The Vixen and the Vet by Katy Regnery
Published: June 2014
Goodreads :: Amazon
★★★★☆
In this modern-retelling of “Beauty and the Beast,” Savannah Carmichael, betrayed by an unreliable source, returns to her hometown of Danvers, Virginia with her once-promising journalism career in ruins. Given the opportunity to get back in the game by writing a patriotic human interest piece, Savannah turns her attention to the town hermit, Asher Lee, a wounded veteran who returned to Danvers eight years ago, and hasn’t been seen since.
After an IED explosion in Afghanistan took Asher’s hand and disfigured half of his face, he’s lived a quiet life on the outskirts of Danvers where the locals respect his privacy…that is, until Savannah Carmichael comes calling in a borrowed sundress with a plate of homemade brownies. When Asher agrees to be interviewed by Savannah, he starts feeling things for the beautiful reporter that he hasn’t felt in years.
Misfits in small-town Danvers, Savannah and Asher create a bond right away, touching each other’s hearts in ways neither thought possible. When a terrible mistake threatens to drive them apart, they’ll have to decide if the love they found in one another’s arms is strong enough to fight for their hard-won happily ever after.
4 Fairy Tale Stars
In this modern-day retelling of The Beauty and The Beast, Katy Regnery taps into our love of fairy tales. This is a grown-up fairy tale, complete with the charming and handsomely disfigured Vet, the sweet, beautiful, dejected Vixen and steam!
Having left New York to return home for Virginia, 26-year-old, Savannah (Vannah) Calhoun Carmichael, finds herself depressed, without a boyfriend or job. Her previous boyfriend was a class ‘A’ jerk who used her and then dumped her. Feeling glum and down on herself, she is thrust into the job as maid-of-honor for her 22-year-old sister, Katie Scarlet Carmichael, when she gets the call of a lifetime: write a human interest piece for the Lifestyles section for the Phoenix Times. If it’s good, she will get the job – take over the Lifestyles section. The problem? She’s an investigative journalist, was employed by one of the biggest newspapers in the country and the Phoenix times was a much smaller outfit. But she needed a job. Agreeing to put a piece together, she set out to find her story.
Asher Lee was a 34-year-old seriously injured vet, who, upon return from Afghanistan, was treated deplorably by his own community. Hiding in his house on the hill, he’s afraid and embarrassed by his own reflection, he never goes anywhere nor has visitors.
Donning her sister’s best sundress and bearing brownies, Savannah sets out to convince Asher to speak with her. When Asher sees her he is instantly drawn to her. He isn’t sure if it’s due to her beauty, or that he hasn’t had a visitor in 8 years – other than the local retired teacher who works for him. Asher agrees to meet several times weekly for interviews.
Asher’s journey from hermit, to a more self-confident man, was not easy. He had to face his fears and embrace change.
“You want your life to look different, Asher? Then change it.”
Savannah made some mistakes in her journey to reclaim her identity. She had to decide what was more important, her job or Asher.
“Can’t ride two horses with one ass, honey. Try it and you’ll get hurt.”
What develops is a sweet romance that heals two broken souls.
“This isn’t the sort of love that ends,” he said softly. “It’s forever.”
ARC provided by author in exchange for an honest review
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