*[Blog Tour Review & Giveaway] Wild Iris Ridge (Hope's Crossing #7) by RaeAnne Thayne

Summary:

Lucy Drake and Brendan Caine have only one thing in common…

And it's likely to tear them apart. Because it was Brendan's late wife, Jessie—and Lucy's best friend—who'd brought them together in the first place. And since Jesse's passing, Brendan's been distracted by his two little ones…and the memory of an explosive kiss with Lucy years before his marriage. Still, he'll steer clear of her. She's always been trouble with a capital T.

Lucy couldn't wait to shed her small-town roots for the big city. But now that she's back in Hope's Crossing to take care of the Queen Anne home her late aunt has left her, she figures seeing Brendan Caine again is no big deal. After all, she'd managed to resist the handsome fire chief once before, but clearly the embers of their attraction are still smoldering…
Summary & Cover taken from Goodreads.com
Length: 352 pages (Mass Market Paperback)
Source: Review Copy
Available Formats: Print/E-book
Publication Date: June 24th 2014 by Harlequin HQN

This summer I've been working to knock some authors that I've been wanting to read for ages off my  tbr list so of course I had to sign up for this tour since I'd been hearing lovely things about RaeAnne Thayne's Hope's Crossing series for a long time and it turned out to be another series that I'm kicking myself over not starting it sooner.

While I do wish that I had started this series sooner, as it reminds me very much of Robyn Carr's Virgin River series, I'm just happy that I started it period. I loved Lucy and Brendan's story and really liked the small town atmosphere of Hope's Crossing which just felt like I was coming home when I read it.

I thought the backstory for Lucy and Brendan was quite good. Both were a little lost, and confused. Lucy was fired, and falling for her dead best friend (and cousin's)  husband. While poor Brendan was a widower with two wee ones to take care of and conflicting emotions about Lucy.

The chemistry between the two was apparent from the beginning but I did really appreciate that their relationship was slow building despite the fact that they'd known each other before, and had a past of their own that they had to deal with they didn't just jump in bed together and play house right away. There was a lot of hurt feelings, bad memories and apologies on both sides that I found realistic and refreshing.

I went through a wide variety of emotions when I read this one. I laughed, felt angry, got frustrated and wanted to bang both their heads together and tell them to smarten up. I liked both Lucy and Brendan on their own though Lucy was the star for me. I just loved her but Brendan annoyed me in a few parts (he is a man after all) but despite all that I loved their love story and reading about how they found each other was lovely.

I jumped into the series in book 7 and while I didn't have any real difficulty in following the story I feel as though I missed some things about some characters, but that didn't impact my over all enjoyment of the novel at all and now I'm wanting to start the series from the beginning and get to know some of the side characters I met.

I'd recommend this one to fans of the Hope's Crossing series as well as fans of Robyn Carr's Virgin River series with a bit of a sweeter twist. The small town atmosphere and the people in it will have you wanting to pack your bags and find a slower pace of life (and maybe a fire chief too!).

*I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my free and honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed herein are 100% my own.

 

Really Liked It!
★★★★

 

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Author Bio:

 

USA TODAY bestselling author RaeAnne Thayne loves words. This led her to a fifteen-year career in journalismas a newspaper reporter and editor. But through it all, she dreamed of writing the kind of stories she loved best, romance, and has since published more than 40 titles. RaeAnne finds inspiration in the rugged northern Utah mountains, where she lives with her hero of a husband and their children. She loves to hear from readers and can be reached through her website, RaeAnneThayne.com

 

Giveaway:

 

 

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