Up Close and Dangerous    by Linda Howard Order:  USA  Can Ballantine, 2007 (2007) Hardcover, e-Book Read an Excerpt    Reviewed by Martina Bexte Bailey Wingate has always displayed a good head for business, and wise and careful investing in all aspects of her life. No one is more cognizant of the fact that her boss. He eventually asks her to marry him - purely as a business arrangement. Without boundaries, he knows his two very spoiled children will blow through their inheritance at lightning speed. Bailey agrees, much to the annoyance of her scheming stepchildren, who accuse her of being nothing more than a gold digging tramp. A year later, Bailey becomes a widow and all out war ensues with her greedy stepchildren. Cam Justice and his partner operate a small air service whose main employer has been the Wingate Corporation. Cam has never warmed to the cool and aloof Mrs. Wingate and they've rarely exchanged more than a few words. But when problems arise on their latest charter and Cam is forced to crash land the plane into the unforgiving Idaho wilderness, he sees the real Bailey Wingate emerge and quickly falls under her no-nonsense and very determined spell. It's her grit and ingenuity that saves both their lives, followed by their mutual vow that one way or another they'll make it out alive and nail those responsible for sabotaging their plane. At the outset, Howard does a nice job setting up Bailey's character and back-story as well as her stepchildren's motivations for wanting her permanently out of the picture. Unfortunately, the story falls apart soon thereafter. The plot is simplistic and lacks mystery due to a failure to incorporate believable red herrings. Nor is there much chemistry between the leads: Bailey is gun shy when it comes to love and Cam reacts by being overbearing. Given the fact that Howard spends more than half the book meticulously detailing their survival skills and treacherous trek off the mountain, she leaves little room to build a credible romance. Up Close and Dangerous starts out with real potential but ultimately fizzles. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Romance books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews