HERO WANTED is the first in Betina Krahn’s Reluctant Heroes series. It features Lauren Alcott, a headstrong young woman determined to make a difference, and Rafe Townsend, a seemingly snobbish man that only thinks of himself. Lauren and Rafe are to be married at the behest of their fathers so their shipping companies may merge. After Rafe refuses to help save two women from drowning, Lauren accuses him of being a coward and refuses to marry him. When they are still forced together, however, she begins to realize she might have the wrong impression of him.

Holy cow I loved this book. It is full of action from beginning to end and was so hard to put down. As much as I love historical romances, there was not a single drawing room or ballroom in this story and I was grateful for it. The shenanigans Lauren and Rafe got themselves into from the rescue at the beginning to being in a riot had me on the edge of my seat. There was also a nice mystery to go along with all the action and that was fantastic too.

Lauren was such a great heroine: she was strong, opinionated, and unafraid to do what’s right without being obnoxious or rude about it. I loved seeing her grow as a person as she learned her way might not always be the best or only way. What was even better than watching Lauren become a new person, however, was watching Rafe do the same. After the initial scene where he refuses to help rescue two women and Lauren calls him a coward, I thought he couldn’t be redeemed at all. But it happened, very gradually, until he became a real hero that was easy to fall in love with.

Betina Krahn is a new to me author, and I will most definitely be checking out the next title in this series!

Book Summary

Read an Excerpt