Calla Fletcher was born in the wilds of Alaska but raised in the bustle of Toronto after her mother couldn’t handle the extremities of living an Alaskan life. Now 26 years old and having never met her father Wren, Calla gets a call out of the blue telling her that her father has been diagnosed with an illness. After much trepidation, she flies to Alaska to meet him and get to know him over one week. Can this city girl live the Simple Wild? Her father’s right hand man, bush pilot Jonah doesn’t think so and can’t wait to see her gone. Wanting to prove to herself, and him, Calla makes some big adjustments that see’s her getting closer to her father, but also making friends (and maybe something more) with Jonah, both of which will make leaving Alaska that much harder.

I listened to the Audio book narrated by Rebekkah Ross and was pretty thankful that I listened mostly at night with a big box of tissues at my side. Rebekkah voiced Calla perfectly and did a great job with all of the other characters as well!

I think for most people who live in a big city it was pretty easy to visualize how different an Alaskan setting would be for a girl like Calla. Growing up in a social media world, cell phone in hand, and able to order take out or a pair of shoes is a much different lifestyle than those living in the Wilds of Alaska. Internet is dicey, daylight hours are either 24/7 or zero to none, and beauty products don’t make the news. The growth in Calla from the beginning of her trip to her last day was enormous. She noticed and no longer allowed herself to be defined by those things and I really liked her more for that.

I am a sucker for great father daughter stories and this one was just wonderful. Wren, Calla’s father, was a very quiet, humble man who had let his life and family get away from him. After 12 years of not talking to his daughter I loved how he slowly showed his emotions for her and they grew closer in gradual moments. For me, it was this relationship that made the book so great. Jonah was awesome too, don’t get me wrong. He and Calla’s bitter feud and funny dialog kept the pace of the book from dragging and brought in comic moments that were really needed. He also had an inner heart of gold that made the end of the book special, but it was Calla’s growing love for her father that just touched my heart.

Sometimes a book just fits with your needs at that time and The Simple Wild was the perfect book for me at this time in my life. Not to be overly dramatic or anything, it just hit all the right notes for me and I’m not sure if it would have even a few years ago. I couldn’t help but give this a five rating because of that. Oh, and I wasn’t joking about the tissues. Keep them on hand! ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

Opinions from around the Blogosphere

“K.A. Tucker is the queen of subtle romances. I love how she slowly weaves them into her stories and builds them up to the point where the sexual tension becomes explosive. Jonah and Calla’s banter was entertaining as hell and I loved the pranks they pulled on one another. These light-hearted moments definitely balanced out the heavier moments in this book.” The Romance Corner

“Ultimately, this wasn’t just a romance book but a beautiful story on a girl learning that family can come from any setting. That, in the end, it’s not about where you are, but who you’re bringing with you along for the ride (I know that sounds cheesy, but it’s true)!” Taylor Talks Books

Click this link to purchase!* The Simple Wild: A Novel

Copyright 2019 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

*Amazon Associate