CBR17 Book 51: "In a Jam" by Kate Canterbary

Page count: 474 pages

Audio book length: 15 hrs 53 minutes

Rating: 3.5 stars

CBR17 Bingo: I (A book title beginning with I)

Official plot summary:

When Shay Zucconi’s step-grandmother died, she left Shay a tulip farm—under two conditions.

First, Shay has to move home to the small town of Friendship, Rhode Island. Second—and most problematic, since her fiancé just called off the wedding—Shay must be married within one year.

Marriage is the last thing in the world Shay wants but she’ll do anything to save the only real home she’s ever known.

Noah Barden loved Shay Zucconi back in high school. Not that he ever told her. He was too shy, too awkward, too painfully uncool to ask out the beautiful, popular girl.

A lifetime later, Noah is a single dad to his niece and has his hands full running the family business. That old crush is the farthest thing from his mind.

Until Shay returns to their hometown.

So, I had pretty much decided that I wasn't going to review this book, because my review backlog was massive in the first place, and while it was a perfectly fine book, it wasn't one of the most memorable or squee-inducing Canterbary romances I've read. But then the CBR17 Bingo came around, and this was the only book I had left unreviewed that started with an I. So back onto the review list it went.

Shay is literally putting on her wedding dress and getting ready to say her vows, when her fiancé calls her from his car and breaks up with her (he doesn't even have the decency to do it face to face). Naturally, she's pretty devastated, but after a few weeks of wallowing, seems to realise that she's better off without him. 

Then unexpectedly, she inherits a farm from one of the only adults who were really there for her during what was clearly a turbulent adolescence and back to Friendship, Rhode Island, she goes, because she can't keep crashing with her friends forever. 

Shortly after her return, she reconnects with Noah Barden, probably her only real friend when she stayed with her step-grandmother for a while and attended high school in Friendship. Noah used to be an outcast, overweight and occasionally bullied, but the best times of his week were always driving Shay to school and the many private conversations they had, away from everyone else. Now he's tall, handsome and seems rather angry with Shay. He also seems to own pretty much all the farmland surrounding Shay's newly inherited property, with dairy farming, jam and preserve production, as well as baking facilities (his rather gruff way of flirting with her involves a lot of feeding her, and leaving her delicious bread - sign me up). 

As well as running a very extensive farming enterprise, Noah has his hands full with his niece, Gennie (pronounced Jennie, which I wouldn't have known if I hadn't listened to the audio,) whom he has sole custody of, because his sister is in prison and the baby daddy is dead. Because of years of very unstable living conditions, the girl has massive trust issues, wants to be a pirate, and certainly swears like one. She needs to improve her manners and catch up on most areas of schooling, or she'll be held back in school after the summer. Luckily, Shay is a teacher and the plot moppet loves her pretty much at first sight. 

This book did not need to be 474 pages long; a standard 384 would have been just fine. While the central romance between Shay and Noah is fine, and Shay establishes herself as the ideal step-aunt to the little girl within days of meeting her, there were just too many pages of Shay being extremely down on herself and self-pitying to the point of ridiculousness. It didn't get as bad as in The Love Haters, where the heroine's extreme body issues almost made me quit reading the book. While Shay hasn't had the easiest life and has been disappointed a few times, the obvious love of her fierce and loyal friend group back in Boston, as well as Noah and Gennie's clearly both being mad about her, long before she figuratively wakes up and sees the hot farmer for who he truly is, should have made it abundantly clear to her that she isn't all alone in the world, and she is plenty lovable if she would just let people in.

If this had been a bit shorter, and Shay had been a bit less frustrating, it could probably have been one of my favourite of Canterbary's. books.  As it is, it's merely fine. Having heard a bunch about Shay and her jam farmer in Emme's book, In a Rush, it was fun to read this and see their romance developing, though. 

Judging a book by its cover: While I love the lovely turquoisey teal background, basically just spreading out some raspberries and taking a photo of it isn't exactly great art. 

Crossposted on Cannonball Read

CBR17 Book 9: "In a Rush" by Kate Canterbary

Page count: 480 pages

Rating: 5 stars

This was an ARC sent to me by the author. My opinions are my own, and I loved the book so much that I pre-ordered a copy as soon as I'd finished reading it. 

 

Emmeline "Emme" Ahlborg catches her boyfriend, the man she was hoping was going to propose to her, in the act, sleeping with another woman (when Emme shows up on his doorstep with home-cooked food). She's devastated, and what's worse, he's a groomsman in the wedding of her best friend (to whom she's the maid of honour) so it's not like she's going to be able to avoid seeing him. Not one to cause trouble or mess with her friend's wedding plans, Emme swallows down her discomfort and hopes to find a suitable revenge date to bring to the wedding.

During a dinner with her best friend from high school, Ryan Ralston, now a hot shot professional quarterback, he listens in both horror and sympathy to her recounting the events of her break-up and makes an unusual suggestion. He reminds her of the pact they made back in high school, that if they were still single when they turned thirty, they would marry each other. Ryan just turned thirty, and Emme will be thirty in a few months. She needs a revenge date, he has an image problem and needs a wife to reassure society at large that he's a reliable and stable guy who's worth doing business with. He claims that their long friendship and history together will make the story believable, not just to the press and his business partners, but to her friends and family. What Ryan isn't telling Emme is that she's the only woman he'd ever consider marrying because he's loved her since high school, he just never had the guts to tell her. 

After some deliberation, Emme agrees to the plan, on the condition that Ryan helps find her stepsister/roommate an internship. They agree to fake date for a few months before actually marrying, to make the story more convincing. Emme has had a series of dreadful relationships and clearly isn't used to being taken care of or appreciated. Ryan, on the other hand, who finally sees his chance to win her heart (and has also listened to all her sob stories over the years) pulls out all the stops to pamper and spoil his "fake" girlfriend, at least as much as she'll let him. She refuses to move out of her cramped and ramshackle apartment and won't really accept all the gifts he tries to shower her with.

As is always the case with the fake dating/marriage of convenience trope, the lines between platonic and romantic fade gradually. In this case, the only one in Ryan's life who doesn't know that he's head over heels for her seems to be Emme herself, so one part of the couple is already hopelessly in love and just waiting for the other to reciprocate. 

I absolutely loved this book. It worked for me on every level. Emme is a great heroine who clearly deserves the world, and Ryan is just the man to give it to her. Her parents had an acrimonious divorce and both of her parents have had a series of unsuccessful relationships. Now Emme has a very supportive stepmother, but because of her mother's bitterness and vitriol, it's difficult for Emme to accept this woman's love and affection. She's estranged from her father and doesn't seem to ever have had a decent boyfriend. She works as a teacher (so of course I would love her), and is so loyal to her friends that she's willing to put up with the awkwardness of seeing her ex (and his new fiancee, the woman he cheated on her with) at a number of pre-wedding events. 

If Ryan has any flaws at all, it must be his refusal to confess his real feelings towards Emme. In every other respect, he seems to be perfect. He's a talented athlete, a good friend, a loving son and brother, and great with kids. He worships the ground Emme walks on, and wants to use all his wealth and resources to make her life better. 

This book features characters that apparently first appeared in In a Jam, and mentions characters and places from Shucked. If I'm brutally honest, this book could probably have been a bit shorter, but on the other hand, I am hard-pressed to see which bits should have been left out. This is only my third Canterbary novel ever, but I really like her writing style and am glad she has a big back catalogue I can choose from while I wait for her next book to come out. 

Judging a book by its cover: Not exactly the most exciting cover for this one. Also not entirely sure why it's showing what I'm assuming is part of a football field, since Ryan's career as a football player mostly takes place off-page, so to speak. 

Crossposted by Cannonball Read.