Veterinarian Marie Lehr knows unrequited love all too well after pining for her best friend, only to watch him marry another woman. It's a mistake she will never make again, especially not when she can practically hear the clock ticking on her childbearing years.

The trouble is, she can't seem to find anyone who appeals to her even a fraction as much as that burly bush pilot did. Competitive musher Tyler Brady certainly doesn't, especially not after the heated altercation with the handsome but arrogant, spiteful man.

Or so she thinks.

While volunteering at the Iditarod Sled Dog Race, Marie discovers that first impressions may have been false, and her attraction to Tyler is very real. But his heart belongs to someone else, leaving him with nothing to offer but friendship. Marie's been down this road before and knows how that ends. Yet, no matter how hard she works to keep from falling for Tyler, it seems she's doomed to follow her own trail once again.

Title : Running Wild
Author : K.A. Tucker
Series : Simple Wild (book three)
Format : eBook (overdrive)
Page Count : 370
Genre : contemporary romance
Publisher : indie
Release Date : January 25, 2022

Reviewer : Hollis
Rating : ★ ★ ★ 

Hollis' 3 star review

While I absolutely think Tucker's set-up and conflict for this romance was great -- Marie with her imagined love affair, haunted by something that never came to fruition, pitted against a man who can't let his past go and is, in fact, haunted by a different kind of life unlived -- I do think maybe things just got dragged out.. too much. Even though, strangely, I might've even appreciated if this had been done in two parts. That third act conflict just comes too late and is resolved too soon. But I was really into this one right up until that point, which is where it all soured for me.

That said, I enjoyed returning to this setting, to this world, and seeing most of these characters again. We had a bevy of frustrating personas to contend with, which was less enjoyable, but it felt very real, too. As for some of those new faces.. Reed and Mabel in a time jump, please? I would definitely read on in this world and this town and would absolutely love returning to a focus on the mushing. I really enjoyed learning about the sport and the community and, as a bonus, there were so many excellent dog and animals characters, helped by Marie being a vet, so that was just constant fun.

I don't quite know how to end this review so, uh, the end.