Anchors Aweigh: Sail into a Great Summer Adventure

August is "Hell Month" at my day job, which usually means I drop out of sight until sometime in September. But I just had to pop in to share this...

I just finished the coolest book!

Yes, it's written by one of my fellow Firebirds--which means she's also a 2012 RWA Golden Heart finalist--but that said, I have this thing... If I can't rave about a book, I don't write a book review. Peeps, I'm raving. For anyone, anywhere, interested in Military Romance, don't pass this one up. For those of us who write Military Romance (of any era), you can learn a lot from this tale about how the military--the Navy, in particular--works. 

Like...flight decks are damn scary, noisy places, full of hazards.

And trying to get a bit of much-needed shut-eye is no easy feat when you live in the equivalent of a dormitory packed with three-tier-high bunk beds located directly beneath a busy airport.

This story delivers not only a great romance, but a genuine experience. "Join up" and serve aboard a floating, self-contained city as it heads out "on cruise." What great muse-fodder for those of you who write Science Fiction Romance of the space-faring variety.

Forgive & Forget

by Heather Ashby

Henery Press

280 pages

________________________________________

There's something about a man in uniform...but there's something about a woman in one, too...

When Hallie McCabe meets Philip Johnston at a picnic, she is drawn to his integrity. He is a gentleman. But also an officer. From her ship.

Aware of the code against fraternization between officers and enlisted, Hallie conceals her Navy status, hopeful she and her secret will stay hidden on their enormous aircraft carrier until she can figure out a way for them to sail off into the sunset together.

Caught in an emotional firestorm, Hallie faces a future without the man she loves, a career-shattering secret from the past, and the burden of being the one person who can prevent a terrorist attack on the ship she has sworn to protect with her life.

Prepare to set sail for the Persian Gulf with a crew of 4,999 sailors and officers and one terrorist in search of his own kind of Paradise.

________________________________________

What so completely absorbed me once I started reading this book was the feel of utter authenticity. The rules, the regs, the smell of jet fuel, the roar of the engines, the close quarters, conflicts and camaraderie of military life.

I can appreciate the heroine's situation. She's fallen for a man she knows she shouldn't be with, and she's bending the rules to the point of catastrophic failure--and risking his trust in the process--because she knows as soon as she tells him the truth, it's over. But she will tell him the truth, even if it costs her everything. It's just that her timing on that big reveal goes completely askew...

I imagine some holier-than-thou readers will have issues with her honesty, and admittedly, I did at times, too, thinking, "OMG, girl, just tell him!" At the same time I could completely relate to her sentiments and easily walk in her shoes. This is the man of her dreams and she doesn't want to see her relationship go up in smoke. Who would? Hallie is likable, relatable, and an endearing combination of timid heart and tough-as-steel mind.

The hero, Philip, is a man of integrity, a true gentleman and someone I admired as a "good guy." He's a a working hero, not some commanding officer with lots of shiny brass and top-dog swagger, but an honest-to-goodness Navy man doing a real job in the bowels of his massive ship. Even so, this shoulder-to-the-grindstone, squeaky clean, BCG-wearing sailor has an alpha side that often surprised and delighted me. I LUV me an unpredictable hero.

Author Heather Ashby
with Navy Seahawk

The story also does a remarkable job of getting inside the head of the villain, and showing some of the culture and traditions he has more-or-less adopted (less, actually). Though I can't respect him or his warped values, I can understand why he turned. He's tragic, twisted and deeply disturbed, but he's no cartoon villain.

This story carries some big surprises and killer twists, but the biggest surprise for me came in the form of a secondary character that at first annoyed and then absolutely dazzled me. You know things will be okay when this guy takes charge. And best of all? The next book is about him! (Pssst....Keep your eye on the Sky. :)

FORGIVE & FORGET is the first book in the Love in the Fleet series. Watch for the next one, FORGET ME NOT, December 3, 2013.

Here's the link to Amazon: Forgive & Forget (Oh, and BTW, just between us, you might want to note the very reasonable price on the Kindle version right now. *winkety wink*)