Summer on Honeysuckle Ridge - Contemporary Romance Review

Goodreads:  Summer on Honeysuckle Ridge (Highland Falls #1) by Debbie Mason

Rating: Liked It
Source: Publisher

Description:  In just a few months Abby Everhart has gone from being a top influencer to an unemployed divorcée living out of her car. So inheriting her great-aunt's homestead comes at the perfect time. Abby heads to Highland Falls, North Carolina, to spruce up Honeysuckle Farm before putting it on the market for some much-needed cash. But instead of finding a charming getaway, she discovers a serious fixer-upper, complete with a leaky roof, overgrown yard, and a reclusive -- albeit sexy -- man living on the property.

Ex-Delta Force soldier Hunter MacKenzie has faced war and loss, but nothing has quite prepared him for an outgoing redhead who's determined to turn his life upside down. Hunter doesn't want to get involved with anyone, especially a city girl who plans to sell the only place he's ever felt at home. But the sparks between them are undeniable. Spending time with Abby is easy. Convincing her to stay for good is another matter entirely.

Genre: Romance - Contemporary

Why I Picked This Book:  I've been wanting to read this author for awhile and this was a plot and a cover I couldn't resist!

My Impression:  I have very mixed feelings about this book which makes this a bit of a challenge to write!  Let me just say that this is my first book by Debbie Mason and it definitely won't be my last.  I really liked her writing and her way of making the setting really come to life.  I thought Hunter was a great hero.  He was hard not to like and not to sympathize with.  He's guarded without being too prickly and just a nice guy.  I liked Abby's stepsisters too.  They're perfect - beautiful, smart, kind, and always looking to do good - but Mason doesn't take the easy way out and make them villains or unlikable.  Instead they came off as nice girls who genuinely cared about their stepsister and had a little spark of harmless mischief to them.  I absolutely love this trope and can never resist a book where a character inherits a house and ends up having to do more repair work then they bargained for.  This didn't disappoint.  The house is quirky and I enjoyed spending time in this North Carolina farmhouse. 

So what am I torn about?  The heroine, Abby made me want to scream at times.  I don't love books that involve a lot of second hand embarrassment and this was full of them.  Abby fell into a pond, got herself attacked by bats, and bitten by a snake within the first 20% of the book and reacted with so much drama and hysteria and cluelessness it drove me crazy.  I think I was more embarrassed for her then she was for herself.  As well her general helplessness drove me crazy.  I've known people who have gotten crap deals in their divorce but hers seems ridiculous and did she not have a lawyer?  I wanted to shake her!

I definitely want to try another book by this author (and luckily I have a few!) as I imagine that her writing and scene setting will be absolutely fantastic when I like the heroine a bit better.

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?  I would and am looking forward to it!

Would I Recommend this Book?  With reservations.  If second hand embarrassment doesn't bother you then I really liked the author's writing and the bulk of the book. 

* I received this book in exchange for an honest review.  As always my opinions and impressions are completely my own. *