In Jill Sorenson's dramatic new Romantic Suspense, Park Ranger Hope and her sister Faith are planning a rafting trip together. Hope gets called back to duty for a Search-and-Rescue to check out a plane crash in a remote area of the park, while Faith goes on with the rafting trip without her. All the other Rangers are occupied elsewhere, so she takes celebrity rock climber Sam Rutherford with her to find the plane and look for any survivors. They find the downed drug-running plane, with the pilot dead, and the other occupant missing. This other occupant, drug cartel flunky Javier, has killed the pilot and escaped. Sam and Faith form a tenuous bond, neither quite trusting the other. After the trail leads them to the river and the possibility that her sister is in danger, Faith relents and allows Sam to join her in her hunt for the killer.

The point of view of the book flips back and forth between Hope's story and Faith's. Faith, continuing on with the rafting trip alone, meets up with 'Jay', a handsome and interesting man who joined the trip at the last minute when someone dropped out. Little does Faith know that the man is actually the drug cartel flunky Javier trying to escape, not only from the murder; but from the drug lord he no longer wishes to work for. Faith and Javier are instantly attracted to one another, and lust soon overcomes the pair. Faith eventually learns who and what Javier is, and must make some hard decisions concerning any kind of a future with him. Neither of them realize that the drug lord and his men are already hot on their trail; as are Hope and Sam, who are having some dangerous close encounters with the drug lord and his gang themselves. The race is on as to who is going to get to Faith first, and possibly save her life.

FREEFALL is a good story, and a solid read. This is a great story for readers who like characters with all kinds of 'issues'. The story changes direction a few too many times, and the plotline just kind of peters off in the last half of the book. Where the first half was about the search and rescue and the Faith and Javier story; the second half is dominated by a subplot about crooked Park Rangers. Readers also find that Javier's murderous drug-runner character was glamorized and then whitewashed, which is an unpalatable turn of events. There are three or four separate stories held together with the loosest of cohesion, lending to occasional confusion. Still, all in all, it was fun. There is a lot of good action and good suspense, if a little thin on the romance.

Book Summary

He's her only hope…

Park ranger Hope Banning's plans for a little R & R are put on hold when a plane crashes at the top of a remote mountain. Hope will have to climb the summit and assess the situation. And the only climbing partner available is Sam Rutherford—the enigmatic man she spent a night with six months ago.

For staying alive

Ever since Sam lost his girlfriend in a falling accident, he insists on climbing solo. But Hope and any potential survivors need his help. As Sam and Hope set out on an emergency search-and-rescue mission, he realizes the sparks still sizzle between them. And when they learn a killer is among the survivors, they must place their trust in each other for a chance at happiness.