[Review]—"Word of Honor" is an Exciting Romantic Thriller

I have a poor habit—or bad luck—of mistakenly reading the second book in a series, only to find later that it's a sequel; thankfully, I didn't have that problem with Hallee Bridgeman's Love & Honor series. For once, I read book one, Honor Bound, before going on to book two, Word of Honor, and book three, Honor's Refuge (review coming soon).

FBI Special Agent Lynda Culter, the story's female protagonist, is tasked with looking into an ecoterrorist group operating in the remote Alaskan wilderness. Everything goes wrong as she witnesses her partner getting murdered. Following that, Lynda—the lone witness—joins a combined operation in Istanbul to dismantle the organization. It's much simpler for a woman to go about undetected in a Muslim country if she is married, and the "husband" assigned to her is Army weapons expert Bill Sanders—the same man who broke her heart in college.  

Remember, this is a romance, so Bill and Lynda are rekindling some old feelings. They attempt to have a professional relationship, but no matter how much they try—they can't deny those feelings—it's a Christian romance, so my phrasing isn't precisely what you might expect.

What do you need to know about Word of Honor? It's a romantic action thriller, and it follows a rather worn-out formula: the female protagonist is in danger, and then a dashingly handsome man appears to save the day. Sounds familiar? We've all heard this love story before—the good news is that Hallee Bridgeman is an expert at developing compelling characters and uses her writing abilities to create a refreshing romantic narrative. 

In conclusion, I had a great time with Word of Honor. I liked the story, the characters, and pretty much everything else. Dare I say it is better than Honor Bound? Word of Honor is a rare sequel that improves on the original. ╌★★★★★