I am such a fan of Robyn Carr.  I anxiously await each of her releases
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In this book, The Hero, we are introduced to new character Devon McAllister who, with some help, escapes from a cult with her 3 year daughter and tries to hid out in the small town of Thunder Point.  They are found by Rawley Devon, who on the outside appears gruff and grouchy.  With his help Devon begins her new life in Thunder Point, but always looking over her shoulder.

Devon meets Spencer Lawson who has had a few losses in recent times and is not open to a relationship.  Once he meets Devon, their friendship blossoms, but what is behind the issue that is Devon's past.  Can they get through the bad times as well as the good.

5 stars

I like the idea of this series but it's just not really working for me especially when I compare it to her other series Virgin River it's just lacking in warmth and connection and the storytelling just doesn't feel the same either.

Read 2013.

Rated 1 star on Goodreads.
No review actually written unfortunately.

Review:  As I was reviewing my NetGalley account, I realized that this book had not yet been reviewed.  I read it back when the book was released in 2013, but was having trouble putting my thoughts down.  Nearly four years later, the only thing that really stuck with me about this book was that there was this commune / cult that was a big part of the story.  And I really didn’t like that.

I’ve been a fan of Robyn Carr for a while now.  I love her Virgin River series and have re-read most of those books.  But there’s something off about Thunder Point..  It’s almost a cheap rip off of Virgin River.  The characters haven’t pulled me in.  I can’t seem to care about the town and the inhabitants.  Which makes it hard to continue this series.

That said, let’s actually talk about The Hero.  The characters aren’t memorable.  In fact, before doing a quick re-read of the book to write the review, I couldn’t remember anything about them.  And re-reading the story, didn’t make my impressions any better.  Devon is a pretty weak character.  A lot of it comes from her history with the commune.  But you’d think that if she had enough backbone to “run away”… but alas, I just couldn’t seem to really relate or well, care.  Then there’s Spencer.  Too good to be true, but didn’t seem to really get the airtime that you’d expect from the hero of the book.  And again, probably why I didn’t connect and remember.

I have serious mixed feelings on the whole commune / cult plot.  I think it really could have worked, but in the end, it left a bad taste in my mouth.  The twist at the end helped, but I can’t believe that those living in the commune would have been so oblivious.

All in all, this one just didn’t work for me when I originally read it and still doesn’t work for me now.  I’m not sure if I’ll continue this series or not after this lackluster installment.