Haunted by what he lost in Afghanistan, Captain Jack Turner is at a crossroads. While the last place he wants to go is the Arctic, at least the routine mission gets him out from behind his new desk. But he starts off on the wrong foot with the Canadian Ranger guiding him across the forbidding and dangerous land, and Jack would rather be anywhere than sharing a tent with Sergeant Kin Carsen.
The Arctic is in Kin's blood, and he can't seem to leave the tundra behind. He wishes he could live openly as a gay man, but the North isn't as accepting as the rest of Canada. Although he's lonely, he loves his responsibility as a Ranger, patrolling the vast land he knows so well. But he's on unfamiliar ground with Jack, and when they're stranded alone by a blizzard, unexpected desire begins to burn. Soon they're in a struggle to survive, and all these strangers have is each other.
Note: This gay romance features emotional repression, hurt/comfort, adventure on the tundra, and love where you least expect it.
Captain Jack Turner originally comes across as a really grumpy person, but this was just a front to hide his true feelings. He was at this time, very unsure of himself, not sure whether to trust his judgement, he was totally all at sea, and his actions were fuelled by his inner turmoil. Not really the best time to be sent to the Arctic, especially to someone who he believes is more or less beneath him.
Kin is in the closet, but not really through choice. Where he lives is behind the times, and being gay is still frowned upon, so he holds his secret deep inside. This really does make him sad, as he knows he is living a lie by hiding being gay, but he fears the consequences more of coming out.
Neither Jack or Kin are pleased with why Jack has been sent to the Arctic, but although they seem to rub each other up the wrong way, there also seems to be a spark there which neither of them really had planned on acting on. However, being with each other alone, things begin to change, and their feelings are getting too strong to ignore.
Before they can explore where things are going to go, Jack has some deep secrets hidden away that he must sort in his mind, and then Kin has to decide if Jack is worth coming out for. Does their relationship stand any chance or is it dead before it even starts? I think Jack needs to take a long good look at himself, and make a very hard decision before he can move forward, and it takes something quite frightening to really wake Jack up.
I really did enjoy this book, and the emotions really did come through while reading. You really could understand the emotions going through both Jack and Kin, and at times would just be thinking please please just speak to each other, open and honestly!! I look forward to reading more by Keira Andrews.