Then There Were Six by Cherime MacFarlane is off to a great start when Stu runs into Margaret (Meg) in a stalled car on the roadside in Alaska. He, an auto mechanic who owns his own shop, pulls over to help her out and in not too long a time there are sparks of chemistry between them. He’s a divorced father of three (Paul 10, Man 9, and Stuart Jr. 7) and she, with her daughter Mindy who is 11, is awaiting a divorce from her alcoholic husband. He fixes the problem temporarily and has her follow him to his shop where she notices his office is in disarray and offers to help on Saturdays to pay off the work he’ll be doing on her car. Both lonely, they start to fantasize about each other but when she shows up for work she’s cooled off and he doesn’t understand the change. The ice melts when she sees the cars he’s working on and they talk about their mutual appreciation for them. I love the way it was the affection for cars that softened the communication between them and continued to play into the storyline. A refreshing take on a female character, to be automotive savvy and think I recall reading something about the author drawing on her own automotive experience in writing this story. It shows. And it works well.
Another thing I love was the interjection of Jocko, Stu’s dog, and all the dog antics factored into the story. Being an animal lover this enhanced the read for me. And Jocko, Stu’s four year old pit bull, factors into the story as a protective character for Meg and her eleven year old daughter Mindy when the tension in the story rises and Stu finds out about the abuse levied at Meg and Mindy from Meg’s ex. The story continues and there’s an earthquake with an unexpected accident that changes everything between Stu and Meg, all for the better and all the sweeter. Without retelling the rest of the story, suffice it to say it was a delightful fun read.
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