bookishlynomes's review
4.0
Well I've devoured yet another Katie Ruggle novel and again, I've fallen in love with everything about the books from the writing to the characters and more.
Hold Your Breath tells the story of charming, resilient and quirky Lou Sparks and serious, stubborn Callum Cook. Lou has recently escaped her controlling family and even more controlling ex, but she's determined to make it on her own terms in the remote Rocky Mountains. In an effort to change her life, she decides to volunteer as part of the ice diving search and rescue team. There she meets Callum and her quirkiness is no match for the stern-looking, highly organised hero.
As always Katie Ruggle's story is full of action-packed adventure and thrilling drama that will leave you on the edge of your seat. In Hold Your Breath Lou faces a creepy stalker lurking around her home, slashing her tyres and just being a general menace. If that wasn't bad enough, during her training Lou also manages to accidentally kick loose an unidentified, headless body hidden beneath the ice. The plot only continues to thicken when Lou (teamed up with Callum) discover the detectives are at a dead end in discovering the body's identity. Ruggle created and executed a fantastic mystery that I simultaneously wanted to savour and rush through for the answers.
The romance was also incredibly well done. I am an absolutely sucker for the whole 'grumpy one being soft for the sunshine one' type of characters and that's exactly what you get with Callum and Lou. Callum rarely smiles. He's all about seriousness and being orderly, and he's basically the complete opposite of Lou. Lou is described as a 'walking disaster'. If something is likely to happen, it'll happen to Lou but she is always friendly and looking to the positives in life. Watching Callum and Lou go from being acquaintances to sort of friends and then to a romantic relationship was lovely. The pacing felt realistic for their particular circumstances and personalities, and there were so many moments that had me sitting there just smiling at my book.
Overall, it was a great beginning to a new series. Ruggle also introduced a range of fantastic characters in other departments of search and rescue/law enforcement that I can't wait to learn more about in future books. If you're new to romantic suspense or simply want a comfort read with some mystery and romance, I couldn't recommend Ruggle's Hold Your Breath more. I absolutely loved it and can't wait to read more of her stories soon.
Hold Your Breath tells the story of charming, resilient and quirky Lou Sparks and serious, stubborn Callum Cook. Lou has recently escaped her controlling family and even more controlling ex, but she's determined to make it on her own terms in the remote Rocky Mountains. In an effort to change her life, she decides to volunteer as part of the ice diving search and rescue team. There she meets Callum and her quirkiness is no match for the stern-looking, highly organised hero.
As always Katie Ruggle's story is full of action-packed adventure and thrilling drama that will leave you on the edge of your seat. In Hold Your Breath Lou faces a creepy stalker lurking around her home, slashing her tyres and just being a general menace. If that wasn't bad enough, during her training Lou also manages to accidentally kick loose an unidentified, headless body hidden beneath the ice. The plot only continues to thicken when Lou (teamed up with Callum) discover the detectives are at a dead end in discovering the body's identity. Ruggle created and executed a fantastic mystery that I simultaneously wanted to savour and rush through for the answers.
The romance was also incredibly well done. I am an absolutely sucker for the whole 'grumpy one being soft for the sunshine one' type of characters and that's exactly what you get with Callum and Lou. Callum rarely smiles. He's all about seriousness and being orderly, and he's basically the complete opposite of Lou. Lou is described as a 'walking disaster'. If something is likely to happen, it'll happen to Lou but she is always friendly and looking to the positives in life. Watching Callum and Lou go from being acquaintances to sort of friends and then to a romantic relationship was lovely. The pacing felt realistic for their particular circumstances and personalities, and there were so many moments that had me sitting there just smiling at my book.
Overall, it was a great beginning to a new series. Ruggle also introduced a range of fantastic characters in other departments of search and rescue/law enforcement that I can't wait to learn more about in future books. If you're new to romantic suspense or simply want a comfort read with some mystery and romance, I couldn't recommend Ruggle's Hold Your Breath more. I absolutely loved it and can't wait to read more of her stories soon.
capsandclauses's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
As an Australian, nothing will ever scare me more than a snowy suspense environment...
Rating: ★★★ 1/4
Series: Search and Rescue #1
Setting: Simpson, Colorado
Characters: Louise 'Lou' Sparks & Callum Cook
Tropes:
Opposites Attract 🧲
Grump and Sunshine ☀️
Small Town Romance 🏡
Girl in Trouble ☠️
Teammates Romance 👔
Search and Rescue FMC & MMC 🧑🚒
Thoughts:
This was a different kind of romantic suspense to what I normally read. I would actually describe it as being more action/adventure than suspense, though that wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
Hold Your Breath follows Lou & Callum, two search and rescue dive team crew members. After discovering a dead body in the local reservoir during a training exercise, Lou decides to start investigating the murder herself, and she ropes boss Callum into her hunt down a brutal killer...
Hold Your Breath was a really fun read! Simpson was a really interesting town to read about as someone who has never seen snow before in their life. It definitely is the perfect setting for creepy s*** to go down.
The only thing that kind of let down this book is that Lou struck me as a really naive, immature heroine. Sure, she was fun to read about, but sometimes you just want to smack some sense into her.
Looking forward to reading Fan the Flames!
Rating: ★★★ 1/4
Series: Search and Rescue #1
Setting: Simpson, Colorado
Characters: Louise 'Lou' Sparks & Callum Cook
Tropes:
Opposites Attract 🧲
Grump and Sunshine ☀️
Small Town Romance 🏡
Girl in Trouble ☠️
Teammates Romance 👔
Search and Rescue FMC & MMC 🧑🚒
Thoughts:
This was a different kind of romantic suspense to what I normally read. I would actually describe it as being more action/adventure than suspense, though that wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
Hold Your Breath follows Lou & Callum, two search and rescue dive team crew members. After discovering a dead body in the local reservoir during a training exercise, Lou decides to start investigating the murder herself, and she ropes boss Callum into her hunt down a brutal killer...
Hold Your Breath was a really fun read! Simpson was a really interesting town to read about as someone who has never seen snow before in their life. It definitely is the perfect setting for creepy s*** to go down.
The only thing that kind of let down this book is that Lou struck me as a really naive, immature heroine. Sure, she was fun to read about, but sometimes you just want to smack some sense into her.
Looking forward to reading Fan the Flames!
katekate_reads_'s review
4.0
Really enjoyed this - but fair warning it’s the first in a series and ends on a bit of a cliffhanger.
jsinta's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I really like this book! Felt like the perfect balance of suspense and romance. The main character is quirky and feels authentic. A really refreshing read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury and Stalking
earlgreyhhot's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
ladygrey353's review
adventurous
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
jenbereadin's review
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This just ticked all the right boxes for me, the interesting career in rescue diving, the slow burn romance, and all the mystery surrounding the things happening to the main characters. The only thing that held it back was the numerous plot twists at the end, they felt excessively over the top and all the bad guys were cartoonishly evil.
wizardpendragon's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
3.75
3,5 - 4 ⭐️
Likes:
- blond hero
- mentor/mentee relationship
- Louise “Lou” Sparks is a great romance name
- likeable mcs
- engaging story and setting, vivid atmosphere (wilderness, isolation, cold)
- last name used as nickname/endearment
- grumpy (more stoic) x sunshine/ calm x energetic
- other people noticing Callum is smiling more thanks to Lou
- mmc with “I got it” vibes and in general a lot of competency porn
- great rescue scene(s)
- wonderful conversation about getting help vs. feeling helpless and what it means to be independent
- relationship development felt very natural and sweet
- the narration was well done as well
- plot stayed engaging throughout and now this book tricked me into reading the next instalment (even though I wanted to skip that initially)
Dislikes:
- that first kiss came out of nowhere?
- OCD used as a quirky trait in mmc
- would’ve loved to see more of their team captain x newest team member relationship to feature into the story and their relationship
- that’s on me, but I didn’t do any research and therefore didn’t expect the first two books to be this interconnected
Verdict:
- overall an engaging suspense plot and a sweet, supportive romance
Likes:
- blond hero
- mentor/mentee relationship
- Louise “Lou” Sparks is a great romance name
- likeable mcs
- engaging story and setting, vivid atmosphere (wilderness, isolation, cold)
- last name used as nickname/endearment
- grumpy (more stoic) x sunshine/ calm x energetic
- other people noticing Callum is smiling more thanks to Lou
- mmc with “I got it” vibes and in general a lot of competency porn
- great rescue scene(s)
- wonderful conversation about getting help vs. feeling helpless and what it means to be independent
- relationship development felt very natural and sweet
- the narration was well done as well
- plot stayed engaging throughout and now this book tricked me into reading the next instalment (even though I wanted to skip that initially)
Dislikes:
- that first kiss came out of nowhere?
- OCD used as a quirky trait in mmc
- would’ve loved to see more of their team captain x newest team member relationship to feature into the story and their relationship
- that’s on me, but I didn’t do any research and therefore didn’t expect the first two books to be this interconnected
Verdict:
- overall an engaging suspense plot and a sweet, supportive romance
toomanybooks4me's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0