Customer Reviews

Dakota Born (Dakota Series #1)

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I received Ms. Macomer's latest book "Dakota Born" in the mail yesterday and finished reading it this morning. I thoughly enjoyed it. Having spent most of my life in a small town I can relate to this story. The characters of Lindsay, Gage, Brandon, Joanie, Rachael, Heath, Buffalo Bob, Merrily, and Hattie are all appealing and well developed. Their lives all entwine with each other for a very entertaining story. I was especially glad to see Lindsey and Gage finally get together and Gage's half brother Kevin get to live his dream. Was disappointed that the problems Brandon and Joanie are having did not get resolved in this book. Also, the storylines of Rachael and Heath, Sarah and Dennis, Buffalo Bob and Merrily left me wondering. Hopefully there will be more of their storylines in "Dakota Home". Cannot wait until September 2000 to see what happens in Buffalo Valley. Great book which I couldn't put down - ENJOY....

Buffalo Valley, North Dakota appears to be a town doomed to die in spite the courage and desire of the locals to preserve their lifestyle. Adding to the townsfolk's worries is the recent death of the schoolteacher with no replacement prospect imminently on the horizon.

Needing to escape her troubled relationship with no future, Savannah resident Lindsay Snyder flees to Buffalo Valley. She remembers spending many happy summers in the hometown of her grandparents and hopes to recapture some of those feelings rather than remain in a fruitless relationship. Lindsay signs a contract to teach at the high school for one year. Instead of the anticipated boredom, Lindsay loves the job almost as much as she loves local rancher Gabe Sinclair. However, though she tries very hard to belong, the townsfolk make her feel like an outsider and Gabe refuses to open up his heart because he expects the outsider to return to Georgia.

DAKOTA BORN is more than just a regional contemporary romance. The tale centers on the residents' reverence to the spirit of small town living even when the future seems very bleak. The lead couple is a wonderful pair and the support cast brings North Dakota to life more so than the movie, Fargo. It is the local residents who turn New York Times best-selling author Debbie Macomber's latest work into a triumph of the human spirit leaving fans wanting an earlier release to the remaining two novels.

Harriet Klausner

Although I haven't yet read this book, I wanted to give an outstanding recommendation via my 80-year-old mother who was born and raised in North Dakota and was a schoolteacher there in the 1940s. She grabbed the book from me while we were traveling in the South Dakota together earlier this month and despite her complaint of "small print" (she has vision difficulties) she couldn't put it down. She couldn't stop remarking on how much she was loving DAKOTA BORN. For a person who reads only one or two books a month, this is outstanding praise.

Dakota Born is the story of Lindsay Synder who, deciding she needs a change in her life and needs to get away from ex-boyfriend Monte, moves to Buffalo Valley to become a teacher. Buffalo Valley is a small town that has fallen on hard times and is on the verge of becoming a ghost town. Lindsay brings hope for the future to the town.

Dakota Born is an absolutely wonderful book. The characters are very well developed. They all interact with each other as is often the case in small towns. The characters are all very likable (well, maybe not Monte) and believable. I found Brandon and Joanie to be two characters in the book that I really liked and was hoping would resolve their problems (hopefully in the second or third book they will).

This book runs the gammit of emotions. There are funny parts and parts that will bring tears to your eyes. Ms. Macomber writes about people and places that you can believe in and cheer for until the end. This is definitely a book you'll want to read more than once.

I liked both of the main characters in this book. Lindsay takes her life in her hands and moves to a small town, and I appreciate that kind of gumption. Gage obviously cares about the town, his family, and the land. I thought that he would be boring (small-town farmers aren't an automatic turn-on for me), but I was wrong. He actually is very conflicted about his responsibility to his family and his need to find love. Although I liked Lindsay and Gage (they made me want to move to a town like Buffalo Valley!), I still didn't feel any sparks. Their love sortof blossomed, they had a small stumbling block, then it turns out OK. There didn't seem to be any huge conflicts, and that's what I usually like about Romance books (just my own personal taste). Maybe this one was just a little to real-life like for me.

I also enjoyed following the other love stories that develop throughout the book (a widow and the rich guy in town, a married couple having trouble, a single mom and a younger man, and the bar owner and his girlfriend who regularly takes off for a couple months at a time). The issues these characters play out are mirrored in the main characters' relationship and I enjoyed that. These "other" love stories are both poignant and funny. At times they were more interesting than the main characters' story, and I look forward to following these stories in the next two installments of the trilogy.

Overall, I enjoyed reading the book and am looking forward to the next installment in the trilogy - Dakota Home. I'm guessing that it's about Maddy (the soon to be ex-social worker) and Jeb McKenna (the recluse who lost a leg). There should definitely be some sparks there!

Lindsay Snyder's is new in this dying town where her family was once rooted. But Lindsay's arrival signals a breath of life, not just for the town, but for Gage Sinclair. As the two reconstruct a mystery that connects their families, they find they've connected even more . . . they've connected their hearts. But learning to accept each other's differences might just prove too much, unless they can learn that differences are sometimes strengths, not the downfall of a relationship.

This book is the beginning of a Dakota saga. It is more than just Lindsay and Gage's story, but the beginning of Buffalo Valley's story. From Buffalo Bob, the biker owner of the bar/hotel, and his on-again-off-again relationship with his Buffalo Gal, Merrily -- to Rachel, a pizza making widow and Heath, the local banker -- to divorced Sarah and younger man, Dennis -- to Joannie and Brandon, a couple who loves each other, but whose love might not be enough -- to Hassie Knight, the local pharmacist/soda fountain owner who's old style wisdom is sought by everyone -- Debbie Macomber has crafted a real community whose inhabitants will become real to you. A wonderful story of home and heart by one of my favorite authors!

I've enjoyed many of Macomber's books, and this one did not disappoint. A sweet story about Lindsay Snyder who returns to a place she remembers as a child....her grandparent's home town...after her adult life doesn't go quite as she has planned. The only problem, the town is dying. But as would be expected, she brings new life to the town, and hope to a lonely farmer, Gage Sinclair. I enjoyed seeing the characters develop as the book progressed. She concluded the story of Lindsay and Gage, but left just enough "hanging" so that I waited impatiently to get DAKOTA HOME (book 2)....which in turn left me now waiting to read the third book that is due out soon! (I keep checking the bookshelves weekly!)

I first encountered Debbie Macomber books after seeing an interview on KREM2 in Spokane, WA for her book "16 Lighthouse Road" since I LOVE anything to do with lighthouses I knew I had to check the book out. I was hooked!! I then read "One Night" and knew that I was now a die hard fan! Dakota Born was my third book and I know that tomorrow I'm going to go get the second book in the trilogy. This story was full of surprising twists and turns as Lindsay tries to figure out the meaning to her life and how the past affects the present and future. There were momemnts of laughter, tears and joy as the story develops and unfolds. The author writes in a clear and concise manner but by no means jumps here and there as some books do. It was wonderful to have the story read from several characters but yet there is a focus on a main character. The story is full of richness in wording and plot. I also appreciate the fact that the book isn't sexually explicit either. The beautiful side of romantic love comes out in these books in addition to the deep abiding friendship the characters develop. The author also delves into the fact that people have disagreements and actually work on ironing out the issues and moving on. I find that when I want to take time to myself and indulge in a good book it will be a story by Debbie Macomber!!

Debbie Macomber's books are not my usual style - they are slow paced, formula-driven with not much plotting, and I find them "hard to get into", yet I have read many, many of her books and am trying to find them all. What keeps pulling me back again and again? Simply put, it is the people in her books. These are not made-up-characters for a novel or a movie, but these are real people! I like the fact that she doesn't make her characters perfect - they don't act like they're on a stage, but rather they do and say things the way people *really* would in real life. In Debbie Macomber's books, I always recognize all the people I know - friends, relatives, my neighbor-next-door - and more times than I would care to admit, I recognize myself! It is these flawed but real characters that keep drawing me to her books, again and again and again.

In Dakota Born, Debbie Macomber introduces us to the dying farm community of Buffalo Valley, and as we slowly get to know each of the people in the community, we come to care about them - and understand their lives, their hopes, their dreams - not to mention the staple of all her books - the romance and sweet happily ever after. And as I was reading further into the book, I was rooting for this farm community to blossom and grow, and being that this is Debbie Macomber, I'm sure that this is exactly what will happen! Being a city girl born and bred, I found it fascinating to read about the people who live in these rural areas - the backbone and bread-and-butter of America. Ms. Macomber made me realize how hard their lives are - yet rewarding as well. And I have this overwhelming urge to write to all these important government officials to tell them to give the farmers better prices for their grain and corn!

I love Debbie Macomber, and I love her books. I am trying to buy them all (instead of getting them from the library), so that I can read them over and over again. Dakota Born is one of her very best books, with all the elements that make her so very much loved by her fans.

I was born and raised in small rural farm town North Dakota. The story line hit home really hard, like I was reliving my childhood years all over again. The book was full of emotion and displayed the hardships of farm life realistically. I greatly enjoyed the book and can't wait to read the next Dakota Home. Needless to say I am hooked on Debbie MaComber's style of writing.