Review: Foxglove Copse by Alex Beecroft (Porthkennack #5)
Note: This ARC was provided by Riptide Publishing in exchange for an honest review.
Alex Beecroft takes her turn in the multi-authored Porthkennack series with the contemporary romantic suspense story entitled Foxglove Copse. I enjoyed the first four books, so I was curious to see what the fifth author in this group would bring to the table. I've read and liked Beecroft's Trowchester Blues trilogy in the past, so that heightened expectations even more on my end. Fortunately, this book had me rather entertained all throughout, thanks in large part to a story I so wasn't expecting to go in the direction that it did, a strong cast of characters--most of whom were quite unconventional--that brought their own bit of flair to the story, and the author's writing.
Sam Atkins may have seemed like he was on top of the world as far as his career was concerned but all it took was one life-altering anxiety attack to have him packing up and leaving his old life behind with nary a word to his judgmental and insensitive family. He uses his savings to travel, calling his customized van home. After half a year on the road and with his personal savings dwindling, Sam fears returning to the city and everything--and everyone--that triggered the attack in the first place. When he finds himself in Porthkennack, he stops by a copse and stumbles upon the remains of a mutilated sheep. He's immediately considered a suspect. He's an outsider, but he has himself an advocate in the form of Ruan Gwynn. Together, they become allies--and more--as they try to find out who's behind the cult-like killings, the online bullying, Ruan may have to convince Sam that he's found home.
The combination of the ritualistic killings and the cyber-bullying was a curious one, but it did what it was supposed to: pique my curiosity. I wanted to find out how everything was connected and who was behind it all, and I so wanted poor Sam to realize that he was no longer lost--that he may have finally found a place and people to call his own and who embraced him as one of them as well. Of course, none of this was a given and Sam and Ruan did have to go through a couple of hoops, but I did find them a refreshing change from the more sedate kind of coupling that I came across in a few romances I've read lately. But then, I expect nothing less from Alex Beecroft, and with Foxglove Copse, she's kept momentum going AND added her own creative touch to the series. Four stars. ♥
Sam Atkins may have seemed like he was on top of the world as far as his career was concerned but all it took was one life-altering anxiety attack to have him packing up and leaving his old life behind with nary a word to his judgmental and insensitive family. He uses his savings to travel, calling his customized van home. After half a year on the road and with his personal savings dwindling, Sam fears returning to the city and everything--and everyone--that triggered the attack in the first place. When he finds himself in Porthkennack, he stops by a copse and stumbles upon the remains of a mutilated sheep. He's immediately considered a suspect. He's an outsider, but he has himself an advocate in the form of Ruan Gwynn. Together, they become allies--and more--as they try to find out who's behind the cult-like killings, the online bullying, Ruan may have to convince Sam that he's found home.
The combination of the ritualistic killings and the cyber-bullying was a curious one, but it did what it was supposed to: pique my curiosity. I wanted to find out how everything was connected and who was behind it all, and I so wanted poor Sam to realize that he was no longer lost--that he may have finally found a place and people to call his own and who embraced him as one of them as well. Of course, none of this was a given and Sam and Ruan did have to go through a couple of hoops, but I did find them a refreshing change from the more sedate kind of coupling that I came across in a few romances I've read lately. But then, I expect nothing less from Alex Beecroft, and with Foxglove Copse, she's kept momentum going AND added her own creative touch to the series. Four stars. ♥
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Read my review for the Porthkennack series:
Wake Up Call (book one) - four stars - My Review
Gathering Storm (book two) - five-plus stars - My Review
Broke Deep (book three) - four stars - My Review
House of Cards (book four) - five-plus stars - My Review
Foxglove Copse (book five) - four stars - My Review (posted above)
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Date Read: 05 September 2017
Learn more about Alex Beecroft.
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