On Magnolia Lane by Denise Hunter

For fans of the Blue Ridge Romance series, the moment we’ve all been dreading has finally arrived. With today’s release of On Magnolia Lane, we must say goodbye to our lovable friends from Copper Creek. But there's good news. This story is all about Jack McReady. Every series should end like this one with the story of the character you’ve been crushing on for years.

While there were laughs in all of the books, this one is the funniest in my opinion. Most of the humor involves Jack in his inept pursuit of Daisy Pendleton. Poor Jack only has eyes for Daisy, who seems only to think of him as her pastor. When he’s around her in a social setting, he transforms from eloquent preacher into a bumbling, tongue-tied adolescent. And to make the situation worse, all his friends know he’s completely smitten with her.

Things go from bad to worse when Jack discovers Daisy is using an online dating service called Flutter. Isn't that the best name ever for an online dating service? As word spreads Daisy is only finding losers, one of their friends takes matters into his own hands and creates an online profile for Jack using the pen name TJ. Appalled at first, Jack plans to close the account, but when he gets a hello from Daisy, he hesitates and starts digging a monumental hole of deception.  

There is, of course, a serious side to the book. First, Jack knows he’s being deceitful and it eats at him. Second, we learn both Jack and Daisy are dealing with negative self-image issues. Jack still sees himself as a pimple-faced nerd, and Daisy thinks she’s not smart enough for someone like Jack because she has dyslexia. This was the part of the story that rang most true for me. It's so easy for us to carry the bad things from childhood into adulthood.

On Magnolia Lane is a wonderful, clean, and faith-filled five-star story that will charm the pants off of you. It really is a superb conclusion to the series. If you’ve not read the previous books, you won’t be completely lost; however, it's more enjoyable if you read the books in order. Jack is actually introduced in the standalone book Sweetbriar Cottage. So that's where I'd start if I were new to the series. They’re all such lovely books, you won’t regret taking the time to read them.

Have you read the Blue Ridge Romance series and Sweetbriar Cottage?

Which book was your favorite? Why?

What characters did you like the most? Why?

Were there any characters you didn’t like? Why?