In Firefly Valley (By: Amanda Cabot)

In Firefly Valley
By: Amanda Cabot

Storyline

Marisa St. George has returned to her hometown of Dupree, Texas to accept the job of business manager at the newly renovated Rainbow's End Resort. Although she is looking forward to reconnecting with her best friend and living closer to her mother, Dupree holds more painful than good memories for Marisa - namely that her alcoholic father left without a trace eight years before. But what she least expects is to fall for one of the guests staying at the resort - and for a relationship to bring about the healing she desperately needs.

Blake Kendall is facing a serious case of writer's block. An author with a deadline and desperate for the creative juices to flow again, he comes to Rainbow's End for a change of scenery. The fireworks between he and Marisa begin immediately when they meet, but Blake has a secret - he has written a series of books (under a pseudonym) that Marisa loudly protests against quite frequently. 

While the plot had great promise and some good elements, the story wound up being very predictable. We don't always mind that, as long as the journey is worth it! But in this case, the book just didn't hold our attention all that well. The characters are lovable and develop well, but it was easy to remember that they were fictional. In other words, we didn't get swept away in the story, and it didn't became our reality.

Depth

Some heavy issues are dealt with lightheartedly and solved easily, such as forgiveness, alcoholism, and anger. Chief among these things, the author asks the question: Can people really change?

Faith

All the characters have faith in God, while some live it more strongly than others. Most of the faith in this book comes toward the end. The author answers the question above - can people really change? - by assuming that God is the only answer to real, lasting change in a person. Several characters experience redemption through a relationship with their Savior. 

Squeal Factor  

Blake and Marisa practically fall in love at first sight and have a very realistic dating relationship, but unfortunately it was a little hard to feel their emotions and stirrings of their hearts. 

Overall

It's hard to pinpoint why this book wasn't a home run for us - after all, it appears to have many of the right elements. But when a story doesn't hold our attention, make us feel what the characters feel, or give us a way to relate to the characters, it's very difficult to get into. In Firefly Valley was in no way a bad read - just perhaps a little less interesting than we would have liked to have read.
 
Find it on Amazon: In Firefly Valley

We were given this book from the publisher in exchange for our honest review.