I have been pretty upfront with my bad relationship with novellas. Unless they are part of a series I love, novellas and I typically don't get a long. I made a point of letting Leta Gail Doerr know this when accepting a query to review For the Love of Big Orange.I'm not always one to easily admit when I'm wrong. Actually, I am never one to easily admit that - but hey, it's not as if it happens often (ahem). However, I must say... I was wrong. If novellas are often like For the Love of Big Orange, then I won't need a relationship counselor to get along with them ever again.Lacie Joe is an abandoned child turned hot mess teenager turned self starting - teen saving - fairly selfless - loveable chick with attitude oozing out her pores. She's haunted by her past, her mistakes and her heartaches. A family emergency ushers her back to her hometown and now she must face up her mistakes and the man she left to flee them.Que Jay Hayworth. Oh my sweetness, this man was wonderful. Ooey-gooey wholesome hottie in a uniform, anyone? He's chased after Lacie Joe for as long as he can remember and he's determined to worm his way back into her life using tools like dependability and good home cooking. Yes, please!!Lacie Joe's life as she knows it is falling apart and she has to fight to keep what she holds most dear together. For the Love of Big Orange is a sweet and heart warming tale of family, love, honesty, redemption and coming home. I was hooked at page one. My only complaint...it was too short. However, it is just the first of a series. The second book, To Have Mercy, will be out this summer.
