Home to Whiskey Creek

Addy Davies suffered a horrific, life altering event when she attended a graduation party for an older crowd. Addy chose to keep it hidden, but it forever changed her. After her own graduation, she left Whiskey Creek far behind to try to move on with her life.

Addy's grandmother basically raised her though, and now that she is getting older and needs help, Addy is back in Whiskey Creek. Leaving her job as a chef in Davis, she has returned to help her grandmother run her restaurant, but hoping her Grandmother will agree to sell it so that Addy can be safely on her way again. Addy has no intention of catching up with anyone in Whiskey Creek except for her Grandmother. She has purposely severed as many ties as she could to Whiskey Creek, and wants to keep it that way.

But someone who doesn't want the past to be revealed is worried...and shortly after Addy arrives in Whiskey Creek she is abducted from her bed, beaten and thrown in an abandoned mine. Addy has no idea what her abductor planned for her, because Noah Rackham, former high school crush, current super star racer, and notorious womanizer, happens upon her and saves her from an uncertain fate. Noah initially has no idea who Addy is when he first pulls her out of that mine...he also has no idea his deceased twin brother was one of the vicious attackers years ago. Noah doesn't know why Addy is so evasive about what happened, but he knows he is inexplicably drawn to the woman she has turned into. The more Addy tries to push Noah away, the more determined he that she should give him a chance.

Addy is determined to keep her secret from all those years ago. She holds onto a lot of guilt, not of the attack, but what happened afterwards. As much as it pains her to know her attackers have gone unpunished and have moved on so well with their lives, she is unable to face the past. Now that she has been attacked again and her grandmother threatened, she feels she has to keep her secret forever. This is affecting every aspect of Addy's life though. She is frightened, feels guilty, is not being honest about the recent attack with anyone, and despite years of therapy is unable to maintain a relationship. Noah keeps turning up though, and she is finding herself more and more drawn to him as well. She feels it is wrong though, nothing can possibly come of a relationship with Noah without too many other people getting hurt. Slowly Noah breaks down some of Addy's walls, but he is still in the dark about her past and present. He does know he wants to be with her and can't understand why she is fighting a mutual attraction.

With the threats continuing, Addy's mother showing up unexpectedly, things with Noah heating up, and the past creeping up on Addy and others, will Addy have the strength to finally open up? Instead will she run from Whiskey Creek, once again broken? Or will the people whose lives she can shatter apart do anything to stop her?

Brenda brings us a very heart felt, emotional romance with Home to Whiskey Creek. Brenda manages to write about a horrific issue with sensitivity, drawing the reader in and making you feel a multitude of emotions. Often it hard to understand why victims act or don't act. With honest, real feelings on the pages of Home to Whiskey Creek, I felt like I really got inside Addy's head and could understand. She is an independent, beautiful young woman who has tried hard to move on from the assault she suffered as a 16 year old, but has never quite been able to. I also think she is brave. Coming back to Whiskey Creek opens up so many old wounds, but Addy does her best to carry on and cope. I really hoped that she could find someone to open up to. When she finds herself falling in love with Noah but denies her feelings, she is trying to protect everyone, including herself. That doesn't always work though, and maybe true love is what Addy needs to finally start healing.

Noah is an honest, caring man who feels he doesn't deserve the womanizing reputation he has. We've met him and his friends in previous Whiskey Creek books, and there are a lot of different dynamics happening in that friendship circle that form part of the secondary story in Home to Whiskey Creek. How Noah handles an unexpected discovery really gives his character strength. When he finally finds a woman he feels like he could be with forever, it is both challenging and frustrating for him. As he and Addy move forward, if the truth comes out, will he still be able to love her?

Home to Whiskey Creek gives us so much! Noah and Addy's romance is filled with suspenseful moments...and the more of their story you read the more you have no idea how their story will end or if it's even possible to have a happy ending when there is so many secrets and such tragedy. Brenda keeps you hoping for the best as you read along with Addy and Noah's story.

I highly recommend Home to Whiskey Creek and all of the Whiskey Creek stories Brenda Novak has written!

5/5 stars