An unlikable main character frustrates what could have been a romance for grown-up horse girls.
Opposites attract when a city girl inherits a horse farm—which also includes a gorgeous yet grumpy farrier.
Molly McDaniel is obsessed with weddings, and she’s always dreamed of starting her own wedding-planning company. Sadly, she’s drowning in student debt and nowhere close to launching a business while she works two part-time jobs, as a barista and at a call center. When an estranged aunt dies and leaves her a barn, Molly at first believes her bad luck has doubled, but quickly sees the silver lining. If she can sell the barn and land, then she might have enough money to pursue her goal. The ramshackle barn comes with more than just horses and hefty repair costs, though. There’s also Shani Thomas, a farrier who not only lives and works on the property, but also tended to Molly’s aunt during her years of declining health. The two immediately butt heads, as it seems that Molly is only there to destroy what Shani helped build. As more and more people pitch in to help Molly with the renovation, she begins to be swayed by the community the barn has brought together and her growing attraction to Shani. The biggest detriment to this trope-filled romance with its grumpy-meets-sunshine couple and fish-out-of-water-plot is the main character. Molly is frequently a poor communicator even though people’s livelihoods are on the line, and she often drops the ball in making Shani feel supported. For a good part of the book, Molly is selfish and short-sighted, assuming those around her will come to her aid at the drop of a hat, and it isn’t believable that she’d be able to run a successful small business. She’s a prime example of a partner and friend who takes way more than she gives.
An unlikable main character frustrates what could have been a romance for grown-up horse girls.Pub Date: May 28, 2024
ISBN: 9780063307513
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Avon/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: March 9, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2024
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.
The sequel to It Ends With Us (2016) shows the aftermath of domestic violence through the eyes of a single mother.
Lily Bloom is still running a flower shop; her abusive ex-husband, Ryle Kincaid, is still a surgeon. But now they’re co-parenting a daughter, Emerson, who's almost a year old. Lily won’t send Emerson to her father’s house overnight until she’s old enough to talk—“So she can tell me if something happens”—but she doesn’t want to fight for full custody lest it become an expensive legal drama or, worse, a physical fight. When Lily runs into Atlas Corrigan, a childhood friend who also came from an abusive family, she hopes their friendship can blossom into love. (For new readers, their history unfolds in heartfelt diary entries that Lily addresses to Finding Nemo star Ellen DeGeneres as she considers how Atlas was a calming presence during her turbulent childhood.) Atlas, who is single and running a restaurant, feels the same way. But even though she’s divorced, Lily isn’t exactly free. Behind Ryle’s veneer of civility are his jealousy and resentment. Lily has to plan her dates carefully to avoid a confrontation. Meanwhile, Atlas’ mother returns with shocking news. In between, Lily and Atlas steal away for romantic moments that are even sweeter for their authenticity as Lily struggles with child care, breastfeeding, and running a business while trying to find time for herself.
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.Pub Date: Oct. 18, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-668-00122-6
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2022
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
Deeply moving and emotional.
A hockey player falls in love with his tutor.
Matt “Freddy” Fredderic is the life of the party at Waterfell University. He’s a starter on the hockey team and can have any girl on campus—but he’s also in danger of failing out if he can’t improve his grades in math and biology. His ADHD, dyslexia, and dyscalculia make him eligible for university tutoring services, and Ro Shariff is his newly assigned tutor. Ro had a crush on Freddy freshman year but convinced herself that she’s over it now, in her senior year. She’s been in an on-again, off-again relationship with a guy named Tyler for the past two years, but he’s manipulative, borderline abusive, and probably cheating on her. Ro is desperate for love and affection and still suffers from bouts of intense homesickness. She and Freddy develop a tentative friendship even though they couldn’t be more different on the surface—he’s a popular, gregarious athlete to her quiet, introverted academic. Ro sees beyond Freddy’s persona as a dumb jock, while he recognizes that she feels lonely and like an outsider. When Freddy swoops in to rescue Ro after an ugly disagreement with Tyler, the two admit that their feelings for each other are more romantic than friendly. Corinne’s second novel is an emotional powerhouse. Ro and Freddy share everything with each other: fears of not being good enough for their friends, details of their harmful previous romantic relationships, and the deep feelings of grief related to illness and loss of parents. They have to learn to trust themselves and each other in the midst of the pressures that come with transitioning from college to adulthood. Their evolution from friends to lovers is a classic slow burn, and it makes for an angsty and deeply affecting read.
Deeply moving and emotional.Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2025
ISBN: 9781668068489
Page Count: 464
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
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