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There came shrugs, nods, and murmurs which seemed to imply everyone was doing just fine. Either that, or there was too much testosterone floating around the room for them to dare admit the truth. They might have been close for years, but what were the chances of one of them coming out and expressing discomfort, concern, or even fear? �� Kim Medhurst

Let's start by saying this is a reverse harem series and Search and Rescue does end on a cliff-hanger. For a reader to get the most out of reading this a reader needs to one, like reverse harem (including the involvement of identical twins) and two be willing to willing to commit to a trilogy to get answers. In that The Dreadnoughts is in a similar vein to The Four Horsemen (first book ). I enjoyed L.J. Swallow's series even if it did go on a bit longer than it possibly should have because it did have a (mostly) functioning plot. I think Lucy Felthouse's series has the same promise. If what we were given in this first entry was a fair representation. I'm rating this 3.5 because there was a story the four men got, Kim's backstory about how she got to the island they find her on, that we don't. That frustrated me enough to drop the rating.

Our leading lady Kim Medhurst has four men. Jason Chastain, Aidan Smith and twins Taylor and Joshua Greig. Kim and all four men are ex-British Military. Ladies first since this is a reverse harem, this is about her, she drives the story and she sets the rules (mostly). Kim Medhurst is a strongly independent, former member of military intelligence, she is not a damsel in distress by any means. The only reason she needed Chastain and his crew to help her was due to a natural disaster, even then it was her intelligence that set up their meeting, a series of fail-safes in place in case something went wrong. One of the quotes I really liked from her is "That and the fact she’d known he wouldn’t be able to resist the mission she’d offered him. She’d dangled precisely the right type of carrot for this particular donkey, and he’d bitten into it eagerly.", this in relation to offering Chastain a mission that was a mystery and payment of a blinding amount of money. Kim is physically capable yes, but she really is intelligent with strengths in computer and scientific research. Post military life Kim has gone into research for green energy. Taylor calls her "a woman of substantial means" which isn't wrong. We don't know how much she is funding all her own research through an unexpected inheritance, the reader is never told whom it came from just that she wants to use it for the good of the world and she isn't used to having it.

Jason Chastain known primarily as Chastain is the leader of the four for this specific mission after leaving the military he is the one who has been restless, going into bodyguarding but dissatisfied with that. His personality is gruff and sometimes a bit standoffish, only the three men closest to him can understand what he is truly thinking. Aidan Smith known primarily as Smith is a doctor, it's implied that is what he was while on duty and that is what he is now. He is the one who has the best chance of getting Chastain to open up. His personality is logical, calm and patient. I will talk about Taylor and Joshua Greig, collectively known as Jota, together because they are nearly always together despite their differences. Joshua and Taylor are identical twins, Scottish and with red hair. Kim makes a Weasly twins joke at one point something neither of them takes offence to and Taylor truly enjoys. In personality, Jota are quite different. Taylor is the lover of fictional worlds “Game of Thrones, Harry Potter, superheroes, and fairy tales? I’m beginning to wonder whether you spend any time in the real world at all, Taylor,�� (Kim). He is not fantastical by any means but certainly more mischievous and fun-loving, it is him who names the material Kim was looking for in a very sci-fi way. In contrast, Joshua is more reticent and calm, he feels like he grounds Taylor at least a little. He is sold but would move the world to keep people safe. Jota live at and own the Greig & Greig Outdoor Pursuits Centre in the Scottish Highlands. They compliment each other so well and are quite distinctive in their voices and behaviour.

The plot is fairly simple Chastain and his men go to an island off the coast of Scotland to find a package, Kim and her precious research. Things go wrong, they get blasted by energy from the material Kim is researching and somehow all get superpowers. All of them deal with these powers in different ways, Taylor loves them and wholeheartedly embraces them. Kim is being followed by someone, someone who likely wishes her harm, leading her to stay with Jota at their remote Highlands property. Of note are the writing style and language. The narration is two chapters each rolling through the cast. Each of the characters has a slightly different voice and a different perspective on the events making the rolling narration a great choice. The voices are of particular importance while Kim, Chastain and Smith are from London (or at least live in London now and are linguistically written as Londoners) Jota are Scottish and still live there. The narration section and their quotes are written in a Scottish dialect. For example “That’s gonna make ‘em mad,�� Joshua said, the first thing he’d uttered in ages. Deep frown lines marred his forehead and between his eyebrows. “There’s no way they’re just going tae sit back and let ye carry on wi�� this project unmolested. They’ve obviously got a vested interest, though we dinnae ken their intentions yet. Dinnae get me wrong, lass, I ken ye’re an incredibly capable woman, with a very useful new skill under ye belt, but they’ll ken something isnae right before long, and it might just spur them on tae do something rash. Act first, ask questions later. That could be very dangerous indeed.��. It can be quite difficult to read, especially if you've never read Scottish dialect before. I really would not recommend this to anyone who is not fully confident with English. Lucy Felthouse chooses not to give the reader any translation of what Jota say and I respect that, most of it is understandable enough in context. The choice to add this Scottish dialect is a brilliant one though. I've never read it and it is perfect for a way to differentiate this trilogy from others.

The superpowers they all get are well suited to their personalities. Kim is willing to do all this effort and research for the good of humanity and but wants absolutely no recognition for it, she certainly doesn't want to be famous for her discoveries. She can become invisible. Chastain's I find harder to interpret he has the ability to phase through objects. I can see something here about him being a ghost, get in and get out not leaving a trace. Smith acknowledges at one point that "helping people was hardwired into him" think about how invisibility aid in that. He can help people with much less risk to himself. Taylor has always been a whirlwind. (Joshua), his enthusiasm is contagious he is the one with a quick sense of humour. He now has super speed in contrast Joshua has super strength. Joshua is the one with the clear and present need to defend and protect. I just feel it suits him. Kim has a theory which is tied to body types after seeing Jota naked... "Even in the low light, it was easy to see how sexy they were. Their pale skin showed defined muscles, nothing too bulky, just lithe, powerful perfection.
It wasn’t quite double vision, she realised, as her perceptive, analytical brain picked up the subtle differences between them. Joshua was slightly thicker across the shoulders, bigger in the arms, while Taylor’s lean thighs were a tad longer, his abdomen more defined. Could explain why the ygrene gave them different powers, despite their many similarities. She filed the fascinating thought away for later, since she had much more pressing issues to address. ...but I mean honey that was neither the time nor the place to be having those thoughts. You really did have more important things to be going like indulging yourself in them.

So where do things stand as Search and Rescue ends? The last chapter is the only time Felthouse introduces sexual intimacy into the story. I guessed fairly early on that the first person Kim slept with was Taylor. What I should have seen coming and didn't was Kim and Jota in an extremely steamy scene. I never would have guessed that Joshua incited it and lead. The story actually ends with the lines “W�󲹲����ܱ�?��
“…it’s Chastain,�� Joshua said. Kim only then processed the haunted look in his eyes, the fact his already pale face was leached of colour and the death grip he had on the mobile phone in his right hand. “He’s�� gone.�� (Taylor and Joshua Greig). Honestly, it's a fairly strong ending as in the whole final chapter and the final lines. It's a balance of let's call it what it is sex and a perfect bait for the reader to continue the series. Which does leave the question will I keep reading? Yes. I like the characters, especially Taylor and his infectious personality I like the powers they've got and there is a good premise to this.

Rather than adding quotes to this review I've chosen to just share them. Because this review is well and truly long enough already.

Especially when it came to Mother Nature. She could be a sadistic bitch at times. But then, given the way the human race treated her, he could hardly blame her for lashing out from time to time. �� Jason Chastain

Read for . Filling the prompt: "A Book That Made You Laugh"
I wasn't sure whether to use this for this prompt or not but, to be honest it's not very often a book/novella (I'm not actually sure how long this is) makes me laugh out loud as much or as unexpectedly as this one. And it all comes down to one character, Taylor Greig with his total nerdiness, Tigger-like behaviour 🐯, mischievous nature and his reaction to getting super speed. I present to you another of my fave quotes and the reason for the Road Runner gif.“Aye, right! Yer just looking fer any excuse tae zip around the place like bloody Roadrunner.��
Without missing a beat, Kim said, “So which one of us is Wile E. Coyote?��
Taylor let out a snort of laughter. “Doesnae matter—neither of ye will ever be able tae catch me. Beep, beep!�� (Taylor and Kim). He is basically chaos in a really attractive ex-special services soldier package (I never said I wasn't at least a bit shallow).

A representative gif: