Yes, I did read maybe half of this and when I was listening, it was gripping and fresh, but I wasn't drawn to the story or only a little to the heroine. I had to push myself to press play. There was a level of violence I don't incorporate in my reading these days.

I'm writing this about 3 months after I gave up on the book so I don't recall the narration.

I feel I've missed out because Elle Kennedy - one of my all time most respected writers - the author of Him - that says it all. ( )

It was okay. Basic storyline was interesting but I didn't feel any real chemistry between main characters. Didn't enjoy the violence of the rescue scenes. Think I'm just over the elite team of highly-trained, nearly invincible mercenaries plots. ( )

[b:Midnight Rescue|12368900|Midnight Rescue (Killer Instincts, #1)|Elle Kennedy|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1324661720s/12368900.jpg|17349172] by [a:Elle Kennedy|1935000|Elle Kennedy|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1403918688p2/1935000.jpg] An Adult Action/Suspense Romance.
3.5 stars
Negatives.
There are areas that tend to drag a bit.
The main female character, Abby can be very annoying. There are times you want to reach into the story and smack her upside the head.
Positives.
I didn't find any typos nor editing errors of any kind.
Other than the times you have the urge to smack Abby, you can't help but to admire her. Her childhood was beyond atrocious. At times her character comes off as stupid stubborn, but she is very intelligent and capable lethal assassin. A very strong female character.
The main male character, Kane cares about Abby and her mission, but doesn't want to show, nor admit even to himself, how much. This leads to some interesting conversations and situations.
Kane convinces his team to continue with Abby's mission. There is a lot of action in the field and intimately between him and Abby. Plenty of suspense throughout the story. ( )

There were parts of this book I enjoyed but in general I found the relationship development a bit too frustrating. I also have a pet peeve about developing relationships for future books, like I am all for developing characters that later have their own book but don’t actually start with their relationship too, focus on one and do it well!

CW: violence, sexual assault, child abuse, human trafficking ( )

Midnight Rescue is the first book in the Killer Instincts series. I have read a later book in the series, so I have had Midnight Rescue on my TBR forever. When I saw it was in the Audible Romance package, I decided to give it a shot via audio.

I made it through about 28% of the audio. The narrator was not working for me at all. Her attempts at the various male voices were unconvincing and overdone. But, I was liking the story enough to continue reading on my kindle. Yay for whisper sync!

Abby is a mercenary who was sent to kill a guy named Blanco. However, she ends up discovering a sex slave ring and is determined to save the innocent girls. To help her she relies on Jim Morgan's group of mercenaries and most especially, Kane. These guys are super badasses. Abby is no slouch either though! She is tough and capable, so don't think this is a damsel in distress story. Abby works for Noelle, a woman with her own group of female mercenaries/chameleons who are all incredibly deadly. To start the story, this book has to introduce a LOT of people. It can be difficult and another reason I don't think audio was the way to go. Once the plot and characters is introduced, the story focuses more on Abby and Kane and the plan/attempt to get into Blanco's compound and save the young girls. However, the story jumps from Abby/Kane to Trevor/Isabel, and occasionally even Devlin, the psychopathic stalker and it really keeps you on your toes and engaged in the story. There is no 'down time' for the reader. Trevor and Isabel are the focus of book 2, and I am certainly interested in getting more details about them as individuals.

Midnight Rescue is dark in many ways. First, you have the man planning to sell the girls as sex slaves. Second, you have Abby, who was abused (physically and sexually) in the past and her attempts to deal with that aspect of her life (with Kane's help). Next, you have a near rape of Abby in the beginning of the story. This is NOT a light romantic suspense read. Its dark and deals with real life issues that many people don't think about on a daily basis but exist in the world.

 

• POV: 3rd


• Tears: no


• Trope: secret identity, mercenaries


• Triggers: so many; child abuse, sex trafficking, rape


• Series/Standalone: stand alone


• Cliffhanger: no


• HEA: yes

authors like Kaylea Cross, Katie Reus, Cynthia Eden...then you will probably like Midnight Rescue!

 


Midnight Rescue






 
See full review on The Book Disciple ( )