Redwood Bend (Virgin River #18) by Robyn Carr

CAN CHANGING A TIRE CHANGE YOUR LIFE? 
Katie Malone and her twin boys’ trip along the beautiful mountain roads to Virgin River is stopped short by a tire as flat as her failed romance. To make matters worse, the rain has set in, the boys are hungry and Katie doesn’t have the first clue about putting on a spare. As she stands at the side of the road pondering her next move, she hears a distinct rumble. The sight of the sexy, leather-clad bikers who pull up beside her puts her imagination into overdrive. 
Dylan Childress and his buddies are on the motorcycle trip of a lifetime. But the site of a woman in distress stops them in their tracks. And while the guys are checking out her car, she and Dylan are checking out one another. 
In one brief moment, the world tilts on its axis and any previous plans Katie and Dylan might have had for their futures are left at the side of the road. 
WELCOME BACK TO THE RIVER.(synopsis from Goodreads)

In Redwood Bend, we get to know Katie Malone and her twins better. In the last novel, Hidden Summit we met and fell in love with her brother Conner. After the danger has passed, she decides to bring her boys to Virgin River to be closer to their uncle Conner.  Katie is an Army widow, and a recent encounter with her boss, has made her step back and reevaluate her non-existent love life.  I loved this novel and feel in love with the characters and a new place called Payne, Montana.

On the way up the winding hills of California to Virgin River, Katie gets a flat tire. She’s more than capable of changing it, but the lug nuts won’t come loose. Her five foot, athletic frame just isn’t power enough to handle the torque tightened lugs.  To make matters worse, she is at a dangerous curve and it’s raining. As she struggles with what to do, she hears the roar of engines and turns to see a biker gang heading her way. Their leader, Walt, quickly takes control of the situation and asks Dylan to lighten the load before they jack it up. When Dylan takes off his helmet, Katie loses her breathe. It’s him, Dylan Childress the childhood movie star who she crushed on as a teen and he is gorgeous.  Dylan takes a long look at her, and she suddenly becomes aware of the wet view her t-shirt is giving her. He takes off his jacket and covers her up…the story that unfolds is delicious.  The heat between Dylan and Katie was incredible and watching them figure things out kept me turning the pages late into the night.

I loved the character of Katie. She is tough, a great Mom and able to handle just about anything. She has great insight and despite her best intentions she falls for Dylan. Dylan, has had a troubled life and had never been in a committed relationship, in fact he is pretty sure his DNA prevents him from long term commitments.  He’s come a long way from his Hollywood bad boy days but can he commit? Dylan is a pilot and owns an airport and ranch in Payne, Montana. Due to the economy his business is in trouble. His best friend and father of five needs an income and Dylan would do just about anything to keep his business afloat; even return to Hollywood to do a movie; a place he swore never to return to.

I always enjoy my visits to Virgin River and recommend Redwood Bend to fans of small town contemporary romances. Each of the Virgin River series novels can easily be read as a standalone. I am secretly hoping that Robyn Carr writes a new series about Payne, Montana.  Carr has such a gift for bringing characters and plots to her novels that bring you hours of enjoyable reading and draw you back again and again. Her books are available in both paper and eBook formats. This novel will be published February 28, 2012 and is available for pre-order. 

I want to thank netGalley and Harlequin publishing for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my unbiased review. It was such a thrill getting one of my favorite must read series in advance. Thank you!

I gave this novel 4 coffee cups out of 5.                Kimba

Author's website:Robyn Carr

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