Knife to the Heart by Kristie Wolf Blog Tour

What happens when duty and desire collide like an avalanche?

All she wanted was a relaxing vacation in the tranquil ski-town of Red Snow, Colorado. But everything freezes for FBI Special Agent Rosalie Zenner when she spots an all-too-familiar deadly threat lurking in the mountain village. Duty-bound to ensure everyone's safety, she must stop a battle-hardened doctor with a reckless plan.

Dr. Cannon Ford, the small town’s selfless hero, is ready to pay any price to fulfill a life-saving promise, even negotiating with a criminal. But when the stunning FBI agent stands in his way from protecting his community, he's hit with a snow-melting attraction.

Caught between the monster from her past and the rugged, possessive doctor determined to make her leave, she refuses to let their explosive passion compromise her oath to catch a killer. While Cannon may not hold a badge, he's willing to take lives to save everyone he holds dear, including the woman who’s ensnared him.

As blood stains the icy trails, Cannon and Rosalie navigate impossible choices more perilous than the killer’s chilling plans. One wrong move could lead to a fate worse than a Knife to the Heart.

Welcome to Red Snow, where heroes emerge from the shadows, and love and danger entwine on every snowy slope.

 

 

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
Paperback (US)  ~  Special Edition Paperback (US)
Signed Paperback  ~  Signed Special Edition PB
~  Also Available with KindleUnlimited  ~

 

 

 

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Avid Reader – ☆☆☆☆
M/F Romance Mystery

Rosalie is on vacation – boarding down the mountain – wanting to forget the past just for a little bit. When she meets a handsome person on the mountain, she can't help but want to throw caution to the wind. Rosalie is actually in town for her cousin's wedding and wants to have a relaxing time.

With the past creeping in, Rosalie knows that she'll have to face it sooner or later. When she finds herself in the ER, the last person she expects to see is her mystery man.

Cannon is the CEO of the local hospital and loves what he does. When the hospital is hijacked and subjected to a ransomware attack, Cannon doesn't really know what to do. However, he has a sister who is needing a specific clinical trial at the local hospital and Cannon will stop at nothing to get it there.

When Cannon and Rosalie meet again, Rosalie sees that the hospital is under an attack and since that's what she does, she offers her help. However, Cannon isn't sure.

As the attacker moves closer and closer, Rosalie's past comes crashing into her present and it will take Cannon's hidden talents to help solve the mystery of who's attacking the hospital and the local people in town.

You won't be disappointed in this story. It's fast paced and the romance, while sometimes a little unconventional and unbelievable, still adds to the story. I can't wait for the next installation.


Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆
3.5 stars rounded up for a despicable baddie!

This is the first book in a new series, and definitely had a lot to commend it – I will be looking out for future stories, and hope to catch up with Rosalie and Cannon.

The story revolves around a cybercrime, which then develops in a collection of terrorist acts, all to gain the attention of FBI agent Rosalie Zenner. As we get to learn her backstory, it explains some of the complications, moving the original situation – the freezing of the hospital data for ransom – into an escalation of much more intense significance.

I did find that the pacing was a little slow and that the narrative could have been snappier, but the underlying story was interesting enough to keep me reading. I liked the romance in that they were two people who deserved some happiness, but their habit of disappearing at key moments for some privacy didn't always fit in with the drama unfolding around them, and somehow lessened the tension in the wrong way, at least for me.

I cannot imagine how the drama can keep up this pace in the next installment – I await its release with interest.

 

 

 

KRISTIE WOLF is an award-winning author of steamy romantic suspense.

When she was a teenager, she read her first romance novel and connected with it so deeply that she immediately told her mother she was going to write one. She is thrilled to bring that dream fully to fruition with the release of Too Dangerous to Love, book one in the Project VIPER series.

While her career as a marketing professional in the government technology space hasn’t taught her to troubleshoot a computer, she’s fascinated with what happens when technology spectacularly fails. The chilling stories she’s heard from the nation’s tech leaders are the catalyst for plots about maniacal terrorists but don’t worry. Her military and law enforcement alpha heroes and badass heroines always save the day while burning up the pages and finding happily ever after. She’s looking forward to sharing the VIPER world with you starting with the October 2023 release of Too Dangerous to Love, followed by the releases of Too Deadly to Love, Too Damaged to Love, and Too Cold to Love.

Kristie resides in Maryland with her husband – aka her tech support – and her two teenagers who participate in nearly every sport or activity ever invented. Many of her words are written on the pool deck, on the sidelines and in the bleachers, or in her car.

Connect with Kristie Wolf!

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Instagram  ~  TikTok  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads
Facebook Group: Kristie Wolf's Passionate Pack

 

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

Hosted by

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Knife to the Heart (Blood Snow #1) by Kristie Wolf to read and review.

Before I'm Gone by Heidi McLaughlin

New York Times bestselling author Heidi McLaughlin tells a poignant story about living life to the fullest—and savoring the small moments along the way.

Palmer Sinclair has never needed anyone’s help. A successful loan officer, she’s all work and no play. But when splitting headaches and blurred vision begin to affect her job, she begrudgingly sees a doctor and receives a diagnosis that leaves her shaken to her core and with little time left. Facing an uncertain future, Palmer makes a bucket list, determined to do the things she’d only dreamed of before she goes.

Kent Wagner has dedicated his life to helping others. An army medic turned paramedic, he’s a regular at Palmer’s bank who makes his monthly car loan payments in person just to see her radiant smile. After responding to not one but two 911 calls involving Palmer, he learns about her bucket list. Touched by her circumstances—and needing a distraction from his own—Kent offers to take Palmer to the places on her list.

Neither is prepared for the emotional journey ahead… or how little time they have left together, but the friendship they find in that brief time might be the most lasting legacy of all.

 

 

Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
Audiobook (US)  ~  Paperback (US)
~ Also Available with KindleUnlimited ~

 

 

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆
Every so often I seem to want to read something which is going to be super sad. So in case you didn't get the idea from the blurb, let me tell you that this is ugly tears reading – it is really silly that I cried that much, given that it is all clearly telegraphed from the first few pages, but by the end, crazy or not, I was terribly sad at how it all panned out.

Palmer is not the most endearing character, and yet once you get the full story it is beyond tragic, and she definitely deserves to get her bucket list completed. Kent, someone she has crushed for ages, turns out to be a real hero, and a good guy. As we join them on their road trip, he goes well beyond friendship in his desire to give her all her life in the short time that is left.

So, go in knowing you need to be reading this in private, that you will need tissues, and that it is difficult from quite early on to see anything bright come from it – but it is still well written and well worth a read... but you definitely need to be in the mood for this kind of book!

 

 

 

In 2012, HEIDI MCLAUGHLIN turned her passion for reading into a full-fledged literary career. She is now the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling author of the Beaumont Series, the Boys of Summer, and the Archer Brothers. She has written more than twenty novels, including her acclaimed first novel, Forever My Girl, which was adapted into a film starring Alex Roe and Jessica Rothe that opened in theaters in 2018.

Connect with Heidi McLaughlin!

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Instagram  ~  TikTok  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

 

 

 

ARC provided by

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided with a free copy of Before I'm Gone by Heidi McLaughlin to read and review.

The Doctor's Orders by Heidi Cullinan

Once upon a time Nicolas Beckert was the boy who stole kisses from Jared Kumpel beneath the bleachers, but now Jared’s a pediatrician and Nick is the hospital CEO who won’t glance his way. Everything changes, however, when they’re stranded alone in a hospital elevator. Ten years of cold shoulders melt away in five hours of close contact, and old passions rekindle into hot flames.

Once out of the elevator, Jared has no intention of letting Nick get away. It’s clear he’s desperate for someone to give him space to let go of the reins, and Jared is happy to oblige. But Jared wants Nick as a lover in a full, open relationship, which is a step further than Nick is willing to go. They’ve traded kisses under the bleachers for liaisons in the boardroom… and it looks like the same arguments that drove them apart in high school might do the same thing now.

Jared’s determined not to let that happen this time around. He won’t order Nick from his shell—he’ll listen to what his friend says he needs to feel safe. Maybe this time he can prescribe his lover a happy ever after.

Book 3
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo
Dreamspinner Press

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Sarah – ☆☆☆☆
This is a satisfying conclusion to an exciting series. The embezzlement scandal has been resolved but hospital politics are still complicated for CEO Nick, and his personal life is becoming increasingly more difficult. Jared has been one of my favourite characters since the first book and I hate how lonely he is with his friends partnered up. Nick and Jared have a long history together, but Nick has to make some difficult decisions before he can be with Jared.

With Nick’s story, I feel a return to the Heidi Cullinan I fell in love with. The author takes a long hard look at race, culture, and sexuality and creates a character who feels heartbreakingly real. As a community leader, the pressure on Nick to set an example is huge. His church is at the centre of his culture and his family – but it doesn’t accept homosexuality. Nick is torn between his white friends and his black family, between his sexuality and the culture he was raised in. I don’t usually like closeted storylines but Nick’s pain feels real and his choices feel impossible.

In the first two books, Jared was the fun character in the background and it’s only in his own book that we understand that his easygoing charm masks his experiences of pain and loss. He’s still charming but a more serious side of him surfaces in this book. Nick and Jared’s stories are almost foils for each other at times and the similarities and differences between their choices and experiences are thought provoking.

With so much history between them, I love the moments where Nick and Jared seem to revert to adolescence together. Until this story, Nick felt very much like a stuffy grown up, so it was wonderful to see the man behind the professional veneer. This is probably the sexiest of the three stories but it is still pretty low heat compared to something like the Special Delivery books. This story feels more thoughtful and reflective than the first two and I love the way it ties up the series. I probably should have been even more horrified by the American health care system in this book than I was in the first two stories but I think I’m becoming a little bit immune to the crazy.

I love that there isn’t the same sense of goodies and baddies in this book as there was in the second one. Nick’s family, even his pastor, are sympathetically drawn and very likeable. The potential investors for the hospital are cast in shades of grey with one character offering unexpected change, support, and hope. I really enjoyed catching up with the first two couples and I love that the author adds yet another fabulous female doctor to the group of friends in this last book.


Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆
This is the third book in the series, and I would suggest that you really need to read them in order, as the underlying story is ongoing and the characters are developed through the three books. My review will assume that you are up to date, so if you have not caught up, I would recommend you do not read on yet!

Although the admin team of CEO Nick and HR Director Erin have, with the help of the trio of Owen, Jared and Simon, and other senior staff of St Ann's, saved it from the embezzlement of the Hospital Board, there is still trouble ahead.

A faulty elevator results in high school secret lovers Nick and Jared having to spend five hours together in a perilous situation. As they sit in the dark, they provide each other with the solace that they once craved, and until recently, have avoided at all costs. We get to learn what happened between them, and the problems that they face should they attempt to be together; there are some strong statements about family, religion, acceptance, and the cost of denying one's own identity. Their romance is a strong thread through the book, but as in previous installments, there are bigger issues which vie for our attention.

St Ann's elevator incident may have been sabotage, but proving it and reconciling the need to either mend it or rebuild the hospital keep CEO Nick and the rest of the gang very busy. There is still fallout from the scandal of the previous book and I love the tension, the importance of the hospital to the town, and the people who work so hard to do the best for the community of Copper Point.

I don't know if this is the last in the series, but it has been a strong trio of stories, but none is stronger than this one. It gives Jared his happily ever after and gives us plenty of time with Owen and Simon and their new loves too.


Veronica – ☆☆☆
This is not a story I was immediately pulled into but I was curious enough to be patient. I didn’t mind taking my time to get to know the characters. Jared is a paediatrician and has been out since his teenage years. Nick, who is CEO of the local hospital, is very much in the closet. The men were friends and lovers as teenagers and I was keen to see them give a relationship a second shot.

Nick’s fear of coming out as a teen has only increased now he is in his 30s. Trying to stay in the closet in a small town is not easy and frankly I don’t think it was fair to either Nick or Jared. But this fear of coming out is what kept me reading because I had trouble reconciling why a CEO, such an intelligent guy was so afraid, and I wanted to know why. It wasn’t until much later in the story that I got an appreciation for how coming out would affect Nick’s life and what was at stake.

I found the pacing of this story a little slow at parts in the beginning and in the middle it really slowed down. There were times when I found the author’s writing to be overly descriptive and when a full page was spent talking about ties, I was ready to scream. Funnily enough, from that point on the story really picked up and the last third of the book was really good and I even teared up.

The Doctor’s Orders is the first book by Heidi Cullinan that I’ve read. It is book three in the Copper Point Medical series but I was able to read it as a standalone. I have to say while I ultimately enjoyed Nick and Jared’s difficult path to romance, reading at times was more of a struggle than I’d like.


Angie – ☆☆☆
This was the first book in the series that I have read. I thought I would have been able to read it as a standalone but honestly, I couldn't. I felt like I was missing something with the hospital drama and several of the characters and their back story. It also took me a long time to read this book, I almost gave up several times, but I tried to muddle through. I found myself skimming this book eventually because I felt like I was missing a few things from not reading the previous books, the author was really wordy and there were pages of the book that were filled with silly descriptions and no dialogue. This book wasn't for me, but I am sure those who have read the previous books will understand and enjoy it more than I did.

Also Available in the Copper Point Medical Series

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo
Dreamspinner Press

For reviews & more info, check out our The Doctor's Secret post.

Book 2
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo
Dreamspinner Press

For reviews & more info, check out our The Doctor's Date post.

HEIDI CULLINAN has always enjoyed a good love story, provided it has a happy ending. Proud to be from the first Midwestern state with full marriage equality, Heidi is a vocal advocate for LGBT rights. She writes positive-outcome romances for LGBT characters struggling against insurmountable odds because she believes there’s no such thing as too much happy ever after. When Heidi isn’t writing, she enjoys cooking, reading, playing with her cats, and watching television with her family. Find out more about Heidi on her website.

Connect with Heidi

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Instagram  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of The Doctor's Orders (Copper Point Medical #3) by Heidi Cullinan to read and review.

The Doctor's Date by Heidi Cullinan

The hospital’s least eligible bachelor and its aloof administrator hate each other… so why are they pretending to date?

Dr. Owen Gagnon and HR director Erin Andreas are infamous for their hospital hallway shouting matches. So imagine the town’s surprise when Erin bids an obscene amount of money to win Owen in the hospital bachelor auction—and Owen ups the ante by insisting Erin move in with him.

Copper Point may not know what’s going on, but neither do Erin and Owen. Erin intends his gesture to let Owen know he’s interested. Owen, on the other hand, suspects ulterior motives—that Erin wants a fake relationship as a refuge from his overbearing father.

With Erin suddenly heading a messy internal investigation, Owen wants to step up and be the hero Erin’s never had. Too bad Erin would rather spend his energy trying to rescue Owen from the shadows of a past he doesn’t talk about.

This relationship may be fake, but the feelings aren’t. Still, what Erin and Owen have won’t last unless they put their respective demons to rest. To do that, they’ll have to do more than work together—they’ll have to trust they can heal each other’s hearts.

Book 2
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo
Dreamspinner Press

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆
This is the second book in the series, and I would recommend that you read them in order, as the story continues from book one. The underlying plot revolves around St. Ann's hospital; it involves the Board that governs it and the staff who work there. There are questions arising as to how such a successful hospital can be suffering financial woes, and as Dr. Wu tries to upgrade it, the issues become more acute. The romance centres around three friends since school, Owen, Simon, and Jared, who all work at St. Ann's – book one gave us Simon's happily ever after, now it is Owen's turn to find love from a very unexpected quarter.

At the end of book one, Erin, the hospital HR Director and son of the Chair of the Board, unexpectedly revoked the unpopular non-fraternisation policy. This allowed Simon and Hong-Wei to openly date and showed that Erin may not in fact be a replica of his hard-hearted father. Owen found this rather confusing, as he had decided that Erin was a man he only wanted to argue with, not find to be a man of principle.

Erin finally finds the courage to act on his crush since youth and bids on Owen at a fundraiser. Everything else follows on from this bold, but frightening move. We soon get to understand just how awful Erin's life has been, and still is – and Owen has to revise all his preconceived notions and finds Erin to be a man he wants, not hates. I really liked how the trio of friends took Erin into their lives and as the issues of budget problems at St. Ann's becomes urgent, it is teamwork that helps deliver a solution to save the day.

I enjoyed the hospital drama and intrigue and how it mixed together with the nascent romance between the very innocent Erin and the damaged Owen. A strong reminder that what goes on behind closed doors is often very different to the image portrayed to the world.


Sarah – ☆☆☆☆
The second book in the Copper Point Medical series serves up a little less romance and a whole lot more hospital politics. Erin and Owen were highly entertaining when they sparred in the first book and I loved them even more in their own story.

Owen might be my favourite character in the whole series – he’s surly and a bit miserable but funny, loyal, and kind at the same time. He’s an unlikely hero but he’s a perfect fit for Erin. Erin finally found his backbone at the end of the first book and it was fun watching him grow into himself in this story. Both Erin and Owen have survived difficult and somewhat similar childhoods and I love the way they care for each other as adults. Like the first book, this is a pretty low heat read. The focus of this book is probably more on hospital politics than on the romance between Owen and Erin but there are some sweet moments between these two.

This is a medical romance without much medicine. The focus of the story is on the struggle between the hospital staff and the hospital board members who control the hospital’s finances. Erin, Owen, and their friends spend much of the story fighting outdated policies and tracing money that has been embezzled from the hospital. It’s an exciting story but not quite what I’d expected. I love the relationships that continue to develop between Owen’s growing group of friends.

This is the second book in a trilogy and readers will definitely need to read the books in order. Like the first book, this is a sweet and fun, vanilla romance that lacks the heat and the kink I’ve come to expect from most of Heidi Cullinan’s writing. I've really enjoyed this series, but this is quite different from other writing by the author and fans may want to download samples before committing to the series.

Also Available in the Copper Point Medical Series

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo
Dreamspinner Press

For reviews & more info, check out our The Doctor's Secret post.

HEIDI CULLINAN has always enjoyed a good love story, provided it has a happy ending. Proud to be from the first Midwestern state with full marriage equality, Heidi is a vocal advocate for LGBT rights. She writes positive-outcome romances for LGBT characters struggling against insurmountable odds because she believes there’s no such thing as too much happy ever after. When Heidi isn’t writing, she enjoys cooking, reading, playing with her cats, and watching television with her family. Find out more about Heidi on her website.

Connect with Heidi

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Instagram  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of The Doctor's Date (Copper Point Medical #2) by Heidi Cullinan to read and review.

The Doctor's Secret by Heidi Cullinan

The brilliant but brooding new doctor encounters Copper Point's sunny nurse-next-door... and nothing can stand in the way of this romance.

Dr. Hong-Wei Wu has come to Copper Point, Wisconsin, after the pressures of a high-powered residency burned him out of his career before he started. Ashamed of letting his family down after all they’ve done for him, he plans to live a quiet life as a simple surgeon in this tiny northern town. His plans, however, don’t include his outgoing, kind, and attractive surgical nurse, Simon Lane.

Simon wasn’t ready for the new surgeon to be a handsome charmer who keeps asking him for help getting settled and who woos him with amazing Taiwanese dishes. There’s no question—Dr. Wu is flirting with him, and Simon is flirting back. The problem is, St. Ann’s has a strict no-dating policy between staff, which means their romance is off the table… unless they bend the rules.

But a romance that keeps them—literally—in the closet can’t lead to happy ever after. Simon doesn’t want to stay a secret, and Hong-Wei doesn’t want to keep himself removed from life, not anymore. To secure their happiness, they’ll have to change the administration’s mind. But what other secrets will they uncover along the way, about Copper Point… and about each other?

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo
Dreamspinner Press

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Sarah – ☆☆☆☆
I’ve been a huge Heidi Cullinan fan for years and I was so excited to see that she’s written a medical romance trilogy. And this is ROMANCE complete with love at first sight, big dramatic declarations, and loads of chemistry. Full of references to Asian dramas and K-pop music, I think this is as light, fluffy, and kink-free as Cullinan gets.

I love Hong-Wei as a leading man. His experiences and struggles as a first-generation immigrant ring true, as do his professional struggles. Simon provides a lovely counterbalance to Hong-Wei’s anxieties. He loves his work but chose a less demanding path as a nurse. Simon enjoys the lifelong friendships he shares with his best friends and a close relationship with his family. The connection between Hong-Wei and Simon is instant and I love the way these two balance each other perfectly. I also love that there is a refreshing lack of angst between Simon and Hong-Wei. Together they are up against a hospital no-dating policy, but they work together and not against each other.

This story offers an interesting look at medicine in small town America. Cullinan is always brilliant at details and St. Ann’s medical centre comes alive beautifully. As always with American books, I was horrified by the idea of critically ill patients having to pay or go into debt for care but I loved the staff and enjoyed the politics and relationships between the doctors, nurses, and management.

This story will appeal to romance fans – it’s a softer, gentler side of Cullinan’s writing that I haven’t seen before. It’s sweet and full of small town feels and quirky characters. There is a tiny bit of heat, but it is pretty much kink free. I will always enjoy Cullinan’s writing, but I have to admit that I love her kinky side best. This isn’t my favourite of her books, but the writing is still brilliant and if anyone can win me over with a fluffy vanilla romance it will definitely be Cullinan.


Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆
This is the first in a series set in a small town, based in its hospital. There is some world building, but it is mostly done within the story – and that is facilitated by the lead, Dr. Hong-Wei Wu being a newcomer to the town, so we learn about the politics and the people in part through his eyes. We also get to experience some of the racism that he experiences, but also some of the richness of his Taiwanese family and values.

Overall this story has a sweet and smooth romance, with an issue of a hospital policy against relationships between staff, but plenty of Simon's friends are supportive and careful to help the men try to maintain their privacy until the issue can be resolved. The camaraderie is vital to the story. As we start to understand the dynamics and politics within the hospital, we can see that there are some serious issues which are affecting the success of the organisation. Knowing who is on your side and who can be trusted is very important. It sets up some excellent storylines for future installments too.

I enjoyed the fact that the romance is centred around a tight knit group of friends, all working in a small hospital. The arrival of the new super-talented doctor and the reasons for his relocation all add to the interest in this new romance. I am moving directly onto book two!

HEIDI CULLINAN has always enjoyed a good love story, provided it has a happy ending. Proud to be from the first Midwestern state with full marriage equality, Heidi is a vocal advocate for LGBT rights. She writes positive-outcome romances for LGBT characters struggling against insurmountable odds because she believes there’s no such thing as too much happy ever after. When Heidi isn’t writing, she enjoys cooking, reading, playing with her cats, and watching television with her family. Find out more about Heidi on her website.

Connect with Heidi

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Instagram  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of The Doctor's Secret (Copper Point Medical #1) by Heidi Cullinan to read and review.

Breathe Deep by Willa Okati

A golden-hearted mountain man. A nursing tech with a secret. Life and death are on the line—and they’re running out of time.

Shepherd knows what people think of him. He’s too big, too tall and too broad not to be scary. But though he looks like a grizzly bear, he’s all teddy on the inside. He’s dreamed of finding someone to love. Someone who can help him break through his shyness and who he can shower with all the affection in his heart.

Kit knows what people think of him. That he’s young, good-looking and kissed by luck. He survived leukemia as a teenager, and he thought he had his entire life ahead of him. But now, the cancer might be recurring—deny it though he might—and Kit’s world has come crashing down. He needs someone like Shepherd. Someone kind and caring, who’s strong enough to lean on.

Kit’s falling fast for the big mountain man—but he hasn’t told Shepherd the truth. He’s afraid that knowing he may be sick will be more than Shepherd can handle. And now, after delaying treatment, he thinks he may be running out of time.

Secrets can be life or death—and when it comes to telling the truth, they can make all the difference.

Book 3
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
Pride Publishing

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆
This is the third in a series, but other than mention of a few character, there is really no overlap. I would however commend both the previous books to you, as they are great reads and each one is sufficiently different.

Kit is such a lovely, popular but lonely man with a big secret. Shepherd is bigger than life, but terribly shy. Fate conspires to bring them together, but something is threatening to keep them apart. Be prepared for some tears, and for tugging at the heartstrings! Loved Gib – perfect foil and generous with his bike too!

Add it to your pile, if you haven't already.


Angela – ☆☆☆☆☆
I have read several of Ms. Okati’s books, including the previous books in this series, and I have enjoyed them all because I love her style of writing. Although Breathe Deep is written slightly different than what I have become accustomed to, the writing was no less enjoyable. In the other books of Ms. Okati’s that I’ve read, the main characters are either already involved romantically or tend to know one another well and because of their familiarity with one another, there is a kind of shorthand way in which they interact (i.e., they already know or can accurately anticipate the other characters’ needs and much goes unsaid). Now as Shepherd and Kit have never met prior to this book this kind of shorthand communication would never work and the author doesn’t even attempt to use it. So for me, Breathe Deep offered me the chance to experience another style of writing by an author I enjoy and it proved to be an excellent read.

In case you’re like me and started reading the book without rereading the blurb, the author uses the Prologue to introduce the reader to Kit and show what it is that he is dealing with. It’s clear rather quickly that Kit is of the mindset that if he doesn’t admit that his leukemia is in relapse, then it’s not real. I don’t have to have a fatal disease to recognize Kit’s coping mechanism or empathize with him as I’ve done the same thing myself in situations that don’t even begin to compare. This not only gives me an immediate connection with Kit, but I found myself fully invested in his story within a matter of pages. As if the universe is trying to balance out this devastating development, Kit meets a big bear of a man – Shepherd. Kit’s finally found a man who’s everything he’s ever wanted and it happens at the same time he’s worried (at least subconsciously) that he’s in relapse. Despite his best intentions, Kit can’t stay away from Shepherd nor can he bring himself to tell Shepherd about his leukemia. As the men get close – and boy howdy do they get close! – Kit’s secret gets harder to keep. Of course such a secret can’t be kept for long and when it came out, my heart broke for both Kit and Shepherd. Thankfully the author did not make me wait too terribly long before putting my heart at ease.

I was completely torn over Kit’s decision to keep his leukemia a secret. It’s not like it’s something you just mention in casual conversation to virtual strangers, which is what he and Shepherd were and all Kit expected them to be. As Kit got more attached to Shepherd, figuring out how to tell him about the leukemia got worse because Kit was afraid of losing him. Not to mention, Kit was still in denial himself and when he finally accepted that he was in relapse he no longer knew how to broach the subject. Of course when there was no way to hide it anymore, I was reading through tears because of how Shepherd reacted, especially as it occurred at the end of such a perfect day for the two men. As this is a novella, the author opted not to take readers through Kit’s actual treatment and I for one am grateful because I don’t know that I could have watched Kit suffer through it. But this makes the jump in time to the Epilogue actually frightening because with how it began, I had no idea as to how the treatments turned out and whether or not the relationship was still intact. Thankfully Ms. Okati didn’t make me wait too long for the resolution and I found it both realistic and hopeful. Already I am looking forward to future installments in the St. Hawk’s Medical series in hopes that the author will provide occasional updates regarding Kit and Shepherd. Breathe Deep was an excellent addition to the series and well worth every tear I cried.

Also Available in the St. Hawk's Medical Series

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
Pride Publishing

For reviews & more info, check out our Take Heart blog post.

Book 2
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
Pride Publishing

For reviews & more info, check out our Give Chase blog post.

Willa Okati can most often be found muttering to herself over a keyboard, plugged into her iPod and breaking between paragraphs to play air drums. In her spare time (the odd ten minutes or so per day she's not writing) she's teaching herself to play the pennywhistle.

Willa has forty-plus separate tattoos and yearns for a full body suit of ink. She walks around in a haze of story ideas, dreaming of tales yet to be told. She drinks an alarming amount of coffee for someone generally perceived to be mellow.

Connect with Willa

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Google+  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Breathe Deep (St. Hawk’s Medical #3) by Willa Okati to read and review.