The Unexpected Champion

3.5 stars, rounded up

Whew, did Connealy ever give this pair a workout! It starts with Penny, woman mountaineer, meeting up with John, Pinkerton agent. He's on the trail of her niece and nephew on behalf of their grandparents; she's determined to keep them safe from the greedy ancestors. There's no trust at first, especially as each views the other akin to a kidnapper. They meet in a firefight between Penny's kin and some other bad dudes, which ends in them getting lost in the mountain wilderness. This in turn gets them to a small town where the sheriff promptly forces them to wed! So now they're stuck together, with a thread agreement to work through the children's issues together.

They have to figure out what bad guys are after them as trying to kill them—ones from earlier in the series or ones from the children's grandparents?—while moving fast enough to stay alive. This leads them in a trot across multiple states with countless plot twists.

Yes, my head was spinning. But the ride was tons of fun and the story heartwarming as well.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free reading copy. A favorable review was not required. Review is based on a final copy of the book, library audio format.