Buy Link: Dangerous Ground
Author: Josh Lanyon
Publisher: Loose Id
Length: Novella

Rating: 4.5

I have had Dangerous Ground sitting in my TBR pile for a while now but for some reason never picked it up. But it was recently on the list for my Goodreads challenge so I decided it was time to give it a try, and I am so glad that I did.

The story opens with Will Brandt and Taylor MacAllister, Special Agents for the Department of Diplomatic Security, having just come across a plane that crashed up in the mountains. The men recognize the plane as one hijacked after a casino robbery the year before, but the only body inside is that of the pilot.  When they stumble upon the stolen money, they realize they must get back to civilization quickly before the thieves come back looking for it.

The robbery isn’t the only problem that the men face.  Taylor is only about six weeks out from a near fatal gunshot wound and still isn’t on active duty.  Complicating matters further are Taylor’s feelings for Will that won’t go away.  Although Will cares for Taylor and is attracted to him, he fears what a relationship would do to their three-year work partnership, especially if things fall apart.  The tension of these two events hangs heavy between the men and they had hoped their camping trip in the mountains would help them work things out.  But when the robbers come after them, the men have to make it past more than their personal problems if they hope to have a future together.

Dangerous Ground was quite an exciting and thrilling book.  I could feel the tension right from the start, both between the men and with the outside dangers they faced.  The story creates a really nice balance between focus on the relationship problems and the suspense around the robbery and the threats against Will and Taylor.  The suspense part of the story is tight and fast paced.  The book is fairly short and that helps keeps things moving along briskly and the story exciting.  I also found myself completely invested in the men and rooting for them to make it together.  I loved Taylor’s mix of strength and vulnerability and how each man was totally dedicated to the other, even when they weren’t sure their partnership could survive.

I did have a bit of trouble getting my footing in the beginning of the story because we jump in after the events surrounding Taylor’s shooting. So for a while we are hearing about the injury and the tension between the men before the circumstances are fully explained.  As usual, this is likely my problem needing to understand everything right away, but the story takes a bit before it comes around and ties things together.  My only other quibble is that things wrapped up quite quickly after the climax of the book.  I would have enjoyed it if things had been a bit more fleshed out, especially between the men, after the main suspense plot wrapped up.

Overall I really enjoyed this story and found it exciting and suspenseful.  I will definitely be reading the rest of the series to see what else is in store for Taylor and Will.