I’ve heard some positive buzz around Ruby Landers and wanted to give her a shot, which was a fortunate decision on my part. Ribbonwood, while a romance novel, had more than just a love story to offer its readers. A book named after a town leads one to believe that the town will become a sort of character. Here, it’s more that the community Lara Bennett has established is the beating heart of the story. It made me think of The Carousel by Stefani Deoul, though the romance in Ribbonwood strongly stands at the forefront.
Set in Australia, Ribbonwood is a small town with a local population of less than a thousand and a stream of tourists that provide businesses a pretty penny to those smart enough to cater to them. It’s hot and beautiful and a hell of a setting. Ollie Gabrielli grew up in Ribbonwood, and, after spending time away practicing medicine, returned home to spend time with her dying grandmother. Her family owns a winery, which led to some descriptive vineyard scenes that provided enjoyable imagery.
Lara Bennett is the other main character and Ollie’s love interest. I’m not usually a fan of prologues, but Bennett’s character introduction blew me away. I won’t say more on this front because I think it’s worth experiencing on your own. Lara’s character was handled with knowing hands—a once teenager who “seduced” a teacher, known as the town vixen, turned outcast who may steal your husband, with a secret heart of gold. I find characters like this—misunderstood, hurt, and trying—to be the most compelling.
The writing in Ribbonwood is strong, especially in character development. Even side characters got their time in the sun, though I was left wanting more in this area. In part, the plot seemed to fall away once the charming banter led to sex. This led to the sex scenes feeling more gratuitous as there were points of the plot that I wished were developed further. But this is a small point of criticism to an otherwise well done novel which ended with even more heart than it started with. The heavy topics (which Landers didn’t shy away from) were handled with sensitivity and nuance.
I believe the relationship between Lara and Ollie was described as enemies to lovers, which I wouldn’t quite agree with. It’s clear they hated each other in high school, but as adults the chemistry between these two all but smoldered upon their reintroduction. It was fun and charming with depth enough for me to continue to root for them.
After reading Ribbonwood, I’ll be keeping an eye on Ruby Landers.