Book Review: Collateral Damage by Lynette Eason

Hello folksies! Today I’m reviewing Lynette Eason’s latest release, Collateral Damage.

… And I have nothing else to say. So, let’s begin.

About the Book

Honorably discharged from the Army after an explosion nearly killed her, former military psychiatrist Brooke Adams has set up shop to help others–but her days of helping military personnel are over. She’s got her own battles to fight from her time overseas, and she’s not equipped to take on more. Former Army Special Ops Sergeant First Class Asher James could handle anything that war sent his way–terrorists, bombs, bullets. The only thing that scares him now is sleep. As the shadows close in, the nightmares begin.

Finally convinced that he needs help, Asher makes an appointment with a counselor, and Brooke is pressed by her boss to take him on. When he arrives at her office she isn’t there–but a dead body is. Brooke is devastated when she walks in, and Asher is a conveniently strong shoulder to cry on. But she can’t take him on as a client after sharing such an intimate and unprofessional moment, can she? And he’s not sure he can handle sharing his deepest fears with such a beautiful woman.

When it becomes clear that Brooke was the real target of the attack–and that her secrets go even deeper than his own–Asher vows to protect her no matter what.

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My Thoughts

WHAT a ride.

This is my first book by Lynette Eason, and I’m impressed!

I’m surprised I liked the characters as much as I did. I wasn’t attached to them, per se, but they were really neat and I wasn’t bored by them.

Brooke is a unique lead, for sure. There are just so many stories in which the MCs look down on/hate on “shrinks” of any kind, and that’s just ridiculous. Because there are plenty of psychiatrists out there who ARE trying to help. Like Brooke, for instance. And I love how the author actually weaves that into the story– of course the soldiers she helps don’t seem to appreciate it. And that’s realistic too. But she was really cool, psychiatrist-character aside, and truly relatable.

Asher was cool, too, although I did like Brooke better. (*flash red lights* SHE LIKES THE FEMALE LEAD MORE) I just didn’t really connect to him as much. But it’s all good.

The other characters though?? How many more books will there be in this series because I will be snapping them up. The side characters are pure gold. And I know Eason’s gonna continue the thread of crazy action-packed awesomeness.

The mystery/suspenseful part was really well-done, even though I guessed it a couple chapters before its reveal (but hey, I overthink everything, because it’s safest to just assume everyone’s the killer, you know?). I like how Eason added a whole bunch of the side characters’ own subplots and wove them into one huge big web of mystery. *thumbs up*

A couple things I didn’t like: there wasn’t much character growth in this book. Not saying that there was absolutely none, but it was very subtle, and made it slightly more difficult to connect to the characters. Brooke was easy to resonate with because of her personality, but yeah, that’s probably why I didn’t like Asher as much.

4/5 stars. This isn’t a genre I usually read and it took me forever to get into it, but aside from that, it was great. 😀

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. A positive review was not required; all views and opinions expressed are my own.*

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That’s all for today! 🙂

Until next time,

~ Merie

Tell me your thoughts…

Have you read Collateral Damage or any Lynette Eason book? What did you think?