Her chances of finding love are about as good as striking gold, but an old cabin, a new neighbor, and the mountain of Good Hope just might shift the odds.When Natalie inherits an old cabin in the Georgia mountains, she thinks it’s the perfect place for peace and quiet. Then she learns her neighbor has plans for his place, and that means noise, traffic, and people. To make things worse, the man is … worse, the man is drop-dead gorgeous and could charm the skin off a snake.
Natalie braces herself to do battle over the land and to resist Jonathan Wilby’s charms, but her healing heart, an incredible discovery, and an unexpected friendship along the way bring a gold mine of change she never expected – and just in time for Valentine’s Day.
Discover more romances from DanielleThorne:
A Pirate at Pembroke
Proper Attire
The Privateer of San Madrid
Josette
By Heart and Compass
Turtle Soup
Death Cheater
Cheated
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I’ve only read one book by Danielle Thorne — A Pirate at Pembroke — and I loved it. When I saw Valentine Gold and read the premise, I knew I needed to purchase this novel ASAP. What a great read! I enjoyed everything about this book: the sweet characters, the chemistry, the slight disdain for Valentine’s Day, and the thematic discussion on not getting caught up in gossip. Valentine Gold is a sweet clean romance I highly recommend this Valentine season.
Gossip is such an easy trap to fall into. I hate gossip because it’s nine-times-out-of-ten just busybodies being mean. It’s so pervasive, gossip can infiltrate even the most innocuous of conversations. Natalie Boyd, the heroine of Valentine Gold, is not a fan of gossip but falls prey to it. Someone says something. Words are overheard and taken out of context. Those out-of-context words are spread like wildfire and feelings get hurt. To make matters worse, Natalie makes a judgment and a decision based on these out-of-context words and major conflict ensues. This is all good for a fictional tale — novels thrive on conflict. But in real life, real people can be really hurt by gossip and its effects. In the Bible, we are actually directed to stay away from gossipers: Whoever goes about slandering reveals secrets; therefore do not associate with a simple babbler (Proverbs 20:19). God takes words very seriously and we should too. Don’t be a simple babbler! I appreciate Ms. Thorne’s warning on gossip. It’s a great reminder for me today to be a bit more careful with my words.
Valentine Gold is not your typical lovey-dovey Valentine’s novel. This fun and unique story has depth and feeling and substance. I enjoyed this story from start to finish and will miss my time with these endearing characters. I highly recommend this story. Purchase a copy today to enjoy this Valentine season!
I purchased a review copy of this novel in eBook form from Amazon on January 19, 2020. In no way has this influenced my review. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.
Natalie Boyd has decided that moving into the mountain cabin left to her by her aunt is what she needs to do in order to recover from her divorce. Leaving everything and everyone behind, she returns to the small town where she spent her summers growing up. The only difference now is that she’s here to stay and enjoy the peace and quiet and solitude.
What she doesn’t plan on is her handsome neighbor, Jonathan Wilby, and his plans to build rental properties. One part of her wants to get to know the man better, the other wants to do battle with him over his decision.
What follows is a sweet story of healing and romance, with a few bumps along the way. Natalie has to come to terms with her own reactions and decide how she wants others to see her. And, as she opens up to the people of the town, she realizes that she is guilty of overreacting and jumping to conclusions. But, when she is told some gossip and believes it, is she able to forgive and hear the truth?
I liked how the author went beyond a mere romance. There’s also the themes of forgiveness and the dangers of gossip.
Romance – PG / Kissing
Language – Clean
Violence – character falls and has a concussion
Point of view – single / Natalie’s
My rating – 5 stars.
This was a sweet, clean, Valentine’s Day romance that can be enjoyed at any time of the year.
Natalie has experienced the bitterness and heartbreak of divorce when she leaves Atlanta and travels to a mountain rebreather aunt had left to her. She needed some time away to lick her wounds and recenter herself.
Jonathan is her closest neighbor who is handsome and kind. They don’t get off to the best start but as time progresses, they begin to develop feelings. That is, until gossip rears its ugly head and almost ruins what could be something wonderful.
I enjoyed this story and the happy ending.
I was given an arc copy of this book and I willingly offer my honest review.
What engaged me:
• I liked the premise of a woman moving to a rural cabin in Good Hope, Georgia, to start her life again after a divorce.
• Natalie moved to Good Hope to live a simple rural life. She was upset when she found out that her neighbor, Jonathan, was going to subdivide his land for vacation cabin rentals. She was sure everything was going to turn out noisy and visually horrible. She was thinking of a worse case scenario.
• I was invested in this story from the beginning to the end.
• The author was very good at painting emotional and visual pictures with her words. I felt a part of the scenes. I could envision myself in the rural mountains of Georgia.
• This was a sweet clean contemporary romance.
There are some continuity issues in this novel. Here is an example: Jonathan has a lump on his head at the temple from a fall. Then Jonathan’s lump is on the back of the head. These are minor errors, but they stood out. Even with these errors, this book is an enjoyable read.
Her chances of finding a Valentine are about as good as striking gold
My rating is 3.5 stars
It is always interesting reading a new genre from an author you are familiar with. I read A Pirate at Pembroke, by Danielle Thorne last year.
Valentine Gold is a contemporary romance, set in the beautiful North Georgia mountains. I really enjoyed the author’s descriptions of the beauty of the area, with the mountains, streams and even waterfalls. It made me want to pack up immediately and go for a visit!
Jonathan was such a kind and forgiving man. I loved his compassion for his mom’s cat, Griselda, which he inherited when his mom moved into town. I cracked up at the way he introduced her and described her multiple litters of kittens. And as a cat lover, it was fun to have Griselda and her granite-colored kitten as secondary characters.
I confess that I wasn’t a fan of Natalie’s, at least not at first. While I felt compassion for her rough divorce and understood her distrust of men (sorta), she was just so unkind. Angry, belligerent. Even after she had gotten to know Jonathan a bit, she listened to gossips rather than to what she knew about him. . .
So, gossips. All small towns seem to have them. (Yeah, big towns, too, though they never seem to play as prominent a role in stories that take place in them.) One of the lessons of the story is certainly to not listen to gossip, even when the source is your dear aunt’s friend!
If you enjoy small town romances, Valentine Gold was a fun story to while away a lazy afternoon.
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I was given a copy of this book. I was not required to give a favorable review nor was any money received for this review. All comments and opinions are my own.
“True, not all that glittered was gold, but all that was truly golden didn’t always come in a sparkling package.”
As Natalie Boyd navigates a new path for her life, moving into the mountain cabin her aunt Polly left her, she discovers treasure. Not so much the precious gems or gold once mined in the Appalachians, but in the peaceful setting and community that embraced her late aunt. Setting her heart against anything to do with love, being burnt by her ex-husband, will she be able to open old wounds to let someone special come in again?
I was quickly drawn into this story! The setting and descriptions of the Appalachian mountains called to me. Upon meeting Jonathan, my heart fluttered knowing he was the one to get under Natalie’s battered armor. With his boyish charm, ever-helpful manner, and patient outpouring of grace, you just can’t help but fall in love with him! He too has hidden wounds that we learn of later in the story. I wished more of it was told from his perspective, but Thorne gives enough of his backstory so you’re not completely left in the dark about what makes him tick. I like the sparks between these two; Natalie is so hard set against falling in love again and Jonathan is so gun shy to try again. This type of story always makes me anticipate how the author will bring two wounded souls together and make them fall in love in spite of themselves. Thorne did not disappoint! And even though this wasn’t so much labeled as Christian fiction, there are strong hints that God was centered in it. I found it refreshing and added a layer of faith I love reading about. Lastly, I wished I could have meet Natalie’s Aunt Polly. She sounds like a wizened old soul with many life experiences to share with the next generation. Her words of wisdom resonated in Natailie’s thoughts whenever she needed them and I loved it.
In conclusion, this is a heartwarming story about finding peace with our past, forgiving ourselves, and realizing what really matters in life. It’s not the gold that glitters, but rather the things that are far more precious; family, love, community & friends.
* This book was provided courtesy of the author and I was under no obligation to leave a favorable review. All opinions expressed here are my own.*