Throwback Thursday: Blackest Heart by Amber Leigh Williams

Author: Amber Leigh Williams
First published in 2008  by Wild Rose Press

America's Sweetheart, Stella Ridge has been away from Wayback for fifteen years paving her way to the top of the acting business. When a car accident leaves her physically and emotionally scarred, the only place she wants to go is home to Texas and her family's ranch. The changes that have taken place since her departure are enough to rock her world again. She uncovers a buried tragedy, struggles with the penetrating stares and questions from townsfolk, and comes up against an intriguing and unexpected spark with the silent cowboy and champion bull rider, Judd Black. Their wounded souls draw them together and Stella begins to realize that only in him can she find the solace she sought by leaving the bright lights of Hollywood.

I came across this book in audio on the Overdrive site when I was looking for a quick throwback book.  Coming in at just over 3 hours, it's a very quick listen.  Blackest Heart ended up being just an OK read for me.  I think if it had been longer, I might have ended up making it a DNF.  The story is about Stella who walks away from her successful career in Hollywood, giving it all up to come back home.  She reconnects with her childhood friend Judd.  But, they both have a past they have to work through before they can have a HEA.

Overall, it's a sweet story about moving on, but there were things about it that really bugged me.  Despite being written in 2008, it had that early 80s feel. Judd is a character who never talks, except to 3 people.  It goes back to his childhood.  I get what the author was trying to do, but it didn't work for me.  I never felt like I got to know him.  He spoke maybe 10 sentences in the entire story. The story was too short for me to really get a feel for the back story and relationship between Stella and Judd.  Maybe had it been longer, I would have bought into it more.  I also didn't care for the narrator.  She put almost no emotion into the reading.  The bedroom scenes sounded like she was reading a grocery list.  

I'd say skip this one, unless you really need a quick read.  It's not bad, but it isn't great either.