Another Time Around the Track

Last spring, I found a book series on Hoopla Digital that I really enjoyed it.  It was a series about the Christiansen Family by Susan May Warren.  So, I was curious about her new series that begins with Wild Montana Skies.  This book is about a pilot, Kacey Fairing, who is returning home from a deployment to Afghanistan--trying to recover and cope with PTSD.  Enter her daughter, Audrey, and Kacey's high school boyfriend, Ben King.

The book follows these three as they cope with a weather tragedy and as Ben and Kacey try to help others in need.  This is a story of the truth coming out.  It is a contemporary romance, but it isn't as bad as a Harlequin--or as bad as the second book I'm reviewing in this post.

I like some romance in a novel.  There's plenty in Wild Montana Skies for me.  It isn't too physically descriptive, though, and I'm grateful for that.  This is the funny part of romance novels to me.  Where is the line that bothers me when it comes to romance?

I think the line is the one between the words "hot" and "handsome".  When an author's tone about romance tends towards the first word, the descriptions tend to be more physically graphic and rooted in the surface physical attraction between characters.  When an author's tone gravitates towards the second word, there is more of a lasting type of emotion that's not just about physical attraction.  It's more about the heart and feels more grounded somehow.

The second book I read this week was Irene Hannon's new book Tangled Webs.  This romantic suspense tends towards the first word more, which is why I didn't like it.  It felt more Harelequin-like.  The attraction between the two main characters was instant and felt very unrealistic because of the issues they were both dealing with and--PTSD--for different reasons.  I read this book because I've

wanted to give Christian Suspense another chance.  I enjoyed the last book I read by Lynnette Eason,

because it wasn't so focused on romance.  This book, on the other hand, was far more romance than suspense.

The two main characters, Dana and Finn, are neighbors at a lake.  After first meeting and realizing they are both attracted to each other, Finn finds reasons to be around Dana more.  Enter the suspense-- two people who don't want Dana to stay in the cabin where she's residing.  As the story progresses and Finn tries to figure out who is threatening Dana, they begin dating.  I wasn't sure that how PTSD plays out for both of the main characters was really realistic, either, which took away from the story for me--that's the difficulty I run into sometimes with realistic fiction.

One thing I will say for the romance in this book, even though it is more Harlequin-like in tone, the author doesn't cross any physical boundaries that I was really uncomfortable with.  A few months ago, I read a few pages in a secular romance novel just to understand what it was like.  It only took a few pages and I had to quickly put it down because it was unwise for me to read.  The pages were filled with cussing, physical affection that was far too physical for me to be comfortable with, and an attitude towards dating that reminded me of the difference having God in my life makes in my relationships.

Please note that I received complimentary copies of these books from the publisher.