3.5 stars. Smith delivers much of her usual here, but with some twists: in this case, the childhood sweethearts never actually met until they were adults, and the tough Southern heroine is one quarter Japanese and something of a political fugitive. Neither of those make a whole lot of difference to Smith’s "homey with a touch of oddball" style of story.Venus and her sister Ella have been on the run from government harassment since they were teenagers, when their late father was implicated in a terrorist act. When they’re approached by the Camerons, a family they don’t actually know but which has long roots entwined with theirs, Ella is eager to become part of them. But Venus is wary of trust and involvement -- especially with Gib, once her penpal and the little boy who chose her name, now a man with a long background in government service and some serious wounds of his own.I think I might have enjoyed this story more on audio, where its farcical elements might have worked better for me. Also, it unfortunately has a particular storyline that always rubs me the wrong way, the heroine as protective caretaker of a weak, needy, and to my mind extremely annoying, sister. Other than that, I enjoyed the lovable main characters and found it an easy, pleasant read.
