From the New York Times bestselling author of The Score and Midnight Revenge...

Four years ago, Cate’s entire life changed when she discovered she was the daughter of a supersoldier. But Jim Morgan’s overprotectiveness has pushed her away. These days, she’s working as a freelance photographer and living the dangerous life Jim never wanted for her.

When Cate snaps a photo linking a corrupt South American politician with the leader of a notorious drug cartel, her mercenary father leads a team to rescue her—only to get shot and critically wounded in the process.

As Morgan’s operatives rally together on a revenge mission, they’re faced with new alliances and old heartaches. Cate is forced to work with David “Ash” Ashton, the man who broke her heart two years ago, while Liam Macgregor and Sullivan Port resurface after years apart to finally try to deal with everything they’d left unsaid.

Soon it’s all-out war between the cartel and the mercenaries—with two couples caught in the middle of the blood feud. Love and redemption are within their reach...but first they have to make it home alive. 

Well, we have come to the finale of the Killer Instincts series and we are finally going to see resolution for two couples that we have followed for several books. In what might be the team's most important and dangerous operation to date, it will require all hands on deck. 

Cate Morgan and David "Ash" Ashton...
Cate has been in love with Ash since she was seventeen years old. And despite their eight year age difference, Ash has always had feelings for her as well. But she is the daughter of his boss, one of the baddest mercenaries around and a father-figure to him. So even if Ash really thought he was good enough for Cate, he respects her father too much to make a move and has hurt her by rebuffing her advances. Cate may be younger, but she is a vibrant, outspoken, free spirit. She won't let anyone else lock her away and keep her from pursuing adventure and the things she wants. But no matter how much her father and Ash want to see her safe, that might now always be possible.

Liam Macgregor and Sullivan Port...
These two men were best friends who shared everything. But when things got hotter than they expected and lines began to blur, they went running scared. And Sully has had some serious issues to recover from after an op went wrong. So they have not seen each other in a couple of years. But now they will have to finally face each other, their attraction, and their feelings once and for all.

When Cate finds herself in a precarious situation, the cavalry rides in. And it brings these star-crossed lovers back in the same vicinity once again. The explosions in this one are not just caused by bombs, but also explode between the sheets with two couples that have spent years dealing with sexual tension, unresolved feelings, and back and forth. Boom! Lust, longing, regret, fear, pain, and emotions are swirling around these couples in the middle of a treacherous op.

I adore these couples even when they frustrate me to no end! Ash has had his reasons for holding back and pushing Cate away, but it is still hard for him to resist her.  And Cate has been disappointed by him and had her heart broken so does not trust it.  Sully is so afraid of really being attached to someone and losing them that he has put up guards. He is good at avoiding, disappearing, and pushing people away. And Liam is still figuring out who he really is and what he really wants out of life. But neither men are sure of where the other stands and how their lives would be affected if they did take the risk.. So in the middle of danger and chaos, there is plenty of romantic angst too.

This is a suspenseful, tense, emotional, action-packed, and painful ride. But there is also humor, steam. and romance. It brings back the entire team including some we have not seen in awhile, and it puts them right in the middle of one of their riskiest wars yet that becomes very personal. The team will be tested to its limits and there are no guarantees that everyone will emerge unscathed.

This finale had all the action, passion, danger, lust, love and drama that I was expecting. My only complaint was how a few things resolved that seemed a bit inconsistent of the characters and there was a situation I wished we got to witness first hand. I have been invested in these two couplings for so long that I was anxiously awaiting their stories. But their path towards finding their happy endings and redemption are not easy. There are plenty of frustrations, communication issues, hurt feelings, road blocks, and threats along the way. Not to mention all of the life threatening situations. But like with any of the novels in this romantic suspense series, it is worth the ride.

I was gifted a copy in exchange for an honest review. 

In the final installment of the Killer Instincts series, readers get two stories wrapped up in one. Cate & Ash and Liam & Sully all have stories readers have looking forward to for a long time. Part of me loves that both couples work towards their future at the same time, but the other part of me wishes each could have had the spotlight to themselves. The way these two couples’ stories weave together makes them natural to tell within one overall plotline.

Now that Cate is no longer under the thumb of her grandfather and building a relationship with her father, she is itching to feel like she has some control over her choices, which also means she is constantly battling with Jim about what her future will look like. Ash has stayed away, despite the close friendship that developed between them simply because of the age difference and in deference to Jim’s threats. But Cate is tired of being treated like a child by both her father and Ash, and she is determined to make her own choices.

Liam and Sully have avoided Jim’s team and each other for some time now. Only the emergency that pulls everyone in brings them back, and everyone knows they will each go their own ways when they are no longer needed again. But their friendship will never be the same, and even though time has passed, they haven’t dealt with the emotions that sent them each running.

I was really waiting for Liam and Sully’s story and while I loved their ending, getting there often felt like it took a backseat to Cate and Ash’s story and the danger they were facing with the cartel.

The op that this book focuses on was not a planned op, and the danger is ramped up because the guys can’t plan contingency upon contingency as they normally would. Cate isn’t prepared for the information she finds, nor is she prepared for the information to put her life and the lives of everyone around her in danger. Facing a situation Jim’s men had never faced before, everyone spends much of this book in a state of disorder and unbalance unlike any other op they’ve ever faced.

This was a fast paced read full of danger. There was great movement and action through the multiple story arcs that played out simultaneously. For as long as this book is (for two full couples) it didn’t read as if it were longer than a typical novel. The pages turned easily and quickly as I was pulled right alongside Cate and the rest of the characters as they worked to contain the danger to Cate.

I was gifted a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Elle KennedyWebsite/Facebook/Twitter

A USA Today bestselling author, Elle Kennedy grew up in the suburbs of Toronto, Ontario, and holds a B.A. in English from York University. From an early age, she knew she wanted to be a writer, and actively began pursuing that dream when she was a teenager.

Elle writes romantic suspense and erotic contemporary romance for various publishers. She loves strong heroines and sexy alpha heroes, and just enough heat and danger to keep things interesting!