Unlikely to Stay (Parker Lake) by Olivia Sherwood – Review by Tori Werkheiser

Unlikely to Stay by Ashlie Knapp
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

5/5
This book is the third in a series that takes place in a small town in Oklahoma where everyone knows you, your momma, and your grandma. It has that feel-good heart-warming vibe that I adore reading about. This story being the third in a series opens up with a lot of characters in the first chapter and since I did not read the first two books I honestly was very confused. The author did give some backstory to the characters as she introduced them but it did take me about 2 to 3 chapters to understand the dynamics and all the characters. I was worried I wouldn’t get the big picture of the book having just read this one in the series but that turned out to not be the case at all. As the book progressed, I really understood the people and the relationships and the way this little town worked. I immediately liked CC and knew I would connect to her.
This book follows CC, a townie and the only hairstylist around, and Brant, the new to town guy who has run the health clinic for the last two and half years with the plan to make it 3 years in the small town to have his student debt relieved and then get back to his life in the city. It all takes a turn when the town helps CC raise money, she needs to finish renovating the gym she wants to open and CC’s friends buy her a date with the handsome Nurse Practitioner. She has spent the 2 and a half years he’s been in town avoiding him and he’s been admiring her from a distance. After their date based off the auction things start to look up for these two. They bond over shared stories of their childhood and learn they might not be so different from one another as they begin to fall for each other.
The slow burn of this romance was a good one. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time with angst just waiting for them to give in to each other. The way CC tried to push away her feelings and the longing Brant had was everything I love in a romance. Then you add in the drama and plot twist which I did not see coming that leads to some heartache for both characters and you had me turn page after page until I finished this book in less than two days. I could not stop reading this I just had to watch them fall in love and then the fighting and making up I was dying to see how this would turn out because when they were hurting I felt like I was hurting as well. I was so invested. This couple was so beautiful and funny and easy to relate to on so many levels. This was such a good book I now am wanting to read the other books in the series even though I know the way they end just to get more out of the little universe here and read all there is about Parker Lane and this tiny town in Oklahoma

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