Favorites Friday: Alaskan Courage series by Dani Pettrey

Welcome back to “Favorites Friday”, the part of our blog where Larry comes out and sings a silly… Wait. No. That’s something else.  🙂 Favorites Friday is a weekly feature that allows me to highlight some of my most beloved reads, those books I could (and do) pick up over and over again. You may have already figured out that, while I will pretty much read anything that’s a) in English and b) not smutty, romantic suspense (across any time period) is my favorite genre.  In other blog posts, I have talked about the O’Malley series by Dee Henderson as well as the Hidden Identity and Deadly Reunions series’ by Lynette Eason. This week, I want to introduce you to another of my favorite series that falls into that category.

The award-winning Alaskan Courage series by Dani Pettrey whisks you away on a 5-book adventure packed with the strong bonds of sibling affection, the breathless freefalls of romance, the steady grace of faith, and the nail-biting tension of suspense. In her debut novel, Submerged, the author introduces us to the close-knit McKenna siblings and the diving shop they own in Yancey, Alaska.  The focus on the first book is the eldest sibling, Cole, and his former flame Bailey, but there are hints of the other siblings’ stories sprinkled throughout to capture your imagination as to what the next books could hold.  Each book retains all previous characters but homes in on a different McKenna, his/her romantic interest, and a mystery that crackles with action and how-are-they-gonna-get-out-of-this-one situations.  They are all exceptional books with awards to prove it, but my favorite is book #2 – Shattered.  I absolutely fell in love with Piper McKenna and Landon Grainger in Submerged (even though it wasn’t their story – they kinda stole every scene they were in lol) and I couldn’t wait to watch their love story play out between the pages of Shattered! I was not disappointed in the least 🙂  Even in all the books following, a goofy grin would somehow wind up on my face whenever Piper and Landon were in a scene together.  They were definitely my fave couple in the series, though Jake and Kayden come in a very close second.

Dani Pettrey recently slid the Alaskan Courage series to a dramatic finish in Sabotaged, a story that highlighted Reef – the former prodigal – while still involving all the siblings & their mates to some degree.  Loyal readers of the books get to say goodbye (*wail*) to their own personal favorite character/couple with a very satisfying send-off, but not before we are taken along on a dangerous race to save lives and the Alaskan frontier. I thought Sabotaged could not have been a better way to end the series! We get to spend time with all of the McKennas, Reef finally has his chance to shine, and it’s all set against the backdrop of an iconic Alaskan event – the Iditarod – and the current political debates about the pipeline. It seemed a fitting way to close this chapter, pun totally intended.

But don’t just take my word for it. Buy the series here! (Cold Shot, the first book in her next series Chesapeake Valor will be available for preorder soon too! It is due out April 2016 from Bethany House Publishers.)

Also… Dani Pettrey totally rocks Pinterest and other fun stuff for her books.  Go to her website to find dossiers for the characters, recipes, song lists, etc. (You can spend hours there, trust me lol) Click on the links below to go the Pinterest board for each book where you can “meet” the characters and see some of what they might have seen. You know… if they were real people… which to us diehard fictionistas, they might as well be 🙂

Shattered     Stranded     Silenced     Sabotaged

Cole & Bailey’s wedding

Landon & Piper’s wedding

About the Author: Dani Pettrey is a wife, mom, grandma, and the acclaimed author of the Alaskan Courage romantic suspense series, which includes her bestselling novels Submerged, Shattered, Stranded, Silenced, and Sabotaged. Her books have been honored with the Daphne du Maurier award, two HOLT Medallions, a Christy Award nomination, two National Readers’ Choice Awards, the Gail Wilson Award of Excellence, and Christian Retailing’s Best Award, among others. She feels blessed to write inspirational romantic suspense because it incorporates so many things she loves—the thrill of adventure, nail-biting suspense, the deepening of her characters’ faith, and plenty of romance. She and her husband reside in Maryland, where they enjoy time with their two daughters, a son-in-law, and a super adorable grandson.