Eden Durant relocated to the small town of Shelbyville, Texas where she runs Paradise Garden Cafe after leaving a life in California behind. She is dedicated to showing the residents that healthy and organic food can taste good. She is determined to help them live better lives through better food. There has been an attraction between Eden and Chief Deputy Beck Childress since she came to town, and Beck is determined to finally convince her to go on a date with him. When her apartment and restaurant get broken into, he takes the opportunity to get her to agree to spend some time with him. As Beck and Eden get closer, some customers get sick after eating at her restaurant. Beck and Eden begin to investigate to see what happened and who is breaking into her place. When Beck decides to run for sheriff, things get even more complicated and Eden begins to wonder if she should be spending time with Beck. Eden has been keeping a big secret, and knows that it getting out could not only make Beck run but also bring down his chances at becoming sheriff. But Beck isn't willing to let Eden run so easily and sets out to convince her that nothing couldn't be worth her leaving him.
I liked Beck a lot. I thought that he was a great guy and he was really thoughtful. He took his job seriously and was committed to providing the protection and care that the town deserved. But he was also not judgmental about Eden's past, and he didn't care what she came from because of his feelings for her. I loved that he got her a dog to look out for her when he wasn't around, and there were a lot of other sweet things that he did for her. I thought that he was perfect for her and that his feelings were real and believable. Eden was strong and was able to leave a life behind that she wasn't proud of. It had to have been hard growing up the way that she did, and I think that she was great for getting out and making something of herself on her own. I will say that I didn't connect with her character at all though. I thought that she ran too easily and that she didn't really give Beck the chance he deserved a lot of times. I think that they had chemistry between them, and they had some really great moments together. But I just wasn't really satisfied with how their relationship progressed, and I think a lot of that was Eden.
I also felt like this book was pretty predictable, and honestly a lot of the small town typical hypocrisy got really old to me. It was just too over the top at times, and I honestly felt like a lot of it was just thrown in to see how much drama and controversy could possibly be added to one story. I really didn't like most of the characters in this story, but I especially hated Beck's sister Clare. I really wanted to see her get what was coming to her, and I felt like she just never got what she deserved. She was terrible, and she ruined a lot of this story for me. I think that if you are a fan of this series and like small town romance stories that you might give this one a chance. But honestly this one just wasn't for me and I think that while it was sweet and cute at times it was just too frustrating for me to ever fully enjoy. It was well written and I like Kelsey Browning's writing style, but the characters and story in this one just didn't work for me.
**ARC Provided by Author**
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