Review: Wild Iris Ridge by RaeAnne Thayne

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…

Paperback, 352 pages

Expected publication: June 24th 2014 by Harlequin HQN

Terri's Thoughts

I won a copy of this book in a Goodreads giveaway in exchange for an honest review.  This was my second time reading one of Thayne's works.

Thayne has a way of weaving wonderful towns and communities in her writing.  The town of Hope's Crossing is no exception.  Centralizing around the Caine family this town is full of charm and small town appeal.

While this was book seven in a series I was able to read it as a stand alone although there is reference to several other characters who I believe had storylines in the early part of the series.  It made me want to go back and start the series from the beginning as there appears to be several characters with interesting back stories.

As I have come to recognize from Thayne's work, both the characters of Brendan and Lucy were completely likeable.  Brendan the hot fire chief...who wouldn't love that!  That aside the highlight for me was Brendan's children and the relationship both he and Lucy had with them.  It added an extra layer to the story in my opinion.

What I liked about this book was the fact that although Brendan and Lucy has undeniable chemistry, Thayne left the steamy scenes to the readers imagination.  This was refreshing as sometimes you just want to focus on the plot and everything does not need to be written.

This will not be the last time I read Thayne's work and she is now on my list of authors who produce reliably interesting reads.

About the Author

From Goodreads

I'm not one of those people who knew from birth she was destined to become a writer. I always loved to read and throughout my childhood I could usually be found with a book in my hands. To the disgust of my friends, I even enjoyed creative writing assignments that made them all groan. But I had other dreams besides writing. I wanted to be an actress or a teacher or a lawyer.

Life took a different turn for me, though, when my mother made me take a journalism elective in high school (thanks, Mom!). I knew the first day that this was where I belonged.

After I graduated from college in journalism, I took a job at the local daily newspaper and I reveled in the challenge and the diversity of it. One day I could be interviewing the latest country music star, the next day I was writing about local motorcycle gangs or interviewing an award-winning scientist.

Through it all -- through the natural progression of my career from reporter to editor -- I wrote stories in my head. Not just any stories, either, but romances, the kind of books I have devoured since junior high school, with tales about real people going through the trials and tribulations of life until they find deep and lasting love.

I had no idea how to put these people on paper, but knew I had to try -- their stories were too compelling for me to ignore. I sold my first book in 1995 and now, more than 30 books later, I've come to love everything about writing, from the click of the computer keys under my fingers to the "that's-it!" feeling I get when a story is flowing.

I write full-time now (well, as full-time as I can manage juggling my kids!) amid the raw beauty of the northern Utah mountains.

Even though I might not have dreamed of being a writer when I was younger, now I simply can't imagine my life any other way.

I love to hear from readers. You can reach me at my email address, rthayne@xmission.com.


Website:  http://www.raeannethayne.com
 Twitter:  #raeannethayne