Jericho by Ann McMan

What would it take for you to uproot you life and move to a small town in the Appalachian Mountains of Virginia ? Well perhaps the question should really be directed to Syd our young librarian who has packed her ’95 Volvo station wagon with her belongings, a good number of books and pointed her car in the direction of Jericho, Virginia.

Syd might say that she is excited about the prospect of setting up a new local library in Jericho to provide service to the locals, but what she really wants is to have some time to rethink her life now that she is about to finalise her divorce and join “The First Wife Club”.

If you are a soft hearted romantic looking for some mushy romance to feed on, you will most likely support Syd’s decision on moving to Jericho right from turning the second page of this fic! Well that is if you are comfortable spending a bit of time with a short blond - Syd - and a tall brunette - the local doctor Maddie, and you ought to be because Syd and Maddie are a strikingly good looking pair.

The doctor is nothing but remarkable with an impressive professional record and her willingness to go out of her way to help just about anyone in need - even a stranger stranded in the middle of nowhere with a flat tire and no mechanical skills to speak of. Will you take a guess .... who might that stranger be ?

So what is a 34 year old - good looking - doctor doing in the middle of small town America .... alone ? Well this doctor has decided to leave behind a thriving medical career in Philadelphia, a record of bad relationships and return to her hometown of Jericho to reconnect with old friends, and take over as the local GP after her father - who died unexpected - and left her his clinic, house and his dog Pete.

Even if the locals are a friendly bunch Maddie do miss something in her life, someone beyond her dog to share a sunset with, a glass of wine, a pizza and a laugh, and it seems that Syd is willing to provide the friendship to go along with the shared pleasures.

The question of couse is if Syd is willing to share more than friendship with Maddie - it is after all a romance! Well “more” do require Syd to jump the fence and I guess that it would help if Maddie did come out of her semi closet and reveal to Syd that she is gay, but all come to those who wait, lets just hope that it’s worth waiting for!

“Jericho” is a great, well written romance with a killer dialog between the protagonists. The dialog is one of the best I’ve come across in fan fic, it’s fun, entertaining and displays a great wit - this might actually be the strongest feature of the fic.

The storyline might be described as simple with little drama and the likes. It’s just a slow journey of getting to know each other, seeing new possibilities and trying to let go of old habits, and for once we are spared the usual improbable misunderstandings, misconceptions and any other “misses” between the love birds that we usually bump into in romantic (fan) fiction.

You might ask - if this is a slow moving romance, with little drama and none of the usual bumps on the road towards “Living Happily Ever After”, then what’s in it for me - except waiting for someone to jump between the sheets ? Well - besides the dialogue - you will be treated to well-develop cast of characters, not only the protagonists Syd and Maddie are well fleshed out, this is also the case with Maddie’s friends the gay inn owner David and his partner Michael who plays central roles in this fic alongside a number of local Jericho characters.

If you like mushy romance, and you can live without the drama and lady knights in shining armor, you really should look up "Jericho" - it’s a great and long romance. Once you have finished the story you can follow this link - nooo read the story first!