Book Review: From Here to Nashville

By Sara Steven

Rachel Hardy dreams of being a successful country music singer in Nashville’s Music City, four thousand miles away from her lonely life in Dorset.

When Jackson Phillips, an independent record label owner, encourages her band to audition for a nationwide ‘Open Mic’ competition, she decides they have nothing to lose.

But when she starts to fall in love with Jackson, the stakes suddenly get higher and she finds herself with a great big dilemma on her hands. Should she abandon her dream and take the easy way out or should she leave the life she has always known behind and take a gamble on a man who has personal demons of his own?

Follow Rachel and Jackson as they learn to trust in love again and to see whether music really can bring them together. (Synopsis Courtesy of Goodreads)

While I’m not a huge country music fan, Rachel’s story still resonated with me, and I had an enjoyable time while reading about her trials and efforts in attempting to make it big in Nashville. There’s something almost whimsical about her as a character. She injects a never ending drive to go for your dreams, and I felt like I’d been elevated by that spirit. The scenes where Rachel and her band are playing shows, I felt like I was right there with them, part of the action- as a band member, or someone there to watch the show. It was nice to have both perspectives in order to get a better understanding of the band dynamics and how it all works into Rachel’s future goals.

When Jackson enters the picture, there was no doubt in this reader’s mind the kind of attraction and draw Rachel has to him. He seems almost too perfect for paper, so I can understand her hesitancy in believing in him and what he represents. I could also see how scary it was for Rachel to consider completely leaving everything she knows in order to move thousands of miles away and take a chance on something that is unknown. Having been in those shoes before, it’s always a crap shoot. I felt those emotions were really explained well and there was no confusion on how she felt.

Told from both Rachel and Jackson’s perspectives, it was nice to see what each primary character is feeling and thinking, as well as what their motivations are as the story progresses. This becomes even more helpful when Rachel finds herself in a bit of a love triangle situation, one that the reader isn’t at first privy to, unfolding gradually. It lends into her indecision on whether she should move or not, not entirely sure on what the right decision should be.

This is the first book in the From Here to You series, and with two more books in the mix, I’m interested in seeing what’s next for this group of characters!

Thanks to Rachel's Random Resources for the book in exchange for an honest review.

Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK

Julie Stock writes contemporary feel-good romance from around the world: novels, novellas and short stories. She published her debut novel, From Here to Nashville, in February 2015 and her second novel, The Vineyard in Alsace in March 2017. Over You (Sam's Story) and Finding You (Jenna's Story), her follow-up novellas to From Here to Nashville were published in 2018, making the From Here to You series complete. She has also published a boxed set of the From Here to You trilogy of books.

The Bistro by Watersmeet Bridge was published in August 2019, followed by Bittersweet, a collection of 12 Short Stories for Modern Life in September 2019.

Julie is a member of the Romantic Novelists' Association and The Society of Authors.

Julie is married and lives with her family in Bedfordshire in the UK.

Visit Julie online:
Website * Facebook * Twitter * Instagram

Giveaway to win a signed paperback copy of From Here to Nashville, a bookmark and a guitar magnet (Open to UK Only)

*Terms and Conditions –UK entries welcome. Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within seven days, then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winner's information. This will passed to the giveaway organizer and used only for fulfillment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. We are not responsible for dispatch or delivery of the prize.


a Rafflecopter giveaway