Review: Hometown Girl by Courtney Walsh

Oh friends, where on earth am I supposed to begin talking about this delightful little story?! There is so much to love about it and I'm afraid all I'm going to be able to do is gush. Which, I know, isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I'm sure you'd like to hear more than just "It's amazing, go read it!". But for the official record, it is amazing and you should go read it. :)

Can I just start with how much I loved the quietness of the story? There's no huge emotional bursts that lend themselves to full on angst and drama, which is my favorite way for a story to go. Oh there's certainly emotion, with a little drama/mystery mixed in, but it's not all that one experiences. The biggest emotional bursts that occur feel like precisely what needs to come after certain plot shenanigans. The build up of tension leading to those moments make the emotions of the character natural and perhaps even necessary. Because we human beings, when dealing with hard things that have caused us immense grief and pain, don't usually just simply let go, it's more of a process for us.

Hence what captivated me most about Beth and Drew; the quiet, introverted nature of both of them, yet the real emotion that hovered beneath their surfaces, causing them to draw into themselves. And the way they could each sense that about the other, see it in the little things that most other people overlooked, and, while it took stepping out of their comfort zones in order to do so, sought to find ways to help. They simply couldn't ignore each other, no matter how hard they tried! I think this may be the first story I've read where there is very little actual conversation between the two main characters initially, but goodness the build up of chemistry is high-powered and electric! I was on pins and needles every time one of them approached the other, even if no words were spoken between them!

I especially loved that Drew was this quiet, taciturn type of hero. His inability to express his thoughts would make him seem like not a very romantic sort, but oh let me tell you!! He knows how to make a girl swoon! And poor Beth never even stood a chance. ;) Yet more than just the swooniness of their romance charmed me, it was the way they innately understood each other and how they became such safe places for the other. I absolutely LOVED that all the parts of themselves that they struggled to accept and love were so very easily accepted, loved, and make perfectly imperfect in the other. They complement each other so beautifully! So how could I do anything but love the two of them like crazy in response?

I loved the Whitaker family as a whole as well. Watching the siblings circle each other, yet love each other so fiercely was wonderful! They felt like a real family with all the different quirks and ways they understood each other like no one else could. And those townspeople? So many awesome characters who I could stand to know more about! Seriously, Ms. Walsh. Can you pretty please write more stories based on these characters? I loved them all and want more time with them! :) Overall, this was a glorious immersion into life with Beth and Drew. I closed the final chapter unable to stop thinking about them and all the ways I truly wish they were real. Highly, highly recommend this one, friends!

**I received a complimentary copy from the author via Netgalley. All opinions expressed are my own.

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Birdie raised an eyebrow. "This farm was built slowly and with a whole lot of love. Do you even take time to enjoy any of it?"
"Sure I do."
"I don't think so. You try to force those plants and flowers to grow, and it's never going to happen. Just water them. Give them light. Eventually they'll shoot up out of that soil like the gladiators they are. They do it because it's what they were made to do."
"What are you saying?"
"I'm saying if you do what you were made to do, then you'll find the peace you've been looking for. You can't work for it, you know. You just have to rest in it."