Review: Under an Alaskan Sky

Back in December I read a holiday-ish novel, An Alaskan Christmas (review here). I was completely enthralled so I was really happy when I realized Jennifer Snow would be writing it as a series. Under an Alaskan Sky published earlier this year and I read it at a time when I needed to go back to a place that was lovely and familiar and get caught up in another love story.

Here's the synopsis:

Allowing himself to love always seemed too dangerous. Now it might be his only salvation…
Single dad Tank Wheeler has vowed to keep his heart shuttered in the name of keeping his young daughter’s life stable. But lately, the chemistry between him and his adrenaline-loving best friend, Cassie Reynolds, has been getting him a little hot under the collar. And then, with one scorching birthday kiss, these best friends are instantly more.
Exactly the wrong time for Tank’s ex to show up in Wild River, Alaska.
Cassie is pretty sure she’s having a waking nightmare. Not only is Tank’s gorgeous ex hoping to reclaim her family, but a new megastore is threatening the wilderness-adventure business she’s spent five years building. But Cassie never backs down from a fight. And now it’s time to make the most terrifying leap of her life—and hope that Tank catches her…before she falls too far.

I'm not really a big fan of love triangles so I was a bit worried about where Snow was taking the story when Tank's ex came back to town. Without giving much away, I really liked how the story played out. Montana says she's coming back for her daughter but you gotta believe she wants another shot at Tank. She could have been painted as a totally evil witch-with-a-b but Snow manages to portray her so, so well. Which I'm thankful for because the next book in the series will be about Montana and someone else in town.

The other reason I was so wary of Montana was because I had already fallen in love with Cassie and Tank in the first novel. Their solid friendship was so lovely but you absolutely knew it had to eventually become much, much more than a friendship. While it's admirable to think of the child in the relationship - Cassie had become like a surrogate mother to Tank's daughter - if the pair had been open with each other, they could have avoided a whole lot of heartbreak and slammed doors and runaway daughters. But where's the fun in that, right?

I adore Cassie. She is small and spunky and with a heart of gold that is head over heels in love with Tank. I admired her entrepreneurial spirit and how she worked so hard to do the very best for her business - even when it was hard and made others question her decisions (and really, they were only questioning them because they loved her so much and wanted to keep her safe).

Tank was such a great father - which was refreshing to see in a romance novel. I think the single dad trope is getting stronger so we'll probably start seeing a few more out there. It's not one I'd normally seek out, to be honest, because single parent stories just aren't my jam. (I'm childless for a reason and know what I like when it comes to romance novels. And it doesn't include babies.) But. I liked Tank. Even though he needed to give his head a shake and realize that keeping things buried and Cassie at arm's length was not helping anybody, especially not him.

All in all, Under an Alaskan Sky is just what I like in a romance novel. Jennifer Snow's novel swept me away and I enjoyed every second I spent with Cassie and Tank in Wild River. I'm really looking forward to the third novel, A Sweet Alaskan Fall, so I can get back to the small town to see how everyone is doing.

*An egalley of this novel was provided by the publisher, Harlequin, via NetGalley in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.*