As an Alaskan, I'm always delighted to find a good read set in Alaska. In this case, it's set in my general neighborhood in nearby Palmer, Alaska. Also, by sheer chance, it has an episode set at the Alaska State Fair which is going on as I type. Even better, it has interesting characters with equally interesting side stories. As it turned out, too, while I don't know her personally, I correctly had the sense that I knew the author's name. All this should explain why I found myself finishing this one up in one day.
There is a mystic, an aura about Alaska that the author captures well. City boy Ryder is far more comfortable on stage with his band before thousands of screaming fans than doing farm work but, well, due to circumstances finds himself needing to disappear for a while. You'll find out why early on, don't worry. Also, don't immediately assume he didn't help create his own frightening situation. There's a double meaning to that title. Lucky for Ryder, Joe, his manager, has a sister who lives in Palmer, Alaska, and sends him there under a new name and, gasp, without a cell phone. Again, you'll find out why and it's all quite a wild story, including shady hit men. While all that drama is going on in the headlines due to his disappearance and threats being tossed around, Ryder finds himself learning how to be a farmer. Jolene, manager Joe's sister, is a strong, no-nonsense kind of woman with problems of her own but takes Ryder in and does all she can to protect her.
And, yes, this is a romance and you'll meet Allison, the female half of the romantic duo to be, early on but, well, let's just say she isn't impressed by him. In fact, I'd say she's suspicious even with no real cause to be. Oh, okay, Ryder is initially a spoiled jerk but, well, Allison, a medical student, has her own traumas and issues to deal with so it was actually a plus to have such a lengthy time to get to know the varied, unique characters that inhabit Ryder's new reality. Each character gets an opportunity to share thoughts, hence you'll get several points of view, even from the few who are genuinely unlikable. Oh, and romance blooms elsewhere, too, besides between Ryder and Allison when an old friend more or less literally drops from the sky onto Jolene's property. Let's just say, you'll learn a bit about bush pilots and planes, a common mode of travel here in Alaska, from that angle.
I genuinely liked the characters and felt like I should be able to zip over to the currently running State Fair and find them to hang out with. The author does a wonderful job building complex characters and respecting all that Alaska's mystic and realities can offer up. I grinned when she even used well known street names, another sign of an author who knows what she's talking about. The multiple stories and complex personalities we're introduced make for an intriguing look at not just Alaska and the sense of community but, well, even DC gets it's share of the story. As does Big Lake, another location quite familiar to me. The plot moves along smoothly but also doesn't seem to, if that makes sense, as there seems to always be one thing or the other happening with one or the other of the inter-connected characters.
Seriously, you'll feel like you know them well by the time you finish and, as noted, think they're surely sprawled out on a porch or around a campfire playing their instruments and singing everything from old time songs to the latest. John Denver gets a lovely mention or two, I'll note, and you will find out why. My sincere thanks to #AtmospherePress and #NetGalley for allowing me this early peek at a book that felt like it might as well have been set in my own neighborhood. Close knit communities and the seemingly endless hours of daylight in the summer here are all part of the magic that helps the troubled Ryder find his way back to his love of music and, hmm, Allison. Love the idea presented at the end that combines her medical side with music, that's for sure.
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