3/3

Sydney and Sawyer’s story is beautiful, but the whole twenty-year-gape was a little too much for me, or at least the way the story was portrayed didn’t convinced me nor made me connect with their couple or chemistry.

In this book, the magical touch didn’t work as well as the others previous books I’ve read… Maybe because of this book in particular or maybe because I should have waited a little between books (I’ve being reading several in a row, writing a review on my notepad as I was reading them…), maybe I should have stopped a little and read others books for a while… I really couldn’t say why the magical side didn’t work for me in this book.

And yes, I’ve already said it for the previous books: KATHY (book 10, the book I’ve read in the first place) is still my absolute favorite in the series. And the less paranormal one, now that I’m thinking about it.

Still, this was a great reading, I totally recommend it, and the whole series in general, because of the saga’s family, and of course, the writing.

I don't know how I missed this series. It's funny and has a good mystery for you to follow and solve. Charley, short for Charlene , is a PI in her spare time since she is the Grime Reaper. She helps ghosts through to the other side and since she is a brilliant white light they flock to her for help. When three lawyers are found dead she is called to the scene by the police, her uncle being in charge. Great story line and I'm already reading the next book. There are already 13 or more on the market as several short stories in anthology's are listed. Way to go Darynada Jones.

A thoroughly enjoyable read in which left me eager to read more in the series, as well as knowing it will most likely be reread in the future. This had a slow burn romance, where the characters get to know each other well before intimacy. Though the pacing was rather slow, it worked in this book. I normally have little patience for slow paced books, yet this one held my attention full on. This book is nice length, and tied up each others pasts very nicely, as well as leaving the reader eager to see the next stories of a few family members. I liked the low key paranormal element that was in the book. Overall, a great story. *I received a copy of this book from NetGalley and this is my voluntary and honest review.

After finishing an edge-of-your-seat thriller, I needed something light with a happy ending. This book was just what I needed. I really enjoyed reading Sydney and Sawyer's story. Sydney is a well adjusted mid twenties woman who clearly loves her family and is very close to them. Sawyer is an early retired cop who turns 47 during the book. Though a 20 year age difference between them, which I was really iffy about at first, hey work very well together. I found the Appalachian myth/ legends sprinkled here and there interesting, though I felt they were added a bit hastily to make the book an urban fantasy or paranormal. I didn't feel there was enough of a conflict for the couple to overcome, which is why I didn't rate this four stars. If they'd have better communication, they would've gotten over the age difference hurdle wining a few chapters, and the other conflicts in the story were minor enough not to be a major plot point. Though this is technically #6 in the series, the author does a nice job of including past information without being boorish so reading the previous books is not needed to read this one. The author left me interested enough for me to want to search out the other books in the series.

Second chance at love romance

This is the first book in the Firefly Hollow series that I've read. While the book mostly works as a stand alone there is a really big cast of characters whose relationships were developed in the previous books so on occasion I felt I was missing some of the nuances. That being said Sydney and Sawyer were a well written couple. I loved seeing the evolution of their relationship. The plot moved along with interesting events that kept my interest.

I received an advance reader copy from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.

How odd!

So I was drawn in by the unusual blurb but ended up confused by what genre I was reading.

On the face of it this is a straightforward small-town romance between Sydney Gibson, a 26 year old woman, and Sawyer Evans, the 46 year old man she has had a crush on since she was six years old. She comes back to the small town she grew up in after a devastating divorce. Not needing money, she does need a job to keep her busy so her father suggests she help Sawyer with his fledgling private investigations business.

Sawyer used to be a policeman and has the dubious honour of having arrested Sydney as a teenager, he remembers a rebellious teenager and is shocked at the young sophisticated woman she has become. Despite their mutual attraction he tries to hold back because: a) he's her boss; b) he's 20 years older than her; c) he's friends with her father and grandfather; and d) he has some rare incurable sterility so he could never give her children.

I quite liked the romance, it was a slow burn and there was some good banter, especially between Sydney and various women who drape themselves all over Sawyer.

But ...

Sydney and her family all have special powers. Yep, special powers. Now this is the sixth book in the series, I haven't read any of the rest so I'm not sure whether the other books are more or less woo-woo than this one, but this just seemed odd. Sydney has some odd healing power, they think she may have cured her aunt's cancer when she was younger, one of her cousins can see/ speak to the dead and other relatives are different kinds of shifters. As far as I could see this was just an excuse to abracadabra an insurmountable obstacle (can you guess what it might be?). I didn't get it. I also thought it was odd that they all had different powers - surely genetics would suggest they all had the same power or manifestations of the same power?

There were also a couple of scenes which crossed a line for me. I don't mind rough sex between consenting adults but when one person uses it to express sadness by biting, pinching, hair-pulling etc and it is out of the ordinary that actually raises red flags for me. Expressing emotion through violence? Not acceptable. The other scene is where Sydney and Sawyer have sex before meeting his ex-wife - as I read that scene I thought if it were written about anyone other than the heroine it would have been seen as trashy and tacky - so why is it okay for Sydney to do/ think that?

If those two scenes had been written differently and there were no special woo-woo powers I would have liked this book a lot more.

I love the Firefly Hollow series & this story was so good. Sydney & Sawyer were such a fun couple to get to know & watch fall in love.

Can't wait for more in this series!

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

Amazing, fun, and interesting. Who doesn't love a sexy older man and a feisty young woman romance? The beginning for Sydney and Sawyer started many many years ago. A family friend and a young girl that grows to have a crush on him, the girls returns home a single woman ready to try and start something with him. Will he forgo their age difference and embrace true love, or will stubbornness grab hold and make true love disappear. Thank you NetGalley and T.L. Haddix for allowing me to read this book and write a honest review.