Bayou Beckons

I liked the story of Camilla and Jared. It was a cute romance. I just wish it was more about romance and not so much running and driving all the time. It should have been more focused on them working up to falling in love so we have a better connection with those two.

What a delight this book was to read! I thoroughly enjoyed Camilla and Jared as they worked to create a relationship together. Their path was not easy but oh so much more valued as a result of all they went through before they met then once they were together.

Jared sees Camilla and falls for her within what seems like minutes. He has a saying to “measure twice and cut once” so he assesses then determines Camilla is the one for him even though she keeps turning him down. Camilla did something in the past that she cannot forgive herself for. As a result of her previous behavior she left home in the South and set out to become a better and more positive person. Camilla believes that what she has done in the past will be a deal breaker to a happily ever after with Jared.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The main characters were believable and deserved their chance at love with one another. The cast of supporting characters were interesting and some deserve their own books in the future. The descriptions of places and events made me feel as if I were there experiencing them. I felt with and for each person mentioned in the story and wanted the book to continue when I finished the last page.

This is the first book that I have read by this author and I would like to thank NetGalley and Wild Rose Press for the copy to read and review.

4.5 Stars

Wow! This series and author just keeps getting better and better. Great story, first in Wyoming and then Louisiana. Really liked the characters, and would love to find a Jared myself. This is definitely one I would highly recommend. I have read the previous two books, but overall I do not think you would be confused if you have not had that advantage. A great story, great characters and a great author. This is a series I could read over and over again. Great books.

People deserve a second chance, especially when they’ve worked so hard to atone for a past digression and change their attitude and life for the better. And sometimes the one person we need forgiveness from is ourselves – the most difficult to acquire because for some reason it’s harder to admit we were young and stupid, and then turn around and forgive our younger and our present selves.

Years ago Camilla had done something so selfish, so stupid that to this day she cannot let it go or forgive herself. Even though the person she had wronged had long forgiven her, Camilla is finding it difficult to give herself that freedom of forgiveness. She had left the bayou and her family behind as she set out to change herself and find out who she truly was today. Finally she settles in the wilds of Wyoming where a second chance at love and a happy future find her- but only if she is brave enough to face the consequences of her past through the eyes of the man she loves.

Jared never expected the “thunderbolt” reaction when he laid eyes on Camilla. There she was, the one woman made for him. Which was surprising because Jared didn’t trust in fate easily or hand his heart over on a platter to just any woman. He’d been on the receiving end of being cheated on by his ex – and he normally would run as fast and as far as he could at the first indication that a woman was capable of doing that to him again. He knew that Camilla was holding on to secrets, and that those parts of her past were keeping her from accepting that they did belong together. He would follow her across the country right in the path of one of the most devastating hurricanes of history in order to convince her that they had a future together.

I enjoyed Bayou Beckons very much. So often we read about the hero who has things in his past that need addressing and forgiving — to see it from a woman’s past was a slightly different feel. Why is it so easy for the reader to forgive a man’s past transgressions? I truly don’t know, but not only in this story but others it does seem to follow a pattern. Even knowing the horrible thing Camilla had done to her sister, I couldn’t help but find her a strong character. When you see the ways that your life is messing not only you but others up royally – then you either continue without care or you dig deep and change your ways. Camilla changed, but self forgiveness was beyond her ability. When she fell in love with Jared she knew that what she had done to her sister was so close to what Jared had experienced that he’d never get past it. His love for her would die a fast death once he learned her truths. She didn’t consider that she was no longer that wild child of her past or that the woman she was today was the woman Jared wanted in his life.

I would definitely recommend this story for any reader that craves a good, solid romance with a few life twists and turns in it.

*I received an e-ARC of Bayou Beckons from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. That does not change what I think of this novel.*