Always a good read. Author is well-established and writes well. Recommend to adult readers.

This is a wonderful book. I enjoyed the story from the very beginning to the very end. I greatly enjoyed the cleanliness of the book. The story is full of family tragedy, love and learning how to taking care of each other. I enjoyed that the book also included faith in God in some of the characters. The love between Crus and Zoe was a beautiful story that had many good and bad events that made it very difficult for them to finally get together. I will gladly read more from Denise Hunter in the future.

My review of Blue Ridge Sunrise A Blue Ridge Romance
By Denise Hunter


I was looking forward to reading this book. I have read many Denise Hunter’s books and enjoyed them. I was very disappointed in Blue Ridge Sunrise A Blue Ridge Romance. The main reason was it was a retread on many other books by a number of other authors. That in and of itself is not necessarily a bad thing. There are only so many scenarios available. But when there are no likeable characters, at least one new interesting plot twist, or a surprise ending, then it is just not “recommend worthy.”

I do not think that I am giving anything away when I say that given the content of the book, I was quite surprised that Thomas Nelson-Fiction is offering this title. I spent some time on their web site to see if they are going away from Christian fiction in their fiction offerings. There is no statement of what they consider either genre, but given the storyline of Blue Ridge Sunrise A Blue Ridge Romance, I would not label it Christian.

I received a free copy of the book from NetGalley in exchanged for my honest review. Thank you.

Pub Date: 11.07.17
Pub: Thomas Nelson--FICTION

Such a good book! I read it in one night! I just couldn't put it down.

Blue Ridge Sunrise is a story that tugs at the heartstrings .Zoe Collins has returned home to Copper Creek for the first time in five years to attend her grandmother's funeral. She's been living in the city and singing in her boyfriend Kyle's band.

Zoe's grandmother leaves her the family peach orchard and Zoe must decide whether she will run the orchard or return to the city with Kyle. But complicating matters is her attraction to her old love, Cruz Huntley. The story gradually reveals why she left home. Now Zoe has a decision to make.

It is a predicable story but enjoyable read. There is premarital sex but the situation is resolved positively.

Since a friend introduced me to Denise Hunter a while back, I have been a fan. Her books are clean but still have the sexy appeal to them. Although I will continue to read her novels, this one didn't become a favorite. I just didn't connect with Zoe and Cruz. I felt the relationship was rushed and not really established on permanent feelings. They both had personal issues to deal with and communication was a big deterrent. Like I mentioned, I will continue to read her novels, this just didn't work for me. 3.5 Stars.
Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to review this book.

Story Line: 4 Stars
Depth: 3 Stars
Faith: 2 Stars
Love Story: 4 Stars
Overall: 3 Stars


Zoe left Copper Creek five years ago with no intentions of returning. However, now that her beloved grandmother has passed away, she ventures home with a boyfriend and her four year old daughter in tow. Her plan is to stay for the funeral and then get out of there - but she didn't expect to inherit the family peach orchard. She is now faced with the difficult decision to leave behind her career and success in the country music industry to run the struggling business. And to make matters more complicated, her old flame Cruz Huntley is the orchard's manager - not only do they need to work together, but there's a whole lotta baggage and history for them to delicately work through.

When us two chicks see a Denise Hunter book coming out, we get all giddy inside! She is one of our favorite authors who has brought us so many wonderful reads. However, this one fell a little short for us. The faith was very light; we would have liked to see more depth to their relationships with the Lord and more redemption for the characters. The chemistry between Cruz and Zoe sizzles at times, but felt a little shallow; some deeper conversations would have been the cherry on top for these two.

However, we do enjoy this series and we look forward to the next one being released!

Denise Hunter is one talented author whose wonderfully descriptive prose immediately assaults the readers' senses as we journey to the foothills of Copper Creek, Georgia—with its fresh air, pine forests, the glorious aroma of hyacinths, and small hometown feel. After five years of being gone, Zoe Collins returns for her grandmother's funeral with her jerk of a boyfriend, Kyle, and I emphasize the word JERK! Cruz Huntley, Zoe's first love, notices her spunk and zest for life has dissipated and the fact that she lets herself be controlled by Kyle is disturbing.

Zoe makes some of the worst decisions ever, but I totally "get" her. Sometimes when a young woman grows up with a controlling, cold father figure she tends to make a lot of misjudgments in her life. When the hunky (and I emphasize the word HUNKY) Cruz learns Zoe's secret, will the tension rise between them even more? And will another of Zoe's foolish decisions put her life and those around her at risk?

This book got many mixed reviews mainly because of a lack of a spiritual thread and so I kept my eyes peeled for that while reading. God is mentioned many times and reconciliation with Him is found for one of the characters. Cruz also makes mention of the fact that he didn't know where he would be without God. I wonder if these reviewers read the same book as I because I found it heartrending, funny, romantic, suspenseful...all the things that make up a wonderful "I can't put down" novel! I read this in two short evenings and loved it! Denise Hunter has written another winner in my book! (Pun intended!)

I can’t think of a book that I have gone back and forth so much on as I did this book. For awhile I was really loving it. Then I was really annoyed at a turn of events. Then I loved it again. Then I was annoyed again. Then it picked up a little bit again at the end.

I was immediately drawn in to Zoe and Cruz and their second-chance romance storyline. As with most of Hunter’s leading ladies, I found Zoe kind of hard to like, but she did grow throughout the story. I, of course, loved Cruz. I also liked Zoe’s brother, Brady, and her best friend, Hope (I’m anticipating them to be lead characters in a future book in this series). The second part of the book is a flash back to when Zoe and Cruz started dating. I’m a big fan of multiple timeline storytelling and I loved watching those two get together.
As I mentioned above, after loving the book for awhile, something happened that really annoyed me. This is just personal preference, but I really, really dislike any romance trope that involves babies/kids. It just brings my whole enjoyment of a book way down. Another thing that I really dislike in books is when one small miscommunication is the main source of conflict and just one honest conversation would clear everything up. It drives me crazy to read a whole book like that.

Thankfully, the miscommunication was cleared up much more quickly than I anticipated. I was able to get back on the Cruz and Zoe ship and enjoy myself again. I liked watching them grow closer as they worked together to get the peach market up and running. However, Zoe’s old boyfriend Kyle is still not entirely out of the picture. Zoe decides to do something so annoyingly frustrating to remedy that and I found my enjoyment disappearing again. Things did work out in the end, though, with a nice lesson in faith tacked on.

Overall, Blue Ridge Sunrise was just a little uneven for me. While I did really enjoy Zoe and Cruz’s relationship, some romance tropes that I don’t really like were employed and kind of dampened my experience. I know that some people really love those type of storylines though, so I can see many readers eating the whole thing up with a smile. I also thought that for being Christian Fiction it was really light on the Christian. Again, not something that will bother everybody. This wasn’t my favorite Denise Hunter book, but it wasn’t my least favorite either. I liked it enough that I want to continue the series.

Overall Rating (out of 5): 3 Stars

I love Denise Hunter's books and this one was very good. You see the themes of redemption and grace running through it. I did wish the main character had made more of a confession of faith, but it was still very good.

Tess O’Rourke dreams of becoming the first female chief of police in Long Beach, California. As commander of the East Division, she is well on her way . . . until the night she responds to an officer-needs-assistance call and fatally shoots an unarmed teenager. Despite being cleared of wrongdoing by a grand jury, Tess is so hounded by the public that she takes a job in Oregon to escape the bad press.

Winning over the residents of Rogue’s Hollow might be more difficult than adjusting to her new role as police chief in the small, backwater town. Especially when her closest friend, the pastor’s wife, goes missing and the woman’s cousin is found shot. Tess finds an ally in sheriff’s deputy Steve Logan, but as they track down Rogue’s Hollow’s first murderer, she worries that she’s breaking one of her rules and getting too close to him.

The varied cast of character makes it easy for the reader to find someone to root for throughout the book. Gracie is adorable, and she truly makes the story. Descriptions make it easy for the reader to feel a part of the story. A bit more attention could have been given to consequences for past mistakes, but the fact that sin can be a destructive force in one's life is apparent in the overall message and lives of the characters. The book is lighter on the Christian themes than many inspirational books, but this could add to the appeal for a wider audience. .

Always eager to dive into a new Denise Hunter novel, I must admit this one missed the mark for me. Reunion romances are all well and good, and this one had all the usual sizzle and heat readers expect from Hunter, but the faith element -- or lack thereof -- left this story feeling very lopsided. The characters purported to be Christian, yet showed no qualms or regrets about their premarital relations. I get that Thomas Nelson is trying to publish "edgier" stories, but the faith is so glossed over in this story that the sex comes across as perfectly natural and acceptable for these so-called Christian characters. I also get that Christians are human and make mistakes that God can and will redeem, by His grace -- and I even get that that may be the spiritual message this story was trying to convey. But nothing in the text even hinted that the characters' premarital sex WAS a mistake, and in fact it was hinted that both hero and heroine had had sex with other characters during their years of separation, and that that was okay, too. In all, there was just too much spiritual grey and not enough black-and-white truth to make this story a keeper for me. Sadly, I don't recommend this one.

First, let me say that I enjoyed the book. It was readable and the characters were interesting. Probably not a lot of suspense to figure out how the story would end—but enjoyable all the same. A beautiful book about second chances and overcoming obstacles that seem to be insurmountable. The story also lightly touches on domestic abuse. There are a few appearances from characters from Hunter's recent release, Sweetbriar Cottage, which made the story all the more fun.

3.5 stars for the first book in Denise Hunter's new Blue Ridge Sunrise series, set in Georgia. If you read her short story, Sweetbriar Cottage, you will already have a glimpse into how this series is going to go. I felt there's been a slight shift from what we usually see from Denise, and while I don't dislike it, there is a different feel to the story. This could be location, or the plotline, I'm not certain.

As I was sharing my thoughts about this book to my teenage daughters, they asked me to tell them what the story was about. As I retold what happens, their eyes lit up and they said it sounded awesome. Through their eyes I got a greater appreciation for the characters. Both of them said it sounded like one of their favourite movies, Safe Haven, to which I said, she's already done that. And, don't it better in my view, with Falling Like Snowflakes.

It was fun to get a glimpse of Noah & Josephine, who make small but complimentary substance to their involvement. I liked how Denise took us back in time to review the past relationship between Cruz & Zoe. Its a vital part of the story, as it gives the reader the keys to understanding not only Zoe's reasoning to being where she is today with Kyle, and how Cruz lacks the information regarding Gracie. I did get frustrated with Zoe's continual procrastination, the constant fear of being truthful especially with Cruz seemed a little unfounded. He proved himself to be the hero of the hour at every turn.

The storytelling is descriptive and expressive, as usual Denise doesn't fail to draw the reader into the events, and give you that fly on the wall status. It was a interesting take to have Zoe inherit the Peach Farm, and the catalyst that was into bringing her home to Georgia. I didn't feel like there was sufficient evidence earlier on in regards to Kyles behavior to connect the dots as to how he suddenly turns violent. It did feel sudden, regardless of his attitude towards Zoe in the beginning. With the series just beginning, I hope also we will get to see a development in her relationship with her Father, or maybe it is just going to fizzle out and die because she wouldn't study law as he wished.

I was excited to see that the next book will take Brady & Hope under its wing, because they were amazing minor characters. I have high hopes that I will fall in love with this new series as it develops.

Thanks to Thomas Nelson & Netgalley for the eARC. This is my honest review.

This book was a quick read, but seemed rather formulaic and predictable.

I LOVE Denise Hunter's work....and always enjoy reading her latest masterpiece. BLUE RIDGE SUNRISE was masterfully written...a beautiful story. I have highly recommended this novel to all of my reading friends. And it is on order at all of my local libraries for others to enjoy. FIVE STARS.

Blue Ridge Sunrise by Denise Hunter is a good mixture of romance and mystery. The novel begins with like a typical contemporary romance novel, but then Hunter ends the novel with a mystery element. Filled with intrigue and betrayal, Blue Ridge Sunrise focuses on the romance between Zoe and Cruz while telling a story of past hurts being rekindled.
The writing was clear and concise. I believe Hunter's greatest strength is her ability to capture her character's emotions spot on. Both of the characters Zoe and Cruz were developed with deep wounds and dark moments in their past. Both the heroine and hero wanted to move on from their past and learn to accept the present with their current choices, even if it includes both of them.
The romance moved a little fast, but then again, Zoe and Cruz had a past that had been resurrected after five years of separation. Zoe and Cruz had to face the reality of their past and change their outlook on the present and the future. As expected, the predictable ending of a contemporary romance did occur with the happily-ever-after.
The plot reminded me a lot of Catherine West's The Memory of You except her story takes place in a vineyard, and Hunter takes place in a peach orchard. Zoe has a daughter, and West's heroine does not. Both stories feature heroines who come back to a family place because of a death in the family, and they are supposed to take charge of the place. Both run into past love and watch the sparks fly.
Overall, Blue Ridge Sunrise is a happy, go-lucky story that I'm sure fans of contemporary romance will devour and love, but for me, this novel by Hunter really did nothing for me. The story was predictable and had the touch of another contemporary romance novel. Even though the this novel was not my favorite by Hunter, I will still give her more chances.
I received a complimentary copy of Blue Ridge Sunrise by Denise Hunter from Thomas Nelson Publishing, but the opinions stated are all my own.