Review: Keep on Loving You by Christie Ridgway

Title: Keep on Loving You by Christie Ridgway
Cabin Fever Series book Four
Publisher: HQN Books
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Length: 416 pages
Book Rating: C+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

In an enchanting new romance from USA TODAY bestselling author Christie Ridgway, love comes home to Blue Arrow Lake when childhood sweethearts get an unexpected second chance… 

Mackenzie Walker has everything a single girl needs in her California mountain hometown. Family, friends, a thriving business…and memories of Zan Elliott, whose touch—and betrayal—she’s never forgotten. Now, ten years after he left town, Zan returns to manage his late grandfather’s estate…and flip Mac’s life upside down.

Documentary filmmaking has taken Zan all over the globe, yet nowhere was far enough away to make him forget Mac. Seeing her reignites their incredible chemistry. Mac’s trust won’t be easily won, especially when Zan’s inheritance jeopardizes her family’s hard-earned dreams. But every moment together is challenging Zan to stop living life through a lens and dare to let his guard down for a chance at forever…

Review:

The final installment in Christie Ridgway’s heartwarming Cabin Fever series, Keep on Loving You is a delightful second chance at love romance. Separated by ten years, a lot of miles and a ton of heartache, Mackenzie “Mac” Walker is dismayed to discover her teenage boyfriend Alexander “Zan” Elliott has returned to town.

Orphaned at a young age, Zan moved to Blue Arrow Lake to live with grandfather. The lonely young boy was soon befriended by the Walker clan and when they were teenagers, Mac’s longtime crush on Zan turned quickly turned to love when the two began dating. However, her heart was shattered when Zac abruptly left town ten years earlier. Three broken engagements later, she is happy with her life but with her three siblings falling in love and getting marryied, she cannot help but a little sad that she does not have a special someone. Spying Zan at her older brother’s wedding, Mac soon realizes they still have incredible chemistry, but she adamantly refuses to give in to her desire for him.

Mac and Zan are likable yet incredibly frustrating characters. Both are stubborn and rather closed off and instead of talking about their fears, they cling tightly to their somewhat irrational decisions. Mac is very protective of her family and this combined with her pride leads her to make choices about their future without consulting them. Zan is so afraid of losing anyone he cares about that he would rather be alone than risk his heart.

There is plenty of sexual tension between them and while Zan would like nothing better than to indulge their passion, Mac tries to maintain a healthy distance from him. But once she begins working with him on clearing out his grandfather’s house, she proposes a no strings fling. Zan is no fool and he eagerly agrees, but after spending one passion filled night together, Mac instantly regrets sleeping with him. This is just the first of many on again/off again encounters that plague the couple for a large portion of the novel. This exasperating pattern could easily have been avoided if Mac and Zan would have been willing to sit down and talk things through but instead, they are both incredibly reluctant to open up about the things that are holding them back from fully committing to one another.

A secondary story arc features a romance between Mac’s employee and friend Tilda Smith and local Ash Robbins. Several months after a one night stand, the pair are reunited when Ash returns to town. They have a few issues to work through, but they are both willing to give their romance a chance. However, secrets threaten to derail their burgeoning romance.

Keep on Loving You by Christie Ridgway is a bit slow paced but overall, it is an enjoyable story. The characters are multi-faceted and imperfect but they are still very easy to like. The storyline is engaging but the lack of progress in Mac and Zan’s relationship becomes tiresome. All in all, it is a sweet conclusion to the Cabin Fever series and although it can be read as a standalone, I highly recommend the entire series.