The Country Guesthouse (Sullivan's Crossing #5)
Published January 7th 2020 by MIRA, Kindle Edition 336 pages
A summer rental, a new beginning…
Hannah Russell’s carefully crafted plans for her life have been upended without warning. When her best friend died suddenly, Hannah became guardian to a five-year-old named Noah. With no experience at motherhood, she’s terrified she’s not up to the challenge. She and Noah need time to get to know each other, so she decides to rent a country house with stunning views on a lake in rural Colorado.
When they arrive at the house, they are greeted by the owner, a handsome man who promises to stay out of their way. But his clumsy Great Dane, Romeo, has other ideas and Noah immediately bonds with the lovable dog. As Hannah learns to become a mother, Owen Abrams, who is recovering from his own grief, can’t help but be drawn out of his solitude by his guests.
But life throws more challenges at this unlikely trio and they are tested in ways they never thought possible. All three will discover their strengths and, despite their differences, they will fight to become a family. And the people of Sullivan’s Crossing will rally around them to offer all of the support they need.
#1 New York Times bestselling author Robyn Carr delivers an emotional and triumphant novel about the fierce power of a mother’s love.
User Reviews
Rating: really liked it
Hannah Russell is a successful sales manager living in Minneapolis. While her career is on track, her love life hasn’t been all that shiny and recently took a major nose dive. As she plans to take some time off and return to Colorado, the lovely site of her last business trip, one of her best friends dies suddenly, leaving 5-year son, Noah, in her care. Hannah decides to keep the planned trip intact so she and Noah can have a chance to bond and grieve. She’d booked the house owned by freelance photographer Owen Abrams who’d planned to be out of town but his plans changed and he’s not traveling but will stay in the attached barn.
I loved returning to Sullivan’s Crossing and it was the perfect place for Hannah and Noah to find respite. With its strong sense of community and natural beauty, it set the stage for both of them to heal and experience the outreach from the residents. Owen also had experienced a tragedy years ago and had never fully recovered from it. The relationship he created with Noah pulled some serious heartstrings, almost eclipsing his romance with Hannah but not really. And then there was his dog, Romeo, an adorable and lovable Great Dane who really was a scene stealer. This story has all of the elements that normally keeps me enthralled...and I was.
I chose to listen to this story because it’s narrated by Thèrése Plummer who is fabulous normally
and in her performance here. She masters the young Noah while credibly delivering the male voices along with the others. She provided distinctive qualities for all the major characters, helping to define them beyond the pages. I’m committed to listening to the series here after.
I loved everything about this story. It wasn’t all sweetness and light as Hannah and Noah experience some real threats and challenges. It grabbed me from the start, wouldn’t let go and I finished it in a day. Carr is a master at writing compelling small town romance and she doesn’t miss here.
Posted on Blue Mood Café
(Thanks to Recorded Books for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.)
Rating: really liked it
As usual with Robyn Carr’s stories, The Country Guesthouse sucked me right in from the first chapter.
Hannah’s life is turned upside down in more ways than one when her best friend, Erin, dies unexpectedly and she’s named as the guardian to her five-year-old son, Noah. Erin and Hannah had been best friends since college, bonding over shared goals and horrible mothers. Of course, when Hannah agreed to take care of any of Erin’s future offspring should something happen, Hannah never dreamed she’d have to carry out that promise. She’s determined to cherish and raise Noah right, and to get better acquainted and smooth the transition Hannah takes them on a vacation to a secluded Colorado house. Little does she know that due to a scheduling mishap, the owner, Owen Abrams will be staying on the property as well, but this turns out to be the best thing for Hannah, Noah, and Owen.
Owen Abrams is no stranger to loss, and so Hannah and Noah’s situation tugs at his heart. His big Great Dane, Romeo, immediately breaks the ice and lifts Noah’s spirits, but it’s Owen’s help and friendship that truly make their vacation special. Days swimming and fishing in the lake and nights spent making dinner and relaxing on the porch make it so Hannah and Noah never want to leave. Hannah and Owen grow closer and closer making leaving a painful prospect. Never fear, love finds a way!
The situation was both heartbreaking and heartwarming, and I was captivated from page one. As with real life, there were bumps in the road. There’s usually a little suspense and danger with Ms. Carr’s stories, and there’s a situation that definitely put me on edge and had me worrying for Noah’s safety, but Hannah and Noah had love, support, and protection from Owen, as well as many of the residents in Sullivan’s Crossing, most I’d met in the previous installments.
Characters from past stories pop in, but I think The Country Guesthouse can be read as a standalone since this is very much Hannah, Owen and Noah’s story. Sullivan’s Crossing has been a thoroughly enjoyable series, and I love digging into every new installment! Set in the Colorado mountains, where the Continental Divide Trail and the Colorado Trail intersect, Sullivan’s Crossing sounds like a beautiful small town, and I’ve grown to love the colorful characters.
I had an ARC e-copy of The Country Guesthouse, but I usually can’t resist buying an audio copy of Robyn Carr’s books because of Therese Plummer’s superb narration. I alternately listened and read, and loved the story!
A copy was kindly provided by MIRA via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: really liked it
Pleasant story with themes of love, loss and blended families. The primary and secondary characters are well developed. An enjoyable escapist read.
Rating: really liked it
DNF
I usually like small town romance. Recently I enjoyed Securing Zoey by Susan Strokes. I was looking forward with The Country Guesthouse. At about 60%, I give up. What does not work for me is the pace of the story. It is so dragging. Too slow and too boring. I even fall asleep listening to the audiobook.
I hate to shelved book under DNF. Only with a book that is really bad or does not fit my taste, I have to shelved it with DNF.
2 stars
Rating: really liked it
Carr mixed in an oversized dog, a heart-wounded man, a sweet boy and an overwhelmed yet strong heroine.
Then Carr placed them in Sullivan’s Crossing and let things unfold. She gave us laughter, suspense, tender moments and all the feels. Even though I felt the romance was subdued in this story, yet I still felt the relationship grow and connected with the characters.
It was great to back in Sullivan’s Corner. I love Sully, and all the folks who call it home. When trouble threatens the young child, they all step in to help. The suspense tread was nice, and I even appreciated that Carr didn’t use cliched characters, particularly with the brother. Everyone is worthy of redemption in my book. Just because their cover is worn and a lot of their story doesn’t look promising, those final chapters haven’t been written. *gets down of soapbox*
The story touches on grief, family, love, and community. It delivers sweet romance that has little drama thanks to a suspenseful thread that will keep you flipping the pages. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Reviewer
Rating: really liked it
I am such a huge fan of Carr's. I can't put her books down once I start reading them. This one was no different. I love the drama and the ending was to die for. You are going to fall in love with the three main characters.
I am on pins and needles waiting for Carr's next book.
This can be read as a stand alone.
Rating: really liked it
The Country Guesthouse is the fifth book in Robyn Carr’s Sullivan’s Crossing series, and as with all the books in the series it works perfectly fine as a standalone novel. Although you get to see characters from the prior books in this one, it is not necessary to have read their stories to enjoy this one – it’s simply an added bonus.
Although I did enjoy The Country Guesthouse, I’m going to be honest and say it’s not my favourite in the series. I powered through it in a single sitting, as I do with all Robyn Carr books, but this one didn’t quite wow me to the same degree as the other books in the series.
As always, Robyn Carr takes a real issue and pulls you into the story. You quickly connect to the characters and find yourself desperate to see how their stories come together. However, with this one, I found myself wanting more. It was great to see how things developed, but there were certain elements of the story I would have liked to have seen more of, there were certain elements I would have liked to have been given more depth.
There is no doubt it was an enjoyable read and I loved how things played out, but this isn’t my number one Robyn Carr read. For fans of Sullivan’s Crossing, however, The Country Guesthouse is a nice addition to the series.
Rating: really liked it
I was looking for some fluff to listen to and boy was this some fluff. When Hannah Russell comes back early from a work trip to find her fiance in bed with one of her employees - her world comes crashing down. It gets even worse when she discovers that her best friend has unexpectedly died and she now has custody of her 5 year old child with special needs. Talk about a curve-ball. She's trying to bond with Noah so she decides to rent a nice guesthouse in the mountains for a couple weekend so they can learn to love and trust each other. She ends up meeting the owner of the house and his big dog and suddenly the world seems even brighter. They start to fall hard and Hannah will have some tough choices to make on what she wants her future to look like. Do she and Noah have room for Own, his dog, and their beautiful house (who wouldn't?!?). Sappy, predictable, repetitive, and slow. The "twist" at the end was obvious. Perfect for fans of happy fluff with a little bit of spice (a few sex scenes - mildly graphic).
Rating: really liked it
Series: Sullivan's Crossing, book #5
Hannah Russell (35) returns home early from a corporate retreat and finds her fiancé in bed with another woman. This put an end to her 2nd engagement. There are more bad news -- her best friend Erin unexpectantly dies due to pneumonia-caused complications and leave behind a 5-year-old son Noah. Erin was a single mother and estranged from her mother, so she named Hannah as her son's guardian. Hannah has no experience with motherhood but she accept the challange to take care of Noah.
Hannah has previously visited a lakeside house in Colorado and she enjoyed that place and people. She decide to go there again, this time with Noah. When they arrive, they discover that the home’s owner, photographer Owen Abrams and his adorable dog Romeo are also there. To their surprise they quickly find enjoyment in each others company.
Plot sounded interesting enough but the execution was not very good. Thanks to multiple POVs there were too many repetitions, no surprises. Dialogue sounded stilted and dry. I've read several Robyn Carr's books now and so many of her characters have lost someone, have some kind of partner or health issues. Little kids act like adults (its unreal how advanced 5- or 2-year-olds are in Carr's books). There are lots of bad and frustrating things thrown in together, yet, it lacked emotional depth. I felt like I am reading summary instead of experiencing and feeling things along with the main characters (telling vs showing). I never really felt invested in the plot and characters. It wasn't bad but I wasn't impressed either.
Rating: really liked it
This 5th book in this series was my absolute favorite book. It pulled me in like when I was reading the Virgin River series. I am loving the characters more and more with each book and the addition of Noah, Hannah and Owen along with the big clumsy but loveable Romeo were such great characters.
The story begins with Hannah going to a beautiful home with her team for a team building exercise. Hannah feels as thought she gets nothing out of this team building and leaves. As she is heading out, she stops at Sully's and befriends him.
After Hannah returns home, her friend passes away, willing her son to Hannah.
This is the story of Hannah's new life as she adjusts to raising a small boy and how she finds her HEA.
5 stars
Rating: really liked it
I LOVE LOVE LOVE Robyn Carr's books. They are full of heart, but not overly so. And she knows how to build a community like and extended family. This book was very good. I really liked the plotline with the orphaned boy and the nasty grandma. It really gave the book an extra pep along with the new mom and romance. Can't wait for her next book!!
Rating: really liked it
DNF-The Country House started out really strong for me. The heroine goes through the wringer in the beginning and I admired her strength to pull through. She finds herself unexpectedly as a new Mom (surprise kid, but not in the sense you're thinking) and I was rooting for her.
Honestly I got just a few pages shy of 200 pages in and couldn't do it anymore. The story just felt like a drag for me. All of the big things had happened. Breakup in the beginning, loss of someone close to her, new motherhood, heroine and the hero professing their love for one another---sucks, because I know there is a'suspense' element to the story and I didn't make it to see what comes of it, but it felt like a drag. When I put the book down, I wasn't interested in picking it back up. So, moving on.
Rating: really liked it
Sooo just sooo unrealistic in every single page. The author just threw in every single sad and frustrating life experience in the story. And then it felt like the story was just rushed! I found myself just rolling my eyes the entire book instead of melting into the story. Got half way through and just couldn't finish.
Rating: really liked it
This is one of those books that there is nothing really wrong with but for some reason it bored me to tears. I left if for a while and never could get the gumption to finish it.
Rating: really liked it
Cheesy
