Tricia's Reviews > The Bright Spot

First, thank you to Avon books, Jill Shalvis, and Goodreads for the advanced reader's copy.

This is the first book I've read by Shalvis and there are some entertaining points. The grandmother and DZ were absolutely charming. Overall, the characters were entertaining. However, my enjoyment of the book was in the dwelling on trust/abandonment issues that the main characters faced. Although, I'm not sure that's exactly the way to put it. I liked the characters in the book immensely. They were flawed but also struggling to make their way in their world. However, their emotional issues took up too much of the book and overwhelmed their ability to be charming.

The plot is one that has been done before, but the quirky characters help compensate for that. Simply put, Luna runs the farm. The owner dies and leaves her half the farm. He leaves the other half of the farm to a man he helped raise. The two fall in love. Complications happen. Secrets are revealed. Farm is saved. Happily ever after. None of that is any surprise.

Shalvis has a way with dialogue, but still the character's inner emotional turmoil overpowers that. I think I would have found this book more enjoyable if about half of the inner turmoil was cut out and there was more of a focus on the relationships between the characters.