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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
Loved the story right up until Lilly ran and acted childish, I mean she called the cops, really. He comes to find her after the earthquake and she tries the bitchy approach when her reason for going to the ranch in the first place is to talk to him. I liked that Lilly tried to embrace some of the native traditions in the end.
this one had a LOT of stereotypes and racism that I just didn't like. many times I considered closing the book, but I stuck through. I was incredibly disappointed though
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
lighthearted
slow-paced
Minus points for being my least favourite book in this series. So much horse stuff and I’m not into horses.
Plus points for being the first diverse book in this series.
Plus points for being the first diverse book in this series.
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Robyn Carr never disappoints with her creativity. Each Virgin River series book is perfectly written and fits so wonderfully within the series but can also be read alone. This particular book within the series, takes place a bit outside of Virgin River but still has many of the same characters that we have all come to know and love. This storyline is a tale of new lovers that, despite the odds and turmoil, still make it work. Excellent writing Robyn Carr!
Although I didn't enjoy this one as much as the last full-length novel in the Virgin River series ([b:Moonlight Road|6855052|Moonlight Road (Virgin River, #11)|Robyn Carr|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1308970360s/6855052.jpg|6482563]), there was a lot that I liked about this book. It was such a pleasant change to have a hero who wasn't a short-haired, white military man! I can probably count on one hand the number of short-haired guys I've found attractive in my life, so Clay was definitely more kind of hero than Jack or Preacher. Don't get me wrong, they're great guys, but I've been getting a bit tired of all the tough military guys in this series. Clay's gentler, more sensitive manner definitely mixed things up a little, and his backstory about being a teenage father and his unusual occupation as a farrier made for an interesting story.
I can't vouch for the authenticity of the details about Clay and Lilly's respective Native American traditions and upbringing, but it was interesting to see how they related to their backgrounds and how much they'd hung on to of their heritage. Lilly's hesitance to get involved with another Native man after the heartbreak of her teenage years felt realistic, and it didn't actually grate on me as much as I thought. I appreciated that her best friend, Dane, gave her a talking-to about not letting her past hold her back, as that conflict could easily have spiralled out of control.
As much as I liked Clay and Lilly's relationship and the details about Clay's work with horses (and as a girl who never went through a horse phase, you've got to know that those parts of the story had to be pretty interesting to intrigue someone like me), it felt like their story kind of disappeared for a few chapters in the middle of the book, and then the conflict was sort of tacked on again towards the end. We barely see the usual Virgin River characters for at least the first third of the book, then the book switches focus to Virgin River for quite a while, before balancing out again, and then putting a lot of focus on another character who I imagine will be the hero of the next book. As much as I liked the time spent catching up in Virgin River, the structure wasn't quite right. I wish there had been more of a balance between the main storyline and the sub-plots. It wasn't as bad as [b:Angel's Peak|6738987|Angel's Peak (Virgin River, #10)|Robyn Carr|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1308694926s/6738987.jpg|6482560], where the main storyline was wrapped up halfway through the book and almost forgotten, but it could have flowed better.
The main sub-plot in this book wasn't a particularly dramatic one, nor did it contain a lot of conflict, but I did really enjoy delving into Hope's background and all she'd done for Virgin River. The storyline was really engaging, and it was a realistic way to pull together various Virgin River regulars and introduce them to potential new readers.
There were a couple of new characters introduced in this book, including some sisters who were travelling through the area, one of whom is a chef and strikes up a friendship with Preacher. There's also Colin, one of the Riordon brothers, who we may have met before, but I don't remember much about him. I'm intrigued to see where his story goes as we've already covered an injured military guy story with Rick. Colin seems to have a typical, macho tough-guy thing going on, so he'll have to work hard to win me over.
Clay and Lilly's romance may have been pretty simple, but it had plenty of interesting details relating to Clay's job and Lilly's background to keep me intrigued. Although the structure of this book could have been better, I really enjoyed this instalment in the series, and I'm looking forward to the next one--which is thankfully already on my shelf! 4*
I can't vouch for the authenticity of the details about Clay and Lilly's respective Native American traditions and upbringing, but it was interesting to see how they related to their backgrounds and how much they'd hung on to of their heritage. Lilly's hesitance to get involved with another Native man after the heartbreak of her teenage years felt realistic, and it didn't actually grate on me as much as I thought. I appreciated that her best friend, Dane, gave her a talking-to about not letting her past hold her back, as that conflict could easily have spiralled out of control.
As much as I liked Clay and Lilly's relationship and the details about Clay's work with horses (and as a girl who never went through a horse phase, you've got to know that those parts of the story had to be pretty interesting to intrigue someone like me), it felt like their story kind of disappeared for a few chapters in the middle of the book, and then the conflict was sort of tacked on again towards the end. We barely see the usual Virgin River characters for at least the first third of the book, then the book switches focus to Virgin River for quite a while, before balancing out again, and then putting a lot of focus on another character who I imagine will be the hero of the next book. As much as I liked the time spent catching up in Virgin River, the structure wasn't quite right. I wish there had been more of a balance between the main storyline and the sub-plots. It wasn't as bad as [b:Angel's Peak|6738987|Angel's Peak (Virgin River, #10)|Robyn Carr|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1308694926s/6738987.jpg|6482560], where the main storyline was wrapped up halfway through the book and almost forgotten, but it could have flowed better.
The main sub-plot in this book wasn't a particularly dramatic one, nor did it contain a lot of conflict, but I did really enjoy delving into Hope's background and all she'd done for Virgin River. The storyline was really engaging, and it was a realistic way to pull together various Virgin River regulars and introduce them to potential new readers.
There were a couple of new characters introduced in this book, including some sisters who were travelling through the area, one of whom is a chef and strikes up a friendship with Preacher. There's also Colin, one of the Riordon brothers, who we may have met before, but I don't remember much about him. I'm intrigued to see where his story goes as we've already covered an injured military guy story with Rick. Colin seems to have a typical, macho tough-guy thing going on, so he'll have to work hard to win me over.
Clay and Lilly's romance may have been pretty simple, but it had plenty of interesting details relating to Clay's job and Lilly's background to keep me intrigued. Although the structure of this book could have been better, I really enjoyed this instalment in the series, and I'm looking forward to the next one--which is thankfully already on my shelf! 4*