Justice for Boone by Susan Stoker Pages: 328
Series: Badge of Honor #6
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Also in this series: Justice for Corrie, Shelter for Elizabeth, Shelter for Adeline, Shelter for Sophie, Justice for Erin, Justice for Milena, Shelter for Blythe, Shelter for Koren
Also by this author: Protecting Cheyenne (SEAL of Protection #5), Justice for Mackenzie (Badge of Honor: Texas Heroes #1), Protecting the Future, Rescuing Rayne, Justice for Corrie, Shelter for Elizabeth, Rescuing Emily, Rescuing Harley, Shelter for Adeline, Marrying Emily, Claiming Grace, Rescuing Kassie, Protecting Kiera, Claiming Alexis, Shelter for Sophie, Rescuing Bryn, Justice for Erin, Claiming Bailey, Rescuing Casey, Claiming Felicity, Justice for Milena, Rescuing Sadie , Rescuing Wendy, Shelter for Blythe, Defending Allye, Defending Chloe, Securing Caite, Defending Morgan, Rescuing Macie, Defending Harlow, Claiming Sarah, Shelter for Koren, Securing Piper, Defending Everly, Securing Zoey, Shielding Gillian, Securing Avery, Shielding Kinley, Trusting Skylar, Trusting Molly
Goodreads
Sheriff’s Deputy Hayden Yates has worked hard to gain the respect and admiration of her fellow law enforcement officers. She’s succeeded so well, in fact, that she’s become just one of the guys. As her friends slowly begin to meet their soul mates, Hayden longs to be seen as a desirable woman, and not the tomboy she’s always been.
No slouch when it comes to attracting the opposite sex, cowboy Boone Hatcher might want to give it a rest for a while, especially after his last girlfriend accuses him of domestic abuse. Deputy Yates sees right through his ex’s ruse—and Boone sees right through Deputy Yates. Hayden might seem all business, but her need for justice comes from a heart that beats with pure passion.
A few dates turn into something more, and as the couple’s relationship deepens, so do the threats from his ex. It’s up to Hayden to convince Boone the danger is real…before jealous antics escalate to deadly obsession.
** Justice for Boone is the 6th book in the Badge of Honor: Texas Heroes Series. Each book is a stand-alone, with no cliffhanger endings.
Leave it to Susan Stoker to take a topic and turn it on its head! In Justice for Boone, Stoker tackles the topic of a man being the victim of domestic abuse. She manages to do this without making Boone seem weak or scared. As a man, he was simply willing to take the abuse from his then girlfriend because it didn’t actually cause him physical pain and he thought he could handle it (and that when he broke it off, she would go away. Mistake!). Hayden points out that if Boone had a female friend who was experiencing the things that he was, he would encourage her to get help because thats domestic abuse. Stoker manages to pull of this first meeting between the hero and heroine in a really unique turn that is different from what we expect in a story!
We have met Hayden in the previous books, and we know she is a tough woman! I have been dying to see her softer side so I was excited to dive into the story. Boone is a cattle farmer whose crazy ex is getting a little ‘fatal attraction’ ish! She wants to punish Boone for leaving her, and decides that by smacking herself and leaving marks, she can get his arrested for domestic violence. Of course, she continues to escalate after this incident, leading to another meeting between Boone and Hayden.
Sidebar-Boone brings up a really interesting point about the situation: if he were to hit her back, he would end up in jail. We don’t hesitate to tell abused women to do whatever they can to get away, but if a man claimed a woman was hitting him and he had to hit her back in order to save himself, society is much less likely to believe it!
Anyway, I loved the dynamic between Hayden and Boone. It is a different give and take because Hayden is a bad ass cop and she isn’t going to stop acting like one. Boone is understand of why she struggles with her femininity and her need to take care of herself. I enjoyed that this book takes the alpha male thing and gives it a flip. Boone is no push over, but the dynamic between these two is different and I enjoyed it a great deal!
- POV: 3rd
- Tears: no
- Trope: police, crazy ex
- Triggers: none
- Series/Standalone: standalone within an interconnected series
- Cliffhanger: View Spoiler »
- HEA: View Spoiler »
Beautiful Sacrifice by Gen Ryan, Her Darkest Nightmare by Brenda Novak, Virtue Falls by Christina Dodd…then you will probably like Justice for Boone!
Justice for Boone
I definitely don’t think I’ve ever read a book where the hero is the one that suffered from abuse. I’m curious to see how the author handled it here. The ex sounds like a real piece of work though!
I’ll have to look into this one!
P.S I wanted to say thanks so much for dropping by the blog while I was away. I read all your comments and they meant a lot! <3
I love Susan Stoker’s books anyway! But this one was really a twist on the domestic abuse thing that made me think!