3.5 stars
Successful but suffocated by the demands of her corporate career, Shaw Daily walks out on it all. She returns to her grandparents’ rural property in Cooper’s Creek, North Carolina, with a plan to hide out and reboot her life to be simple and stress free. But escapism eludes her when her attentions are captured by small town beauty Kate Elkins.
Kate has spent almost her entire life in Cooper’s Creek. For Kate, the bonds of small-town life are a source of strength and comfort. When her aging mother weakens, Kate takes a leave from teaching to care for her. Romance is the last thing on her mind when she bumps into her unrequited teen crush Shaw Dailey just back from California. Long-buried feelings resurface for Kate, but all Shaw sees is a beautiful woman saddled with the responsibilities she is finally free from.
REVIEWED BY REBECCA
Love at Cooper's Creek is a lesbian romance novel featuring a butch, STEM-loving leading lady (always a good thing). This book was difficult for me to rate though, because I adored certain parts and was frustrated by others.
My favourite aspect was, far and away, the description of setting. Especially in the early chapters, the way Vaun describes Coopers Creek is absolutely beautiful, without being tedious. I found myself wanting to get on a plane and visit the USA's rural, southern towns. I even wanted to try a cup of 50c coffee from a washable mug.
This is a fairly formulaic contemporary romance, to the point that it is predictable every step of the way. I was really intrigued by the element of a family mystery being explored when Addie was introduced, but that sub-plot ended up being a little bland. There could have been a more fascinating reason behind the situation with Shaw's parents, I just found myself wanting something less flat.
That said, formulas do exist for a reason: they work and people like them. If you enjoy romances that follow the general line of meet-like-run away-hookup-run away again-happy ever after, then this book will appeal to you.
It's a sweet story, and I'm glad to report that for once, nobody gets sexually assaulted or kidnapped (phew!).
At times, the writing is repetitive. The inner dialogue of the two MCs makes sense. I mean, of course they're both going to explore their fears surrounding a new relationship, but those fears were re-hashed far too many times for my personal taste. Vaun's grasp of language and plot is quite good though, so I wouldn't let the repetition put you off from picking up this story if it sounds like something you'd like.
You can buy a copy of the ebook from the publisher, which is a great way to ensure the author gets the best possible royalty for their work.
WARNINGS: Explicit sexual content (though not as much as some other lesfic books out there).
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