Author: Jessica Burkhart
Series: If Only... #4
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens
Release Date: May 5, 2015
Source: ARC received from publisher in exchange for an honest review (thanks Bloomsbury!!)
Summary from Goodreads:
Brie Carter's father's land development business has taken her family all over the world, but as soon as they arrive at their new home in Lost Spring, Wyoming, the town turns out to protest. They don't want a new hotel if the resident mustang population will be displaced or hurt as part of the deal. Then Brie meets Logan, a gorgeous local who has a special connection to the mustangs, and she is immediately drawn to him . . . and the horses. However, with Logan's father leading the protests and Brie's father refusing to budge, it's clear that their parents are heading towards an all-out war. Can Brie and Logan find a way to save the mustangs and be together? Or is their love doomed from the start?
Review
My biggest problem with Wild Hearts was the writing. The flow and storytelling itself was not the greatest – it lacked depth and everything was just too easy - but it was the dialogue that really got me. These characters spoke in long winded sentences that were way too mature and considerate to feel natural. I couldn’t get past it.
My next biggest problem was with the characters. I didn’t connect with Brie or Logan, who were both a little dull. There was a certain cowboy lure to Logan but I didn’t completely buy into it. And since I didn’t care either way for them, I didn’t care either way for their relationship. It lacked passion and I didn’t feel what connected them. I guess you could say it was cute on a very superficial level, but that is about it. Otherwise, it was too vanilla.
I liked the Country aspect – which was what initially drew me to this book – and I did get into the story of the Mustangs – Logan and Brie saved them from an “uncertain future” and hosted a great event to raise money to care for them - but there was still something lacking here. Drama? Tension? Feels? I don’t know. It saved the book from being a total bust but it didn’t overcome the rest of my issues with it.
Honestly, all of my problems circle back to the first one – the writing. It was subpar in my opinion and that impacted how I experienced everything else. I haven’t read any of the other stories in the If Only series, so I can’t say how this one compares, but I imagine that they were better than this.
My next biggest problem was with the characters. I didn’t connect with Brie or Logan, who were both a little dull. There was a certain cowboy lure to Logan but I didn’t completely buy into it. And since I didn’t care either way for them, I didn’t care either way for their relationship. It lacked passion and I didn’t feel what connected them. I guess you could say it was cute on a very superficial level, but that is about it. Otherwise, it was too vanilla.
I liked the Country aspect – which was what initially drew me to this book – and I did get into the story of the Mustangs – Logan and Brie saved them from an “uncertain future” and hosted a great event to raise money to care for them - but there was still something lacking here. Drama? Tension? Feels? I don’t know. It saved the book from being a total bust but it didn’t overcome the rest of my issues with it.
Honestly, all of my problems circle back to the first one – the writing. It was subpar in my opinion and that impacted how I experienced everything else. I haven’t read any of the other stories in the If Only series, so I can’t say how this one compares, but I imagine that they were better than this.
