GABE is the fourth book in Ms. Michael’s HC Heroes series and I think it’s my favorite so far! I’ve been very curious about the sheriff, especially after reading Dex and Rylee’s story. Rylee’s big brother definitely piqued my interest. Former military AND law enforcement? Two of my catnips. He’s the first hero in this series who does not work at Eagle Security Investigations with the other guys, but he’s still a part of their band of brothers. Put him with Lindsey, a vet tech who rescues and fosters animals, something I admire, and I was eager for their story!

Much as I respect people who work tirelessly to give abused and neglected animals better lives, I was still a little surprised by Lindsey, who took chances in dangerous situations and trespassed on private property to do so. I understand wanting desperately to help a neglected animal, but not by ignoring the law. Gabe is a by-the-books guy, and in his world, laws were not made to be broken. He didn’t necessarily want to arrest Lindsey, but what choice did he have? I didn’t blame him one bit. I think I’ve mentioned in my reviews of the earlier books in the series how I love the teasing banter between all the buddies, and their reactions when they learned about the arrest were hilarious.

Still, this situation showed how Lindsey is like a force of nature. She’s passionate about what she does, putting herself and her own needs second to that of the animals she rescues. When the dog she was arrested for is suddenly missing from the owner’s backyard, and the owner accuses Lindsey of stealing him, she’s determined to track down the dog, with or without Gabe’s help. Not long after that trespassing incident, a rancher finds several injured and deceased dogs in a ditch on his property, and Gabe begins investigating the possibility of a dogfighting ring, while also trying to figure out if the missing dog and his owner have any connection to the dumped dogs. Here’s where Lindsey got a bit exasperating because she kept inserting herself into the investigation rather than let Gabe, as the sheriff, handle it. But then, if she didn’t, we wouldn’t have much of a story.

I don’t want to give away much more of the plot, but both the story and the investigation were plotted well, and there are some steamy scenes that got downright hot. This entry in the series is a little more of a detective story than the previous books, which is fitting with a sheriff for the hero, and I enjoyed that aspect of the book. As with the previous books, familiar characters are around and involved in the action, the men of Eagle Security Investigations a little more than their partners, and some of their teasing conversations made me laugh out loud.

Reading these books back to back, I have noticed that each book seems to follow a similar formula, and while each couple featured are well written, they’re basically the same as the couple who came before them. Gabe, however, is probably the most readily distinguishable from the others, by virtue of his profession since he is involved in a somewhat different type of investigation than the Eagle Security Investigations men normally handle. Regardless, the HC Heroes books are fun to read and I love each couple, but I do believe GABE is my favorite so far.

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