Samantha Winters broke up with Nick Chastain because he was a professional daredevil, a college professor whose out-of-class adventures mean he’s an adrenaline-seeking modern Indiana Jones. Two years later, she’s back in her home town of Thunder Creek for three months, to help her grandmother recover from a riding accident. Nick is there, working on her brother’s farm. Why?
Nick was injured in a white-water rafting accident not long after he and Sam broke up. He suffers from memory loss, which means he can no longer teach, and he’s been told to stay away from the daredevil activities, as another accident could kill him. So he’s installing irrigation systems in Idaho. On Sam’s brother’s organic farm.
It doesn’t take long for the two to reconnect.
It also doesn’t take long for the sparks to fly, as the two realise their old problems are still bubbling under the surface. I found Samantha frustrating. I could understand her fear that something might happen to Nick as he’s off doing all these dangerous things, but people choke to death on vegetables. We can’t live our lives in fear, or we’d never leave the house.
But that is Sam’s problem: she wants to feel safe.
That’s why she’s stuck in a job she doesn’t really enjoy, because that’s easier than looking for another job. I can relate to that. If the current job allows you the time, money, and mental headspace to pursue hobbies, why change?
But I also found Nick frustrating, for not telling Samantha about his accident, and for not telling her the extent of his injuries. Especially for not telling her he was no longer the adventuring daredevil she’d broken up with.
I guess the plus part of these character quirks is it made them feel like real people. The opposites-attract plot isn’t original. It’s a romance so we all know how it’s going to end (if you weren’t sure, the clue is in the title). But the author manages to take what could be a cookie-cutter romance up a level with well-developed characters who are anything but cliche. Even though I knew what was going to happen, I wanted to see it play out on the page.
I especially liked the way the Christian faith was woven into the plot.
It gave an added depth to the plot and to the characters, but it didn’t provide an “easy out”. The characters couldn’t just pray and have everything be fixed. That’s not real life, and it’s not good fiction either.
You’re Gonna Love Me is the sequel to You’ll Think of Me (Derek and Brooklyn’s story), but can easily be read as a standalone. Personally, I’d recommend starting at the beginning of the series—while You’re Gonna Love Me was good, I thought You’ll Think of Me was better. I’ll be interested to see whose story we get in the next visit to Thunder Creek.
Recommended for fans of family-based contemporary Christian romance stories.
Thanks to Thomas Nelson and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.
About Robin Lee Hatcher
Best-selling novelist Robin Lee Hatcher is known for her heartwarming and emotionally charged stories of faith, courage, and love. Winner of the Christy, the RITA, the Carol, the Inspirational Reader’s Choice, and many other industry awards, Robin is also a recipient of Lifetime Achievement Awards from both Romance Writers of America and American Christian Fiction Writers. She is the author of 75+ novels and novellas with over five million copies in print.
Robin enjoys being with her family, spending time in the beautiful Idaho outdoors, reading books that make her cry, and watching romantic movies. Her main hobby (when time allows) is knitting, and she has a special love for making prayer shawls. A mother and grandmother, Robin and her husband make their home on the outskirts of Boise, sharing it with Poppet, the high-maintenance Papillon, and Princess Pinky, the DC (demon cat).
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About You’re Gonna Love Me
Who knew fate could twist a tragedy into a second chance at love?
Against Samantha’s warnings, Nick plans a dangerous kayaking trip over spring break. Furious that he’s so careless with his life, she ends their fledgling relationship with harsh words.
Two years later, Samantha is desperately in need of a change. When she learns her grandmother has had an accident and is in need of a caretaker, Samantha quickly packs her bags and heads to Thunder Creek, Idaho. But nothing could prepare her for the surprise awaiting her in her grandmother’s hospital room . . . Nick.
With the charming backdrop of small-town friends, beloved cousins, and a whole church congregation rooting for them, can they set aside the disastrous ending of their first try at love? Has Nick changed enough to meet Samantha in the middle—and can she realize that a risk in love might be worth taking?
Regina Jennings is the winner of the National Reader’s Choice Award, a two-time Golden Quill finalist and a finalist for the Oklahoma Book of the Year Award. A graduate of Oklahoma Baptist University with a degree in English and a minor in history, Regina has worked at the Mustang News and at First Baptist Church of Mustang, along with time at the Oklahoma National Stockyards and various livestock shows. She lives outside of Oklahoma City with her husband and four children when not traveling the world.
A USA Today Best-Selling Author, Jen Turano has written the critically acclaimed Ladies of Distinction series, and A Class of Their Own series, published through Bethany House Publishers. Her novel, After a Fashion, was chosen as a top pick from Romantic Times, as JenTuranowell as being named a top ten romance of 2015 from Booklist. It is also a nominee for Romantic Times 2015 Reviewers’ Choice Award. Her book, A Most Peculiar Circumstance, was chosen as a top ten romance by Booklist in 2013. Her seventh book, Playing the Part, released in the spring of 2016, and will be followed by a new four-book series, Apart from the Crowd. When she’s not writing, Jen spends her time outside of Denver with her husband and neurotic Cattle Dog, enjoying herself as an empty-nester since her son recently abandoned her for the college life.
As a preteen Cara Putman watched lawyers change legislative opinions at an important legislative hearing in Nebraska. At that time, she wondered if she became an attorney if people would give her words the same weight. An honors graduate of the University of Nebraska Lincoln, George Mason University School of Law and Krannert School of Management at Purdue University, Cara has turned her passion for words into award-winning stories that capture readers. Her legal experience makes its way into her stories where strong women confront real challenges.
