by Jan Watson
Publisher: Tyndale
Release Date: May 8, 2012
Source: sent by publisher
My Rating: 4.5 of 5 Stars
Summary from goodreads.com:
Lilly Gray Corbett has just graduated from medical school and decided to accept an internship in the coal camp of Skip Rock, Kentucky. Her beau, Paul, is doing his residency in Boston and can't understand why Lilly would choose to work in a backwater town. But having grown up in the mountains, Lilly is drawn to the stubborn, superstitious people she encounters in Skip Rock—a town where people live hard and die harder and where women know their place. Lilly soon learns she has a lot to overcome, but after saving the life of a young miner, she begins to earn the residents' trust.
Torn between joining Paul in Boston and her love for the people of Skip Rock, she crosses paths with a handsome miner—one who seems oddly familiar. Her attraction for him grows, even as she wrestles with her feelings and wonders what he's hiding.
My Review:
This was my first book by this author, and while it took awhile to get used to her style, I ended up really enjoying the story. At first, I thought the pace was a bit slow, and the characters and plot a bit too predictable. But soon, the characters and story were fleshed out and I really loved the slow, small town style of the story.
I think the things I enjoyed the most about the book were the setting of Skip Rock, KY, and the full, lively cast of supporting characters. Lilly's assistant, Ned, and her prickly but well-meaning friend, Almina, were two of my favorites. They really kept the story skipping right along. I also liked that the story had a lot of heart, but it wasn't a tear-jerker or depressing.
One drawback was that the romance seemed a little off for me. I really liked the characters together, but I felt like it wasn't really explained enough. I know they had history together, but I would have liked for their romance to be more explained in the here and now instead of both of them clinging to a very brief memory of the other. It seemed like they were more in love with the idealized memory of the other than with the real person.
Main Characters: 4/5
Supporting Characters: 5/5
Setting: 5/5
Romance: 4/5
Uniqueness: 4/5
Cover: 5/5
Writing: 4/5
Bottom Line: I really enjoyed this gentle, heart-warming novel.
Still good even if you wanted more from their relationship :)
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