The Right Kind of Trouble by Shiloh Walker
Series: The McKays, #3
Romance Suspense
August 2, 2016
St Martins Paperbacks

Reviewed by Tori

Favorite Quote: “I’m tired of being alone and being lonely. You don’t want me. I get that. But somebody else does.”

The Right Kind of Trouble is the third and last book in Shiloh Walker’s dark romance suspense trilogy-The McKays. Set in the small fictional town of McKay’s Treasure, we have followed each sibling as they struggled to deal with life, love, their legacy, and to understand the trouble that seems to be stalking them. This is Moira McKay’s story. Moira is the eldest. When their parents were killed in a car accident, Moira stepped up to raise her two younger siblings, Brandon and Neve. Young and grieving herself, she makes some choices that not only hurt her but her childhood sweetheart, Gideon Marshall. For twenty years she stuck to her decision, pushing him away, even going as far as marry another man. Now divorced, Moira spends her days caught between the past and the present, wondering if her reasons for hurting Gideon were worth it.

Gideon Marshall is the police chief of McKay’s Treasure. He has never stopped loving Moira, staying close to her in hope that someday she would someday tell him why she left him. When he’s finally had enough he makes the decision get on with his life. Without Moira.  When Moira is attacked, Gideon knows he must figure out once and for all who has been targeting the McKays. But unless Moira is willing to open up and be honest with him about what happened, he’s determined to leave the town and the woman he loves for good.

Strong writing, well-plotted storylines, and dynamic characterization has given readers intense and sexy individualized romances to enjoy while attempting to solve the ongoing suspenseful mystery. Emotionally complex, the characters in here aren’t perfect and Walker highlights their flaws, creating people and situations we can understand and sympathize with. Though I have enjoyed this trilogy, I had issues with this book concerning the heroine and the romance.

The book opens with the McKays celebrating Brannon’s and Neve’s engagements. Gideon and Moira share a moment and Moira begins to feel like maybe she has been wrong all these years to keep Gideon at arms length. Especially when Gideon confirms the rumor he is dating someone. Moira is heartbroken when she sees Gideon with his new flame and even more so when she learns they have left town to go on a romantic getaway. When Moira is brutally attacked, Gideon rushes home to investigate and Moria realizes this may be her only chance to get him back.

Readers have waited impatiently for Moira and Gideon’s story since book one. This couple’s foreplay fuel bickering and secretive natures has fueled many speculations. Walker has left tantalizing hints and clues towards their relationship and it’s in here we learn the truth. I was convinced that the reasons Moira had for denying herself the man she loved were devastating and well worth the pain she leveled on both of them. Imagine my surprise when they weren’t. 

I liked Moira in the first two books. Her strength, intelligence, and underlying support and loyalty towards her family and the town was a huge selling point for me but in here I found her irritating and juvenile in her emotions and actions. She seemed to excel at being overly dramatic while intent on taking everything that is happening to her and her family lightly; wanting to do what she wanted, when she wanted, without any thoughts to her safety or anyone else’s.

The story flows along at a steady pace, building on the romance and the mystery  though they didn’t blend as well as I would have liked. Moira spends a good majority of the book in her head as she tries to show what happened to her and Gideon using flashbacks. The reason itself is very anticlimactic. I felt cheated after the build up in the two previous books. She punished Gideon and herself for years only to finally come clean and once she does (at the very end) it’s as if the past is instantly forgotten. While I could understand the confusion, pain, and guilt she felt at the time she made her decision, twenty years was way too long to wear that hair shirt. Moira not only acted the martyr, she wallowed in it. And we still don’t get a concrete answer for why she let it go on for so long.

I think I would have been far more sympathetic had Walker made Moira reveal her reason for pushing Gideon away at the beginning of book, allowing them time to talk and work past it as the story unfolded. Instead, it’s Gideon finding someone new and moving on that is the catalyst to Moira deciding she’s ready for her second chance and her attack is used to push them together. They are instantly thrown into a volatile situation and the intensity overshadows their reconnection; leaving it a forgone conclusion with nothing resolved.

What saves this story for me is Gideon, the ancillary characters, and the mystery. Gideon fleshes out wonderfully. His strength, intelligence, and dry humor drew me to him from the beginning. His unconditional love for Moira shines through the entire series even after he has reached his limits. He takes Moira and the investigation  on with a single-minded intensity. I liked that he didn’t instantly accept Moira’s change of heart nor does he allow her to take control and make all the decisions like she did in the past. Characters from the previous books maintain a strong presence in here, each offering advice and help with the investigation. Engaging dialogue and moving scenes helps to draw your attention from Moira’s tantrums and add some humor to the otherwise serious situation at hand.

The villain is quite a piece of work and I was amazed at how far back his machinations went. Walker does an excellent job of showing us why they are targeting the McKays and what their endgame is. Using the past to propel the present, Walker plays her hand close to the vest, allowing us to be drawn along into their web of deceit until they reveal themselves.

The ending is a rousing finale of action, intrigue, and drama as everything comes to a head and all our questions are answered. Walker even includes a small epilogue of sorts that assures us that the McKays are finally at peace and each sibling has found their happily ever after.

Grade: C+

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