aaaaargh, this was sooo annoying!!!!
I'm not a Horse or Riding Fan either, so sorry, this book wasn't my cup of coffee!

[Georgette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Aidan and Kim captured my heart!
Well, it might have been the horses...
Nah, it was them and their chemistry!
Although they loved each other, they took a long time to come together and be as one.
I loved all the trials and tribulations.
An easy read. As are all the books I've read by this author so far. They just capture me from the first page.
I want all the horsies!

[Shelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once again Piper Davenport has done it...made me fall in love with the story of Knight and Kim. Road to Victory is the fourth book in the Dogs of Fire series. Kim is independent and tries to be so strong....all Knight wants is to be the man she can depend on and love... I loved these two from previous books finally getting their happy ever after.

[Hendrix Fan 4ever · Rating 4 out of 5]

LOVED IT!

What can I say? When I love an author's storytelling I may have several books by that author. It doesn't mean I read them all at once. I am rediscovering some of my favorite authors over and over again 😍 And I will dive back into a series that I may have read book 1 and end up going crazy all over again!

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is finally Kim and Knight's story.. Finally because each has been showing up in the earlier books (more reason to read the entire series). That said, this is a standalone story of love and friendship, determination and threats. Family made from motorcycle club members. Each book of the series just keeps getting better and this is no exception. Bravo, again, for a wonderful story.

[Tricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another excellent read by Piper.

A privileged life of money meets a certain MC biker and sparks fly! Can Aiden tame Kimberley's promiscuous ways by finding the root cause and dealing with it for her? There are lots of surprises in their story to keep you reading.

[Debbie Eichler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Her Knight

So happy that Kim found her Knight. She had reasons to put up her walls and not let anyone in but Knight rode his horse right through them. Another amazing book from Piper Davenport!!

[Suzanne Clemons · Rating 5 out of 5]

Each Story is Better than the Last

Even if you haven't read the other books in the series, you will like this book. Piper Davenport is a master story teller and you will not be disappointed.

[Terri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Road to Victory...

Dogs of Fire book 5. This is Knight and Kim story. Kim has a lot of issues due to past trauma. Knight falls for her issues and all. As her past haunts her Knight steps in to save her but she's no slouch. High drama and angst with plenty of oh so tingle worthy.