The Pegster - reads

Today is my stop during the blog tour for His Hometown Girl by Karen Rock. This book blitz is organized by Lola's Blog Tours. The book blitz runs from March 31 till April 13, you can view the whole tour schedule here.




His Hometown Girl
by Karen Rock

Blurb:

Jodi Chapman will do whatever it takes to get top care for her autistic son. If that means going home and convincing local farmers to sell their land, so be it. Even if her biggest opponent, childhood rival Daniel Gleason, is equally determined to convince farmers to buy into his co-op plan. And he's not playing fair.

Facing off against Daniel is the last thing Jodi wants. The attraction that's always fueled their competitiveness is as strong as ever and just as distracting. But with both their futures on the line, and years of distrust between them, how can they ever be on the same side?

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Do you still live in the town you grew up in or did you drift away and are leading a very different way now from your upbringing? Maybe you feel like you couldn't get away quickly enough, or maybe you are really missing it and would love to go back tomorrow. For sure, there will be loads of history for you in your hometown, and that is both town and people.

Jodi is trying to erase all memories of her rural hometown Cedar Bay, Vermont since she left 10 years ago. Headstrong and proud, she did not want to be seen as a 'charity case' after a farming accident left her father physically disabled. And that applies especially to Daniel, farmers son and the one she had first lost her heart to. But Jodi tried to put all this behind her and now lives in Chicago and is successful business woman. But her main love now is her 4 year old son Tyler who is autistic whom she brings up by herself. Jodi fights to have him accepted for a place at 'Wonders Primary' Daycare who will give him hopefully the chance to grow mentally and learn how to speak again. But than she learns the cost of the place - way out of her financial reach. She is given a chance to earn promotion and the money needed to send Tyler to Wonders Primary. Her employer, Midland's Farms, is sending her to her old hometown, Cedar Bay, where she is to try to convince local farmers to sell their land to Midland's so they can turn them into industrial style big farms. So Jodi heads back to Cedar Bay... 

Daniel is now running his father's farm and lives with his father and sister. His idea is to set up a local co-op of farmers, and this goes of course, directly against Jodi's task of trying to convince the farmers to sell to Midland's. So let the fun begin …

I had been looking to reading this book for a while. Published by Harlequin under their 'Heartwarming' Series, it kept to it's promise of wholesome, heartfelt relationships with this story which I found easy to read, but at the same time it touched me and had serious subjects as well. 
The romance is clean and believable and you won't feel uncomfortable reading it. What I like especially about the two main characters, Jodi and Daniel, is that both are not 'only good' or 'only bad', but are full of character. Not everything is straightforward for these two, and they have to acknowledge each other and their different attitudes. One example which comes to mind is Daniel who has to acknowledge that he looked at farms only one-sided and has to admit that maybe not everything about industrial style farms is bad. Jodi also changes her attitude towards her son's autism and learns to relax a bit more - being a mum of healthy children who drive me potty at times, I can only try to understand how hard it must be. Jodie comes as a business woman on a mission, but as what will she leave? 

But it's not all serious. Jodie first struts into town in her business suit and her first 'meeting' with towns folks is a class reunion. 
loc 730
...He (Daniel) arrived just in time to hear her (Jodi) exclaim: "You're still pregnant?" to a nearly full-term Pamela Bates. The glowing woman's complexion paled, "That was my first pregnancy - in high school. This is my fifth."..
I loved that and it made me giggle so much. We all have been in embarrassing situations like that. 

This books keeps what it promises - a heartwarming story of a clean romance. As a UK reader who has never visited the US and only knows the countryside with its wide land and farms from movies, this get me to dream about barn dances, pig roasts, line dancing, and apple pies. Hopefully, one day I'll get over the big pond for a visit. 


You can add His Hometown Girl to your to-read list on Goodreads.

You can buy His Hometown Girl here:
- Amazon U.K. (Print and Kindle
- B&N
- eHarlequin (Print Book)




About the Author:Karen Rock has adored romance since receiving Harlequin Presents books from her grandmother each summer. She formed her Young Adult writing partnership, J.K. Rock- pseudonym for the CAMP BOYFRIEND series, with her sister-in-law and Blaze author, Joanne Rock in 2011. When Karen heard of a call for submissions to Heartwarming, Harlequinís latest line, she was inspired by the possibilities of writing unforgettable, deeply romantic, tender love stories that mothers would feel comfortable sharing with their daughters. Since then, her first Harlequin, WISH ME TOMORROW came out in September, 2013 and her next novel HIS HOMETOWN GIRL comes out in March, 2014 with three more releases expected this year.
When sheís not writing, Karen loves scouring estate sales for vintage books, cooking her grandmother's family recipes, hiking the ëhigh peaksí, and redesigning her gardens. She lives in the Adirondack Mountain region with her husband, daughter, and two Cavalier King cocker spaniels who have yet to understand the concept of ìfetchî though they know a lot about love. For more information about Karen's upcoming books, check out her website at http://www.karenrock.com, Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/karenrockwrites or follow her on twitter at http://www.twitter.com/karenrock5 . Sheíd love to hear from you!