The first in Emma Cane’s sparkling new series,
set in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains.
AT FAIRFIELD ORCHARD
Fairfield Orchard #1
Emma Cane
Available Now!
Avon Books
Emma Cane welcomes you to Fairfield
Orchard, where new love blooms and romance is always in season.
For Amy Fairfield, the family
orchard is more than a business. With its blossom-scented air and rows of trees
framed by the majestic Blue Ridge Mountains, it’s her heritage and her future.
But right now, it’s also a headache. Putting a painful breakup behind her, Amy
has come home to help revitalize Fairfield Orchard. She doesn’t have time for
the handsome-distracting-professor who wants to dig into her family’s history
for his research.
Jonathan Gebhart knows he needs the
Fairfields’ cooperation to make his new book a success. As for Amy-nothing in
his years of academia could have prepared him for their sudden and intense
attraction. He doesn’t want to complicate her life further, especially since
she seems uneasy about him poking around in the past and he knows he’s not the
sort of man built for forever. But some sparks can’t help but grow, and
Jonathan and Amy may just learn that unexpected love can be the sweetest of
all.
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Emma Cane grew
up reading and soon discovered that she liked to write passionate stories of
teenagers in space. Her love of “passionate stories” has never gone away,
although today she concentrates on the heartwarming characters of Valentine
Valley and Fairfield Orchard.
Now that
her three children are grown, Emma loves spending time crocheting and singing
(although not necessarily at the same time), and hiking and snowshoeing
alongside her husband Jim and their rambunctious dog Uma.
Emma also
writes USA Today bestselling historical romances under the
name Gayle Callen.
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At Fairfield Orchard by Emma Cane
Isn’t the cover of this book gorgeous? It enticed me to request a copy of Emma Cane's new book. I have never read any of the author’s novels…but I am SO happy that I read this one!
At Fairfield Orchard is an enjoyable twist on the opposites attract story set in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Amy Fairfield has returned home to manage the family’s orchard for the next six months with Tyler, her twin brother. She’s quit a promising real estate career and put a bad relationship behind her to focus on her family and their business. Jonathan Gebhart is a professor who is researching Thomas Jefferson for an upcoming book.
Even though Amy and Jonathan are total opposites; the passion between them sizzles off the pages when they meet. The attraction between this couple drew me into the story d kept me reading! Loved Jonathan and the author does a wonderful job with this hunky, caring, and nerdy hero. Amy and Jonathan become friends and their relationship develops during the course of this superbly paced novel. Both characters are attracted to each other but have work and personal issues to resolve. The conversations between Amy and Jonathan when they opened up to each other are well written and poignant. Both characters talk about their childhood, families and past relationships. Through Amy, the author provides an honest portrayal of alcoholism and its long term effects on family members.
I enjoyed reading this novel because the author blended Amy and Jonathan’s romance with the historical aspects of the novel. Amy’s grandfather and Jonathan spend time together talking about the farm’s history and Amy’s Grandmother joins the archaeology team as they search on the property. Ms. Caine does a fabulous job comparing Jonathan’s devotion to historical research with Amy’s goal of bringing the orchard into the 21st century while pleasing all of her family members.
The conclusion of the novel was well written and perfect for this couple. I am happy that the historical research will continue into the second novel and the reader will be able to see if the changes that Amy and her brother made to the family’s business will enable the orchard to prosper. Loved the small town feel of this book, the sense of community, the neighbors, friends and family—and the heartfelt romance between Amy and Jonathan!
Looking forward to the next book in this series!
Reviewed by Susan Gorman
A copy of the Book was provided by the publisher.
Jonathan Gebhart got
out of his car and breathed in the crisp air of Fairfield Orchard, ripe with
the sweet scent of apple blossoms. In the distance, the Blue Ridge Mountains
undulated into the disappearing mists of midmorning, their haze the mysterious
blue they were named for. But everywhere else he looked, surrounding this oasis
of buildings and a barn, the foothills were covered in the pink and white of
blossoming trees, following long lines like the teeth on a comb. Had Thomas Jefferson
known what would become of the land when he’d sold it almost two hundred years
ago? Jonathan intended to prove it wasn’t what other historians said it was.
He’d driven the half
hour west from Charlottesville, Virginia, to Fairfield Orchard, rehearsing his
most persuasive speech over and over. He wasn’t known as the most outgoing of
guys, but he was passionate about history and hoped that would be enough. But
strangely, he didn’t see a soul. A huge old barn that looked well over a
hundred years old stood open and deserted. It had a lower level made of stone
with its own entrance in the back, and the soaring upper level framed in
weathered gray boards was stacked with crates and bins for the autumn harvest.
A food shack and small store were obviously closed. There were picnic tables
and benches, all positioned to take in the beautiful view of central Virginia
during the harvest season. But in the spring, the public grounds were deserted.
Past a copse of
towering oak and hickory trees was a dirt lane, which he followed around a
curve until he saw a big house with white siding, blue shutters, and a
wraparound porch around the original building. A two-story addition had been
added to the right side. A battered blue pickup truck was parked nearby. He climbed
the front steps, but no one answered the door. Jonathan hadn’t called in
advance, assuming that a request like his was better handled in person, but
that had obviously been a mistake. There must be a business office or warehouse
somewhere else on the grounds.
And then in the first
row of apple trees next to the house, he saw a ladder disappearing up inside,
and a pair of work boots perched on a rung, their owner partially hidden by
branches and blossoms and bright green leaves. He’d done his research, knew
that the owner was Bruce Fairfield, a Vietnam vet in his sixties.
“Mr. Fairfield?” Jonathan called as he
approached the tree. “Bruce Fairfield?”
Sudden barking
startled him, and a dog came up out of the straggly grass growing through a
dark loam of what looked like fertilizer around the base of the tree. The
medium-sized dog resembled a cross between a German shepherd and a coyote, its
pointy ears alert.
“What’s up, Uma?”
The voice from within
the tree was far more feminine than “Bruce” should have. The dog sat down and
regarded Jonathan, her spotted tongue visible as she panted, her head cocked to
the side.
A woman pushed aside a
branch and peered down, wreathed in pink and white blossoms, her sandy brown
hair pulled into a ponytail beneath a ragged ball cap with the Virginia
Cavaliers logo. She had a delicate face with a pointed chin, and a nose
splattered with freckles. She was already tan from working outdoors, with eyes
clear and deep blue and narrowed with curiosity. She wore a battered winter
vest over a plaid shirt with a t-shirt beneath, and a faded pair of jeans with
a tear at the knee. She held clippers in one hand.
“What can I do for
you?” she asked, then added apologetically, “We’re still closed for the
off-season.”
“I know. I’ve come
from Charlottesville to speak with the owner.”
Brightly, she said,
“I’m one of them.”
That rearranged his
conclusion that she was just an employee.
“Hope you don’t mind
if I keep working while we talk,” she added.
He blinked as her face
disappeared behind the branch she released. Soon, he could hear occasional
snipping, and saw a branch drop to the ground. She seemed like she was
examining, more than pruning. He was used to talking to students who tried to
hide their texting during a lecture, but he couldn’t force this woman to pay
attention to him. At least the dog watched him with expectation.
“My name is Dr.
Jonathan Gebhart, and I’m an associate professor of history at the University
of Virginia, with a specialty in colonial history, particularly Thomas
Jefferson.”
She gave a snort of
laughter. “Of course.”
He stiffened. “Of
course?”
“Thomas Jefferson
founded the university, right?”
Did anyone from the
area not know that?
