Synopsis: "Book One in The Maple Leaf Series
Lily Hinsdale spends her California days designing extravagant hotels for Utopia Resorts. Her nights are filled with the glitz and glamour of upscale parties. Until her grandmother dies and leaves Lily property in wretched Vermont. The woods mean only one thing to Lily—nightmares. When Utopia wants the land for development, Lily is forced to travel to a place she’d rather forget.
Rick Stannard makes maple syrup and builds barns in the peace and quiet of picturesque Vermont. Noisy New York City nearly killed him a few years back, and now he lives a calm, simple life with his coyote, Poe, and his beloved book collection. It’s the only way he’s guaranteed to wake up each morning.
When Lily marches her expensive boots onto Rick’s land and proposes turning it into a mega resort, the serenity of the woods is shattered. Lily always closes a deal. Rick never intends to sell. They’ll need to compromise, or someone else will do it for them. Someone who is not afraid of the woods or the city.
Or spilling a little blood."
My Review: Okay, so who wouldn't love a rugged outdoorsman? Rick is totally drool worthy even with his faults and gruff attitude. I honestly wasn't as keen on Lily, I never understand the socialite, city girls, I also couldn't seem to connect with her fear even though that is huge part of her backstory and personality. That set aside I truly enjoyed the rest of the cast of characters, Hope, Sage, Joy, Poe and Sam are all such fun personalities to be around (I could really picture hanging out with them joking around). The storyline was a little slow to develop, the spilling a little blood bit was missing a good portion of the book and you don't get that heart pounding thrill until late in the book, but this long storyline did give plenty of time for a more believable connection to be built between characters. This was a great ready to keep cozy through all these winter storms, but it is kept clean for those who prefer their own imagination.
Lily Hinsdale spends her California days designing extravagant hotels for Utopia Resorts. Her nights are filled with the glitz and glamour of upscale parties. Until her grandmother dies and leaves Lily property in wretched Vermont. The woods mean only one thing to Lily—nightmares. When Utopia wants the land for development, Lily is forced to travel to a place she’d rather forget.
Rick Stannard makes maple syrup and builds barns in the peace and quiet of picturesque Vermont. Noisy New York City nearly killed him a few years back, and now he lives a calm, simple life with his coyote, Poe, and his beloved book collection. It’s the only way he’s guaranteed to wake up each morning.
When Lily marches her expensive boots onto Rick’s land and proposes turning it into a mega resort, the serenity of the woods is shattered. Lily always closes a deal. Rick never intends to sell. They’ll need to compromise, or someone else will do it for them. Someone who is not afraid of the woods or the city.
Or spilling a little blood."
My Review: Okay, so who wouldn't love a rugged outdoorsman? Rick is totally drool worthy even with his faults and gruff attitude. I honestly wasn't as keen on Lily, I never understand the socialite, city girls, I also couldn't seem to connect with her fear even though that is huge part of her backstory and personality. That set aside I truly enjoyed the rest of the cast of characters, Hope, Sage, Joy, Poe and Sam are all such fun personalities to be around (I could really picture hanging out with them joking around). The storyline was a little slow to develop, the spilling a little blood bit was missing a good portion of the book and you don't get that heart pounding thrill until late in the book, but this long storyline did give plenty of time for a more believable connection to be built between characters. This was a great ready to keep cozy through all these winter storms, but it is kept clean for those who prefer their own imagination.
My Rating: I really enjoyed the cast of characters in this book and am looking forward to the rest of the series (so far Hope & Sage's stories are out). I enjoyed the time allowed for the story and connections to develop. I give it a rating of Four Paws!
This one sounds very cute. I've never understood the socialite girl either. Sometimes they can ruin a book for me.
ReplyDeleteIt was so cute and Christine will be at a signing later this month so I will be off to purchase the next two books in the series!
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