Book Review (and Giveaway!): Cowboy Bodyguard by Dana Mentink

SERIES: Gold Country Cowboys #3
GENRE: Inspirational Romantic Suspense
PUBLISHER: Love Inspired Suspense
RELEASE DATE: July 3, 2018
PAGES: 288

She must protect a baby…With her secret husband’s help

In this Gold Country Cowboys novel, Jack Thorn gets a surprise call from the woman he married in secret years ago.

Shannon Livingston needs his protection for herself and the baby she’s hiding from a biker gang targeting the mother.

Now Jack must help Shannon, even if shielding her means pretending to be a true husband to the only woman he’s ever loved…

Other Books In This Series

To be honest, this book had me at the title. I mean, hello? Cowboy + Bodyguard?? Yes please! And then when I realized it was Jack’s story? Yep. That sealed the deal.

I’m really loving this Gold Country Cowboy series by Dana Mentink – and not just for the cowboys! 😉 She’s created a family of compelling characters that feel like friends, so you’re even more invested in the story’s outcome than you would be already. The Thorn brothers and their parents are the kind of cowboys you definitely want on your side, with even the momma being a sharp shooter who steps up to the rifle when a need requires it. Humor rounds them out, as do their tender hearts and sacrificial love.

And let me tell you … you will be holding your breath from the start of this book until the very last. Mentink crafts edge-of-your-seat, heart-in-your-throat suspense with danger around every corner. Even when you think it’s safe to relax a bit… don’t! She keeps the stakes and the tensions high from beginning to end, and a tangled web gets even more tangled as the story progresses.

All this run-for-your-life tension of course leads to great romantical tension as well, and Jack & Shannon’s story is sweet and swoony. I wasn’t quite sure of their motivation for keeping their estranged marriage a secret (both the marriage itself and the estrangement) but I enjoyed watching them work through their still-present feelings for each other when the emergency Shannon has found herself in forces them to reunite and take care of a baby too! Jack in daddy-mode is enough to warn you to keep a fan handy at all times – his tendency to press a kiss to the baby’s head is just plain swoonilicious! Shannon’s faith journey goes hand in hand with her struggle to deal with her feelings for Jack and her dream of being a doctor too, and I thought Mentink presented these emotions authentically and gently.

Bottom Line: Hang on to your cowboy hats and saddle up! You gallop immediately into heart-stopping action in a race against time (and rival biker gangs) to save a little baby and her frightened young mom. Well-plotted suspense keeps you frantically turning pages to see what will happen next, and forget sleeping until you know how it turns out! A swoony romance and a sweet story add to the suspense – and the great characters – to give you a story you won’t want to put down!

(I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the author. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.)

My Rating: 4.5 stars / Love it!

KissingBook Level: 3 / May forget to breathe on occasion

Dana Mentink is a two time American Christian Fiction Writers Carol Award winner, a Romantic Times Reviewer’s Choice Award and a Holt Medallion winner. She is a national bestselling author of over thirty five titles in the suspense and lighthearted romance genres. She is pleased to write for Harlequin’s Love Inspired Suspense, Harlequin Heartwarming and Harvest House. Dana was thrilled to be a semi-finalist in the Jeanne Robertson Comedy With Class Competition. Besides writing, she busies herself teaching third grade. Mostly, she loves to be home with Papa Bear, teen bear cubs affectionately nicknamed Yogi and Boo Boo, Junie, the nutty terrier, a chubby box turtle and a feisty parakeet.

website | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube | Instagram

Other Books by Dana Mentink

I’ve spent a bit of time in emergency rooms lately. Not to complain, mind you. The asthma related treatments worked like a charm and we were blessed by good care, so I am not grateful. There’s a bonus, too. The emergency room is a great place for people watching! Hour upon hour I spent surveying patients, relatives, nurses and doctors. I came away pondering what it must be like to work in the strange bustle that is an emergency room. That’s where character Shannon Livingston was born.

The E.R doc and nurses must be brilliant problem solvers with nerves of steel because they never know what will roll through their doors. Since they are not responsible for follow up care, they have only a short term relationship with their patients. But what would happen, my fictional mind wanted to know, if one emergency room treatment ensnared Shannon in a “run for your life” scenario? And what if her incredible life saving skills weren’t nearly enough to save her own life, or the baby she’s suddenly become responsible for? Ah me! The perfect scenario for a suspense novel, no? I hope you enjoy Cowboy Bodyguard. I can promise it’s going to be a bumpy ride!

To celebrate her tour, Dana is giving away a Mentink Bundle that includes a horse tote book bag, a three book collection, and a $50 Amazon gift card!!

Click below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries!

[promosimple id=”ced1″]

This giveaway is hosted by Celebrate Lit, not RimSP
Follow along with the tour for more chances to win!

What about you? If you’ve met the Thorn brothers, which one is your favorite so far?