When Snow Falls

by Brenda Novak
4 stars

Reviewed at The Romance Reviews

WHEN SNOW FALLS is the second book that takes us into the lives of a close group of friends in the small town of Whiskey Creek, CA. Like in most small towns, it's hard to keep things private in Whiskey Creek... but these friends have secrets. This Whiskey Creek installment follows the emotional journey of Cheyenne Christensen discovering who she really is and what she really wants.

After growing up in poverty with a neglectful mother, Cheyenne Christensen finally has a job she enjoys, great friends, and a chance at love… with two different men. Now she has to decide between Joe, the nice guy who can offer her the safety and stability she never had growing up; or Dylan, the trouble-making, bad boy whose unstable family reminds Cheyenne of everything about her own life that she wants to get away from.

Cheyenne has pined for Joe, the older brother of her good friend Gail, since moving to Whiskey Creek as a teenager. When Joe got married and moved away from Whiskey Creek, Cheyenne tried dating other people, but still thought about Joe. When Joe divorced and returned to his hometown, Cheyenne's pining continued. Cheyenne is forced to confront her feelings for Joe when her best friend Eve expresses an interest in him. Eve and her family have offered Cheyenne nothing but love and support since she moved to town, so Cheyenne feels she owes Eve everything. Because of this, Cheyenne supports Eve's decision to pursue Joe and potentially find happiness, while pushing her own feelings to the background. While Cheyenne is trying to come to terms with her decision to let Joe go, two unexpected things happen: 1) Eve asking Joe out pushes Joe to admit he is attracted to Cheyenne, and 2) Dylan, the town bad boy, propositions Cheyenne and offers to rid her of her virginity, that he somehow knows she stills has. While Cheyenne can't deny the instant spark and sexual tension between her and Dylan, she knows he will never be the Prince Charming that Joe has the potential to be. So how does she choose?

WHEN SNOW FALLS was so enjoyable to read. There were a number of supporting cast and side plots that could have become distracting, but offered nice teasers to future stories and kept me engaged in the community of Whiskey Creek. I felt there was just a little too much build up of the Cheyenne/ Joe/ Eve triangle before making it the Joe/ Cheyenne/ Dylan triangle. Once Dylan is introduced the pace and direction of the story and the relationship building is perfect. I can't wait for more Whiskey Creek stories.