I’ve been waiting for this moment for awhile now, but I doubt anyone really shares my anticipation: I am finally done with all the Kelley Legacy books. It’s going to be some time before I commit to a continuity series again. The final installment, Captain’s Call of Duty, features likable characters – and a plot so outlandish that I just couldn’t manage to suspend my disbelief.

Alex Mendez grew up in Montana, in close proximity to the ranch where Jim Kelley spent his summers. She’s been secretly in love with him for as long as she remembers, even though he – and all her other fellow soldiers – see her as “just one of the guys.” A computer whiz, Alex is longing for the opportunity to experience a real op. But since Jim is her commanding officer (who sees her as a little sister), he’s protective and unwilling to risk her life by putting her in danger.

Danger comes anyway, closer to home than Alex would have thought possible. She’s been planted in Chet Chandler’s office, and she uncovers some incriminating information linking the Nebraska senator to the Ravenshead Society, the top-secret group who kidnapped Jim’s sister and framed and shot his father. While Alex and Jim snoop in Chandler’s computer, they set up a “love nest” in an apartment as a cover. They decide to attend a fundraiser for Chandler, hoping they can ferret out more Ravenshead Society members. Alex buys a dress and heels and has a friend do her make-up, and suddenly Jim sees her in a whole new light.

But while Jim acknowledges his new attraction to Alex, this doesn’t seem like the right time to act on it. The Ravenshead Society is watching their every move, and Jim wants payback for his dad and his sister. He also knows that he’s the only hope to protect the president from an assassination attempt. On top of that, though Alex loves Jim like crazy, she’s trying to hide her feelings because she doesn’t dare to hope that he’ll return them. Oh – and Jim was driving the car when Alex’s older brother was killed in an accident. So he has that guilt as well.

I liked the Jim and Alex part of the book. The part where they thought about each other and their feelings, the part where they had sex, and (probably my favorite) the part where they pretended to have sex in a bugged room. Oddly, that’s the second time I’ve read a scene like that this year, so maybe it’s a new thing. Anyway, I found the romance aspect of the book believable, and felt for Alex and her (at least at first) unrequited love.

However, the romance takes a backseat to the suspense here, and the suspense plot just doesn’t work well. The Ravenshead Society has been in the background in some of the books, but plays a major role in this one. I just couldn’t buy into anything about them. Their far-reaching influence, their goals, their eeeevil minions…you name it. Probably two thirds of the book is comprised of running, chasing, and hiding, and finding, and all of that works much better when you buy into the scenario. Of course it all ends well, but after six of these books my primary emotion at the ending was relief – not relief that everyone was safe, but relief that it was finally over.

That said, I liked Cindy Dees’ writing style. I think I’ll try her again when she’s writing a plot that’s entirely her own creation. As for the Kelleys, all I can say is “Stick a fork in me…I’m done!”