Cora's Heart

Cypress Hollow Yarn #4

by Rachael Herron

He’s the last man in the world she should gamble her heart on. He’s made of risk. So why does she keep wanting to push all her chips in for one last dangerous bet?

Widowed in her mid-twenties, Cora Sylvan has learned the hard way that you should take nothing in life for granted. So everything is planned out to the last degree – from how to run her farm on a shoestring to how to survive a major earthquake. Unfortunately, there's nothing in those notes to cover the return of the infuriatingly handsome Mac Wildwood, her husband's cousin, the man she loved and lost. And Mac, always a gambler who takes too many risks, has a secret plan of his own up his sleeve. Cora safeguarded everything – but she didn't protect her heart.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Chick Lit, Fiction, Knitting, Amazon

365 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 1, 2013

About the author

Unofficial bio: Rachael eats way too many Cadbury Creme eggs, no matter time of year it is. She lives with a menagerie, and battles dog hair on a full-time basis. She's a Knitter with a capital-K, and she reads WAY more than she'd ever even think about exercising.

Official bio: Rachael Herron (RH Herron) is the internationally bestselling author of more than two dozen books, including thriller, mainstream fiction, feminist romance, memoir, and nonfiction about writing. She received her MFA in writing from Mills College, Oakland, and she teaches writing extension workshops at both UC Berkeley and Stanford. She is a proud member of the NaNoWriMo Writer’s Board. She’s a New Zealand citizen as well as an American.

Find her at Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Rachael.Herr...
Twitter: http://twitter.com/rachaelherron
Instagram: http://instagram.com/rachaelherron
Blog: http://rachaelherron.com/blog

Reviews

[Amanda - Mrs B's Book Reviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

*https://mrsbbookreviews.wordpress.com... Heart signals the fourth issue in American author Rachael Herron’s Cyprus Hollow series. Filled with small town musings, humour, heart and knitting, Cora’s Heart represents another engaging caper in Cyprus Hollow. Following the life of Cora Sylvan, this is a tale of beating the odds, second chance love and acceptance.

Cora’s Heart is the story of a young resident of the quaint small town of Cyprus Hollow. Cora Sylvan has suffered a great deal of tragedy and personal pain in her life. Cora has a troubled past and she is a widow. When the story begins, Cora is further tested to her limits by a fire that has destroyed her livelihood. When an old face returns to Cyprus Hollow, Cora finds she is wrestling with long held feelings of love and loss. The gentleman in question, Mac, is also tormented by his feelings for Cora. But Cora is determined to keep Mac at distance, as she cannot afford to let a man into her heart yet again. Can these two lost souls finally overcome their fears and rediscover their lost love?

My personal records tell me that I last read a Rachael Herron book back in 2016, which was The Darling Songbirds. I noticed that I have around half a dozen of Rachael Herron’s books sitting on my TBR shelves, which I haven’t got to due to the sheer volume of review books I must get through. Lately I have had some extra time in my reading schedule to warrant selecting a few long standing residents from the TBR shelves to read. I plucked Cora’s Heart off my shelf as I liked the sound of the title and I was drawn to the strong rural romance feel cover. I tend to turn to rural romance when I am in need of a light and comforting read. Cora’s Heart definitely fit the bill.

Cora’s Heart is book four in this loosely linked series. I stress the word loose, as the setting and a resident knitting queen named Eliza is the only true link to this series. Each book can be read independently of the others and they do not have to be read in order. I read Cora’s Heart after reading only book one some years ago now. There is something ubiquitous about this novel and the series as a whole. The slightly predicable and formulaic approach means that it will appeal to a broad audience.

The setting of Cyprus Hollow is a delight. There is a nice homely and embracing feel to this community that I enjoyed. But it isn’t all hearts and roses. Herron makes us see through her storyline that there are still small minded folk, tension and politics that comes with living in Cyrus Hollow. The lead has also experienced her fair share of personal, as well as professional setbacks. However, working through these obstacles forms the very backbone of this novel.

Herron’s characterisation is sound and her protagonists have a genuine quality to them that made the whole experience of reading the novel very welcoming. Cora has an intriguing past and present background which made the book interesting. Likewise, we discover more about her husband Logan who is now deceased, along with potential love interest Mac. I do have to admit that I wasn’t completely enraptured by this love story, but it definitely helped fill my evening with some much needed light entertainment. I really looked forward to the little knitting based life sentiments that preceded each chapter as a heading, it was a thoughtful touch. If you are a knitter, do not let the cute sweater pattern at the back of the book pass you by!

[Leigh Parrish · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was very disappointed with this book. It had a great setup & could have been really good....but the female lead was so unlikable, spent the whole book having herself a pity party and she was so ugly to the hero. I found myself wishing he'd finally put her in her place and leave her.

[Brenda · Rating 5 out of 5]

We first met Cora when she was sitting outside her shed, the one that she called her workshop, despondently watching the firemen mop up the fire which had destroyed her livelihood. The fire which had started through her carelessness, and destroyed all her hard work, her jams, her candles, her beautiful fleece which she had stored in there. She was distraught, but also mentally kicking herself for leaving that candle burning whilst she’d gone inside the house. She KNEW never to leave a candle burning…it was in her ‘What if..’ book which she jotted notes into, and referred to all the time. Her dear friend Eliza Carpenter had introduced her to the concept, and it had saved her life on occasion.

After the firemen had gone, and she was wondering where to start, she had a visitor…one she could have done without as well. Louisa was her mother-in-law, Valentine’s twin, and they were like chalk and cheese. Where Valentine was loving and cared for Cora, Louisa was abrupt and didn’t seem to care for Cora at all. And her immediate comment of ‘maybe you can get a REAL job now’, was a classic example of Louisa’s contempt for Cora. Since Cora had lost her husband, Logan, to a brain tumour only five years previously, she had been fiercely independent, determined to make it on her own, without any help from anyone else. And she had done it too…the products she sold at the Farmer’s Markets every week, all from her own garden or animals, made her very proud, and even though she didn’t make a huge profit, she made enough to get by. The tourists, as well as the locals, loved the angora sweaters she knitted, and it relaxed her, gave her an enormous amount of peace, to just sit and knit.

So when Mac, Louisa’s prodigal son, appeared on the scene again, they just expected him to breeze in then head off again immediately. But it seemed he was staying for awhile…he had something to put to the three women which he didn’t seem to have the courage to say. With the farms being on land adjoining one another, the family owned a huge amount of property. Mac was working for a multi-millionaire by the name of Royal who owned a Rolls, which he delighted in driving around town in, making the locals stare with envy. He also owned thoroughbreds, about 200 of them, and Mac was his veterinarian.

What was Mac up to? Why were he and Royal in town? And why was Cora’s heart catching, speeding up, every time she was near him? The three of them had been very close when Cora had come to town, and started at the local high school…Mac, Logan and Cora got up to the usual mischief teenagers got up to. But that was years ago! And Cora had married Logan! Did she trust him anymore, especially after what he had done?

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! The characters were extremely real, Cora with her dedication and love of animals, her determination to get it right, and her enjoyment in everything she did by her own hand. Mac with his many faults, always trying to right them, and the side characters of Trixie and Olivia added to the mix. There is a mixture of suspense and romance in this book, and the author most certainly got it right. I’ll be looking to read more by Rachael Herron, and can certainly recommend this one!

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Australia for my copy of this novel to read and review.

[Leah · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't like where this book went. I also didn't like the characters. They were fine at first but became more unlikable as the story progressed. I did like the knitting and the seaside setting.

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rural fiction, and romance fiction for that matter, is a thriving genre that is dominating the mainstream market currently in Australia; and with good reason. One only has to look as far as emerging authors such as Loretta Hill and Rachael Johns, or long standing authors such as Rachael Treasure, Bronwyn Parry, Helene Young and Karly Lane just to name a few, to understand why. With the widespread acceptance of romance writing as a genre and is recent popularity in Australia, it’s no wonder that readers are now flocking to the ‘newer sub-genre’ of rural fiction.

Personally, I’m a new to the genre of Rural fiction and I must admit to absolutely loving the new voices and novels that I am reading because of it. Although I’ve been reading many Australian takes on the genre recently, I can not see no obvious reason why Rachael Herron (an American) will not be as successful in Australia as her local female Australian counterparts. Her characters are strong, the setting vibrant and the story is engaging and universal allowing it to blend across nations despite its American setting.

Cora’s Heart is my first novel by Rachael Herron and I can confidently say it won’t be my last. I devoured this entire book in just one day and was still left wanting more at the end of it. At its core, it’s a story about unrequited love and missed opportunities and it features a somewhat messy love triangle and let’s face it many of the best romance stories do.

Cora is a young widow just getting by on her husbands property. She doesn’t have a traditional nine-five job, instead she lives off the land by making a range of traditional and touristy commodities and for some, that makes her somewhat of an outcast. She doesn’t mind though for the most part, because she knows who she is and she’s happy living life the way SHE wants too. Having learnt to be self-contained and a fighter from an early age, Cora believes she knows how to face just about anything life can throw at her; be that a bomb scare (she has a bunker built in her yard), a water crisis (fresh water and food is stored and regularly checked) or a devastating earthquake (she has a list of the safest places to stand, where to get help and what is likely to fall first). The only things she’s found herself not prepared for was the young death of her husband to a brain tumour and the return of Mac Wildwood. With Mac’s return to town, Cora finds herself struggling with the emotional overhaul of everything she has ever suppressed.

Mac Wildwood is well liked by everyone, despite having completely removed himself from his family land and business. Desperate not to fall victim to his families’ weakness – gambling; at just eighteen years of age, Mac left town headstrong and determined to make a name for himself in a professional capacity as a vet. And although he has far succeeded his own ambitions and those of his family, he still finds himself coming short when it comes to a certain redheaded Cora Sylvan. The same Cora who has been the object of his affection since he was seventeen, and yet somehow married his cousin. Returning home was never going to be easy for Mac, for despite his cousin no longer being in the picture, he’s return home is not motivated by personal reasons but rather by business gain.

In a strange twist of tragic and traditional, Cora’s Heart is essentially a story of missed opportunities and mistaken identities, of young love that refuses to die and heartache that knows no bounds. It’s a story encompassing second chances and what ifs. It is beautifully written and told in such a way that the narrative constantly keeps the reader guessing what might happen next. Big obstacles must be overcome before either our heroine or hero fully understand where they belong, all of which makes for an exciting read. The narrative had the capacity to overrun on drama, but it appears to take a step back when things get heavy, allowing the reader and its characters to re-think what is happening and in part that is what made this novel so readable for me. I simply couldn’t put it down. At every page I was left wanting to know more. I needed to know how Cora would react, or what Mac was going to do next to prove his loyalty and make up for lost time. I was desperate for the secrets that lurk just below the surface to be revealed, and yet I was grateful that Rachael Herron is such a master of narrative pace, that nothing was drawn out or left lingering too long just out of reach.

My only regret and disappointment with this novel, despite giving it five stars, is that I really wanted to see the idea of place and the rural land setting play into the story a bit more. Sure the characters are clearly from the country, and you have your stereotypical town, but the use of the land setting was sparse and mostly left me feeling almost uninspired. In fact, the rural nature of the story and the community where Cora lives is universal in many ways. Although it is a big knitting town – an unusual twist I quite enjoyed – there didn’t appear to be much difference apart from this that separated the setting of this particular town from another town in another book set somewhere completely different. Sure the land and rural community and characters are there, but the place setting doesn’t shape the story as much as those employed in Helene Young’s, Bronwyn Parry’s or Loretta Hill’s narratives. In those works, the settings themselves define the narrative as well as the characters just as much as the underlying story does. The setting is evident in everything the characters do and say, the way they see the world etc. But in this narrative, while the country land is acknowledge as home and their way of life, it is mostly left ignored making the characters the driving force behind the narrative. While there is nothing wrong with a character driven novel, I just wanted a tiny bit more from the story to really cement the rural qualities of it. I understand that it is slightly unfair to judge the book on a trait of the Australian rural fiction genre, but the differences appear very obviously throughout the narrative. That said I still highly commend Rachael Herron on her work and I do still stand by the books five stars.

Cora’s Heartis an entertaining and quick read (I read the entire thing in one day) that keeps its readers on their toes without overdramatising or running the risk of losing its readers along the way. Although the setting may not be as unique or contemporary as Loretta Hill’s Pilbara, nor as exotic as Helene Young’s tropical locations; it is still a gripping story that leaves you wanting more, thus making it a must read for all rural and romance fiction fans. I’ll definitely be searching for Rachael Herron’s previously published books now. If they are anything like this one, I can’t wait to devour them as much as I did this one. You won’t be disappointed that you picked this novel up.

[MarciaB - Book Muster Down Under · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Blurb

"From bestselling author, Rachael Herron, comes another playfully seductive romantic comedy set in the sleepy town of Cypress Hollow. Cora has been hurt too many times. And by one man in particular . . .

Abandoned by her mother and widowed in her mid-twenties, Cora Sylvan has learnt the hard way that you should take nothing in life for granted. So everything is planned out to the nth degree - from how to run her farm on a shoestring, to how to survive a major earthquake. Unfortunately there's nothing in those notes to cover the return of the infuriatingly handsome Mac Wildwood. Her husband's cousin. The man she loved and lost. And Mac, it seems, has a shattering plan of his own up his sleeve. Dammit. Cora Sylvan safeguarded everything - but she didn't protect her heart . . .

Cora, a farm-girl who's been hurt too much in the past, safeguards everything--except her heart. Mac is a large-animal veterinarian who has already risked it all and lost everything that mattered. When a secret is revealed, Cora has to decide whether Mac is a safe bet . . . or the worst gamble of her life.

Overview & Thoughts

Once again Rachael Herron takes us on a journey to the sleepy town of Cypress Hollow where the legend that is Eliza Carpenter lives on and we discover a bit about the girl whom Eliza took in, Cora Sylvan.

Cora values her independence more than anything else. Having grown up in and out of orphanages and then at the age of sixteen being taken in by Eliza Carpenter, she’s only really had herself to depend upon.

Now a young widow herself, she takes nothing in life for granted and is rather pragmatic in that approach, preferring to plan her whole life using the never-ending list of “what if’s” she journalises.

When Mac, her deceased husband’s cousin arrives back in town after being away for quite some time, he threatens to disrupt the quiet life she has managed to build for herself when he finally reveals the real reason for his reappearance.

Long-held feelings of anger and desertion threaten to boil to the surface of her carefully maintained life and home. Along with the very real prospect of financial ruin after unintentionally setting fire to her shed cum workshop, thereby obliterating all the hard work she has put into her canned goods and knitting yarn, she will need to ultimately confront Mac and learn the real reasons behind him leaving Cypress Hollow.

Cora's Heart is the fourth story in the Cypress Hollow series and, after reading Eliza's Gift towards the beginning of last year, I was really looking forward to this instalment of life in the somewhat sleepy town, and Rachael Herron didn’t disappoint.

With her extensive knowledge of knitting along with her creative flair and keen eye for detail, intertwined with her lyrical writing style and beautiful words of knitting wisdom heading each chapter, Rachael has created a story with likeable characters, a touch of comedy and lots of knitting with a satisfying, albeit somewhat formulaic, plot.

A recommended read for those ardent knitters out there who enjoy their craft with a side of romance and humour.

I wish to thank Random House Australia and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this novel.

A Little About the Author

Rachael Herron lives in Oakland, California with her family and has way more animals than she ever planned to, though no sheep or alpaca (yet). She learned to knit at the age of five, and generally only puts the needles down to eat, write or sleep, and sometimes not even then.

Cora's Heart is her fourth novel, following Eliza's Gift, Lucy's Kiss and Naomi's Wish. All the novels are set in the sleepy town of Cypress Hollow, which reminds Rachael of the sheep-raising community in New Zealand where her mother was raised. Look out too for a collection of Eliza Carpenter’s wise words in
The little book of knitting wisdoms.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable read

A lot of old history to be plowed through in this story. I'm glad Mac and Cara finally found their happy ever after and there were light moments that made me smile. I'm left with a few unanswered questions but overall a satisfying read.

[Baca Buku · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has a good story line. And I like the author's writing style for the most part. It's quite emotional and that sometimes gets in the way of the pacing. So much introspection.

There's something about the characters - every one of the 'main cast' - that rubs me the wrong way.

[Bree T · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cora values stability more than anything. Abandoned, raised in multiple foster homes and then widowed in her twenties, the house she lives in on a parcel of land owned by her late husband’s family is precious to her. Cora gets by financially by doing anything she can. She’s gifted with a loom and knitting needles, she makes candles and cans food. She sells her creations at markets locally and carefully nurtures her animals. She can’t afford pets, so the animals she keeps must contribute, such as the sheep.

Mac Wildwood is Cora’s late husband’s cousin. As teenagers, the three of them were inseparable but Mac has been gone a long time. Cora harbours deep feelings for Mac – some are resentment that he was away so long, including for Logan’s funeral but most of her feelings are far more complicated than that. Now Mac is back in Cypress Hollow and although his mother and aunt are delighted to have him returned, Cora is skeptical. Mac has never been able to lie to her and she suspects he’s up to something. However even she is surprised when she realises that Mac could be the very person that ends up threatening the security she gets from her home and land.

Mac hasn’t been able to come back to Cypress Hollow because of his feelings for Cora. He’s loved her as long as he can remember but out of respect to his cousin and later an inability to face his own feelings of guilt, he’s kept away. But now he has a reason to be here, a business proposition that he’s putting together on behalf of his boss for the owners of the land. Mac thinks that it might be best for everyone but he has forgotten just how strong and stubborn Cora is…and what it’s like to be around her.

Cora’s Heart is another novel set in Cypress Hollow. I haven’t read the previous ones but they’re quite loosely linked and this one easily stands alone. Cora has had a very difficult life, especially in her childhood and teen years. Stability was a foreign thing to her until she found someone who could love her like she was their own, who taught her to cook and knit and who taught her that she could do things and be worthy. Cora, Mac and Logan quickly became friends and despite the fact that it was Mac Cora had feelings for, it was Logan she ended up marrying. Theirs wasn’t always a good marriage but they were fiercely loyal to each other. I actually really liked the way Herron portrayed Cora and Logan’s marriage. Logan is long dead when this book begins but later on, through other people, you find out that even though he wasn’t the best husband for Cora, being far too fickle with money and prone to gambling, he really did do his utmost best to protect her from something that he knew would have devastated her. In putting Cora first, Logan sacrificed something himself and even though he was fickle and selfish, that one act made him likable as well. You could see why Cora had stuck with him. She loved him, but she wasn’t in love with him. Theirs wasn’t a grand passion or never-ending love. It was something that was comfortable, they respected each other and liked each other and they made a go of it. But Logan’s tragic death set Cora free in a way, because Logan would’ve eventually stripped her of the security of the house by gambling it away.

Both Mac and Cora had to deal with a lot of guilt about the feelings they’d had for each other both in the past and in the present. Mac and Logan had been very close, like brothers really. Cora also harboured a lot of resentment toward Mac for not returning when Logan died but I did feel that even though it wasn’t an “excuse” as such, Mac did have a pretty good reason personally for the fact that he wasn’t there. This book touched on the lure of gambling and how it can destroy whole families and how future generations can be susceptible even when they’ve seen previous family members become caught in the web. It was because of that fact that I was able to sympathise with what happened to Mac which ended up being the reason he wasn’t there. Cora also has to overcome the fact that it seems like Mac wants to take her home away. Stability is absolutely crucial to her, she cannot live with the uncertainty of possibly having no home and it seemed a bit insensitive that Mac and a couple of others really couldn’t understand how passionate she was about this. You’d think that they’d know how important it was to her.

Cora’s Heart was an enjoyable story with a sweet side due to the small town setting, the knitting that is anchored in the story and the vulnerability of Cora as a main character. I did think that there was something a little lacking in the chemistry between Cora and Mac – perhaps there were just one too many misunderstandings between them.

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A small town romance with elements of second chance and enemies to lovers. I loved the feel of this one - lots of secrets unveiled and an epiphany.

Likeable characters and a sweet warm feeling to the story.

[Preet · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've always been a huge fan of Rachael's writing. I fell in love with her and her characters from the first moment I read the excerpt from How to Knit a Love Song sometime in 2010. My love for her stories has not abated since then, but has grown with time. Cora's Heart is another heart warming tale that will stay with you long after you've finished the last page.

Cora is a woman I admire and would love to be myself. She's resilient and independent. She's prepared for everything but open to everyone. I felt her pain while she watched her shed burn and most of her stock and livelihood burn with it. The thing I love most about Cora is her heart. She loves fiercely and true. She has a strong sense of family and is willing to do what it takes to keep them safe and happy. Mac was sort an enigma. I got he and Cora had history, but I wasn't prepared for his fierceness, determination, and the depth of his love for Cora. The two of them together simply made me happy and my heart sigh.

One of the things I loved about this book was how much I enjoyed reading it. I didn't want it to end. I love being in Cypress Hollow and getting glimpses of some of my favorite characters from previous stories. There were a number of revelations affecting many of the characters in the book. I was left as shaken and devastated as they were after each one. I felt like I was part of the story, each of Cora and Mac's highs were mu highs and their lows were my lows. Rachael did a fantastic job with this book. The long wait was well worth it. Thankfully my wait for the next Cypress Hollow novel is very short. Fiona's Flame is available.

[Angela · Rating 2 out of 5]

I came back to this series after some years apart, and having really enjoyed the first 3, I was excited to read this one. However, it was not a very enjoyable read. There was a lot of emotion, some fabulous familial angst. The romance however, was weak and underdeveloped. I really dislike Trixie's character, and found her rather irredeemable even with her last "charitable" act, in which it seems the author wanted us to believe she had a heart and was looking out for Cora. I call BS. She was nothing but mean to Cora throughout the entire book, even in flashbacks Mac, was meh. Actually, pretty weak. He never went after what he wanted. And he probably could have prevented heartache for everyone if he had. Not to mention, Logan, who is spoken about with reverence throughout, when as far as I can tell, he was a pretty crappy person. For all of these reasons, this book just didn't do it for me.

[A.T. Weaver · Rating 4 out of 5]

"What if ...." This has been Cora's mantra for many years. She even has a diary in which she lists all types of catastrophes. She has a storm shelter stocked with everything she'd need in case of an emergency (except an earthquake). She has made her farm into a self-sustaining business since the death of her husband. When her shed containing all of the hand-spun wool, knitting projects and canned food she intends to sell burns, she is at the end of her rope. Her life has been a series of disappointments and there is one more left to come.

Love, betrayal and an erroneous belief are all combined into a moving love story.

[Ellen (more books, please) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Listened to Audible version.

Story trite. Misunderstandings and twists happened too often. Too, too much angst.

The narrator for this book has a very old voice. The way she voiced the hero and heroine made them seem much older than the characters were. I found myself thinking "they are too old for being this stupid."

And then the final straw was the voice for the teenage girl, who sounded like an 80-year-old man who had been drinking hard whiskey and smoking cigarettes since he was 10.

I was an hour away from the finish when I realized I was exhausted from listening to it. I have the e-book version so I may, must may skim the end. But I doubt it.

[Janeiowa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had not read anything by Rachael Herron before, but I will certainly read more books of hers.

Cora's Heart is an emotional story of a young woman who has had to make her own way all her life. When the book opens, she's a young widow who is doing all she can with her crafts and yarns and canning sold at a farmers' market to hold her small farm together.

I loved the storyline and her characters came alive for me. Some of those characters I loved, and a couple I wanted to shake. Not many authors can create such wonderful characters that makes me so involved with them.

[Brooke · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oh it saddens me to have to give this one only two stars. I just did not like Cora. I tried. I hoped she would change. She didn't. She was selfish and just plain unlikable.

When it came to "the big realization," (without creating spoilers), I couldn't believe Mac's initial decision. Ridiculous and unbelievable.

I liked the previous books in the series, but was disappointed in this one.

Oh well... on to the next with fingers crossed.

[Kay · Rating 2 out of 5]

Spoiler Alert!!!!!

If you don't want any spoilers to ruin your enjoyment of this book, look away now!
Right, the reasons I o Lynn gave 3*. Number 1- I'm sorry to say this but I found the story painfully slow. There was so much repetitive introspection it became painful to keep reading it. I don't mind a book laying a good deep foundation for it's characters but it personally became too much for me.
Number2- Cora was such a beautiful, deep , lonely yet loving character, I wanted her to end up with someone as equally deserving for her. In my opinion even Mac wasn't good enough. Even he told her lies, so he was no better than his cousin Logan!
Number3- Does it only take 1 person to create a baby these days? Does an affair only include one person, the male of the species?
The book b**** has an affair with the main female characters husband and everyone blames the man only????? I mean, does this mean the woman did nothing because after all she was given hugs and apologies for raising a child on her own (said child a result of an affair with another woman's husband) / as if she played no part in her actions!
I'm absolutely dumbfounded in any writer who creates an affair where the man is the only one to blame!?!? Does this mean the lying, cheating wh*** was raped? Because she did nothing right?
Then Mac began to lie just as easily as his cousin did! Neither we're good enough for Cora, they were both lying cheating worthless men.

[Ronnae Stately · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cora is an odd duck cause she is living on land she inherited from a husband she really didn’t know. Mac is a man that has come home to Cypress Hollow to claim what is rightfully his but not in an honest way. Olivia is a girl who has know idea who she really is until the truth comes out in a way no child should find things out about themselves. Royal is a overprivileged man who thinks money can get him everything but knows it won’t get him what he wants most which is a woman that doesn’t want his money. Tricia has lied for almost sixteen years about her daughter and somehow she still doesn’t want the truth to come out. She tries to get Mac to lie about Olivia’s parentage but he’s no good at lying. Then there are the two sisters Valentine and Louisa who just happen to be related to Mac and Cora and you find yourself involved in family drama that gives you a full picture of what happens when you don’t go after what you want.

[Martha · Rating 2 out of 5]

It never grabbed my attention. I forced myself to finish reading it.
Things I liked:
Cora, the heroine, was strong, independent and extremely resilient. The setting of Cypress Hollow. The relationship between Cora and the 14 year-old Olivia. The equestrian therapy riding stables. My favorite part of the book were the quotes from Eliza Carpenter that opened each chapter. Unfortunately, she was dead!

Things I did not like:
Cora rebuffed any attempt to accept help from others even when it was offered in friendship. Cora's late husband. What a deadbeat. There were TOO MANY secrets. One or two would have been okay, but more than two? Mac's inability for an honest conversation. Ditto for Cora. I wanted to shake them and shout, "Talk to each other!" Mac and Cora's romance seemed like a convenient plot device. It didn't ring true.

[Dosha (Bluestocking7) Beard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have been enjoying this series, however, the narrator for the first three books is not finishing this series and that is very unfortunate. The narrator for this book is nowhere near as talented as the previous narrator. The main love interest in this book sounds like an old creepy sicko. I am very disappointed. Some if the characters have developed southern accents 🤷🏽‍♀️. The story is still good and I will not switch to text for the sole reason that I want to knit while I listen to story. I am on the second sleeve of my hubby's sweater, so I will stick it out.

[Diane · Rating 2 out of 5]

okay read

Both liked and disliked this book. Liked Cora initially but then went off her with her rigidness and her saint like behaviour especially towards her dead husband. Mac I liked as a character but again this protectiveness of his cousin and Cora’s husband who quite frankly seemed selfish and a user began to irritate me. So liked elements of the story but the prolonged and protracted Logan who is dead issues spoilt it for me.

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

Touching

Not your usual romance.
Loved the differences and quirkiness of the characters.
Enjoyed reading it from start to end.
Only things I didn’t buy was Cora or more importantly her Mother in Law or her Sister not knowing about Olivia. No way a small town would have kept it secret.

[Lisa Maloney · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book put me through the emotional ringer. I'm so disappointed for the main characters and how differently their lives could have been (some side characters too). I'm glad it got the happy ending they deserved, but I do wish there was more of it at the end because it didn't really allow recovery time.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I gave it 4 because I've now read it twice, and when I realized I had read it, I kept reading. Also, I like reading about people in places, even fictional, that are close to where I grew up. Oh, and the knitting and knitting quotes. Okay, I like the characters too. It's nothing complex, but it's a sweet read...with some good spice too.

[Cynthia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great

Cora is barely making it, but when her shed burns and some of stuff for farmers market does too. She has to figure everything out. Mac is back but he needs to talk to his mom & aunt. But there are secrets that are going to come to life.

[Jewett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Being a knitter this whole series is a great read for me. Yes, it's a romance and you know who will get the girl, but it is a great journey. The characters and the setting are well thought out and very interesting.

[Kelsi Baker · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would give it a 3.7. It was a cute story but didn’t like the bantering back and forth between the 2 main characters. She was so scared all the time and he had a very stupid reason for not coming back to his hometown until then. Overall the book was good, just wish there was a little more to it

[Melissa Salinas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow!

I absolutely loved it. So many secrets. Twists and turns. Some unexpected moments. Just an overall great story. I fell in love with the characters.

[Ashley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can't stand main characters who worry so much. Good LAWD.

[peggy · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a great book , I downloaded it on my Kindle and read it on the beach two weekends in a row. I had a hard time putting it down .