The Heat is On

I liked this. [a:Greg Boudreaux 15087355 Greg Boudreaux https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] does his usual great job delivering this installment of [a:Annabeth Albert 6477494 Annabeth Albert https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1497461817p2/6477494.jpg]'s series about San Diego/Coronado Navy SEALS. This time around we have Petty Officer Bacon, whom we've met in prior books, and Spencer Bryant, renowned journalist and smoking hot silver fox. Bacon became a SEAL to escape small town bigotry and hate. He's found a home with his brothers but he also struggles with their casual gay slurs as he identifies as PAN. Spencer's hopes of becoming a dancer were dashed by injury but he's forged a successful journalist, one who writes books and appears on NPR. His latest assignment is to be embedded with a SEAL Team. His handler? Bacon, of course.This was a relatively angst free story between two men who despite their outward differences are smart enough, patient enough, to get to know each other beyond the surface and guess what? They have more in common than not. That and mad attraction for one another, smoking sexual compatibility and we're in romance heaven. I loved the relationship dynamics, how Bacon is the one to push for it in spite of being the SEAL, how Spencer gets to take care of Bacon, and how they just fit.

Another strong romance from reliable author Annabeth Albert. She sets up an intriguing pairing between a SEAL and a journalist embedded with the team. It's not quite an enemies-to-lovers romance, but Bacon and Spenser certainly have different goals at the outset. I'm not 100% sure that Albert addressed all of the issues keeping them apart -Spenser briefly accuses the Navy of not caring enough for its veterans, which deeply offends Bacon, and although Spenser ultimately agrees not to write the story, he doesn't change his viewpoint- but she does manage to support both the importance of the press and the military. Series readers aren't looking for political statements, though, and they will be happy with the trademark Albert action, sexytimes, lots of talking in-between sexytimes, humor, male bonding, glimpses of happily paired off couples from previous books, and promising characters for the next installment. Bacon (part of the fun is finding out his real name) is a great MC, a pansexual SEAL sharpshooter with a semi-tragic backstory and a goth-emo childhood. Spenser is a little harder to warm up to - he's a tad pretentious and self-righteous, but he does an admirable grovel and he does take good care of Bacon when he needs it.

I wish Albert would write more books in her Gaymers or Portland Heat series, (her MCs are much more my romance catnip) but I guess military romances sell better, so I can't begrudge her success.

ARC received from Net Galley in exchange for objective review.