Sven’s Beard #1
Grady & Avon
Delightful and adorable! One of the best small town stories I’ve read, with a perfect chronicle of how fast the gossip train works. It takes literally minutes and the whole town knows your business!
Avon received an inheritance from an uncle she didn’t know she had, so she came to this little town in northern Minnesota, called Sven’s Beard. Upon arrival, she learns she inherited a newspaper, the building it’s located in, and the apartment above. She intends to sell everything, since her life and her job is in San Diego. But when she arrives, she finds Bess, the newspaper editor and a harridan who immediately put her to work. Since there are employees involved who need their paycheck, Avon starts to work, writing articles, taking photographs, doing the City Hall and Police beat round ups, in order to keep the newspaper going until she can sell it. But what she couldn’t predict is how enthralled she would get with the job and the town and the inhabitants.
And best of all, the Police Chief Ryan Grady, a man as huge as he is grumpy, who can’t deal with this woman who doesn’t know how to dress for cold weather. She constantly aggravates him, defies him, and insists on doing things her way. Who can resist such an attractive woman?
There’s a huge statue of Sven in front of City Hall, all in oxidized bronze except for the beard, which is shiny because everyone rubs it for luck. Sven is dressed as Santa’s during Christmas, all Wednesdays are Svensday and afternoons are free, no work allowed. There are many cute and quirky customs that made this town unique and enchanting.
This was such a wonderful grumpy/sunshine romance, both characters were adorable. Grady starts as this irritable man but he softens to the point that he carries Avon’s bag on his shoulder when her arms hurt. There’s a hysterically funny scene when his friends take to carrying bags too and exchange tampon boxes in between them, all in jest of how Grady is now whipped. I loved how Grady worried about being a good boyfriend, how he should treat Avon to convince her to stay, how he obsesses about what kind of attentions she would like, so cute.
There are also angsty parts where Avon realizes her parents have a history in this town that she knows nothing about and she goes about finding out and mourning all over again their loss.
All the elements are present, angst, humor, steam, suspense, family drama, all conspiring to make one fantastic story. The plot starts slow but picks up speed and turns riveting as the suspense increases. Great reading!
Purchase link
About the author
No comments:
Post a Comment