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Beneath the Wild Sky #3
Take a Hike
WHY DATE A MOUNTAIN MAN? Because it's effing in-tents.
Bounty Hunter Charlie Pax is in a bind. Not only did her own mother skip town after putting the family home up as collateral, but it's days before her first court hearing and she still hasn't been found. If she doesn't show, Charlie and her sisters will lose everything. There's only one thing left for Charlie to make a big show of leaving town with the one piece of bait sure to lure her mother out of hiding and set a trap for her in the remote Rocky Mountains town of Simpson, Colorado.
Surly Simpson firefighter Kieran Byrne is no stranger to being on the wrong side of the law. He's the prime suspect in the murder of a local militia leader, and he needs help proving his innocence before he can take the fall for someone else's crime. Charlie's got her hands more than full, but pretty soon the two strike a deal; if she can help Kieran prove his innocence, he will use his contacts to track and entrap her mom. Two birds, meet one stone.
As they break into the local militia's compound, dodge flying bullets, and hunt for the stolen necklace, Charlie and Kieran discover they share an explosive attraction…and a growing affection neither can deny. But is there room for something as soft as romance in either of their hardscrabble worlds, or will the call of that lifelong adventure be something neither can find it within themselves to deny?
Bounty Hunter Charlie Pax is in a bind. Not only did her own mother skip town after putting the family home up as collateral, but it's days before her first court hearing and she still hasn't been found. If she doesn't show, Charlie and her sisters will lose everything. There's only one thing left for Charlie to make a big show of leaving town with the one piece of bait sure to lure her mother out of hiding and set a trap for her in the remote Rocky Mountains town of Simpson, Colorado.
Surly Simpson firefighter Kieran Byrne is no stranger to being on the wrong side of the law. He's the prime suspect in the murder of a local militia leader, and he needs help proving his innocence before he can take the fall for someone else's crime. Charlie's got her hands more than full, but pretty soon the two strike a deal; if she can help Kieran prove his innocence, he will use his contacts to track and entrap her mom. Two birds, meet one stone.
As they break into the local militia's compound, dodge flying bullets, and hunt for the stolen necklace, Charlie and Kieran discover they share an explosive attraction…and a growing affection neither can deny. But is there room for something as soft as romance in either of their hardscrabble worlds, or will the call of that lifelong adventure be something neither can find it within themselves to deny?
304 pages, Paperback
Published November 11, 2025
25 people are currently reading
483 people want to read
About the author
Katie Ruggle
20 books1,211 followersA fan of the old adage “write what you know”, Katie Ruggle lived in an off-grid, solar- and wind-powered house in the Rocky Mountains until her family lured her back to Minnesota. When she’s not writing, Katie rides horses, trains her three dogs, cross-country skis (badly) and travels to warm places where she can scuba dive. A graduate of the Police Academy, Katie received her ice-rescue certification and can attest that the reservoirs in the Colorado mountains really are that cold. A fan of anything that makes her feel like a bad-ass, she has trained in Krav Maga, boxing and gymnastics. You can connect with Katie at http://katieruggle.com/, https://www.facebook.com/katieruggleb..., or on Twitter @KatieRuggle
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
December 9, 2025
End of the series, wrapping up the big plot. This felt like one of the weakest books in the series. Some important plot elements were wrapped up super quick and without conflict after reading through each book of tension. Also every sister's book and romance takes place in one month which is insane math and romance.
Charlie is the most obnoxious sister and the chemistry between her and Kiki (I refuse any other name he has) was weak. Insert her being over the top and annoying, him being grumpy and thrown off guard, bickering, and boom instalove they are it for each other.
Kiki just kind of appeared and never left the plot without having too much reason to be there. Charlie was all gas no brakes the whole time. Lots of characters from past books and all the sisters.
It's fun seeing the Search & Rescue OG characters in this but if you don't read or enjoy that series it's kind of hard to keep up with the barrage of side characters that are important to the plot.
I dunno, glad the series is finally over. Lackluster.
Also THE COVER ties into nothing. There's no rock climbing! There's no tents!! What are we doing.
Charlie is the most obnoxious sister and the chemistry between her and Kiki (I refuse any other name he has) was weak. Insert her being over the top and annoying, him being grumpy and thrown off guard, bickering, and boom instalove they are it for each other.
Kiki just kind of appeared and never left the plot without having too much reason to be there. Charlie was all gas no brakes the whole time. Lots of characters from past books and all the sisters.
It's fun seeing the Search & Rescue OG characters in this but if you don't read or enjoy that series it's kind of hard to keep up with the barrage of side characters that are important to the plot.
I dunno, glad the series is finally over. Lackluster.
Also THE COVER ties into nothing. There's no rock climbing! There's no tents!! What are we doing.
December 6, 2025
that was kind of a tough read
November 17, 2025
The cover makes no sense since not once in this book did these characters go hiking or mountain climbing.
Likeable characters and a satisfying conclusion to the series. Happy that it was set in Simpson again, and we got more cameos of the other familiar characters.
Likeable characters and a satisfying conclusion to the series. Happy that it was set in Simpson again, and we got more cameos of the other familiar characters.
July 10, 2025
A cute, fun, funny read. I will never say no to a grumpy/sunshine pairing, and if you add in LOL banter I'm pretty much a goner ;) Leans heavily on the instalove trope, but Charlie's always been the most extra of the sisters so it pretty much works. Could be read as a standalone, but it really works best when the series is read in order so that the overarching drama of the sisters' mother makes the most sense.
Rating: 4 stars / B+
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.
Rating: 4 stars / B+
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.
November 21, 2025
We're into book 3 of this series, and I think it might actually be the end of it because all of the sisters seem to have found "their men", so there's nobody left to marry off. A spinoff is possible, but in the meantime...some observations.
– Neither the cover nor the title has the slightest thing to do with the book. Neither, for that matter, does the tagline on the cover ("Why date a mountain man? Because it's effing in-tents"). I doubt the author had anything to do with the cover, or the tagline, but I'm sorely disappointed with the publisher.
– This has some of the worst insta-love I've read in years. The book takes place over roughly four days.
– Kieran does get two minutes of character development in which he tells Charlie that she can't possibly love him—not because they've known each other for less than a week, mind, but because nobody has ever loved him before. This is solved by Charlie telling him that he's lovable and hot, and then it's never mentioned again.
– Here is the sum total of Kieran's personality: big. muscular. firefighter. taciturn. protective. big.
– At one point Kieran tells Charlie that he's required to get regular STI tests for work...as a firefighter. This...sounds like horseshit to me, unless he also dresses as a firefighter for some kind of undisclosed side gig. (HIV testing after an accidental needle-stick, sure, but routinely?)
– I'm starting to think that none of Ruggle's heroes are actually fluent in English. And that would be fine, if I thought they were fluent in another language...but they communicate mostly in grunts, grumbles, and scowls, and I'm no longer certain. (Charlie, just like her sisters, finds this entirely adorable; it does not concern her that she learns almost nothing about Kieran that cannot be communicated in a grunt.) The men also pout a lot (except it's not described as pouting, it's described as looking "a bit grumpy") whenever the women mention any other man being hot (which they do a lot; nobody in this series is deep).
– The thread that holds this series together is about Charlie and her sisters' mother, who has stolen a necklace and skipped out on bail, but that is very very very much an afterthought in this book, and in the series more generally.
– In this small town, the coffee order for the fire station includes eight full drink carriers, each of which I assume holds four drinks. Am I to understand that they have thirty-two firefighters on duty at one time? In their wee little town?
– So many reminders of how big and muscle-y the various romantic leads from this series (and related series) are. So many. Meanwhile, the baddies are all either 1) kind of weeny or 2) possibly fat. So I'm left with the impression that you can only be a hero if you're swole in an everyone-thinks-he-takes-steroids-but-actually-he's-just-that-hot kind of way, and if you aren't a muscle man, you're lazy and a possible villain.
So there we are. I gave the book three stars because it's playful, but I think my initial enthusiasm for this series has long since run out. Maybe I'd have enjoyed it more on a different day, but I think I needed a bit more realism somewhere—if not in the bounty hunting and constant running from explosions and bullets and so on, then in the relationship. And this kind of insta-love just doesn't give me that.
Counts:
growl: 20
grumble, grumbling, grumbly: 29
grump, grumpy, grumped: 6
grunt: 30
rumble: 5
scowl: 50
surly: 8
– Neither the cover nor the title has the slightest thing to do with the book. Neither, for that matter, does the tagline on the cover ("Why date a mountain man? Because it's effing in-tents"). I doubt the author had anything to do with the cover, or the tagline, but I'm sorely disappointed with the publisher.
– This has some of the worst insta-love I've read in years. The book takes place over roughly four days.
– Kieran does get two minutes of character development in which he tells Charlie that she can't possibly love him—not because they've known each other for less than a week, mind, but because nobody has ever loved him before. This is solved by Charlie telling him that he's lovable and hot, and then it's never mentioned again.
– Here is the sum total of Kieran's personality: big. muscular. firefighter. taciturn. protective. big.
– At one point Kieran tells Charlie that he's required to get regular STI tests for work...as a firefighter. This...sounds like horseshit to me, unless he also dresses as a firefighter for some kind of undisclosed side gig. (HIV testing after an accidental needle-stick, sure, but routinely?)
– I'm starting to think that none of Ruggle's heroes are actually fluent in English. And that would be fine, if I thought they were fluent in another language...but they communicate mostly in grunts, grumbles, and scowls, and I'm no longer certain. (Charlie, just like her sisters, finds this entirely adorable; it does not concern her that she learns almost nothing about Kieran that cannot be communicated in a grunt.) The men also pout a lot (except it's not described as pouting, it's described as looking "a bit grumpy") whenever the women mention any other man being hot (which they do a lot; nobody in this series is deep).
– The thread that holds this series together is about Charlie and her sisters' mother, who has stolen a necklace and skipped out on bail, but that is very very very much an afterthought in this book, and in the series more generally.
– In this small town, the coffee order for the fire station includes eight full drink carriers, each of which I assume holds four drinks. Am I to understand that they have thirty-two firefighters on duty at one time? In their wee little town?
– So many reminders of how big and muscle-y the various romantic leads from this series (and related series) are. So many. Meanwhile, the baddies are all either 1) kind of weeny or 2) possibly fat. So I'm left with the impression that you can only be a hero if you're swole in an everyone-thinks-he-takes-steroids-but-actually-he's-just-that-hot kind of way, and if you aren't a muscle man, you're lazy and a possible villain.
So there we are. I gave the book three stars because it's playful, but I think my initial enthusiasm for this series has long since run out. Maybe I'd have enjoyed it more on a different day, but I think I needed a bit more realism somewhere—if not in the bounty hunting and constant running from explosions and bullets and so on, then in the relationship. And this kind of insta-love just doesn't give me that.
Counts:
growl: 20
grumble, grumbling, grumbly: 29
grump, grumpy, grumped: 6
grunt: 30
rumble: 5
scowl: 50
surly: 8
December 4, 2025
Ok so I loved this book, but as other reviewers have mentioned there is neither hiking nor rock climbing anywhere in this book. OK the "take a hike' doesn't have to be literal, but it still doesn't make sense with the book. But the cover? I don't hate the cover, but I don't understand how it's even remotely related to the book.
apart from that I like the grumbly, grumpyness of the MMC. The romance was fast, but adorable,
I also like that there is lots of action and adventure and cameos from other books, and little to no relationship drama that always annoys me in typical romances. I rarely read romance that doesn't contain magic or space travel or something like that, but I like this author. This one is likely my favorite of this series.
apart from that I like the grumbly, grumpyness of the MMC. The romance was fast, but adorable,
I also like that there is lots of action and adventure and cameos from other books, and little to no relationship drama that always annoys me in typical romances. I rarely read romance that doesn't contain magic or space travel or something like that, but I like this author. This one is likely my favorite of this series.
November 13, 2025
Will the Pax sisters find their duplicitous mother and save their house?
Will Felicity and Charlie make it out of Simpson alive?
What will happen to the Freedom Survivors, and will the petition to change that name succeed?
What about that subjectively hot firefighter?
Inquiring minds will find this a fun, fast read.
My favorite book is still Felicity's story, but this is a satisfying end to the Pax story arc.
Will Felicity and Charlie make it out of Simpson alive?
What will happen to the Freedom Survivors, and will the petition to change that name succeed?
What about that subjectively hot firefighter?
Inquiring minds will find this a fun, fast read.
My favorite book is still Felicity's story, but this is a satisfying end to the Pax story arc.
November 30, 2025
Overall, it was a mostly satisfying conclusion to the series. We get to finally see the overarching storyline regarding the mom concluded.
Charlie has been the most over-the-top sister, so her story being the insta-love trope makes sense to me. Kieran, being the grumpy to her sunshine, mostly communicates in grumbles except for one moment of vulnerability.
Still, the story was fun, funny, and had enough action to keep me engaged.
Charlie has been the most over-the-top sister, so her story being the insta-love trope makes sense to me. Kieran, being the grumpy to her sunshine, mostly communicates in grumbles except for one moment of vulnerability.
Still, the story was fun, funny, and had enough action to keep me engaged.
August 30, 2025
This was really cute, with snappy, very funny dialogue. Some of the banter was borderline absurd, but in a good way? It really made me chuckle. Otherwise, it was a little too instalove for me, but the first two books in this series were the same way, so it must be a quirk of the author. Oh, and though it’s cute, the book cover has nothing at all to do with the storyline, FYI.
November 15, 2025
I love this book so much. I kinda wish it was a little bit longer, but I know Kate Ruggle has another story coming along. That will probably interact with the pack sisters, and I’m 100% in love getting everyone from the very first book— the murder club ladies and they’re really hot guys— 100% love it. I have never laughed so much, so hard. I’m so excited to read Katie Ruggle’s next book.
November 16, 2025
The world that Katie Ruggle built has been such a legitimate joy to immerse myself in, that I am genuinely sad to see the last Pax sister paired off 🥺
Like all of her books there is spice, suspense, and witty one liners galore. Charlie and Kieran are perfectly mismatched and this was such a satisfying conclusion to the series long mysteries!
Like all of her books there is spice, suspense, and witty one liners galore. Charlie and Kieran are perfectly mismatched and this was such a satisfying conclusion to the series long mysteries!
December 4, 2025
Katie continues to be my happy space. reading her books is like reading about a friend. a friend who always finds themselves in a murder mystery or in criminal danger. but a friend nevertheless. sad to see this series to come an end.
November 26, 2025
so cuties. again, not a huge fan of insta love, i’m more of a slow burn kinda girl but i really enjoy katie ruggles books :)
December 3, 2025
3.5/5.
December 26, 2025
Entertaining, Unpredictable, Wonderful characters, Romantic, sisters
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December 24, 2025
I was excited to read this one, a long awaited conclusion to a series.
I have a hard time when the characters literally fall in love with each other in a week.
But alas, visiting previous books characters and encountering the grumpy monosyllabic MMC that ruffle writes always delights.
One steamy scene that’s pretty fast. Maybe a three steam level (can’t remember already, oops).
3-3.5 stars
I have a hard time when the characters literally fall in love with each other in a week.
But alas, visiting previous books characters and encountering the grumpy monosyllabic MMC that ruffle writes always delights.
One steamy scene that’s pretty fast. Maybe a three steam level (can’t remember already, oops).
3-3.5 stars
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews