Review: Into the Blue by Chanel Cleeton

itb Into the Blue
(Wild Aces #2)
By: Chanel Cleeton
Publisher: Berkley
Publication Date: July 5, 2016
Genre: Romance
Rating:

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Eric Jansen—call sign Thor—loves nothing more than pushing his F-16 to the limit. Returning home to South Carolina after a tragic loss, he hopes to fix the mistake he made long ago, when he chose the Air Force over his fiancée.

Becca Madison isn’t quick to welcome Thor back. She can’t forget how he shattered her heart. But Thor won’t give up once he’s set his sights on what he wants—and he wants Becca.

Thor shows Becca that he’s no longer the impulsive boy he used to be, and Becca finds herself irresistibly drawn to him. But will Thor be able to walk away from his dream of flying the F-16 for their love or does his heart belong to the sky?

 

 

 

My thoughts…

 

Into the Blue is a wonderful second chance novel. Over ten years ago Eric walked out on Becca via a letter before they were to get married saying he couldn’t do it. He was looking to start a carrier in the Air Force as a fighter pilot and he wasn’t willing to settle down in North Carolina. Becca’s been harboring some serious hate toward Eric for bailing on their relationship. So, imagine her shock when years later, she spots him in her local grocery store like he belongs there. Needless to say, their relationship is not an easy one. Both have careers that are on opposite sides of the country, and both have a lot of issues to overcome before they can make anything work between them.

I have to admit that Thor wasn’t even on my radar in the last book. I mean, we see him and he’s part of the small group of guys, but I don’t know, I just wasn’t invested in him. So, I wasn’t overly sure how I’d take to his story. However, I really enjoyed it. He’s having a rough time with some of the events that happened in the previous book and he decided a little R&R in his hometown is needed in order to get his head on straight. It may also have a little something to do with seeing Becca again and trying to set the wrongs he made. As he’s home he tries to make things better between them. Eric was definitely a good guy who just really loved what he did. He was a pilot through and through and even though he loved Becca, he couldn’t fully turn his back on flying. I loved that he wasn’t a character that would change their life around just because he fell in love. He doesn’t drop out of the military and become a house-husband. Instead he starts trying to plan ahead and find a way to where she can continue practicing law in her hometown where she has an amazing job, while not having to give up flying a F-16. I really liked the way the author wrote his character.

Speaking of the author. I love that she has such an in depth knowledge of military life. I have a huge pet-peeve with military books and I rarely ever read them because the authors don’t seem to know what they are talking about. They make the guys too aggressive and throw out military acronyms left and right… and that’s just not how it is. I LOVE that she hits the nail on the head with what it’s like to not only be in the military but also what it’s like to be the spouse or significant other to someone in the military. I love that she talks about how as Eric gains rank in the Air Force, it becomes less hands-on and fun and more political, with a lot of networking. I, personally, never knew that this was an aspect to the military life and thought it was just the day-to-day job on base. So, the fact that she included this little tidbit in the story was awesome. She really captured what it’s like in the military and I didn’t feel like I was reading a fictional story about someone playing a role in the military, I felt like these people ARE real.

Okay, back to the story. If you can’t tell, I really enjoyed it. I loved that not only did she get the military part down, but we also got some time with Eric in the cockpit while he flew. We got to see what he experienced and how quickly things can go wrong up there. I also liked that we got to see everyone from the first book. It was nice getting to see how everyone was doing since the last book since it ended on such a rough note. While every book is essentially a stand-alone I highly suggest reading them in order. What happens in the first book really set the tone for this and the next book. Gosh, the next book is the one I’ve been waiting for. Which is probably why she wrote it last. So as to keep us all in suspense wondering what’s going to happen there. Trust me, start this series from the beginning. 😉

Into the Blue is a great addition to the series. It has the cocky pilots, lots of behind-the-scenes with the military life, a sweet rekindling romance, steamy bedroom scenes, and it’s downright impossible to not fall in love with everyone in the book. If you are looking for a romance, whether it’s military or not, you have to give this a shot. It’s not cheesy, cliche, or has any hard-limits. It’s just a really good romance. I can’t recommend this series enough!

 

Favorite quote…

“It was strange to have the remnants of an intimacy that had died long ago. Somethings felt so natural, and yet I had to remind myself that I’d lost the right to those parts of her.”

 

Previous reviews from Wild Aces
Fly With Me

 

 

9 Thoughts on “Review: Into the Blue by Chanel Cleeton

  1. I need to read more military books, and I always love a good second chances read!

    • Me, too. They may be one of my favorites. That or best friend’s little sister… or friends-to-lovers. I like that they already have an idea who the other person is, so even if they fall in love fast, it’s not insta-love because they’ve known each other a lot longer than the reader does.

  2. EEEEK! I’m so excited to start this series! I have all three books so I’ll be binging them in December!
    Genesis @ Latte Nights Reviews

    • You’re going to love them! I recently finished the 3rd book and it was by far the best out of the three in my opinion, but they are all really good. I can’t wait to read your reviews on them.

  3. Kristin she IS a military wife. Air force, actually 🙂 It really did make an amazing difference I think to the writing. I’m glad you enjoyed this one as much as I did!

    • Ya know, I thought she would be but in her acknowledgements and author bio she doesn’t talk about it. So I just assumed either she is really good at faking it, or like me, keeps that part of her on the dl and not public knowledge by blasting it all over the place. I’d definitely say that it helps immensely being in that lifestyle but it also has a lot to do with her writing too.

  4. Good to hear you enjoyed this one even though you wasn’t invested in Thor in book one. He sounds like a realistic character with how he doesn’t give up his job, but tries to find a solution that works for both of them. That’s good to hear the author writes the military side realistic, I feel like it’s really important when writing topics like that to get things right. This series is on my wishlist, I keep hearing good things about it and I think i would enjoy this one. Great review!

    • I really liked the way the author portrayed both of them. They were both equally strong characters that were well thought out. I hope you get a chance to read them. I rarely buy books because I already have way too many and I’m a bit frugal but I already plan to buy the third book when it comes out to finish off my collection of the trilogy.

  5. I liked this one too! I’m glad you felt the author got the military aspects right! I often wonder how good the authors research is.

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