Another Nail-Biter! Stranded (Alaskan Courage, Book 3) by Dani Pettrey

Stranded
by Dani Pettrey
Copyright 2013
Bethany House Publishers
ISBN: 9780764209840

The Story:
When Her Friend Goes Missing, Every Minute Counts 

Darcy St. James returns to Alaska to join a journalist friend undercover on the trail of a big story. But when Darcy arrives, she finds her friend has disappeared. Troubled by the cruise ship's vague explanation, Darcy uses her cover as a travel reporter to investigate further.

The last person Gage McKenna expects to see during his summer aboard a cruise ship leading adventure excursions is Darcy. And in typical Darcy fashion, she's digging up more trouble.

He'd love to just forget her--but something won't let him. And he can't help but worry about her as they are heading into more remote regions of Alaska and eventually into foreign waters. Something sinister is going on, and the deeper they push, the more Gage fears they've only discovered the tip of the iceberg.




My Thoughts:
It's almost impossible to decide where to begin when reviewing a book by Dani Pettrey. Each and every time I'm completely flabbergasted by the quality of her Alaskan-set suspense stories. While Piper and Landon remain at the top of my favorite character list for this series, Darcy and Gage's tale was no less interesting or entertaining to read. There's no doubt that these books are Christian fiction, as there are quite a few discussions of faith and spiritual matters, but they fit in well, especially since we learn from the get go that the McKenna's put their faith first.

Not just the spiritual themes but the presence of heavy hitting issues such as kidnapping and human trafficking are also a major part of the plot. I don't think I've ever read Christian suspense that gave me so many goosebumps. You don't often see topics like kidnapping and slavery addressed in Christian books in spite of it being a much larger problem in our country and others around the world than many people realize. Even with murder, kidnapping, and missing persons this story isn't all serious. With a close-knit family like the McKenna's, as expected, there are a few "light" moments of back and forth banter between brother and sister as well as some sizzling romantic tension between Darcy St. James and Gage McKenna. Darcy and Gage could start a fire in the middle of a blizzard there are so many sparks! Dare I say Alaska has never been hotter? ;-)

For romance and suspense with heavy Christian themes, there's nobody whose books I'd rather read than Pettrey's. I always love getting lost in the Alaskan Courage series and can't wait for more! Is it summer 2014 yet? Bring on book four!

*I receive complimentary books for review from the publisher. I am not required to write positive reviews, however in this case I am an "influencer" for the author. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255.*

~ My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars ~

Stranded is available now from Amazon and other retailers!

To learn more about Dani and her books, I encourage you to check out her website: www.danipettrey.com!

Don't forget to visit her blog while you're there...
http://www.danipettrey.com/notes/

...and follow Dani on Facebook!
https://www.facebook.com/DaniPettrey

Happy Reading!