"Heartwarming from the very start."
Reviewed by Sandra Wurman
Posted April 25, 2023
Romance Small Town | Romance Contemporary
Each of us has favorite, go-to authors, in our arsenal of books. It’s the same for reviewers like myself. When I get hand hands on something by Jodi Thomas, I usually drop all others and forge ahead. STRAWBERRY LANE reminds me why I am such a devoted fan. No one crafts her characters better, more human, flawed, and marvelous than Jodi Thomas. And in STRAWBERRY LANE we meet a whole new cadre of impossibly grand characters, too numerous to mention in this review.
It is my stock and trade to never give away too much of the plot. I would never rob my readers of the joy of discovery and that is why I am going to remain rather mysterious about the story in STRAWBERRY LANE.
Each chapter jumps back and forth between stories that parallel the time period of the book, but headline different folks in the town of Honey Creek. This is a very small town that suffers from many significant issues. But community spirit is alive and well. And with the influx of some new people, the town and some of its inhabitants are going to evolve. Joyously I must add.
Starting with a roll down a muddy mountainside Rusty is going through a long recovery period which puts him squarely in a universe that he avoids like the plague. People, small talk, friendship, feelings in general. He has stood on his own practically his entire life. Can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but in Jodi Thomas’s world just maybe you can. Rusty you see has never had a true family. Totally missed out on a father figure. But in the next couple of days that is all going to change, albeit in small but noteworthy steps.
Somehow Jodi Thomas created a new community in this small town, where Rusty, the prodigal loner is the central figure. We learn so much about him and follow his journey toward discovering that he is so much more than meets the eye. And through Rusty, we meet a myriad of characters each with their own signature life and story.
In STRAWBERRY LANE we start with Rusty and his rescuer Starri Knight and in true Jodi Thomas we end with these two central characters. Each one has remained true to themselves but their lives have evolved into something neither expected nor searched for.
The supporting cast is numerous, brilliant, and amazing. Each wins a special nod. And kudos to Jodi Thomas who created a wonderful tale about growth, discovery, family, love, and belonging. Heartwarming from the very start.
SUMMARY
Readers have fallen in love with the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author’s Honey Creek series, set in small-town Texas and featuring an “inviting setting and quirky, good-hearted characters” (Publishers Weekly). Now Thomas sets a heart-warming and tenderly romantic new novel in the neighboring valley. Perfect for fans of Robyn Carr, Susan Mallery, Susan Wiggs, and Debbie Macomber.
Starri Knight is a big believer in fate. How else to explain the compelling connection she feels to the stranger she pulls out of a wrecked car on the very same road where her parents died twenty years earlier? Alongside Auntie Ona-May, the only mother she’s ever known, Starri saves Rusty O’Sullivan’s life—just as Ona-May once did when Starri was an orphaned babe. But convincing Rusty he has something to live for is going to take all of Starri’s faith in miracles . . .
Like a wish he hadn’t even known to make, Starri landed in Rusty’s life, filling him with a longing for a family. . . . Then Jackson Landry, a new lawyer, turns up to present a surprise that will change the direction of his life: An inheritance from the father Rusty never knew—and the promise of the family he’d never had. It’s a lot for the hard-bitten loner to
accept as love rushes into his life . . .
A sense of duty has Rusty heading to Honey Creek to deal with his father’s estate—and find his lost siblings. But having family is one thing, learning to love them is another. Good thing new friends are by his side to help him along the way.
ExcerptStarri Knight lay on the hardwood floor of her aunt's hundred-year-old cabin as she watched rain slide down the huge picture window. If she didn't move, maybe she'd feel closer to nature like she had when she was a child. Maybe the moon would play peekaboo with her through the storm clouds. She was almost positive the man in the moon had once seen her when she was small.
When she was a kid, stars winked at her and the moon smiled. She'd tell her Aunt Ona-May and they'd laugh together.
But tonight, all Starri saw was car lights making their way up the hill and lightning running across the sky like a tidal wave igniting.
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