STRAIGHT FROM THE HIP

Author: Susan Mallery ISBN: 9780373773831 7/2009 CONTEMPORARY Publisher: HQN

Izzy has always been the fearless Titan sister. But when an oil rig blows up, leaving her barely able to see, her sisters find themselves as concerned by her emotional withdrawal as by the possibility that the explosion was no accident. Are the mind games their long-lost brother Garth has been playing turning physical? Or is someone else out to get them? When her sisters enroll her in a survivor training camp, Izzy is not happy. Nick, her instructor, is determined that she won't be left in the dark. In more ways than one. But if he tells her the terrible truth behind why he's helping her, he'll never see her again. Unless they're both willing to take the biggest risk of all.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

STRAIGHT FROM THE HIP is Izzy Titan’s story and the third in the Titan sisters’ series. Izzy is the youngest of Jed Titan’s daughters and the least connected to her father. Not only did her mother commit suicide and leave her out of the will, her father considers her a worthless disappointment (he’s not a nice guy).

Izzy has spent the years since high school doing the most dangerous stuff imaginable. She ends up as an underwater welder, of all things; then, as drama heats up between the family and Jed’s illegitimate son who is trying to destroy the Titan empire, there is an explosion at her workplace and she ends up 70 percent blind.

She gets very depressed and ends up being sent to Nick Hollister’s ranch to heal. What her sisters don’t know is, Nick is the Titan family enemy’s best friend. Izzy and Nick get involved, but Nick has even more issues than Izzy, not to mention his big secret.

Izzy has been my least favorite major character in this series. She certainly gets a clue in this book, but I didn’t love this book like I did the first two. Also, once again, we have a violent act by a heroine. I’m not imaging this trend. Why are authors having their heroines hit people recently? Even if the people they are hitting deserve it, it’s not heroic. Nick is as big a pain as Lexi, so their story wasn’t so interesting.

I did like the villain-related twist at the end, which nicely set up book four. I’m looking forward to HOT ON HER HEELS, the fourth installment in the series!

Heather Hiestand