High Country Spring by Genevieve Turner
07/09/2015
Francisca "Franny" Moreno loves ranch work, she shoot, ropes & handles the cattle at her father's ranch with the same or better skill as his hired hands. Her friends & sisters have all married, started families and established their own households. The further she gets from childhood the greater the pressure of her mother's disapproval grows.
Felipe Ortega can't stop frowning or scolding Franny. The risks she takes with such casual bravery make his blood run cold. But when Franny is banished to the house and limited lady-like tasks, he can't stand to see her trapped and agrees to a "mercantile marriage" even though he knows that was he feels for her is not business-like in the least.
I loved the push and pull between these two. Their passion, their fear, their repression. Their marriage starts as unconventional arrangement, matures into a partnership whose fragility is exposed by near tragedy. I love how much they struggled to say what they need to say to each other. I loved the how Turner flipped around the dynamics of the most important relationships in Franny's life giving her new found appreciation for qualities and people she had resented. Franny and Felipe have to rebuild their relationship and face up to the fears they have both tried to ignore.
I think this the strongest of Turner's novels to date and I can't wait to read more from her.
I don't usually give out trigger warnings but this book does deal with some topics that might be triggering to some: Miscarriage, Infertility, Depression & Anxiety.
I received a review copy from the author via NetGalley.