If you’ve read and loved Sweetbriar Cottage or her first two Blue Ridge Romances, you’ll love this one! Without further ado, here I am to review (and rave about!) Denise Hunter’s novel published in 2018, On Magnolia Lane.
A bit about the book:
We’re back in Copper Creek, Georgia, and this is the third and final of Hunter’s A Blue Ridge Romance series. Yep, that means Noah and Josephine, Zoe and Cruz, and Hope and Brady are back! This romance stars Pastor Jack McReady. (Isn’t that awesome! To those who’ve read Sweetbriar Cottage, Pastor Jack is the first character we meet, right after we meet the main character Noah! How cool is that? I wonder if Hunter organized it that way, hmm…)
To those who aren’t familiar with the Blue Ridge Romance series, On Magnolia Lane is a contemporary Christian romance novel. This novel is 306 pages.
First, the contemporary. Like, today, contemporary. Think K-cups and Jake Owen!
Secondly, this novel is Christian. The death, cross and Jesus are mentioned—although not directly and not hammered over the head—in the novel. Although core to the novel’s theme, Christianity is told in a conversational style. Also, there are Bible verses but no references, which is awesome.
Think about that for a moment. The novel is about a pastor. Who else would be most likely to add an address when quoting a Bible verse, even if it’s only in his head? But Hunter tactfully omits that. Which means, as a reader, I’m flying through pages, digesting in gulps and living the chapters through the character’s eyes and thoughts.
Speaking of the male character being a pastor… Let’s talk romance! On Magnolia Lane is about a pastor… who falls in love! I believe this is very brave and bold of Hunter to use such a subject. I hadn’t thought of how pastors are human and emotional. What a ride!
I’m a huge fan of Hunter’s style of romance, so I’ll gush a bit. I love how Hunter digs deeper, past the “Do I love him?” to the more urgent life problems. And she doesn’t stop there. Hunter points to healing in Christ, in trust in God, in growing in faith. All the while spinning a lovely romance story.
A bit about theme:
In On Magnolia Lane, the theme is trust.
Trust in God. Trust in relationships. The vulnerability of it. The possibility of let-down and failure. And Hunter handles this beautifully from the beginning of the novel to the end.
Other lesser themes are dyslexia, infidelity and the hardships of living as a public figure. All handled very well.
A bit about style:
Denise Hunter uses simple words, the scenes and chapters are short (some chapters are only three pages long!), making this a fast-paced novel. At the same time, she adds enough internal emotional cues to give the reader a thrill. This means we get an emotional-high and meet the action a lot quicker.
Hunter sides on less description letting us dig into the dialogue. I’m glad because I usually glean over paragraphs of 6‘2” built, dark hair, blue eyes anyway. Hunter doesn’t do that, but uses other clever ways to describe characters. Sometimes through someone else’s eyes or from a past memory. Really visual and real. Again, simple.
I also want to note a new (maybe not “new” new, but newly observed by me!) trend in Christian romances these days. The scene that is cut in half so we can enter the other character’s POV. Hunter only did this twice. I’m so, so glad!!! Because this style drives me crazy. I’m seeing the scene through the fellow’s POV, getting into his veins and muscles and understanding his fear and drive… and then the switch happens and half-way through this new scene (which is actually the same scene but in the female’s POV), I get super confused when I see her heart pitter-patter. I’m taken out of the story, have to readjust my thinking (“Oh, yeah, I forgot. POV-switcheroo.”), then dig right back in. Annoying! Good news is Hunter rarely cuts a scene into two POV’s, so most scenes finish in only the single POV.
No gunfights or dangling off a cliff’s edge, but plenty of tension! There were several times where I hoped beyond hope Pastor Jack would do the right thing. He never did the wrong thing (he’s a pastor, after all)… but there was the tendency. And it was a real possibility.
There were also moments when the theme of trust pounded out of the novel and shook me to the core… and it was amazing. It heightened the tension because the fear of this all falling apart was very real. I could watch Daisy climb this cliff—literally sometimes, because there is rock-climbing in the novel!—of trust, of what it means to her. And sometimes these lessons are from Pastor Jack! As Daisy is learning and grappling with this area, the reader knows where it’s leading and what’s ahead and is so afraid for her.
One more thing to note: This the last of the series, which means there are several past characters that may or may not be remembered, depending on if one has read the other three books (three, including Sweetbriar Cottage!). Hunter handles this very well. She tells us other character’s names and very little of their history, not so much to bore us to pieces. And yet, at the same time, she feeds us enough to understand who these people are and how they all relate, making this a novel about well-rounded characters. It’s like being introduced to the family members for the first time. You get the gist, the relationships… and have an appetite to learn more.
Concluding thoughts:
- This book’s theme was big on trust. And who does not have any issue with trusting another person? Or who has never dealt with betrayal?
- At the same time, while the theme is daunting, the novel itself is light and enjoyable. A great mix because most of us aren’t Psych majors who care to know too much about doctor’s appointments and medicine. But we know enough that life isn’t pretty.
- I also enjoy the scant description of setting, furniture and characters. The paragraphs fly by. Dialogue and action are king. Every scene the reader learns something new.
- Another biggie is it’s part of series! At the base of the Appalachian mountains. Within the first page I was again introduced to the characters of the other novels and swept back to the small town of Copper Creek. Pieces of other novels came through, which probably made the book seem fuller overall.
I give this book Five out Five stars.
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