Hidden Summit by Robyn Carr

Publisher: Mira
Publish Date: December 27, 2011
Series: Virgin River #17
ISBN: 077831300X
ISBN-13: 9780778313007
Genre: Fiction – Romance, Contemporary
Buy: Amazon | Barnes & Nobles | eBay | IndieBound | Audible

Synopsis: ROMANCE UNDER CONSTRUCTION…

Sick of running into her cheery ex-husband and his new wife, Leslie Petruso accepts a job at the Virgin River
branch of Haggerty Construction and takes the high road right out of town. Now she’s got Paul Haggerty’s
business running like a well-oiled machine. In fact, things are so busy Paul jumps at the chance to hire
an extra set of hands.

Just like Leslie, Conner Danson has been burned by love. But if Leslie was disappointed by her relationship
going bad, Conner was decimated. He’s got no time for women…although he spends an awful lot of time
pretending not to notice Leslie. And she’s pretty busy “ignoring” the chemistry between them.

According to Conner and Leslie, they have only one thing in common—they’re done with love. But everyone
in Virgin River can see that things are heating up at Haggerty Construction. And as far as Paul Haggerty can
tell, the best thing he can do is hang on to his hard hat and watch the sparks fly!

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I only started reading the Virgin River series in the summer of last year. I read them quickly, without breathing for air. The series quickly became a guilty pleasure, and I accepted every single word that Robyn Carr wrote. Like many contemporary romances, the characters had a love story where the love was sweet and the pleasure steamy. But there was a point in time when the stories started to blend together, and while I normally enjoy seeing the original characters, I was getting tired of them. I think I was burned out. So, like a lot of other times, I stepped away from the series.

Until now.

Robyn Carr’s Hidden Summit is the seventeenth book in the series. I believe I skipped a few books, but it didn’t matter. Carr brought me back to the quaint town that I first fell in love with. Everything was where I left it, and the characters were there to welcome me back. But don’t get me wrong. I was a little hesitant to read this. And to my surprise, I found comfort in the familiarity of the characters. Hidden Summit was clearly different from the other titles in the series.

Carr introduces us to Conner Danson. He escapes to Virgin river after witnessing a murder in Sacramento. Conner’s move was a precaution after his hardware store was burned to the ground. The DA forced him to lay low until the start of trial. His sister and nephews had to be separated from him, to further increase protection. He was secretive and mysterious, but slowly warmed up to the town. He quickly became a part of the charm and found himself caring more than he thought possible.

Leslie was also running, but from her ex-husband, and the constant reminders in Grants Pass. Leslie is the tie to the rest of the folks at Virgin River. She was formerly an office manager for Haggerty Construction, and when the going got tough, she had a second family to welcome her. Like a lot of female leads in romance novels, Leslie has a few self-esteem issues. But after a divorce, I think that’s natural, don’t you think? So it wasn’t too cliché, but I think Carr did a great job of writing Leslie’s character.

There’s a kinship between Conner and Leslie that was enjoyable to read. Their relationship was easy and their chemistry was realistic. It wasn’t filled with fluff and rainbows. I could imagine this scenario, minus the murder and trial, with one of my friends. Oh! And how could I miss the quick wit and easy banter between the two? The dialogue was comedic relief at its finest.

I’m telling you, there was something different about Hidden Summit in comparison to the others. It was a pleasure getting to know Conner and Leslie, together and individually. Carr also only mentions a few of the familiar townsfolk. It wasn’t overpowering and they didn’t take away from the main focus of the story. Hidden Summit was truly Conner and Leslie’s story, through and through.

I felt like some scenes were stretched out while other scenes needed something more. There was a good amount of back story, but I wanted more. While a good part of the book is well-paced with a good proportion of detail to action, the last third or so seemed rush. Maybe it was me and how I absorbed the book. So you’ll have to read it for yourself to see if you feel the same way.

Hidden Summit is a great book as a stand alone, but fills your reading soul with the comfort and warmth that is popular in Robyn Carr Virgin River books. I suggest picking this up for a lovely romantic read to kick in the new year.