Country Roads
Reviewed By Janet Mawdesley February 22, 2017
Author Nicole Hurley-Moore
Distributor: Allen and Unwin
ISBN: 9781760295318
Publisher: Allen and Unwin/Arena
Release Date: February 2017
Website: http:/www.allenandunwin.com
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A simple tale well told, is well worth the reading and in this latest release from one of Australia’s leading romance writers, the tale of two people from vastly different backgrounds, set in rural Victoria, is as refreshing and it is enjoyable.
Matt Harvey has seen the dark side of life, losing his beloved fiancé in a car accident which saw the car they were travelling in plunge over the side of the mountain on a dark, wet night, killing Leanne and smashing his leg.
Bec, or Rebecca Hargreaves, has been running the family farm, Bluestone Ridge, almost single handed since the accident that saw her beloved father permanently in a wheelchair. She does all the work but he won’t give her any say in running the property, countermanding all her ideas and generally making life and the property difficult to manage.
Matt, now a best-selling author, has left his career in advertising, moving to the country for a fresh start and in the faint hope that the change will also help to help him with his second novel, as for whatever reason the flow of words, has not dried up altogether, just slowed down a little too far.
He buys an old cottage to restore on the boundary of the Hargreaves property and sets about it with gusto, starting a bonfire to burn off old rubbish on a day when the fire danger is far higher that he understands. He and Bec meet over the flames of the bonfire in rather acrimonious circumstances. She storm off and he retires chagrined, after putting out the fire.
An unlikely beginning to a romance, but as the days and weeks go by they become far friendlier towards each other. She has been made a fool of by her former finance Zane Turner, and is not about to commit to another relationship and he is still learning to cope with a new life, new beginning and the loss of his fiancé.
But somewhere along the way they begin to enjoy each other’s company, enjoy spending time together and when Bec suggests a no strings attached relationship, Matt reluctantly agrees. Meanwhile, and for a reasons unknown, Zane Turner is beginning to hang about Bec once again, wanting to begin where they left off, saying it was all a mistake of youth, warning Matt off and will not take no for an answer.
Matters come to a head when Bec buys a tractor her father has been determinedly against, Zane is beginning to put on more pressure and the relationship between Matt and Bec is developing into something stronger that she had bargained on.
Decision time brings Bec to the realisation that sometimes you cannot remain in a safe place, you have to go out and accept the challenges life offers. Could she take a chance on Matt and an unknown future, or should she just keep on at Bluestone Ridge and hope everything will eventually come right with her father.
Warm, comfortable and enjoyable this is one romance you will enjoy from beginning to end.