Happy Friday y’all! Having a holiday mid-week is equal parts awesome and not. I somehow managed to pick up a summer cold, but it has given me some time to catch up on some reads.
The First Time at Firelight Falls by Julie Anne Long I am trying to work through my backlogged TBR and get through some review books. I picked up a while ago and finally started it. It had a super cute premise, single mom heroine, principal hero. I made it to 29% and finally DNF’ed. It wasn’t bad, but it felt like nothing was happening. They were circling each other with what felt like no forward movement. There was a subplot about the heroine’s daughter not know her dad and I was interested in that, but not enough to keep reading. It is part of her Hellcat Canyon series, which I have never read and I think that impacted my ability to connect with the story. Fans of that series will probably really enjoy this story.
Hard Pressed by Kate Canterbary Y’all know I am a big fan of Kate Canterbary. Her books typically deliver an emotional punch that get me in the feels. But this one did not have that same tone. And it left me a little disappointed. It was still a solid read, but not as angsty as previous books. The heroine, Annette, owns the local bookstore. The hero, Jackson, is the town sheriff. They do have chemistry and Jackson is great while Annette works through her issues of being worthy. I did not read the previous book and probably would have connected better with the characters if I did.
I can’t not point out the fact that Jackson is of Chinese descent, his last name is Lau, he is described as having “tanned skin and almond eyes” but also he has blond hair. But other than the few mentions I listed above and a quick photo convo with his mom, there is really nothing more about his ethnicity. I LOVE seeing diverse characters and want to see this in my books, but also it should feel authentic and not just ethnic to be diverse. I don’t want to dwell on this part of the book, but it didn’t seem like a fully formed plot point.
There is a secondary character in the book that I am really intrigued by, Brooke, Annette’s BFF. She is going through some family stuff but I feel like if Canterbary ever gives us her story, it will be more in line with the emotional stories I am more familiar with from her.
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