Tara has always been too engrossed in her work – refurbishing the historical homes in Smithville. She keeps a tight rein on her jobs and her emotions buried, but she’s losing control of both since that ridiculous city boy investor showed up.New in town, Justin is confident that his ultra-modern resorts will bring Smithville into the twenty-first century. If only the local-yokels and their … their ringleader, the gorgeous and peculiar Tara, would stop interfering.
With her quirky and protective hometown behind her, will Tara confront Justin and the town’s long buried secrets to take on the financial and emotional risk of a lifetime? Find out in this charming small town romance.
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There were a few steamy parts, which i chosed to skip over.
This is the 1st book I read by Kirsten Fullmer. I’m sorry I stopped reading this story at chapter 3 because it didn’t grab my interest.
Excellent can’t wait to read more. Tara has a believability that makes a good story great. She is truly broken. And Justin fixed her, but not in a calculating methodical way. He bumbles along not knowing what to do, giving her breathing space even though his instincts say to hold her and never let go. He pushes at the right times not because he knows to but because he needs her. I liked that they didn’t fall into bed. I loved that he and we got to know and respect her as a person. She was a complete character, him not so much but you can only have so much backstory and hers was the more important of the two.
This was a perfect easy read to pass the days during what seemed to be a never-ending lockdown. Lighthearted and doesn’t take itself too seriously. Classic city boy meets (not quite country) girl story…they don’t hit it off right away but very soon they realise they share similarities where it matters and are both striving towards the same goal for very different reasons. I appreciated that Justin seemed to fall harder for Tara (or Tara wouldn’t allow herself to fall for him so quickly) and he had to work a little to win her over. The story was complex and the characters had depth which is often missing from this genre. It was definitely more of a romance than erotic fiction but some scenes were still very heated. I find it difficult not to skim read to the ‘good bits’ when reading this kind of book but the plotline and character development was enough to keep me interested even when no sex was happening. The descriptive way in which the author writes about the characters’ physical appearances paved the way for the attraction to grow from the moment Justin saw Tara…
’a young woman with long, tan legs….She wore cut off shorts and a sweaty tank top that clung provocatively to every curve of her long lean body.’…
…and that was by page 7! No spoilers in this review but there is a well thought out plot twist and a cliffhanger at the end (this is part one of a six-part series) so be prepared to buy the next book if you’re the type of reader who gets invested in a story. On the plus side, it means I wasn’t too disappointed when the book ended as I had the next one available to start straight away.
Hometown Girl at Heart by Kirsten Fullmer is an excellent start to her Hometown Series. Tara is a young woman who loves her small town of Smithville and would do anything to preserve it. Her gift for refurbishing houses has given her a purpose in life and she allows her to repay the people in her town for the dark secret they cover-up for her. She anxiously awaits the beginning of her next project, a resort. Justin is a city boy who found his niche in building resorts for the rich in quiet and quaint towns. He moves to Smithville to begin his next job on a resort only to find he is strapped with a prickly partner, Tara. They definitely have a sizzling attraction to each other that could cause a dynamic relationship or blow-up their dreams.
I found Kirsten Fullmer an intriguing author. Hometown Girl at Heart has the elements of a good romance; sparks between the characters, humor, and drama, but the author add a twist in Tara and Justin’s background that adds depth to the plot. I love how the author touches on a subject many people are aware of but few woman rises above the stigma and self-acceptance of a horrific home life. I was glued to the story and I really loved the ending.
Author Kirsten Fullmer has worked in the field of engineering, has been a teacher at the college level, was a freelance consultant, and has an affinity for art. Now retired, she has published eight novels including LOVE ON THE LINE, TROUBLE ON MAIN STREET, and her six part HOMETOWN SERIES, of which HOMEGROWN GIRL AT HEART is Book 1.
An ongoing theme in Kirsten’s romance novels is the presence of strong female characters and how they cope with love, life and relationships. Kirsten’s ability to create credible characters contributes to the success of this book, and encourages the reader to follow this series of tales. We first meet Tara, at work, and in a few words her personality it suggested – ‘Tara swabbed the back of her wrist across her forehead leaving a smudge on the bridge of her nose. Cocking one hip against the wall and tilting her head, she evaluated her work. Sweat trickled down her back, crawling between her shoulder blades, and floating sawdust settled in the oppressive humidity, sticking to her face and arms. She sucked down a long drink form her bottle of water, savoring the chill as it slid down her throat. Tipping the bottle up again, drops of condensation feel onto her tank top, leaving small circles in the dust…’ This is a lady who restores old homes…
The plot synopsis provides a map of the story: ‘Tara has always been too engrossed in her work – refurbishing the historical homes in Smithville. She keeps a tight rein on her jobs and her emotions buried, but she’s losing control of both since that ridiculous city boy investor showed up. New in town, Justin is confident that his ultra-modern resorts will bring Smithville into the twenty-first century. If only the local-yokels and their ringleader, the gorgeous and peculiar Tara, would stop interfering. With her quirky and protective hometown behind her, will Tara confront Justin and the town’s long buried secrets to take on the financial and emotional risk of a lifetime?’
Interesting on several levels – historic preservation, traditional approaches vs. entrepreneurial versions of restoration, small town vs. big town attitudes – and Kirsten adds erotica to what seems to be an unlikely compatibility of roles: the result is a fine romance with ample erotica. In Kirsten Fullmer’s hands this novel comes alive with vigor – a refreshing and satisfying experience. Recommended.
Just my kind of book. I’ve read Kirsten Fullmer’s more recent books and really liked them so thought I’d give this first series a try. I loved the characters, but Tara more than Justin. The plot was really interesting and comical at times. I liked to see the different perspectives and the brewing romance between the two. Can’t wait to read the next one, would love to see a bit more of the lesser characters in the next instalment.
Hometown Girl At Heart by Kirsten Fullmer
This story starts out with Tara and she’s won the bid to renovate the building. It’s a total disaster but that never stopped her.
She learns of a development for the resort that will be onsite and the problem with that is she finds him very attractive and it does funny things to her stomach.
Story also follows Justin and he likes to do things by a certain order. He has a hard time locating TJ and the town residents are very vague til he finds a record at the town hall.
They had gotten off on the wrong foot to say the least.
Really like this story because it explains how Tara does things her way-love the recycling or products she scavengers for-so cool! Like hearing how Justin does things his way, methodical and he finds something about Tara that attracts him to her.
Adult scenes are included. Love how the whole town shows up for the ribbon cutting and how fast things go. Justin learns the truth about Tara over time as to how she came to be in the town and does her work and why.
So patriotic and caring and he’s like the total opposite. Can’t wait to read more from this author.
Received this review copy from the publicist and this is my honest opinion.