Quick Reviews: The Staci Hart Edition

For Love or Honey by Staci Hart (2021)

She's a small-town bee farmer.  He wants to acquire the mineral rights to her land.  They're at complete odds, but their chemistry is undeniable.  This one was a bit of a slow start for me, but it ended up being a great read.  Jo is basically repulsed by Grant at the beginning, because of his job, but she can't help ogling him at every opportunity - it was a weird dynamic for me.  But, I enjoyed when they finally got to know each other and realized their feelings could be deeper than surface level.  I especially liked Grant's growth throughout the story, in terms of both his personal and professional lives.  I always enjoy a small-town setting, so that was fun, although I wish there had been a little more focus on how the residents planned to spruce up Main Street and attract more business.  I felt like this secondary storyline could have used more attention.  Overall, though, another steamy, romantic hit from Staci Hart!  4 stars

Love Notes (The Austens #4) by Staci Hart (2018)

 

As much as I love Staci Hart's books, this one was unfortunately a bit of a miss for me.  Annie and her family move to NYC to live with relatives after the loss of her father and their family home.  Even though she has a heart defect, Annie is determined to live her life to the fullest and gets a job at a local bookstore.  There she meets Greg.  Even though they friendzone each other, it's clear there's deeper feelings at play.  This book is inspired by Jane Austen's Sense & Sensibility, which I haven't read.  Annie's character is innocent and naive (I mean, she's only 18, but seems much younger).  Her actions and words were sometimes so frustrating.  Although the setting is thoroughly contemporary, the writing (and especially Annie's dialogue) felt very old-fashioned at times, like it was trying to emulate Austen.  It didn't work here, especially when other characters talked like regular modern people and Annie was speaking in such purple prose.  There were so many story elements to keep track of; at times it almost felt like there was too much going on.  But, I liked Greg's character and how he struggled not to show his feelings for Annie but eventually couldn't hold them in anymore, and the secondary characters also added some lightness to what was a heavy story at times.  3 stars