Lauren has everything she has ever wanted in life, a rich fiancé, a great job, and status in New York City. When Lauren inherits a house for a wedding gift, she meets a man named Caleb and they share an instant attraction that could possibly be love at first site. Lauren has to decide the person she wants to be, before she can decide the man she wants to be with.

Words cannot describe how in love with this novel I am. I literally picked it up and could not put it down to save my own life. I am an avid reader, and I am always on the search for a book that will capture me to a point I become completely lost in the story. It is always hard to find a book that totally sucks me in, and Small Town Girl succeeds in having me wrapped up entirely into the story. When I was finished with Small Town Girl I felt sad, I did not want the story to end, I wanted to keep reading this amazing love story.

Small Town Girl does a great job of taking readers on the journey of two people falling in love. Linda Cunningham does an good job of letting readers read, and feel the attraction between her characters buildup, and form into this intoxicating romance. I like when a novel gives you a love story, but the characters have challenges, and conflict that make them have to fight to hold onto that love, not just be in love and happily ever after. This novel had the perfect amount of push and pull between, love and conflict that had me flipping through the pages as fast as I possibly could. It is also a realistic novel, making it very relate-able to readers.

I normally have a favorite character in every novel I read, and it is normally one of the main characters. I had a tough time selecting which character in this novel would be my favorite it is a toss up between Caleb and Lauren. Lauren is this smart girl, who makes poor choices, and her views are a little off on what is important in life, but Laurens character changes and develops the way a character should. I found myself cheering for Lauren as she developed in the story. Caleb you cannot help but be attracted to this back of the woods boy. I picture Caleb to be this rugged man, but he was so charming he captured my heart.

The use of imagery in this book is mind blowing. I can actually visualize the smell of the air, and the feel of the breeze on the beautiful nights described in this book. This use of imagery also helped me get sucked into the story. I half debated packing my bags to go to a small town, just because this book makes it sound so beautiful.

I highly recommend this book to adult readers only, due to the strong sexual content in the book. I never just give five heart rating it is something that has to be earned. This booked earned a five heart rating and I cannot wait to read more from this author. ( )

You can also read my review here: http://bookbybookreview.blogspot.com/2011/12/review-small-town-girl.html

Sex in the City meets Sweet Home Alabama. These are both movies that I thought of while I was reading Small Town Girl.

I loved Lauren. Her power, her drive and as it turns out, her morales. She was a character that I found I could relate to and one that I was routing for the whole time. It never fails that I found myself cheering for the underdog in this book. When it comes to romantic stories, I always want the down-and-out guy to get the girl - who wouldn't?

When Lauren set off to Vermont to deal with her families estate, I found myself falling in love with the setting. A cottage in the middle of the country with all the homey aspects of a farmhouse really set my mind a-glow. Being a fan of anything country, I could picture the small town, the people and the amazing backdrop to this romantic tale.

Linda Cunningham has a unique ability to bring her readers right into the story and make them feel at home. The romantic scenes are so well worded that it sets your skin on fire.

Overall, this was a wonderful book and one that I am looking forward to reading more of. ( )

Small Town Girl is a great start to a new contemporary romance series by Cunningham. Fans of Fool's Gold by Susan Mallery will enjoy this book.

The attraction between Lauren and Caleb is immediate from the moment they meet, albeit shown through tension and feathers getting ruffled. The chemistry with these two is HOT and undeniable. They of course have to work for a happily ever after, but that's why we like this genre, right?

The characters are likable and I invested more in Caleb loving the pages where he showed up. Oddly, you never read any of the story from his point of view. We know what he is thinking only when he tells us through conversation. The whole story is told through the eyes of Lauren. I didn't realize that until half way through and realized I would have liked to get inside Caleb's head more. He is gorgeous, owns his own business, a volunteer firefighter, and has a tragic past that you just want to fill the hole in his heart yourself. Great leading man. Lauren is more complex in that she thinks she wants one thing out of life while running as fast as she can from the type of life she perceives Caleb could represent. She's also engaged to a powersuit in New York that could give her everything she ever wanted. Much to figure out for Lauren and she lets you in on all her thoughts along the way.

Lauren's best friend Kelly is a great support and I like her sarcastic, tell it like it is, side. Another character I liked, although this isn't a live character, is Lauren's grandmother's house she inherited back in that small town. I think this house is a major player in the story. If it weren't for the house, there would be no meeting Caleb, no place to go when her world falls apart, nothing to throw all her efforts and emotions into, and no home for the future. What a great friend she has in that house!

I'm interested to see where Cunningham takes this series. For those that like happily ever afters that require work, disappointment, grand gestures, hot scenes, and redemption, Small Town Girl is a book for you. ( )