Northern Escape

Northern Rescue, Book 1

By: Tonya Burrows

Narrated by: Stephen Borne

Length: 8 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's Summary

Brielle Ives prefers dogs to people, and who could blame her? Her sled dogs are loyal to a fault, trust her implicitly, and couldn’t care less about the scars that mar her face. The only human who’s never disappointed her is her mentor, Dr. William Hunter. When his plane goes missing in the remote Alaskan wilderness, Bree will do anything to find him...even if it means turning to a frustrating, irresponsible, and too-sexy-for-his-own-good California boy for help. 

When Ellis Hunter enlisted in the Army at eighteen, he put Alaska - and his womanizing drunk of a father - in his rearview mirror. He promised himself he’d never return, but even he can’t resist Bree’s panicked plea for help. If she’s hell-bent on trekking into the bush to find his father, then he's determined to go with her. But Ellis isn’t the only one shadowing Bree’s rescue attempt....

When the search for answers leaves Ellis and Bree trapped together in the wilds of Alaska, they’ll have to put aside their differences - and an attraction hot enough to melt glaciers - to survive the elements. Because someone dangerous lurks in that icy wilderness - a killer desperate to keep Dr. William Hunter's secrets buried deep in the snow.

©2021 Tonya Burrows (P)2021 Tonya Burrows

did not relate

I like dogs, and Alaska always fascinated me. so I really really really wanted to like this book.
unfortunately, it simply didn't work. too many technical details that at times it felt like it's a teaching book. I couldn't relate to the characters and could not understand the connection between them - it just simply didn't work for me.
it was a struggle to finish and not fall asleep, also thanks to the narrator.
I received a free review copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

Suspenseful!

This was my first Tonya Burrows’s book, and won’t be my last. This is the first book in the Northern Rescue Trilogy, a Romantic Suspense. Brielle (Bree) and Ellis’s slow burn romance is fast paced, and entertaining, filled with adventure and action. Bree is such a wonderful character, strong, smart, and capable. Ellis is handsome, protective, and caring. The are opposites attract, and they share an undeniable chemistry. They teamed up to find Dr William Hinter, Ellis’s father and Bree’s mentor. Ellis Brothers, Nate and Damien, are great and intriguing supporting characters. The scenery is amazing. The storyline is well written and captivating. Stephen Borne did a great job with the narration. This Series has an ongoing plot, and we follows the three brothers in their quest to find what happened to their Dad. Now, I am looking forward to listen to Northern Deception, Nate and Freya’s story, the next book in the Series.

Almost quit in chapter 1 but finished and liked it

This book turned out to be really good. However, I almost quit in the first chapter, in the first few minutes. The language is crude swearing right after another and the situation Ellis is in does not make him a likable character. I actually stopped the audiobook and wondered why I downloaded it. After rereading the blurb I decided to give it one more chapter. It started getting better with Brie, and by the end I liked Ellis as well. I understand WHY that first chapter is there, but I wish the author had found a different way to show contrast between Brie (scarred but beautiful inside) and the women Ellis usually spends time with (beautiful but ugly inside). And personally, I didn't want to read about a man who shows up to the second day of work willing to jump into bed with a married stranger just because of her beauty.

So, for my followers who don't like strong language or sex scenes--This one is not for you.

For those who don't care about that--the mystery and suspense was really good. The story (after chapter 1) was good. There were many spots throughout the book where the author switched verb tenses. It was annoying, but not enough to decide I didn't care about the story. Brie was a great character, strong, smart, sometimes stubborn to the point of being stupid. Ellis improved over time as he recognized how amazing Brie was.

The mystery of who the bad guy was good as well. At one point I was pretty sure who it was, then the author did a great job of making me question that. Since this is a series, you have more questions at the end of this book than you do at the beginning. Be prepared for that. There is a HEA for our couple though. And, even with the language, I'm tempted to pick up book two for the mystery side. :D

The narrator did a great job. I completely forgot I was listening to a book. This is the highest compliment I can give a narrator. I don't want to be read to, I want to experience the story and I felt like I did.

I went back and forth on my book rating because I don't like reading the f-bomb over and over, and the verb tense switches could have easily been fixed with a good edit. Just personal preference, but in the end, I took that out of the equation and give the story something between a 3.5 and a 4 with a R rating.

Narration gets a 5 (I really do need a scale for them)

1-5 scale and what it means:
1: I couldn’t even finish it / just plain bad
2: I hope I didn’t pay for this / disappointing
3: I didn’t hate it, but it was still missing something / forgettable but inoffensive
3.5: On the line between good and ok / like, not love
4: Solid mind candy / worth reading
4.5: So very close to perfection! / must read
5: I could not put it down and I’m still thinking about it! / a true treasure

Movie Ratings in relation to my review:
Clean--Hallmark movies, some kissing, no nudity, no sex on or off "screen"
PG--Some innuendo but nothing kids don't hear every day, sex is all closed door
PG-13--some language (swear words not related to sex), more talk about sex, heavy petting, removal of clothing on screen, but sex is closed door.
PG-14—somewhere between PG-13 and R. Not erotica, but at least a paragraph of on-screen sex
R--swearing (F-bomb, on “screen” sex, sometimes feels like the whole story is about the sex and not the relationship or some other plot, but not always

book 1 - Northern Rescue

A great start to Burrows' series Northern Rescue. We're introduced to the Hunter brothers and this read / listen focuses on the oldest brother Ellis. Determined never to go back to Alaska, Ellis gets a call from Brielle Ives who is easy enough to ignore at first - until in one of her voicemails tells him she's heading out on her own to look for his father. While Ellis has been and wants to be seen as an a-hole loaner, he's really anything but deep down and he can't just let Bri go off on her own - and so, the adventure of his life and his heart begin. Great storyline with twists and turns that flow smoothly thru out. Great character development all around. I love the lightheartedness that Peanut brings to the story and I adore the narration. Definitely excited to see what will be next for these brothers who have a turbulent relationship.

This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review.

No what I expected

but in a good way. It's light on the romance but that's ok because the mystery that surrounds it is engaging enough to keep you listening and intrigued. I really loved all the different relationship dynamics and character. This is a new author to me and I will definitely be looking out for the next one. Borne is a new narrator to me as well and I really enjoyed this listen. I really appreciated how he handed the female voices and he made it easy to follow along with the story.

Worth reading

Well written and holds your attention. Descriptive enough to make you feel your in Alaska

Norther Escape *****

exciting fun and so enjoyable. I love the mix of humans and dogs. they are all so lovable...the humans are alright too haha. go ahead and read you won't be sorry.