Candis Terry Navigates Grief and Family Drama in ‘A Better Man’ [REVIEW]

A hockey star returns to Sunshine Creek Vineyard to reconnect with his family and maybe even fall in love in Candis Terry’s A Better Man. (Photo by Fabrice Florin, Flickr)

In the wake of tragedy, a man returns to the small town where he grew up only to confront his past, face his family, and keep his sister from making mistakes of her own. But will he be able to resist falling in love again with the very girl he left behind? Learn the answer in the first volume of Candis Terry’s Sunshine Creek Vineyard series, A Better Man. 

Avon Books

Hockey star Jordan Kicade returns to Sunshine Valley after his parents are killed in a helicopter crash in Hawaii. But his relationship with his siblings isn’t what it once was. “The siblings he’d once lived and laughed with now seemed like distant relatives amid the suffocating grief and grave silence,” Terry writes (9). Uncertainty hangs in the air as Jordan tries to figure out his role in the family once again.

Although his four brothers accept him back into the fold, Jordan’s sister Nicole is another matter entirely. Besides dealing with normal teenage angst, she feels Jordan abandoned her by not keeping in touch while he was off pursuing his hockey career. Now he’s returned, her parents are gone, and her grade in creative writing is suffering, which could jeopardize her graduation.

Determined to help his sister, Jordan seeks help from Lucy Diamond, Nicole’s creative writing teacher, the very woman who had fallen for him years before. Lucy doesn’t mince words and demands Jordan assist his sister through this difficult transition in her life. But the reality of the situation is more complicated than it seems, especially as Jordan and Lucy start to fall in love.

In a novel that deals with serious topics like loss, grief and family obligations, A Better Man is actually a delightfully fun read. The characters are authentic, the tension is palpable, and the chemistry is off the charts. Once you start reading this playful, enchanting book, you won’t be able to put it down. If you love small town romance, add Candis Terry to your list of must-read authors.

Candis Terry
(Photo by Kristalle Terry)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Candis Terry is the author of the Sugar Shack, Sweet Texas, and Sunshine Creek Vineyard novels which include A Better Man, Truly Sweet, and Sweet Surprise. But the truth is, she didn’t set out to be a writer.

Born and raised in Southern California, she has worked in a Hollywood recording studio, been a graphic designer in marketing, designed costumes for 80s heavy metal videos and schmoozed with the likes of Charleton Heston and Motley Crüe. She didn’t start writing until she fell in love with romance fiction while pulling an all nighter rocking her newborn infant and reading.

Now she lives with her family on a farm in Idaho, writing stories set in small towns, populated by quirky characters looking for love and their own happily-ever-after. When she isn’t writing, you can find her riding an ATV through the wilderness, hanging out with her family or one of her three furry troublemakers.

Visit her home on the Web at CandisTerry.com, like her on Facebook and follow her on Twitter.

A BETTER MAN
By Candis Terry
368 pgs. Avon Books. $7.99