Synopsis: Clare Mitchell, a Brisbane lawyer, has her life turned upside down when Taylor, a client, abandons her child in her office. Now she's faced with putting him in a Contingency Unit or be his temporary foster parent. Not wanting him to be in danger she decides to take him under her care.What she didn't expect was all that came with this little boy. Diagnosed with autism Jack punches, screams, bangs his head constantly, and barely talks. As things in Clare's life start to overwhelm her she decides to go to the place that held some of her happiest memories; Currawong Creek, her grandfathers horse stud. There, Clare finally finds happiness, but will it last?
Review: I really liked this book! At first I thought I wasn't going to because something about the way it started just didn't quite click with me. I think it was that there was very little buildup to the real action and instead it got right to it. It's not that it's bad, it's just something I'm not used to, but as the story went on I got more into it. I think that the writing style was great and the story development was great too.
A little more background to the story: Clare is basically an amazing lawyer. She has a very successful career and she has a gorgeous boyfriend (who is obviously flawed in every other way which makes him completely undesirable), then she has to start taking care of Jack, a four year old boy who has been diagnosed with autism. She quickly takes a liking to him but things get too out of hand and she decides that the best thing to do is go stay with her grandfather. There her life starts taking a turn for the better. Currawong Creek is filled with vibrancy that she missed. There she's happy. Romance and endearing relationships ensue.
One thing I really liked about this book was its focus on "natural gas" companies and the truth about them. I thought that this topic was expertly incorporated into the story and worked very well with the circumstances.
As for characters, I love Jack and Grandfather Harry. I especially love how they are together because Harry takes to him immediately and treats him like his own family. Then there's Clare. This is the character who you always have mixed feelings about because she is genuinely a good person, but she's a good person who sometimes flies off the rail and that irks me. But it just means she's human and there's actual character development going on so this is a plus.
All in all I think this was a great book. It got to the action right from the start and took me about two days to finish it. I'm sure if you have an entire day you can finish it then too.
Final Thoughts: If you're looking for a fast paced book that's romance and family struggles then this is the book for you.
