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A review by guiltlesspleasures
Texas Splendor by Lorraine Heath
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
What an opening: Sweet baby Austin, who is a little ray of sunshine in the first two books in this series, opens this story a hardened, skittish man after five years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit: the murder of a man who quite frankly didn’t deserve to live anyway.
There is a vivid scene where he’s jealously guarding his stew, used to having to do that in prison, and his family is all staring at him, not understanding that every day-to-day activity in prison was a struggle.
He sets out to learn who did kill Boyd McQueen, and in the first few chapters he comes across Loree, who lives alone with her dog, near the barn where she lost her family in a tragic way. They find comfort in each other, and the way Heath writes this is so tender: two wounded strangers recognizing the hurt in the other and making something good of it.
It started out so strong, so it was disappointing when the pace slowed, almost feeling indulgent in how it lingered with his extended family through events, Christmas, etc. — we do care about his family, having spent two books with them, but it dragged.
Loree’s constant self-flagellation wore thin, too. She’s carrying an incredible amount of trauma, but the way she kept saying/thinking that she didn’t deserve Austin felt tedious after a while.
They do get their HEA, and it’s a lovely one—but even though the first two books were five-star reads for me, this one just didn’t live up to them.
There is a vivid scene where he’s jealously guarding his stew, used to having to do that in prison, and his family is all staring at him, not understanding that every day-to-day activity in prison was a struggle.
He sets out to learn who did kill Boyd McQueen, and in the first few chapters he comes across Loree, who lives alone with her dog, near the barn where she lost her family in a tragic way. They find comfort in each other, and the way Heath writes this is so tender: two wounded strangers recognizing the hurt in the other and making something good of it.
It started out so strong, so it was disappointing when the pace slowed, almost feeling indulgent in how it lingered with his extended family through events, Christmas, etc. — we do care about his family, having spent two books with them, but it dragged.
Loree’s constant self-flagellation wore thin, too. She’s carrying an incredible amount of trauma, but the way she kept saying/thinking that she didn’t deserve Austin felt tedious after a while.
They do get their HEA, and it’s a lovely one—but even though the first two books were five-star reads for me, this one just didn’t live up to them.