I recently finished reading Andy: Mission: Harvest Ranch Wedding by Lucy McConnell and Ellie Thornton. Andy and America (yes, that’s her real name) met in the parking lot after a mutual friend’s wedding. I guess it’s love at first sight. Andy’s a career military man, and America’s a political hopeful, planning on running for the Senate soon.
Initial Thoughts
I think the idea for a good book was there. It just didn’t quite work for me. The relationship between our two main characters, Andy and America, was not very well-developed. I honestly wasn’t sure why either one liked the other. Despite their insistence that it was about more than how the other one looks, it felt very much like it was based on looks. The night they meet, Andy uses his military training to disable her family’s security cameras so he can sneak her out of the house. Then despite not spending much time together, they’re getting married just a few months later. Throughout the story, it’s very clear that they haven’t thought through pretty much anything concerning their future.
Lots of Confusion
There were several parts throughout the story where I felt like important information was left out. In some cases, it was just a matter of the information being told to us later in the story. In other cases, I was just left confused about what was going on. I think part of this is that this is part of a series. Looking at the other books in the series, it looks like all of them take place during this same time period, so by reading this book, I’m only getting a portion of the story. The other books tell the stories of Andy’s military buddies during the week leading up to the wedding.
One of the main areas where I was confused was the relationship between some of the characters. At times, one person was mentioned. Then later, I realized they were siblings of another character and/or married to another character we’d already met. I was also a bit confused because I thought Andy and his friends were all still active military. Then we learn that at least one of them isn’t. At that point, I thought they were all retired only to learn later that while some of them are no longer in the military, he still is. I think part of the problem with things not quite matching up is that this is written by two authors. I’ve found that books written by more than one author sometimes don’t quite flow right.
Understanding Andy and His Military Buddies
I think the thing that annoyed me the most was Black Ops Tag (BOT). Even after getting an explanation of why these guys “play” this, it feels too much like a crazy game. It’s supposedly to prepare them for a potential attack. The basis of the game (ops, I mean, “training”) is that they plan sneak attacks on each other. Apparently, these sneak attacks keep them on their toes. They also result in scratches, bruises, and even black eyes. America asks that they don’t play BOT in the week leading up to the wedding, and they are unwilling to honor her request.
Andy and his friends all appear to be in their 30s or 40s, but they act really childish. They are supposedly military or ex-military. If that’s who’s defending our country, I would be very scared for our future.
America’s Background
America according to the story has always dreamed of serving in the Senate. Her mom’s the mayor of their small town. America’s about to begin her Senate campaign when the book begins. As much as the authors want the reader to believe that being in the Senate is America’s dream, I never feel like that’s true. I feel like it’s America’s mom’s dream for her.
Because she’s about to start her Senate run, America’s mom arranges for tons of photo ops during the week leading up to the wedding. The photo ops are more important to her mother than the actual experience.
Whereas Andy’s family seems to be middle-class, America’s family is definitely rich and not afraid to show off their wealth. If they explained how the family got so rich, I missed it. I highly doubt the mayor of a small town would make that much money.
Why Do People Care?
Even after finishing the book, I’m not sure why people would care about Andy and America’s wedding. I’m not talking about family and friends. I get why they would care. According to the story, there’s a photographer from at least one well-known national magazine taking pictures of her wedding. Apparently, it’s going to be the wedding that other brides use for inspiration for their own weddings for years to come. You would think she was this super famous movie star or the daughter of the President of the United States. Nope, America’s just a pro bono lawyer with political aspirations whose mom is the mayor of a small town. She did participate in the Miss America pageant over a decade ago, but she didn’t even win.
The Good
On a good note, this is a clean book. There is no swearing, sexual content, or graphic violence. Andy and his friends do engage in BOT, which involves sneak attacks on each other, but there’s no violence toward anyone else.
Final Thoughts on This Military/Political Rom-Com
If you want a Hallmark cheesy romance, this might be for you. If you can put aside the parts that don’t make sense, you may like it. For me, though, there were way too many plotholes and unexplained parts for me to fully enjoy this story.
