Ellen Emerson has lived in Jasper Ridge, Idaho all her life and has never wanted to be anywhere else. She loves her town, her family, her friends, and her job managing the Moondancer Ranch. But she’s been unlucky in love, and after years of trying, she’s just about run out of options for romance among the men of her tiny town. Lately, she’s been trying to adjust her expectations for her future, … future, to embrace the life she has and give up her dreams for a love and a family of her own.
She doesn’t need love. She’ll be okay on her own.
Luke Taylor is also a lifelong resident of Jasper Ridge. He and Ellen have known each other always, and they’ve worked together at the Moondancer for years. Ellen’s one of his favorite people; she’s fair and forthright. But Luke doesn’t really think the way most people do; he’s never been good at understanding people or being understood by them. So he doesn’t think much about romance. His mother’s always insisted that there’s someone for everyone, but a life of awkwardness and rejection has convinced him she’s wrong.
That’s okay. He’s just fine—better off—on his own.
Then one day, something between them changes. Maybe it’s the trouble Ellen has with a wealthy and insistent guest. Maybe it’s the trouble that’s risen up suddenly between the people of Jasper Ridge and the people of the Sawtooth Jasper reservation. Whatever it is, their world shakes. And Ellen and Luke, friends for years, see each other differently for the first time.
Maybe there’s someone for everyone after all.
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Gritty, friends-to-lovers, small-town romance
It’s always a dicey proposition to highlight contemporary political issues in a romance novel, but I do feel Susan Fanetti managed to pull it off credibly, even though she received some criticism when she did it in previous books. Adding immediacy to my reading was the fact, that while I was immersed in the story in real time the conflict between Republican South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem and two Sioux tribes about Covid-19 checkpoints on national highways leading thru their territories was still ongoing. All the while Native Americans in general and the Navajo Nation in particular are communities disproportinally impacted by the pandemic and devastated due to the lack of funding from the Federal Government.
Although on a much smaller scale and about a different issue (though also health related) a conflict between the fictional town of Jasper Ridge and the nearby reservation concerning the newly opened health center on the reservation forms the backdrop before which this story plays out. The two main protagonists are both white and so they initially think that the conflict is not their business and they are not into politics anyway. Only in the course of the story it becomes increasingly clear that they actually inhabit a very priviledged position, where they can stay aloof from the conflict because the politics and policy decisions on the local level don’t directly affect them. Mostly, it’s the members of the Sawtooth Jasper Shoshone tribe that bear the brunt oft he brewing conflict. It’s only after the townsfolk and especially the business community start to feel the fallout from the conflict, that things come to a head.
I am aware that many romance readers don’t like to be disturbed by social issues/criticsm that intrudes on the love story, but I, on the other hand, really like stories that push the established boundaries of the romance genre.
And for all the die-hard romantics this is also a wonderful love story of two people who are in their late thirties / early forties and have basically given up on ever finding love. Ellen, who has had a few serious relationships in her life has been disappointed again and she feels she has run out of options in the small community of Jasper Ridge. Luke hasn’t had a longterm romantic relationship because he is different and has trouble connecting with people on an intimate level. Ellen and Luke both work on the Moondancer Ranch, she as the hotel and event manager, and he looks after the live stock and organizes outdoor events for the guests of the luxury dude ranch. They have been good friends for a long time, and Luke has always been there for Ellen when she needed him. But it takes an incident with a pushy guest for them to finally see each other in a different light.
There are so many things I like about this book: the sweet but nonetheless steamy romance between the two main protagonists, the small-town setting where everybody knows everybody (including recurring characters from other books of the series – though it is written in way that it can be read as a standalone), the vastness and beauty of the landscape that the writing manages to evoke, the social criticism that is flawlessy woven into the story, the accurate depictions of family, friendship and community dynamics and last, but not least the earthy grittyness of Susan Fanetti’s narrative voice that gives her books such a distinctive feel. 4.75 stars, since it is not my favorite in the Sawtooth Mountain Stories series, but probably a close second!
Ellen and Luke’s story just left me feeling happy. I always like a good friends to lovers story and this one was extremely well done. Both of them showed vulnerability but also strength, loyalty, love – all things I love in my books. As usual, Ms. Fanetti gave us terrific writing with great characters in a beautiful setting. This story is a good place to jump in as a standalone if you haven’t read the rest of the series.
“All those years of looking for someone, hoping for someone who’d love her, and he’d been right in front of her all along.”
A gorgeous, slow-burn romance novel by Susan Fanetti. This book lends itself toward the notion of home wrapped up in safety, love, and loyalty. It’s unexpected love based on years of friendship and living parallel lives. Both of these characters lent charm and vulnerabilities to the story making it real and engaging.
I love the Sawtooth Mountains. Fanetti has managed to take a beautiful landscape and fill it with people who suffer in a myriad of ways without the love of another. This story takes on new meaning in this series as it truly expresses the cocoon of safety in understanding and taking great pride in your where you’re from and the roots you’ve planted there. The tenderness of care and realizations in the story are compelling and thoughtful.
This wasn’t the story I expected of Ellen Emerson but when doesn’t this author surprise us? The surface simplicity of this blooming romance burns with intensity and human complexities that should be cherished and valued. If you love romance, Someone is not to be missed.