Last up on my Entangled Bliss reading binge: Sara Daniel’s LOVE HIM OR LEAVE HIM, book #2 in the Small Town, Big Dreams series (though it absolutely stands alone). I’m a sucker for small-town romances and the ‘former high school sweethearts reunited’ trope, so putting the two together generally augurs well. With LOVE HIM OR LEAVE HIM, Ms. Daniel delivers a heartwarming read with an enjoyable mix of sweetness, drama, and humour and two remarkably layered protagonists set against the cozy backdrop of a small Midwestern town.Becca Sanders had big dreams and big plans to get out of small-town Kortville, Illinois and see the world whilst rendezvousing with then-boyfriend Connor O’Malley in exotic locations during his military leave. But her mother’s death and father’s hasty departure from a town he’d been trapped in due to a teenage pregnancy crush those dreams and make a ridiculously unprepared eighteen-year-old Becca the sole guardian of her younger brother Toby. Twelve years working a dead-end supermarket cashier job later, Becca is counting the days until Toby heads off to university and she is finally free to leave town and never look back. But there is one big, sexy obstacle in her way: former flame and current chief of police Connor, who mentors the at-risk Toby and can’t bring himself to support Becca’s vehemence that Toby go away for university when he’d be content to remain in town working in his current construction job. A butting of heads over this matter after having studiously ignored each other for two years (hard to believe considering he’s the police chief and she’s the head cashier at the town’s only supermarket, but just go with it) shows Connor and Becca that the scorching attraction from their youth hasn’t faded one bit—and leaves Connor determined to make up for his teenage idiocy and show Becca that Kortville is the perfect place to be.
Becca is one of those characters sure to leave no one indifferent. Regardless of whether you like or dislike her, it’s clear that Ms. Daniel has created a thoroughly three-dimensional, complex character anyone can relate to. What her parents did to her drove me mad—what kind of a parent makes his/her child give up their dreams to ensure the younger sibling is raised in the small town one parent wanted to be in forever and the other couldn’t wait to leave?? Becca showed incredibly fortitude and loyalty accepting the responsibility to raise her younger sibling as her mum intended, and I genuinely admire that. Add in the fact that she’s doing it in the town that spread false rumours about her promiscuity as a teen, and I’ve got mad respect for her. The one thing I disliked, though I could absolutely see and relate to where she was coming from: the way she pushed her brother to attend university out of town despite his insistence that he’d rather stay in Kortville and continue working in construction. It’s a tough line to walk between wanting to ensure Toby has the opportunities she was denied and seeking to redeem herself through him and Becca generally does a poor job of it, but watching her discover that everyone has a different path to success and fulfillment is incredibly rewarding. Equally rewarding is watching her discover herself and realise that she, too, longs to make a true life in Kortville—all thanks to a sexy lover, an unidentified vandal, a budding fitness business, and the town’s quirky residents.
Connor is the kind of hero I can get behind. Sure, he was a bit of a wanker as a teen and afraid of how a long-distance relationship would work with him in the army and Becca off at university, but he’s grown into a really great guy. He loves Kortville—though his reasons for doing so are complex and add another layer of realism to his character—and all its residents, taking the time to indulge even cantankerous old ladies who are really just lonely in daily early-morning conversations. He’s struggling with what he saw, did, and—most especially—failed to do during his deployment in Afghanistan and his time as a big-city cop and feels overwhelmingly responsible whenever something goes wrong in his town. He’s suffering from PTSD but initially refuses to accept it—and watching Becca help him admit he has a problem that he can’t beat alone, and then watching him seek help despite how those therapy sessions shred him is really heartwarming. Connor and Becca are perfect for each other, and even though I didn’t really buy the big reveal about why they broke up in high school and haven’t spoken in twelve years, I couldn’t help but root for them to work through their issues and get their well-deserved HEA.
Overall, LOVE HIM OR LEAVE HIM is a well-written, well-paced story that tempers the inherent sweetness of Bliss titles with emotionally complex characters and the right touch of drama. Ms. Daniel does a great job bringing the small town of Kortville—with its quirky characters, unavoidable gossip and butting into others’ business, and strong sense of community—to life, which will appeal to fans of small-town contemporaries. And though the love scenes fade to black, there’s enough chemistry between the protagonists and build-up to the act itself to satisfy those of us who like more spice than sugar in our romance. Having had brief glimpses of Matt and Veronica in this story, I look forward to going back to book #1 in the series and catching up on their story, as well as seeing what the town of Kortville has to offer in the future.
**ARC provided by Publisher**
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