Book Review: Honor Bound by B.J. Daniels
Honor Bound is the 6th and final book in Daniels’s series, The Montana Hamiltons. I have to admit; I had never read any other books in the series, or any other book by Daniels. I found that this did not affect my enjoyment of this novel in any way; in fact, I was very impressed by how well the novel stood on its own.
The book focuses on the youngest of the six daughters of presidential candidate Buck Hamilton and his wife, Sarah. Ainsley is a location scout for a small production company, and is currently scoping out areas for a commercial to be shot in her native Montana. Ainsley is on edge, because of the rumors surrounding her mother – Sarah had been gone for 22 years, believed to have been killed in a car accident. Now she stands accused of belonging to a terrorist organization called The Prophecy. Half of Ainsley’s sisters think she is guilty, and there is a great deal of friction in the family. Then there’s the stress from her father’s presidential campaign, and to top it all off, Ainsley is sure she is being stalked.
Enter Sawyer Nash, an FBI officer with a bum leg, the result of a prior case. He’s been asked to look after Ainsley, unofficially – she believes he’s a cowboy, an extra on the set of the commercial being filmed. His job – and his life – are complicated by another agent, a former lover, who is at the shoot, also undercover, to bring down a ring of jewelry thieves.
There is plenty of action and mystery to keep the pages flying. There are plots from the previous books that are wrapped up as well. Daniels develops her characters well, and builds a great deal of empathy and caring for them. Nash is a true blue cowboy hero, committed to doing the right thing on top of being sexy as hell. He and Ainsley have an almost instant connection. Once he discovers that someone is indeed stalking her, he’ll stop at nothing to ensure Ainsley’s safety.
The romance is more sweet that steamy, though, and while there is foreplay, there is no sex. Therein lies my only problem with the book. Ainsley is 34 years old, spinsterishly uptight, not sure what she wants to do with her life, and a virgin. This well-seasoned, middle-aged woman wonders how such a level of naivete and inexperience is possible in 2016. The author’s political and spiritual leanings are made quite clear in the book, and I did get the distinct feeling that life in Montana, especially rural Montana, is different from life in major metropolitan locations.
Relatively speaking, that’s a minor quibble, and it doesn’t put me off wanting to read more of Daniels’s works. The mystery aspects of the book are tightly plotted, the action keeps the pages turning, and all of the romantic happy endings are quite satisfying. Even without reading the previous five books, I believe Honor Bound to be the series conclusion Daniels fans have been waiting for.