Review: Reckless Refuge by Catherine Cowles

Rating: 3.5/5
Steam: 2
Trope: Psychological thriller, close proximity, damaged characters, past trauma, small town,
Series: The Wrecked Series Book 4 (standalone series)

This story was intense.  There is a lot to unpack in it.  Overall, it was suspenseful and well written story. The HEA was perfect for these 2.  If you like a bit of thriller style romance this is the book for you.  I wouldn’t say it is full out suspense due to the psychological aspects of the story.  

The background stories for these characters has you wanting big things for them. Both have been weighed down by other’s actions forcing them to live their lives differently.  The complex, dark emotions to their love story keeps you engaged in the storyline.

Because of the small town and limited interactions in this story you get a full picture of who Shay and Brody are. You are with them every step as they fall deeper and deeper in to love. It is a slow gradual evolution.

I did struggle a bit with if their love was truly soul mates or convenient.  Both characters are going through something terrible and with the isolation of Harbor Island it makes it easy to be together.  Outside forces of their past also make it so they have no one else to cling to.  As far as the phycological thriller aspect of this story I feel like the author through so many red herrings at us that it muddled the story. I felts like by introducing all these other possibilities it took away from the main issue of the story.

This story is part of series and you do get glimpses of past characters this can be read as a standalone.

If you love dark psychological thriller with your emotional small-town contemporary romance stories, you’re going to LOVE Reckless Refuge.