Sick of running into her cheery ex-husband and his new wife, Leslie Petruso accepts a job at the Virgin River branch of Haggerty Construction and takes the high road right out of town. Now she's got Paul Haggerty's business running like a well-oiled machine. In fact, things are so busy Paul jumps at the chance to hire an extra set of hands.Review:
Just like Leslie, Conner Danson has been burned by love. But if Leslie was disappointed by her relationship going bad, Conner was decimated. He's got no time for women…although he spends an awful lot of time pretending not to notice Leslie. And she's pretty busy "ignoring" the chemistry between them.
According to Conner and Leslie, they have only one thing in common—they're done with love. But everyone in Virgin River can see that things are heating up at Haggerty Construction. And as far as Paul Haggerty can tell, the best thing he can do is hang on to his hard hat and watch the sparks fly!
When Hidden Summit first appeared in the mail, I wasn't too sure about it. I hadn't read any of the previous books in the Virgin River series, but after reading a few reviews, I found out that reading the previous books wasn't necessary- they were just all companions basically and this new addition actually started a new "era" of the series. So I ended up giving Hidden Summit a chance, and I'm so glad I did, because not only did I adore the book, but I've also found a new favorite series, one that I'll surely be reading in the future!
Hidden Summit tells the story of Leslie and Conner, two people who've been especially down on luck lately. For Leslie, Virgin River is an escape from her over friendly ex-husband and his new pregnant wife. She feels that Virgin River will be the perfect chance to start over, and just get away from love and romance for a while. Conner, on the other hand, is running from his past, even though it's the last thing he wants to do. However, he does know one thing: his stay in Virgin River is going to be a quick one where no strings or ties will be left behind. When Leslie and Conner meet, though, sparks fly, and before they know it, they're falling deeper and deeper for each other, but will the past catch up with them sooner than later? Only time and more pages can tell in this fun and sweet romance read that ensures a happy ending for all!
Told in alternating points of view, Hidden Summit allowed for me to get into both Conner and Leslie's heads, which let me to not only fully get to know them, but also really understand their actions and decisions. Plus it didn't hurt one bit that I adored both! Conner was the typical rugged yet sweet hero. One who has had a sad past, but still may get a chance at a fabulous future. Leslie, on the other hand, was a great heroine. She was sweet, funny, and she fully held her own! She was no damsel in distress...that's for sure! I especially loved how she constantly stood up for herself, especially when her ex-husband was involved. I also loved the addition of the community of Virgin River. Everyone was also so distinct and likable to the point where I'm dying to read the past books to know everything about them!
The plot in this was not necessarily the most complex or suspenseful, but I still ended up really enjoying it. It was fun seeing Conner and Leslie begin to fall in love, and became even better people because of it. I also liked how Robyn developed their relationship at a reasonable pace. Another great addition was the parts about Conner and Leslie's past. All the the little tidbits and twists that showed up because of them truly made this book even better in my eyes!
Finally, I really enjoyed Robyn's writing She truly knows how to write a feel good story, one similar to a Susan Mallory and/or Emilie Richards book- both authors I adore as well. I especially loved the descriptions of Virgin River. It made me really want to live in that tiny little town, even though I currently live in small town and hate it. ;)
In all, I can't suggest Hidden Summit high enough. Fans of women's fiction as well as romance will just eat this book right up, because not only is it sweet and realistic, but it's sure to bring out a smile or two as well. Word of warning, though: you'll be dying to read the past and future books once you're done!
Grade: B+
Hidden Summit (Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Goodreads) is now out in paperback and eBook (which is currently priced at less than $5!)
Source: Publicist at Little Bird Publicity- thanks Katie!
Sounds sweet. Funny how reading about living in a small town is always so much nicer than living in one!
ReplyDelete@Fred LeBaron It is funny how that always occurs, and now that I think of it,I usually always love the small towns I read about. They always seems so sweet and fun...
ReplyDeleteI'm glad it didn't matter that this was the 17th in a series! It seems like an entertaining read. Glad you enjoyed it!
ReplyDelete@Kelsey Thanks for commenting, Kelsey! And I was happy to that it didn't matter. I always love when series have the ability to do that. It's great for new readers as well as long time readers.
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