Wind River Protector, by Lindsay McKenna

I asked for a review copy of this title from NetGalley because I love the Wind River area of Wyoming. For years I would take college students up to Lander, Wyoming and we would go out on the Wind River Reservation for volunteer work. We hiked the mountain trails around that area and all of us fell in love with the place.

Lindsay McKenna gives us a novel about several hot topics in today's culture. One hot topic is "the role of women in the workforce." Her character Andy is a feminist who wants equality in all she does. She feels that men should treat women as equal's, and she is so correct about that. What I truly appreciate about the character and the dialog of the issue is that Andy is not someone who you can't love because of her feminist qualities, but she is someone you fall in love with because she is a genuine, caring, loving, loyal and faithful friend, woman, worker, soldier, etc.

A second topic of the book is "Adoption." Andy and her three siblings are all foster kids who were adopted by Maud and Steven when they were just young children, either infants or toddlers. These "Adopted" kids were loved as you would think only a biologic parent would love their child. They were accepted without condition. Nurtured to face the trials of daily living as mature, well adjusted adults who love and care for their fellow human beings.

Another topic though is the adopted child's view of "Abandonment." Each of the four siblings had to struggle with the concept of having been "abandoned" or maybe their term is better, "tossed aside without regard." You feel their pain. You feel their sorrow. You feel their hurt.

The final topic would be "Trust." Each of the four siblings, because of their abandonment issues has a problem trusting other humans. They have to work hard at it. It doesn't make them unpleasant or boring or secessionist. But because of their adoptive parents good upbringing they are all well adjusted and are able to trust, it's just that the trust has to be earned.

Each of these topics makes the book awesome.

Now, the gist of the story. Andy, a woman, is also a Combat Warthog Pilot offering close-in air support for the troops on the ground in our current battles with the Taliban. She is driven, loyal, aggressive and determined to win at all costs. But when she is shot down she is thrown into a whole new world.

In the same conflict a battle helicopter is also shot down, but with only one survivor. Dev Mitchell finds Andy on the ground and together they outsmart and outrun the Taliban for five days to make it on their own back to a Forward Operating Base and safety. Along the way, Andy learns she can trust Dev. But once back at the base they are separated to never see each other again, or will they?

The story of their relationship is what all the topics are woven around and Lindsay McKenna does a fabulous job of drawing you in, teaching you truths and along the way, at least for me, helping me learn a valuable lesson that many feminists are not to be feared, but to be admired, cared about and someone you would want to work alongside.

I hope you enjoy the book as much as I did.