Adam (Farraday Country 1) by Chris Keniston #review

Pages - 164 

Publisher -  Indie House Publishing

Published -  October 24, 2016

Sold by -  Amazon Digital Services LLC

Genre -  Contemporary Western Romance, Clean & Wholesome

Series -  Farraday Country 1 of  9

Sexual Content -  0/5

Language -  3/5

Narrative -  3rd P

Welcome to Farraday Country, a twist on the favorite 7 Brides for 7 Brothers theme set in cattle-ranching west Texas, with all the friends, family and fun that fans have come to expect from USA TODAY Bestselling author Chris Keniston.
On a barren road in the pre-dawn hours, Adam Farraday, the oldest of seven siblings, happens upon a disabled sports car and an angel in white searching for a disappearing dog. What is it about this secretive redheaded beauty that intrigues him as no woman has before?
After learning her fiancé's true nature minutes before her wedding, Meg O'Brien drives as fast and as far away from her world as she can. Stranded with no money, and nowhere to go, the city girl must learn to fit in to small town life and all its quirky trappings. Too bad falling in love with her handsome rescuer is not an option.

I wanted to enjoy it, and I try very hard to stick with a story to the end in the hope that it will somehow shift gears and become better, but it is rare that that occurs.

Sadly, it didn't occur this time, either.

It's short and sweet if that is what you're looking for in any Romance novel, so there is that.

It never made sense why the story needed to be told, though.

Like, what is the main plot point here?

Adam needing a wife?

Meg needing to understand that Dallas sucks compared to small-town West Texas?

The shifty ex-fiance is what I think the plot point is supposed to be -- based on the synopsis -- but until the very end of the story, it was all about two strangers eyeing one another for two weeks until the ex-fiance finally makes an appearance.

Then it's over.

The whole thing wraps itself up in a nice, tidy red (yellow?) ribbon after a mere two weeks, with a just as unlikely climax involving the so-called nemesis (her ex fiance).

If I wanted to read about West Texas, I would go online and do research, stare at it on Google Earth for a time, or go to the library and read up on its history, economy, population, etc.

Adam's story was more about where he lived and how the people around him behaved than about Adam's love life and how he truly felt about Meg.

~

I wasn't able to really get to know, understand, or feel any compassion for or sparks-inducing connection between the two leads.

The chemistry supposed to occur between these two never registered, either.

Disappointing.

I had more sympathy for Abbie (the diner owner) than I did for either Meg or Adam.

I still don't really know what either of them look like, other than they both have blue eyes and she's Irish because she has red hair.

Well, she's 'beautiful' and he's 'big & strong' as well as 'handsome' (surprise, surprise).

~

She kept a 'deep, dark' secret from him until the very end, when they went on their obligatory ONE DATE prior to falling in love.

He kept up the gentlemanly persona that his pappy instilled in him throughout the story, but he also had a lot of mental moments suffering from hard-ons and over-heated limbs.

She completely forgot about her ten-minutes-from-being-a-husband fiance within twenty-four hours of arriving in Bliss, Texas (my word for what the author kept describing this one-horse town as being like).

Adam didn't know much of anything about Meg other than she appeared to be Irish because of her red hair, which naturally meant she possessed a fiery temper... which never occurred but because of her red hair and her possibly being of Irish descent, it just stands to reason that...

~

As for its being a Clean/Wholesome read, that would depend on your interpretation and not mine.

I thought it means you won't find any vulgar language, graphic sex, or sex in general in the story.

Surprisingly, the more chapters in, the more foul language that cropped up.

Yeah, shit, damn, hell, and even f*ck aren't considered foul anymore.

Apparently, Clean & Wholesome refers to everything Texas, cliché, and family.

Three things I have zero interest in, so all of those generic trappings fell flat.

Far too much down-home swagger on the part of the author for my taste or enjoyment.

I mean, unless you actually LIVE there, the constant bombardment of messages about how great, clean, wholesome, and family-values oriented the place is kind of falls on deaf ears.

• The rest of the world might be modern and independent, but, in Tuckers Bluff, chivalry was still at least partly alive.
• "That was nice of them." "Neighbors look out for each other around here."
• "Doesn't the man have family?"
• in the middle of true God's country.
• there was some truth to the myth that small towns took care of their own.
• In full gentleman mode, Adam opened the truck’s door for her
• Adam reminded her of a faithful dog.

I don't mind small-town stories!

Setting isn't a big priority in my reading selection, so small-town, big-city, foreign lands, or outer space... I'm good if the story is.

~

The formulaic and trope-ridden feel throughout the story made it lackluster and commonplace.

And, because Adam is a veterinarian and Meg hit an animal with the car, it just reeks of baiting.

Every triggered reader is going to jump on that one and run with it (said every Editor at every publishing house from American coast to coast since 2001).

~

Despite this being romantic fiction, and I am not one to identify with a fictional character who may or may not behave, look, or even think like me or someone I know, if YOU happen to be the type who does like to identify with fictional characters, I urge you to avoid reading this novel.

Everything, and I mean everything is meticulously laid out and then just as meticulously swept under the rug for Meg, start to finish.

Totally identifiable, that.

~

I never really understood WHY Meg ran away, and even when it was finally explained to me, it still didn't ring true or make much sense.

It made even less sense that she would completely disregard/disown her own parents KNOWING what type of trouble they were in BECAUSE of her fiance.

She ran away instead of facing the issue, supporting her parents, and getting to the bottom of the turmoil surrounding the man she supposedly loved and wanted to spend the rest of her life with, and that was upsetting.

The worst part, for me, was the climax point when Meg finally confronts the truth.

Less than 10 days after being on the verge of saying I DO to someone else, when the expected climactic moment arrives, Meg finally gets in touch with her family (after learning something terrifying and startling about her father) and says to her mom, "Mom? I think I need a lawyer."

Her FATHER is about to face the firing squad, she hasn't given a rat's patoot about her family in all this time, so... do you really think her mom is going to care about her thoughtless, runaway daughter when her husband is about to lose it all?

She 'gasped' upon learning of her father's eventual fate, but then quickly forgets that to concentrate, AGAIN, on her own sorry ass and the potential trouble SHE may be facing as a result.

Her mom's HUSBAND is in just as much need, if not more need, of a decent lawyer himself.

I'm sorry, it just didn't wash, but it also doesn't sound anything remotely close to being considered family values.

And, speaking of family values...

Adam's daddy is beyond ideal, altruistic, wise, and as wholesome as a fresh loaf of bread just removed from a wood-burning stove on a hot summer's day in WEST TEXAS!

• the family patriarch

We learn about Patriarch Farraday several times in this Book One, about how honest and hard-working he is, and how devoted a family-man he is, and especially how much gosh-darned wisdom and manners he's tirelessly instilled in his boys.

• All of his life the Farradays had lived by the creed "where there's a will, there's a way."
• The entire Farraday family was nothing but nice people.

Everyone is just so goll-derned nice, it's like stepping out of Dallas and into Mayberry!

Oh, wait.

I can't say that because the author did!

She actually wrote that into the story, and it was the only time I got a good chuckle.

Ain't nothin' I hate more than having to read the author's age-slips scattered throughout an otherwise CONTEMPORARY romance novel.

• "Danger, Will Robinson!" (is anyone under age 50 going to get this?)
• Maybe drop chaff (I have NO idea)
• like you were out borrowing a cup of sugar (Adam's brother talking to Adam)
• "I can see those pretty little wheels turning. (Adam talking to Meg... and it makes no sense)
• "I think he's had enough, Wonder Woman." (really?)
• in his breadbasket. (yeesh)

Or the blatantly OBVIOUS fact that the author had inserted herself into this story (which is fine and actually a bit cool), except that she referred to herself as being 'attractive'.

Seriously?

~

AS FOR ITS BEING well-written, yes, for the most-part.

This is likely an Editor thing anymore, but the lack of grammar knowledge annoys this particular reader, and encountering misused and wrongly worded phrases is just bad.

• he'd have to call his brother the police chief on another matter. (have to? his brother IS the police chief)
• his Irish blue eyes, (is this a real thing?)
• He slapped his palm facedown on the counter. (two words and, does a hand have two palms?)
• The man's big blue eyes rounded like a pair of decorative Halloween eyeballs.
• "a few of us go out once a month or so on Friday nights. (which one is it?)
• Growing up Connor was always about the horses. (Growing Up Connor?)
• every muscle longed for a long hot shower. (personification! and two longs for the win)
• neighboring ranches on the frills of his jurisdiction, (like a hoe-down skirt maybe?)
• Adam was the sort of man who women's dreams were made of. 
• Meg couldn't stop from smiling.
• Adam pushed open the exit door, cast a quick glance up and down the street. (AND??)
• none of what had just gone down in his living room were standard operating procedures. 
• Adam could see the doubts in his brother's eyes. 
• That was obvious even to anyone.
• "You mean besides that Dallas is where her life and family are?" (say again?)
• safety deposit box." (when you look up the phrase, it says "Commonly misused as safety")
• A caustic chuckle escaped past Meg's lips. (caustic AND past)
• Sitting beside her at the police staion in front of his brother's desk, (not even about the type-o here)
• Becky's whole face scrunched up.
• his mouth crashed against hers. (any broken teeth?)(personification again, too - damn that unruly mouth has a mind of its own. Behave!)

HERE are the other 8 novels in the series

and YES, I would recommend them to anyone who loves everything Texas, rural, and family.

I know you're out there, and I know you're going to eat these up like buttermilk biscuits smothered in butter and drenched in a heaping helping of granny's homemade gravy.