reviewsbyerin

Evie Bennet was widowed at age 25 and has spent the last 13 years devoting herself to raising her son. Now that Cody is out on his own, Evie struggles with grasping what her life will look like now. She's been so well taken care of by her lifelong friends and the men at the fire station who worked with her husband. Her life has been singularly focused and very, very safe.

When Jack Vale temporarily takes the job as custodian of Evie's church, he hopes no one finds out about the mess that is his extended family. His brother's struggles with addiction have Jack constantly waiting for devastating news. He wants to show that he's there for Travis and his family, but it's so hard to watch the downward spiral and be unable to do anything to stop it.

When circumstances bring Evie and Jack together, she can't help but be shocked at the impact Jack is having in his neighborhood. While she lives in a beautiful subdivision, he lives in a ratty apartment building where he often serves dinner to anyone who wanders in his door. He helps one high school student with his homework, allows a second shift dad to catch naps on his couch so he won't be woken by his baby, and lets one muscular young man to help him renovate the building rather than using his hulk for disreputable reasons. Throw in his family situation, and Jack is anything but safe. But his outlook on life is slowly turning Evie's on its head.

When Jack realizes how much he's drawn to Evie he's afraid of what that might mean. It's one thing to choose to live in the mess that other people have made, it's another to consider sharing that mess with someone so gentle and kind. As Jack's family situation continues to fall apart, the temptation to turn his heart away from Evie grows stronger, even if she was brave enough to risk opening her heart to him.

This is the second novel in the Bannister Falls series, and I would highly recommend reading the first book, The Dandelion Field, before this one. Not only was The Dandelion Field one of my favorite reads from last year, there are also many characters who were introduced there who reappear in this one. I really enjoy this author and look forward to her future releases!