Razor Wire

October 20, 2014
Naval police officer Reese Marion doesn’t have much use for women like Kim Lockhoff, who give military women a bad name by trying to sleep their way to military promotion. At least, that’s what the rumors say, and she believes them—until Kim turns to her for help. Kim is trapped on the Okinawa Naval Station, subject to the authority of the officer who raped and impregnated her, and desperate for an ally. She’s also everything Reese wants: gorgeous, smart, and tough as the razor wire that was once her nickname. As the two women become friends and then lovers, they find mutual healing, but when they refuse to play by the rules of the male-dominated military hierarchy, their relationship gets turned against them. Gallagher (The Princess and the Porn Star) really makes the short novel format work: spare, lean, and erotic, without a wasted word.

Starred review from November 15, 2014
A career woman in the Navy works in a man's world even when she is a cop (third class-MA3), and especially when stationed on an isolated island. When blatantly seductive MA3 Kim Lockhoff becomes pregnant after being raped by her commanding officer, the fellows in her team think her sluttiness brought it on, so it is her own fault. They are joined by hard-edged MA2 Reese Marion, a Navy careerist who strives to be one of the boys to keep a secret. Reese scorns princesses flashing skin to get ahead but comes to understand that Kim, her new partner, has used different skills to conceal her sexual orientation, while Reese's own, long-hidden trauma resurfaces, exposing vulnerability and gentleness. Kim's attacker seems unassailable, but the women bond, become lovers, and together risk seeking justice for themselves in this tale of lesbian romantic suspense. Gallagher's well-drawn, multifaceted characters revitalize traditional plot elements, and the sexually explicit love scenes show sweet tenderness within the women's refreshingly forthright embrace of caring and trust in a world where few seem worthy of such generosity.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)