Title: The Vet From Snowy River
Author: Stella Quinn
Published: June 2021
Publisher: MIRA
Readership: Adult
Genre: Romance
Rating: ★★★★
RRP: $27.26
I received a copy of The Vet From Snowy River from the publisher (and Netgalley) in exchange for a fair and honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
A hot vet. A rebellious teenager. And meddling but well-meaning townsfolk. Vera gets more than she bargains for when she runs off to a new life in the country … A fresh and funny rural romance, perfect for readers of Alissa Callen and Rachael Johns.
Vera De Rossi no longer believes in love …
And thanks to her ex-boyfriend she’s also broke, jobless, and staring down the barrel of a court case that could land her in prison. Turning to her talent for baking, Vera opens a cafe in Hanrahan, a cosy tourist town in the foothills of the Snowy Mountains.
Josh Cody, once Hanrahan’s golden boy, escaped sixteen years ago with gossip hard on his heels and a pregnant girlfriend in tow. Now he’s back: a qualified veterinarian – and a single dad with a lot to prove. A new start and a grumpy teenage daughter … it’s a lot to juggle, and there’s no room in his life for further complications. But that’s before he walks into The Billy Button Cafe and meets its prickly owner …
Reeling from the past, Vera has no intention of being sidetracked by the hot vet with a killer smile. But fate has a way of tripping up our best intentions and between a stray cat and a busybody with a heart of gold, this is a town – a family – unlike any other. And, whether Vera wants it or not, is there anything a family won’t do to help one of its own?
It’s no secret that I love a rural romance set in small town Australia and it was great to read The Vet From Snowy River as my first introduction to Stella Quinn. It gave me all the same warm feelings that I get when reading stories set in regional/rural towns.
Vera De Rossi is running from her past and some possibly questionable decisions she did in the name of protecting the only remaining family she has. She ends up in the small town of Hanrahan and opens a bakery with a little help from some of the locals. Meanwhile, Josh Cody, a local boy all grown up and with some controversy in his past, has returned to work at his sister’s veterinarian clinic. He’s got a lot to deal with – rumours about his past, a grumpy teenage daughter who wouldn’t be caught dead in the small town, and a crush on the newest arrival to the town: Vera.
This story is a reverse grumpy-sunshine story (where Vera is the prickly one) about two people trying to rebuild their lives and, possibly, a relationship together. While Josh is all-in from the start, aware that life can change unexpectedly and the importance of making the most of what time you have, Vera is reluctant, aware that she has responsibilities to her new bakery, her aging relatives and a court case looming in near future. It makes her understandably slow to dive into any kind of relationship.
Meanwhile, Josh and his sister are battling a mystery of their own – someone’s desperate to shut down their clinic and claim the land on which it sits.
This was undeniably fun. There’s a lot of humour throughout the story that lighten up some of the heavier moments. Josh’s daughter was an absolute delight on the page, as the teenager learns what it means to be part of a small town. All of the side characters were fun – the often quirky, sometimes meddlesome, but always well-meaning residents look out for their fellow community members and band together when things get tough.
I thoroughly enjoyed the story. There were times when I felt that Vera’s prickly nature went a bit too far, but overall, it was a great read. I’ll definitely be looking out for more books by Stella Quinn.
Noveltea Corner 