AUTHOR: Lucy Lever GENRE: Rural Romance PAGES: 338 pages RELEASED: 5 July 2023 SYNOPSIS: Is love on the cards? Reading the tarot is in Claire's blood. It's a gift she inherited from her late mother. But her genius in helping others discover their path fails her when it comes to finding her own, especially once she learns of plans to bulldoze her carefully regenerated rainforest home and build a high-end wellness centre. She vows to rally her small community and save Mystic Ridge, although she has no idea where to start... Perhaps her first port of call should be the local newspaper, but after a fake-dating misadventure with the new editor, Leo, rising tensions - and chemistry - get in the way. Meanwhile, her old love, soapie actor Jake, promises to help protect her home. Yet Claire suspects his loyalties lie elsewhere, and she doesn't know who to trust anymore. Will Claire find the courage to fight for the rainforest, her family and her chance at love? This book was kindly sent to me by HQ Fiction in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. Sometimes, you’ve just got to follow the signs that the universe sends you…
Already struggling to make ends meet, single mum and tarot reader Claire is shocked to learn that her home on Mystic Ridge, and the rainforest she’s worked hard to regenerate, is under the threat of being turned into a concrete yoga retreat. She’s determined to rally the small community of Lillypilly to get behind the cause, but it’s easier said than done when half the community are under the thumb of yoga teacher Ruby. And just to make things even more complicated, Claire’s non-existent love life is suddenly existent again with the arrival of newspaper editor Leo and the return of her teenage flame Jake. Between a brief stint as a fake girlfriend for Leo, Jake trying to get back with Claire, her daughter Zoe having issues at school, and the looming threat of homelessness, Claire can either choose to admit defeat or fight for what she wants. As much as I ADORE rural romance, I have to admit that I struggled with this one a little. While it’s a rural romance, it’s definitely different from most rural romances, with a bit of a mystical element that made for a nice twist but didn’t quiet hit the mark like I wanted it to at times. I also struggled with Lucy’s pacing of the story and the way characters were introduced and characterised. All together, these issues made the book difficult to fall into at times, although the overall story itself was an enjoyable one and definitely had potential. Claire and Zoe had a really interesting story as a mother and daughter, and I would have loved to see more of their relationship as they did tarot at markets and lived in their house in the rainforest. This dynamic was thrown out of whack very early on when their neighbour Poppy Moon and her children had to seek refuge at their house - while these characters definitely grew on me, I would have loved to have seen the solo dynamic more before everything was upended. While the romance could be considered a love triangle since two guys are vying for Claire’s heart, it’s a love triangle where it’s impossible to form a connection with one of the love interests - Jake gave me the absolute ick (which is obviously the point), but I feel like the entire storyline would have had much more of an impact if we as the reader were able to form a connection with him before everything went to hell. On the other hand, I thought Leo was an interesting character and Lucy explored his backstory really well in terms of how it impacted the current story. I just wish we had more of a chance to see Leo and Claire as a couple before the epilogue as they definitely had good chemistry, but miscommunication kept getting in the way. As I said, the overall story was fairly enjoyable as we follow Claire fight to save her home, the rainforest, and the endangered trees she’s nurtured over the years. Lucy also really taps into the Byron Bay alternative culture stereotype which was super fun, although maybe could have been executed a bit better at times with some of the characters. Overall, the book was enjoyable, even if it didn’t quiet hit the mark and live up to my expectations. If you’re looking for a mystical twist on the classic Australian rural romance, this is certainly a book you’ll want on your TBR. |
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