Chasing River (Burying Water #3) – K.A. Tucker

Genre: Romance
Publisher: Atria Books
Pages: 322
Release Date: July 7, 2015

Armed with two years’ worth of savings and the need to experience life outside the bubble of her Oregon small town, twenty-five-year old Amber Welles is prepared for anything. Except dying in Dublin. Had it not been for the bravery of a stranger, she might have. But he takes off before she has the chance to offer her gratitude.

Twenty-four-year-old River Delaney is rattled. No one was supposed to get hurt. But then that American tourist showed up. He couldn’t let her die, but he also couldn’t risk being identified at the scene—so, he ran. Back to his everyday life of running his family’s pub. Only, everyday life is getting more and more complicated, thanks to his brother, Aengus, and his criminal associations. When the American girl tracks River down, he quickly realizes how much he likes her, how wrong she is for him. And how dangerous it is to have her around. Chasing her off would be the smart move.

Maybe it’s because he saved her life, or maybe it’s because he’s completely different from everything she’s left behind, but Amber finds herself chasing after River Delaney. Amber isn’t the kind of girl to chase after anyone.

And River isn’t the kind of guy she’d want to catch.

Chasing River is now tied with my favourite ever K.A. Tucker book, The Simple Wild. If you’ve read The Simple Wild and loved it, you’ll definitely enjoy Chasing River because they’re similar in a lot of ways.

I’m not sure if Tucker has visited Ireland herself, but reading Chasing River I truly felt like I was experiencing Dublin. Like The Simple Wild, Tucker’s writing allows readers to easily imagine the setting she’s created with ease. Ireland is picturesque in its beauty and that comes through Tucker’s writing flawlessly.

What sets Chasing River apart from most romance novels set in foreign countries is Tucker’s inclusion of Ireland’s fraught history. Tucker is able to clearly communicate to the reader the deep historical roots of the country through the plot in a relevant fashion. This only enhances readers’ connection to the story. At the beginning of the novel, there’s an author’s note that quickly details key historical points that are relevant to the story. There is so much I do not know about Ireland, but Chasing River has given me a starting point. I also need to visit Ireland sooner rather than later!

The romance between Amber and River is filled with tense, adorable, and sexy moments throughout the novel. Amber and River are two very different people from two very different lifestyles. Their connection is instantaneous, but they have several physical, emotional, and mental hurtles to clear before their relationship can progress. Watching them deal with these hurtles is exciting and heart breaking at times.

Overall, Chasing River is the best of this companion series so far. I cannot believe its taken me this long to read them since I’ve always been a fan of Tucker’s work. I would recommend reading the previous novels first even though it’s a companion series, though it’s not required.

 

Have you read Chasing River? What did you think? Have you read the other books in the series?