Review: 4.5 blue ribbons from Romance Junkies
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 07 2, 2013
Jo Montgomery might have been a little rash in purchasing a dilapidated old farmhouse in Georgia sight unseen from an online ad, but the price was too good to pass up and she was desperate to escape any reminders of her previous life.  What she doesn't anticipate is having a neighbor like horse breeder Hawk Stephans.  He tempts her on every level and terrifies her at the same time because becoming involved with him is opening herself up to more heartache and pain, not to mention subjecting him to the craziness of a political family.Hawk has a special gift when it comes to horses which resulted in him making a small fortune from his unruly stallion, Thunder.  His Apache heritage plays a pivotal role in everything he does and like his ancestors he firmly believes in paying attention to the signs nature provides.  He does have a reputation for `dark deeds in dark places' and he's certainly sex personified, but his mother's interference and his own experience with the Apache traditions has taught him a better way of life and he doesn't intend to stray from that path.The doe that invades Hawk's garden daily is a sure sign of things that are to come and when he meets his new neighbor, Jo, he's certain that she's The One for him.  Like the doe however, she's skittish and uncertain so he'll have to approach her with caution and a fair amount of patience.  Fortunately, he's has sex appeal in spades and Jo's drawn to him over and over, or maybe it's the list of contractors he promised to provide her that's keeping her coming back.  She won't be an easy conquest, even once she does succumb to their mutual desires - and convincing her to follow him into his next venture in life is more complicated than either of them imagined it would be.Kendall Grace's THUNDERSTRUCK is a beautiful tribute to not just the traditions of Native Americans but the power of love as well.  Jo and Hawk are proud, strong people who are willing to make sacrifices for the people they love.  I really love Jo's independent spirit and how she refuses to kowtow to her father's expectations regarding her failed marriage - and wanted to applaud her for the confrontation scene with her ex-husband (talk about a great verbal swift kick in the a**!)  For a bit of humor Hawk's father Ray doesn't bother to censor anything he says so he's a riot and any scene he's is definitely memorable.  THUNDERSTRUCK is a rollercoaster of a story with many highs, lows and everything in between, but underneath it all is a deep, abiding love between some wonderful characters that really pulls on the reader's heartstrings.This book was reviewed using a digital galley via NetGalley.Chrissy Dionne (courtesy of Romance Junkies)