2.5 stars!
Autumn Night Whiskey is the finale in the Tequila Rose duet, and is an angst filled, small town romance, which fills in the gaps left from book one, but didn't leave me satisfied.
Magnolia is being torn in two different directions, one to Robert, the man she’s always loved, who was there for her in her darkest time, but also the man who threw her away all those years ago, meaning she’s never fully forgiven him. The other is towards Brody, the man who has swept her off her feet and showed her how love can be. But on top of this decision, there is the weight of not knowing which man is the father to her daughter Bridget. Magnolia knows now is the time to find out, no matter how much chaos it will cause to her small-town life, but will the result be the one her heart wants?
As in book one, I liked the small-town vibe, but this time I didn’t really click with the characters or the plot. I never felt emotionally invested in their relationships, it seemed like the ‘feelings’ felt rushed at times, and there were certain aspects of the plot I just didn’t like. I couldn’t understand how Magnolia couldn’t wait until after the paternity results, maybe not to make a decision but at least not to hook up with either of them. I realised after I finished my main problem was that Magnolia made the whole situation about her, and not about the big life changing event of either man becoming a father, or her three-year-old having a father. She was quite selfish at times, and I just didn’t like her character.
Robert just seemed to become a weaker character as the book went on, he was fairly cowardly, and I think he needed to just grow a backbone against not only Magnolia and his father. He only seemed to really show his interested when Brody arrived, and he saw him as a threat. Brody was just such a good guy, he listened and was there when he needed to be, and took the whole thing in his stride, letting Magnolia make her decision in her own time. But in some ways, I wish both Robert and Brody hadn’t both been so okay with how back and forth she was with them. I think some of the reactions to different situations weren’t very realistic, I think there would be a lot more arguing and anger there than there was in the book, it all seemed to be resolved fairly easily.
Overall, unfortunately it fell a bit flat for me, and that it could’ve easily been one book. I wish I could’ve become more consumed by the plot, but by the end of it, I just kind of wanted to know who the dad was, and didn’t actually mind who Magnolia ended up with. I will be reading more of Willow’s books in the future, but the Tequila Rose duet didn’t tick all my boxes.
* I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.*