Falling Embers by Catherine Cowles

Narrated by Joe Arden and Vanessa Edwin

Romantic Suspense. Book 2 in a series but can stand alone.

Catherine Cowles has become a one-click author for me, and with Falling Embers, the second book in the Tattered and Torn Series, she has written another favorite, filled with emotion, suspense, family, drama, and passion.

“I’d been half in love with Calder Cruz from the moment he’d taught me to chase the stars.”

Hadley has loved Calder for as long as she can remember. He is her brother Hayes’s best friend. After her younger sister was kidnapped, Hadley’s mom became so fiercely overprotective of her that she could barely leave the house. But Calder taught her what freedom felt like with a mountain bike.

Calder is now a firefighter and a single dad to two amazing little girls who are everything to him. After his drug addict wife almost killed her two girls (and went to jail for it), Calder lives only for his girls, and he can’t deal with his friend Hadley taking any risks. Only she has secretly become a pretty popular biker and extreme sports athlete as well as an EMT whose job can sometimes be dangerous.

“Calder had been the one to give me the gift of finding my freedom, but he had also been the one who tried to take it away.”

When Hadley is involved in a dangerous rescue, Calder realizes how much Hadley means to him. But he doesn’t really know her anymore. Hadley has done a great job of keeping her alter-ego of “Little Daredevil” a secret until her videos start getting ugly comments and threats that leak over to her “real” life.

“Sometimes, things need to break to be put together right.”

Catherine Cowles kept me guessing on this one. I love how her books are highly suspenseful, but it’s the love and family connections that stand out the most. She has a way of blending steamy romance, angst, suspense, family, found family, friendship, kids, and a whodunnit into something completely unique and special.

Likes:

A girl doing extreme sports.
Birdie and Sage were great little girls.
My heart broke for Hadley the way her mom treated her.
Calder was an amazing dad and friend.
A unique storyline.
The mystery had me guessing till the end.
Just the right amount of everything.
Her covers are just gorgeous.

Dislikes:

I can’t think of a single one.

The Narration:

Joe Arden and Vanessa Edwin could not have been more perfect for Calder and Hadley, and I 100% recommend listening to this one because the acting added to the experience in a big way.

The Down & Dirty:

Once again, Catherine Cowles WOWED me. She has quickly joined my all-time favorite author list, and she has become a one-click auto-buy for me. Falling Embers may be my favorite of hers, it’s just the perfect blend of everything I love. There is plenty of action and suspense, but there is also deep love and family as well as two adorable little girls. Though Falling Embers can stand alone, I highly recommend starting this series with the first book, Tattered Stars, to really get the family background. I can’t wait for the third book in June, Hidden Waters.