An FBI agent assigned to investigate a meddlesome lobbyist for her role in a possible pay-to-play scheme discovers a secret political organization willing to destroy everything to attain ultimate power—including the woman he loves.
In this highly anticipated, fifth and final installment of the Steele The Blackwells series, USA Today bestselling author Tracey Devlyn thrusts readers into the murky world of high-stakes politics and complex family relationships, wrapped in a sizzling enemies-to-lovers story.
As a savvy and successful lobbyist, Kayla Krowne knows all about deception. Each day, she swims in a vast tank of opportunistic sharks. But nothing prepares her for the downward spiral her life takes after witnessing the assassination of a high-profile public official. When the police suggest she may have been the true target, her only hope of rooting out the murderer lies with the one Blackwell brother she’s never been able to win over. The one she’s held a secret longing for since their first meeting two years earlier.
Special Agent Asher Cameron Blackwell’s day started off bad and ended worse. Not only is he drowning in a swamp of paperwork, he now has two investigations involving none other than Kayla-effing-Krowne. One is a presumed assassination case and the other one he’s compelled to keep from her because of a promise he made to his semi-estranged brother, Zeke.
Forced into close proximity, Ash and Kayla finally give in to the passion they can no longer hide, forging an unstoppable union as they navigate an intricate maze of lies and betrayals, and uncovering a heartbreaking conspiracy that leads them to Kayla’s doorstep. It’s a life-and-death battle that they dare not lose.
If you would like to read the entire Steele Ridge series, here’s a complete list.
Steel Ridge:
The Beginning
Going Hard
Living Fast
Loving Deep
Breaking Free
Roaming Wild
Stripping Bare
Enduring Love
Steel Ridge: The Kingstons:
Craving Heat
Tasting Fire
Searing Need
Vowing Love
Striking Edge
Burning Ache
Steel Ridge: The Blackwells:
Flash Point
Smoke Screen
Cross Roads
Crash Course
End Game
Review:
End Game is an antagonists-to-lovers, heroine in danger (and maybe also doing something shady? The hero is both a protector of her and charged with looking into what she has allegedly done wrong) story which also happens to be the final book in the series.
Overall, I liked Kayle and Ash, and the story legitimately made me gasp out loud more than once. (It’s always fun when a plot really truly surprises you, amirite?) The couple has decent chemistry, and the suspense portions are pretty well done.
But…
End Game is the last book in the Steel Ridge: The Blackwells series, and though it *could* be read as a standalone, there are a few things to consider before you decide to do so. Firstly, you won’t know any of the other couples’ backstories–this is arguably not a major problem, as the bulk of what you really need to know about them is (kind of?) referenced and/or they’re secondary characters anyway, so no big deal. Secondly, Kayla’s past with Ash is more of a consideration–she’s BFFs with his SIL through Zeke, and I think we probably see some of their early antagonism in book 1, which probably rounds out the whole “enemies” part of their enemies to lovers vibe. Finally, starting here, it’s a bit difficult to really understand the Ash/Cameron deal (“Ash” being his actual first name, which his family/friends use, “Cameron” is his middle name, which he uses professionally as a fed) or where the major conflict between Ash and Zeke comes from (something that is a huge deal here, and not seeing where it came from makes it a bit harder to really buy as such a major thing. It has something to do with him choosing to become a fed instead of the family business, which ticks off Zeke for…reasons?). So if you’ve read all the previous books, presumably the drama will all make more sense to you? but as always, go ahead and read whichever books you want, in any order. 😉
For me, the second half of the book was a lot more engrossing than the first–the above drama didn’t totally resonate with me because I’ve only read one other book in this spinoff series–NOT Zeke and Liv’s–and the politics, etc of Kayla’s lobbyist job and all it entailed kind of sailed right over my head. But once it was properly suspense-y, I was all in and by the time I was around the 75% mark I honestly couldn’t put it down. The second epilogue especially got me in the feels, and I closed my ereader at the end feeling pretty happy with life.
Is this the final spinoff-spinoff series? Time will tell!
Rating: 4 stars / B+
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.