mountainside_reading's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.0
bookscrystals93's review against another edition
2.0
I got about half way the this book and just couldn't get into it. This is my first time reading Robyn Carr. I normally don't read a lot of contemporary romance but this was for a book club I'm in. Just wasn't for me.
trinyweeny's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
mikkane's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
sberk0612's review against another edition
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
gingrasv's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
virginia_thea's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
tense
medium-paced
4.0
meezcarrie's review against another edition
3.0
Instead of a mountain hamlet or a coastal town, Robyn Carr takes us instead to a campground owned and operated by Sully – the crusty owner and operator who knows a little bit about everybody and everything in the Colorado hiking trails. I personally liked this twist on Carr’s usual theme, as it already has provided an eclectic mix of characters and anecdotes – with more to come in future episodes, I’m sure!
I also like Sully. He IS crusty but he’s got a big heart hidden under all that gruff. His neurosurgeon-in-personal-crisis daughter Maggie was actually the primary focus of What We Find, though. And while I liked Sully, Maggie didn’t win me over easily. It’s not that I didn’t like her… I just didn’t love her. Her not-so-subtle but dryly-hilarious attempts to guess Cal’s full name did amuse me however and gained some points in her column.
Cal… Cal, I mostly appreciated as a character. He was a good guy with a good heart. When he cared, he cared deeply – and that’s always attractive to me in a male lead. Cal and Maggie together, eh. I don’t know. I enjoyed how their antagonistic (at least on Maggie’s part) relationship progressed to friendship, but I felt like, once they got together, the emotional development between them stopped. It was all there, right away, it seemed – no learning curves or normal adjustment period. No real conflict between them.
The real conflicts in the book were mostly internally isolated per each character. Other – secondary – characters contributed to these conflicts and actually, the resolutions were mainly reliant on these other characters too. For instance, Maggie needed to be confident in herself, her past, and her calling. Once she was, it was just a matter of waiting for other people to do their part so everything would work out.
Finally, a lot happens from page one to “the end” – some of it seemingly random, some of it not – but that’s pretty par for the course with a Robyn Carr novel as well. After reading all 20-something books in the Virgin River series and all 9 in the Thunder Point series, I’m used to this and I know that if one subplot doesn’t interest me I need only to wait for the one that does. The problem with What We Find is that none of them really did.
Still, even with these aspects that didn’t quite do it for me, What We Find sets us up nicely for this next series. There are several secondary characters with whom I want to spend more time. Not to mention, the setting is unique while still delivering the classic community feel that Robyn Carr writes so well. If you’re wanting to branch out into this author’s books however, I still recommend starting with Virgin River. Tell Jack & Mel and Preacher & Paige that I sent you :)
I also like Sully. He IS crusty but he’s got a big heart hidden under all that gruff. His neurosurgeon-in-personal-crisis daughter Maggie was actually the primary focus of What We Find, though. And while I liked Sully, Maggie didn’t win me over easily. It’s not that I didn’t like her… I just didn’t love her. Her not-so-subtle but dryly-hilarious attempts to guess Cal’s full name did amuse me however and gained some points in her column.
Cal… Cal, I mostly appreciated as a character. He was a good guy with a good heart. When he cared, he cared deeply – and that’s always attractive to me in a male lead. Cal and Maggie together, eh. I don’t know. I enjoyed how their antagonistic (at least on Maggie’s part) relationship progressed to friendship, but I felt like, once they got together, the emotional development between them stopped. It was all there, right away, it seemed – no learning curves or normal adjustment period. No real conflict between them.
The real conflicts in the book were mostly internally isolated per each character. Other – secondary – characters contributed to these conflicts and actually, the resolutions were mainly reliant on these other characters too. For instance, Maggie needed to be confident in herself, her past, and her calling. Once she was, it was just a matter of waiting for other people to do their part so everything would work out.
Finally, a lot happens from page one to “the end” – some of it seemingly random, some of it not – but that’s pretty par for the course with a Robyn Carr novel as well. After reading all 20-something books in the Virgin River series and all 9 in the Thunder Point series, I’m used to this and I know that if one subplot doesn’t interest me I need only to wait for the one that does. The problem with What We Find is that none of them really did.
Still, even with these aspects that didn’t quite do it for me, What We Find sets us up nicely for this next series. There are several secondary characters with whom I want to spend more time. Not to mention, the setting is unique while still delivering the classic community feel that Robyn Carr writes so well. If you’re wanting to branch out into this author’s books however, I still recommend starting with Virgin River. Tell Jack & Mel and Preacher & Paige that I sent you :)