Review: Excellent story, excellent author! I expected nothing less...
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 05 13, 2013
Although I own and love every Molly harper book I can get my hands on, I wasn't sure how this little tale about a small town tourism bureau and its quirky employees was going to unfold. But hey, it's MOLLY HARPER, so what the hell, I gave it a try.This author has such an easy, unforced and truly funny writing style that pulls me in and gets me rooting for characters I might not like, such as the heroine, Sadie, who is somewhat eccentric and strait-laced, yet manages to be charming without trying. That's a lot of what I love about Molly Harper books -- the humor never seems forced. Her supporting characters are all complete people in themselves, not just props to propel the story along.Partway through the story, I became worried -- for the characters! -- because the initial conflict between the heroine and the reluctant hero, Josh, was so heated and nasty. Fortunately, Sadie is a much more forgiving person than I am and stays in an unpleasant situation, trying to make it work.When the two leads finally come to a truce, and I hope I'm not spoiling anything here, it doesn't stretch the realm of believability. These people seem real, with their flaws and quirks and baggage and ability to love.I don't want to give too much away, but I can't emphasize enough what a pleasure it is to read books written by such a talented and funny writer. Because of a recommendation on a Molly Harper book, I checked out a sample of a Dakota Cassidy novel, and...no. There's no comparison. Cassidy doesn't seem to love her characters and seems to be laughing AT them, whereas Harper cares about her people, warts and all. The humor arises from the situations they find themselves in...as well as their own wacky thoughts and points of view.If I had one complaint, it would be that the story seems too short. I hated to leave these people, their town, and the state of Kentucky itself. There is a second book coming, though!!While waiting for the sequel to "Blue Grass Baby," I'm signing up for Harper's next book due out in June called, "A Witch's Handbook of Kisses & Curses," an excerpt of which was included.FIVE STARS is not enough stars.