No Flag by Liz Borino

For Mike and Will, “No Flag” meant “come home alive”, but will their love survive what happens next? 

Captain Mike Kelley does not ignore his intuition, so when sexy bartender Will Hayes captures his heart, Mike embarks on a mission to win him over to a Domestic Discipline relationship. Will accepts with one caveat: Mike must promise not to renew his Army contract. Mike agrees, and they spend a year building a life together, getting married, and starting a business. 

Only days before their café’s grand opening, Mike receives news that threatens everything he and Will have built. The Army invokes the Stop Loss military policy to involuntarily extend his commission and send him back overseas. Will, left alone to cope with the café, must rely on the support of old friends who may no longer be trustworthy. Through emails and Skype calls, Mike and Will keep their love and structure alive…until the day a horrific terrorist attack occurs on Mike’s outpost. 

Mike awakens in a hospital with a devastating injury and no memory of the attack. As the only survivor, Mike’s memory may be the key to national security. Mike struggles to cope with his injury and Will struggles to support the man who always held him up. Both fear they have lost their previous relationship. Will has Mike back rather than a folded flag, but in the aftermath of war, can they rebuild the life they had before? Especially when those closest to them may not have their best interests at heart?

*Contains BDSM elements in the context of a loving relationship.*

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publishers for allowing me to read this book from an author I've come to like.

I've read a couple of Liz Borino's books in the past. This was different as it gave you an insight into the relationship between a civilian and an Army Captain. Homosexual is a taboo subject in the army/navy and Liz Borino writes about it in a way that explains things. What happens if you get caught in a situation where the serving officer is a homosexual. Yes, there is BDSM in the book, but nothing that would make you turn away and go "I can't read this as I can't see a storyline". But this story tells you what happens when a gay officer falls in love with a civilian and then gets told a month before he's discharged that he HAS to go back. What happens when you lose a limb and have to go home? What happens to your relationship? Can Mike save the US with the intelligence or will he lose his husband over the secrets he can't say.

I liked the storyline and the way it was told. I look forward to reading more by Liz Borino in the future.