Justice for Hope: Badge of Honor Book 12, Susan Stoker

Take the Cinderella trope mixed with It Could Happen to You all with a darker edge and you have Hope Drayden's story.  Grief, pain, struggle...there's only so much you can take when you're on the run.  But Hope has her little boy with her and she's determined to survive for him.  When she meets Calder Stonewall she's reluctant to trust him.  He's law enforcement, big, awkward, imposing...and yet she's surprised to find that her son and a small part of her soul trusts him.  Calder is determined to create a place for himself in her life, to support, encourage, and to love her.  But an unknown enemy threatens everything they're building.

Calder has a quiet strength about him that I enjoyed quite a lot.  I found his bumbling endearing when he would overshare, babble, or say those slightly disturbing things that didn't make it through the filter.  I would have liked it if his endearing quirks were consistently present throughout the story instead of pretty much ending right after he shows up at the diner.  Most things go away with the ease of comfort he finds with more time with Hope but the things that made him so very unique seemed to be lost and set aside in favor of his declarations of intention.  I loved that he wore his heart so clearly on his sleeve for Hope, and especially Billy, but in and amongst all those heartfelt, direct, fierce statements I wanted a little more of his brand of unique.

Hope was straightforward in her character.  A fierce mother, a kind mother, an alluring woman with a spine of steel and an open heart.  I'm glad she wasn't so determined to do everything on her own that it was to her detriment, that she didn't allow her stubborn will to usurp her good sense.  Because when she opened her mind she also opened her world to the amazing community Calder brought with him.  That when she needed help in a big way, she had friends and adopted family at her back and in her corner.

While the dramatic element was expected, the villain was not.  It was a surprise that both dropped the severity of the moment while at the same time making it scarier.  When we don't have a name for the enemy it has you jumping at any and all shadows and threats.  The resolution was sweet and triumphant.  Where family is everything, this story made sure to keep that love as a focus throughout.  Love, healing, relief, support...when you have a family surrounding you with those things what you really find is freedom.

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