Ohmylaaawwwddd did I love THE FIRST TIME AT FIRELIGHT FALLS.
When I started reading, I had been in the middle of a particular dry spell (don't you hate those?) and so I was very glad to spend some time in the capable hands of Julie Ann Long.
I adored the shared point of views - we got to see both Eden and Gabe's perspectives - and the ways they fit into each other's lives. The conflict felt genuine and grounded, and Eden's daughter was a fully formed human instead of a plot device, as so many children in romances are.
You do not need to have read the other books in the Hellcat Canyon series to enjoy this one, but all of them are fabulous and recommended. If you are a fan of contemporary romances and you haven't headed into this world, do so immediately.
Single mom Eden Harwood has a lively daughter, a blooming business—and a juicy secret she’s hung on to for ten years. She doesn’t mind a bit that there’s no room for romance in her whirlwind life . . . until six-foot-infinity, smoldery-eyed, bass-voiced Gabe Caldera reminds her of what she might be missing. The principal of Hellcat Elementary is usually knee-deep in fawning PTA moms, but Gabe only has eyes for the fiery, funny, skittish redhead who barely knows he’s alive. But this ex-Navy SEAL never fails to get what he wants. And what he wants is to fan those sparks between him and Eden into the kind of bonfire you can see two counties away. The passion is explosive . . . and the tenderness has them thinking about forever. But when Eden’s past waltzes into town for a reckoning, her secret blows them apart. Still, Gabe will never back down from a fight . . . especially if the ultimate prize is Eden’s heart.
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