Book Title: The Best Man
Author: Kristan Higgins
Publication Date: February 26, 2013
Publisher: Harlequin HQN
Series: Blue Heron #1
Series: Blue Heron #1
Source: Netgalley
Review:★★★★★
Sometimes the best man is the one you least expect.
Faith Holland left her hometown after being jilted at the altar. Now a little older and wiser, she's ready to return to the Blue Heron Winery, her family's vineyard, to confront the ghosts of her past, and maybe enjoy a glass of red. After all, there's some great scenery there….
Like Levi Cooper, the local police chief—and best friend of her former fiancé. There's a lot about Levi that Faith never noticed, and it's not just those deep green eyes. The only catch is she's having a hard time forgetting that he helped ruin her wedding all those years ago. If she can find a minute amidst all her family drama to stop and smell the rosé, she just might find a reason to stay at Blue Heron, and finish that walk down the aisle.
"The love of your life won't be the man you end up with, and you'll always compare the two."
Gossip Column
The story started with a juicy article from the small town's gossip column: how the town's supposedly perfect wedding of a supposedly-perfect couple came to a halt when the bride was jilted at the altar because the groom decided to come out of the closet.
The Princess With a Defective Gaydar
Faith Holland was the youngest among the Holland siblings. She was the baby of the family, and what made her more special is that she was suffering from epilepsy. A condition that said to have caused the accident that cost them their mother's lives. She was also popular at school, being rich and friendly to everyone. She has a bright and sunny disposition despite everything that happened to her and her family. Only no one knew that she's keeping a secret. A secret that could make her loving family hate her.
It was an epileptic attack that had brought Faith and Jeremy together. They were high school sweethearts, and upon finishing school, they decided to get hitched. Jeremy was Faith's first and only love. She could not imagine anyone else growing old with and having children with. Only that, Jeremy wasn't totally honest with her or with himself. He waited until their wedding day to come out and tell her he couldn't marry her because he was gay.
Faith's world shattered, she didn't see it coming. Instead of spending her honeymoon with Jeremy, she decided to go to San Francisco and stayed their for over three years. Hoping to heal her broken heart and find someone who's not gay. But finding the perfect man wasn't that easy.
Now she was back in their little town, because of an emergency call from her sister saying that her father has been dating a woman that could rob him blind. Between finding her father the perfect woman, facing her ex love, looking at the people's pitiful glances at her, and of course being annoyed by the Chief of police, can the princess find her prince?
The Perfect Man Wasn't So Perfect After All
Jeremy was new to the town - the star quarterback, a great academic student and rich. He was everything a girl could ever wanted, but Faith caught his attention. Bringing her to the nurse's office after (or during) an epileptic attack (which is not really recommended, anyway) started their love story. But he also has secrets he couldn't accept. Secrets he had been denying, secrets he was willing to carry on until their wedding day.
He May Not Be Perfect, But He Was The Best For Her
Chief Levi Cooper knew that he was gay - from day 1. But it was not in his position to say anything, especially when the man was his best friend. But on his wedding day - he could not just stand in their and not say anything. This has gone too far. Oh yes, he was the one who 'technically' put a stop to their wedding.
Living on trailer parks, his life wasn't really a piece of cake. They were poor, his father ran out of them when he was young. His mother would work herself to death to provide for them, but they were okay. In High School, he played football but he knew he wasn't good enough to get a scholarship. It was Jeremy who had helped him to get noticed, but still, he needed some money to go to college. He decided to ask his father, but was turned away. Without any college options, he decided to enlist.
Coming back and becoming the Chief of Police was not an easy task - yes even in their small towns. His days are filled with mundane calls from the locals and 'I-wanna-come-home' calls and texts from his younger sister, Sara who is now in college. But his days suddenly went a 180 when Faith came back to town. Oh yes, he has secrets too, secrets he and Faith shared and secrets he didn't want Faith to know.
He didn't want a relationship after a disastrous marriage. He didn't want Faith - who will leave after she finished her projects. Faith, who was his best friend's former fiancee.
Things I ♥ About This Book
It's Kristan Higgins I have been in love with her since reading Until There Was You- and she never disappoints her readers. There were a lot of funny moments especially from both daughter and father's disastrous dates.
The characters are totally awesome- not just the three main characters, but especially the family & friends that surrounds them. I love their family - not just because they are tightly knitted, but because they love and support each other whatever they are going through. I would love to read Sara and Ned's story in the near future.
To End
Indeed, the best man may not be the perfect man you have been dreaming of - but the perfect one to complement your imperfections. Sometimes, you need not look far to find your match, because he can be the one sitting right next to you, waiting for you to acknowledge him or her. Love, indeed, moves in mysterious ways.
Kristan Higgins made another amazing novel filled with unforgettable characters that will find their way through the reader's heart. A perfect combination of romance, comedy and a touch of drama - readers will find them selves hooked (as I have been) and would surely demand for more!
Favorite Quotes:
- "Maybe love isn't just a bouquet of roses once in a whole. Maybe it's just sticking it out, when it's hard, when you're mad, when you're tired."
- "The love of your life won't be the man you end up with, and you'll always compare the two."
- “Love came when you weren't looking, except in the case of millions who found mates on Match.com, but, hey. It sounded good.”
About The Author
Kristan Higgins
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I live in a small Connecticut town with a beautiful library, a great agricultural fair, nice people and not much else. I have two lovely, entertaining children and a brave firefighter for a husband, who is, perhaps more importantly, a fantastic cook. Digger from Fools Rush In is inspired my very own Digger, our cheerful Lab mutt. We also have two cats and grieve for an occasional, short-lived beta fish.
I worked as a copywriter until I had kids and started writing fiction when my children graced my life with simultaneous afternoon naps. Writing, I surmised, was infinitely more satisfying than folding laundry, and so I started my first novel. Before long, I had finished Stalking Joe, whose title was later changed to Fools Rush In. Catch of the Day followed, winning the 2008 Romance Writers of America's RITA© award, which just thrilled me to my toes. Then came Just One of the Guys (August 08), Too Good To Be True (Feb 09), The Next Best Thing (Feb 10), and All I Ever Wanted, summer 2010. More books are in the pipeline.
I love to write books about relationships, since the search for love and security is one of the driving forces of life. And I try to focus on an aspect that’s common, if not universal, hence the “stalking” in Fools Rush In and the crush on the unattainable man in Catch of the Day. People ask if I’ve ever stalked a guy. Of course not! Jeez! Come on! It’s fiction! They also ask if I’ve ever had a crush on a priest. Of course not! Jeez! Come on! It’s fiction! As far as being crazy about one of my brother's friends, which is the plot of Just One of the Guys, well, yes to that one. But I'm not naming names. Dating a fictional man, like Grace does in Too Good To Be True? Um...can I take the fifth on that one? Whether it's my own experience or not, I try to find something we can all relate to.
When I’m not writing, I like to be with my kids, goof around with my husband, read, watch baseball, ride my bike and bake. I suffer from chronic bedhead and an unhealthy (and completely understandable) obsession with Derek Jeter, shortstop for the New York Yankees. Like Millie Barnes, I run, which provides the neighbors with some real entertainment.
We spend as much time as possible at our family home on Cape Cod, swimming in the Atlantic, shivering on the beach, swatting horseflies and watching fish evade my lure at Higgins Pond. It’s as close to heaven as it gets.
Thank you Netgalley and Ballantine Books for providing me an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.
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