This is book five of the ‘Rivers Community Romance’ series which focuses on the small community of Rivers and its hospital. It is a standalone novel but I recommend to read it in order as there are a few parts of the plot based on stories told in previous books. In this novel, flight medic Brody Clark comes back to Rivers after leaving town without a word ten years ago, to work for the Rivers Hospital newly established medevac team. There she meets Val Valentine, an old love interest of Brody’s, who is recently back from living in New York City. Both want to bury the bad memories that they have from their teenage years in that town but, as they get to know each other, they suddenly realise that they have more in common than they’d thought. Will they be able to face their fears and act on their mutual attraction?
‘Love to the rescue’ goes beyond the medical romance formula that Radclyffe masters so well and delves into matters of family, friendship and loyalty. Considering this is a medical romance, the highlight is more on the latter. I think it’s a pity that there aren’t many medical scenes as this author describes them very well, using her experience as a now retired surgeon. If anything, there are more descriptions of Val’s veterinary work and a special focus on Honcho, a retired war dog owned by Brody.
The story catches up with some of the other couples established in the previous books but mainly on Blake, a trans teenager dealing with his sexuality and society’s rejection. Blake is a secondary character who is growing literally and metaphorically with each installment of the series and I can’t wait to see where Radclyffe takes him in the future. Both mains are multilayered, especially Brody in her dark and broody personality that the author excels at describing. There is a small mystery subplot about her past that had much more potential but unfortunately was resolved a bit abruptly. All in all, it’s an entertaining book, possibly not Radclyffe’s best but worth reading anyway.
Overall, a good medical romance with a mystery subplot and a promising trans character. 3.5 stars.
ARC provided by Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
