Book Review: Flight Risk

By Sara Steven

When Aubrey Thomas, a phobic travel writer, must choose between jumping to what she considers certain death from a skydiving static line or sinking even deeper into debt in the unemployment line, she scrambles to find someone—anyone!—who can help her overcome her debilitating fear of heights. Enter John Trelawney, a charming window washer who thinks nothing of dangling by a cable fifty stories up claims he can cure her. Everything about John makes Aubrey nervous... including the way her heart kicks into overdrive whenever he's around. But, at the end of her rope, she takes him up on his offer. Can he really help her get over her fear of heights? Or will Aubrey find herself free falling...possibly even in love with him? (Synopsis courtesy of Amazon)

Aubrey is terribly afraid of heights. I can relate, considering my own horrific fear of anything over two stories. Yet for Aubrey, dealing with her fears, or, not dealing with them, is placing a huge burden on her work life. It’s hard for a travel writer to talk about adventures unless they’ve actually lived them, and when one of her assignments is to skydive, she’s nearly ready to throw in the towel and give up. That is, until she meets John Trelawney.

John has guaranteed her that he can cure her of her fears, but he has no clue as to what he’s really getting himself into. Aubrey’s fears stem from deep-rooted issues, ones that a simple shove out of a plane won’t fix. John has to really get inside Aubrey’s head, a difficult task, considering how much she keeps hidden away from him, from others, and how closely guarded she is to the truth. John has his own secrets to contend with. It’s harder and harder to try and maintain a certain persona, especially when he discovers there might be more to Aubrey than what meets the eye.

The "Assignment: Romance" series has always been one of my favorites, which is why I couldn’t wait to read Flight Risk. As always, Valentin puts her own unique spin on relationships, whether it’s between romantic interests, or friendships. While reading about Aubrey and John’s struggles, you also discover what’s going on beneath the surface, especially with the other characters from this series, like Mattie Ross, from False Start, and Claire Nelson, from Help Wanted. They’re all intertwined beautifully, making this such a wonderful, smooth read, from start to finish.

Thanks to Barbara Valentin for the book in exchange for an honest review.

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