Something Wilder is a second chance romance between Lily Wilder and Leo Grady. They met each other back in Wyoming when Lily was only eighteen or nineteen years old, and Leo came from New York City to help on her father's ranch for the summer. But circumstances and misunderstandings intervened, and the two haven't talked or seen each other in ten years.
Lily wants nothing more than to be back at that ranch in Wyoming, but her father sold it shortly after Leo's departure. Now she lives and works with her best friend Nicole, as the leader of trips into the red canyons near Canyonlands National Park in Utah. Lily's father, Duke, was a semi-famous treasure hunter, and she uses his fame to go on fake treasure hunts in the wild with her groups.
Then one day, Leo and a small group of his friends show up for one of Lily's tours. Both Lily and Leo are shocked to run into each other. Leo's friend, Brad, was in charge of trip planning that year, and Leo had no idea where they were planning to go until they arrived. Leo also assumed that Lily was still in Wyoming at her beloved ranch.
This part of the book was fine for me. I was excited for Lily and Leo to get over their misunderstandings and get to know each other again. I thought the backdrop of Canyonlands could make for some interesting adventures. But all of a sudden, it felt like the plot went off the rails--or at the very least, the book took off in a direction I was least expecting. Suddenly, there were guns, murder, and very unbelievable treasure hunts.
Instead of enjoying the quiet romance I was expecting, I was suddenly scoffing at the unbelievability of it all. It felt very far fetched, and I think it took away from the romance. I do realize that I'm reading a romance novel, where realism and believability are not the most necessary parts of the genre. However, if ridiculous things are happening in the book, and I'm not distracted by how good the romance is, it will ruin the book for me. Also, because I've spent a fair bit of time hiking, backpacking, and rafting in the area, I've had considerable personal experience in this book's setting. So, the storyline became frustrating and felt silly, which made me lose interest. Perhaps this escapist literature is best when it really has no connection to your real life. I am sure I will try Christina Lauren again, but I definitely preferred the first two books I read by them.
*Christina and Lauren are best friends and a writing team. They use their first names as the author of their books.
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