Thanks to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Casablanca for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Goodreads: Enjoy the View (Moose Springs #3)
Publisher: SOURCEBOOKS Casablanca
Publication Date: 19 January 2021
Genre: Contemporary Romance

Panda Rating:

_{(3.5 pandas)}

A grouchy mountaineer, a Hollywood starlet
And miles of untamed wilderness…
What could possibly go wrong?

Former Hollywood darling River Lane’s acting career is tanking fast. Determined to start fresh behind the camera, she agrees to film a documentary about the picturesque small town of Moose Springs, Alaska. The assignment should have been easy, but the quirky locals want nothing to do with River. Well, too bad: River’s going to make this film and prove herself, no matter what it takes.

Or what (literal) mountain she has to climb.

Easton Lockett may be a gentle giant, but he knows a thing or two about survival. If he can keep everyone in line, he should be able to get River and her crew up and down Mount Veil in one piece. Turns out that’s a big if. The wildlife’s wilder than usual, the camera crew’s determined to wander off a cliff, and the gorgeous actress is fearless. Falling for River only makes Easton’s job tougher, but there’s only so long he can hold out against her brilliant smile. When bad weather strikes, putting everyone at risk, it’ll take all of Easton’s skill to get them back home safely…and convince River she should stay in his arms for good.

TL;DR: I was so excited for Easton’s story because he’s my hero kryptonite and while this didn’t end up being what I expected, I still enjoyed it enough to continue the series. I loved Easton and getting his perspective and even though our heroine, River, wasn’t always my fave, I still rooted for their HEA. There were also some great laugh-out-loud moments with blush inducing ‘Sexy Hagrid’ comments and a very kooky yet adorable marmot that made the story even more enjoyable!

I was so very close to caving and giving this a 4-star because I love Easton so much and he’s basically my hero kryptonite, but even his sweetness couldn’t change my mind. I was so ready for his story and I was sure it was going to be my favourite because, I mean, it’s about Easton. Sadly, that didn’t end up being the case and that’s mostly because of our heroine. Other than that, the writing was easy to read, although it did take a little bit longer for me to get into it at the start. Morgenthaler’s humour is, as always, woven into the story and I enjoyed having several laugh-out-loud moments especially when it came to the marmot scenes. Oh goodness, those were fantastic and I found myself getting just as attached to the kooky furball as Easton did! I kinda wish the marmot had a comeback scene at the end 😂 The crew’s remarks about Easton being a “Sexy Hagrid” were also too good and had me cackling! We get some small cameos with the characters from the previous books which was always fun and of course, I loved when Jake made an appearance in the story again!

Although Easton’s story ended up being different to what I expected, I still absolutely loved him (can’t lie, I might be biased). He’s a gruff bear who’s not big on most people but when he cares, you’ll have no doubt that he has your back no matter what. And when he finds his person, or as he references using his wolf pack comparison, his mate, he’s in it for life and UGH–I’m weak! Especially after that swoontastic ending that had my heart-eye emojis going wild! While I wasn’t a huge fan of River all the time (we’ll get to why next), I was surprised that I still managed to enjoy their romance. I feel it moved a little faster than the other two romances, thankfully not insta-love though, but their chemistry was great from the start. They had some really cute and sweet moments, especially up on The Old Man, that definitely had me swooning and sighing in my feels. It was so great to see Easton’s playful side come out and to see him being cheeky while still blushing like no other mountain man can! 😂

The main reason why I struggled so much with this story was because of River. She wasn’t a bad person or heroine and I found her backstory interesting but I really struggled with her lackadaisical attitude towards safety and how she continued to put herself and others (especially Easton) in dangerous and even life-threatening situations just to get her documentary. I understood her need to find that “missing piece” of her and that it was at the top of that mountain, but also, no? I’m sorry, you don’t make the same decision to keep putting yourself at risk when you KNOW that mama nature and The Old Man is not to be trifled with. You also don’t get to be mad at the person who specifically told you that it was too dangerous and who then rescues your ass, for putting themselves at risk for you because you did the stupid. It just…Kept happening and can ya tell her actions really bothered me? Cos they really bothered me and her crew wasn’t much better either. 😂

Aside from those issues, I didn’t have any new qualms. I still don’t like the citizens of Moose Springs which I continue to find disappointing. I understand why they’re against tourists but knowing how certain characters struggle to make ends meet and yet the town shames them for getting a better job by working at the resort or deciding to open their business to tourists, still really irritates me. Thankfully, we don’t spend a lot of time in town with the grumpy locals because we were up a mountain! In the end, while I didn’t end up loving Enjoy the View, I still liked it enough to want to continue the series if Ash gets a book (and I’m really hoping that she does)!

Have you read Enjoy the View or the Moose Springs series?
Or is it on your TBR?