Bad Decisions & Back Roads by Zoe Forward-review & interview
Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Indigo /
ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date August 3, 2026
The problem with bad decisions is you never stop wanting them.
I used to be the rebellious girl from the wrong side of the fenceline. He was the local hellraiser nobody could tame. While our families carried on a feud older than indoor plumbing, we fell for each other.
Then my vicious father found out. To save Timothy’s life, I broke his heart and disappeared.
Now over a decade later, I’m back as a large-animal veterinarian, working at his brother’s clinic and treating everything from prize dairy cows to Timothy’s homicidal llama. Avoiding him should be easy.
It isn’t.
He’s a single dad running two businesses, still infuriatingly irresistible, and determined to make me pay for every year he spent hating me.
The problem? I never stopped loving him. But if he learns why I really left, I could lose him forever.
••••••
REVIEW: Bad Decisions and Backroads: Second Chance Vetrinarian Romance is book two in the Southern Vetrinary book series by Zoe Forward.
When they were teenagers Gia McClary 14, and Timothy Hurst, 17 became quick friends. Despite their families long standing rivalry. But when Tim decides to ask Gia to marry him because he sees the abuse she has suffered at the hands of her father. Gia, decides to cut all ties with Tim, for both of their sakes.
Now in their thirties, Tim is single raising his young daughter. When he accidentally slams his dad’s dog’s tail in the car door he must take Buck to the vet clinic. When he gets there he is confrontef with the one woman he hasnt stoppwd thinking about since he was a teen. Dr. Gia McClary Stevens is back in town and helping out at Tim’s families vet clinic.
The moment their eyes meet they are transported back the feelings and the attraction that both of them have fought so hard to walk away from.
Will Tim reveal that he never stopoed thinking about Gia all these years?
And what will Gia do with all the feelings that came flooding back the moment she saw Tim?
A wonderful slow second chance romance. This was a hard fight for their happy ever after, but I thoroughly enjoyed it! Recommend reading both books in this series.
Copy supplied for review
Reviewed by Erin
TRC: Hi Zoe and welcome to The Reading Café. Congratulations on the release BAD DECISIONS AND BACK ROADS.
We would like to start with some background information. Would you please tell us something about yourself?
SOCIAL MEDIA: BLOG/ Amazon Author page/ Goodreads/ Website/ Instagram /
ZOE: So excited to be here! I’ve been a fan of The Reading Café for years. I live in the South where, at the moment, it’s roughly a hundred degrees with enough humidity to make you sweat just thinking about going outside. The mosquitoes are convinced I’m an all-you-can-eat buffet. When I’m not writing romance, I’m a small-animal veterinarian practicing integrative medicine.
TRC:Who or what influenced your career in writing?
ZOE: I’m hopelessly addicted to silly romantic comedy movies. Bring on the Christmas romcoms. Oh, and there are so many incredible books now getting high quality productions on streaming services. At the same time, I can watch a solid action flick in a heartbeat. A fusion of the two is perfection.
TRC:What challenges or difficulties did you encounter writing and publishing your first novel?
ZOE: At first, I took every bit of criticism about my work personally. I’d poured my heart into those pages, so hearing what wasn’t working stung. Looking back, though, the critiques were exactly what I needed to make the work better.
Learning to separate myself from the manuscript took time, especially when editors were tearing it apart. My first book with a major publisher was passed between three different editors, each with a completely different vision. I rewrote that novel from beginning to end three separate times. It was frustrating in the moment, but it also taught me to be flexible, trust the process, and remember that every revision made the story stronger.
TRC:Would you please tell us something about the premise of BAD DECISIONS AND BACK ROADS?
ZOE: Small Southern town. Ancient family feud. Forbidden love. One man who refuses to forgive her for breaking his heart. And…toss in veterinarian antics.
TRC:Do you believe any of your characters in BAD DECISIONS AND BACK ROADS has/ have a fundamental flaw that may be questionable to the readers?
ZOE: My main hero, Timothy, believes love requires sacrifice, but vulnerability is weakness. Because of that, he tries to carry everything alone.
My heroine, Gia, on the other hand, believes loving someone means protecting them from herself, even if that means breaking their heart. She runs away from home to escape a bad situation when sixteen.
TRC:What kind of research/plotting did you do, and how long did you spend researching /plotting before beginning BAD DECISIONS AND BACK ROADS?
ZOE: Much of my research had to be into large animal medicine. I am a veterinarian, but I see small animals (dogs, cats, rodents, hedgehogs, etc.). Second, I had to do research into emotional abuse by a parent (that’s a trigger warning for the book, folks), and how someone might survive if they ran away from home when sixteen.
TRC:How many books do you have planned for the SOUTHERN VETERINARIAN series?
ZOE: This is book two…each story is a standalone with interwoven characters. At least four are planned. Then we will see if any other characters want their story told.
TRC:Believability is an important factor in writing and reading story lines. How do you keep the story line believable?
ZOE: My characters are firmly based in reality of a small town in NC (grew up in one and I know these characters well) with a strong, messy family. There are real veterinary medicine antics and then realistic reactions of the characters (there’s no easy HEA, although they get there).
TRC:Do you believe the cover image plays a deciding factor for many readers in the process of selecting a book or new series to read?
ZOE: Of course. I’m guilty of judging a book by its cover! This cover is gorgeous and designed by my sister. She’s genius.
TRC: When writing a storyline, do the characters direct the writing or do you direct the characters?
ZOE: It’s a combo for my works. For BAD DECISIONS & BACK ROADS, the characters are so strong they drove much of it.
TRC:The mark of a good writer is to pull the reader into the storyline so that they experience the emotions along with the characters. What do you believe a writer must do to make this happen? Where do you believe writer’s fail in this endeavor?
ZOE: Believable characters with quirks, flaws, and enough sparkle to be real. A fleshed out world that isn’t perfect. Secondary characters that try real hard to steal the show. And most importantly? Humor.
TRC:As a romance writer, where do you draw the line between romance, erotic, and erotica-graphic language, descriptions or character reactions?
ZOE: Every writer has a particular comfort level in how deep he or she prefers to go when characters get into the spicy stuff. I like my novels super spice. The line in my head has to do with if the characters/story drives the novel or the spicy-spice drives the novel. For my books, it’s the characters and story that drive the novel…their conflict and growth. Along the way we get chemistry, spice, and the reader gets to experience it.
TRC:Do you listen to music while writing? If so, does the style of music influence the storyline direction? Characters?
ZOE: Music helps me plot and opens my mind to where the story is going, but I can’t write with music playing. As a violinist, my mind gets too sucked into music to be able to think while writing. Now, I will sometimes put on the sound of rain to block out distracting noise.
TRC:What do you believe is the biggest misconception people have about authors?
ZOE: The biggest misconception is we spend our days lounging with a cup of coffee, waiting for inspiration to strike. The reality? Most of us have day jobs because writing alone rarely pays the bills. While creating stories is the fun part, it is the cake and ice cream. The writing, itself, is only one piece of the job. Editing, marketing, social media, newsletters, bookkeeping, and all the behind-the-scenes work takes just as much time and energy as writing the book. Being an author means wearing a lot of hats. We just happen to have the best one when it’s time to make stuff up and put it on the page.
TRC:On what are you currently working?
ZOE: Book THREE in the Southern Veterinary series. We get Jackson Hurst’s story—an accidental Vegas marriage, a presumed-dead Navy hero, and a veterinarian heroine who discovers her biggest problem isn’t her husband coming back from the dead. It’s that she still loves him despite the fact he brings danger with him.
TRC:Would you like to add anything else?
ZOE: Thank you for having me visit! Thank you for reading this far along into the interview. If you’re interested in my IRL appearances, find me on insta.
LIGHTNING ROUND
Favorite Food: Chocolate
Favorite Dessert: baklava
Favorite TV Show: Mythic Quest
Last Movie You Saw: Mandalorian and Grogu
Dark or Milk Chocolate: Milk chocolate
Secret Celebrity Crush: Ryan Gosling
Last Vacation Destination: Nevada
Do you have any pets?Yes…many. Dogs, cats, guinea pig, fish
Last book you read: Vicious by LJ Shen
TRC:Thank you Zoe for taking the time to answer our questions. Congratulations on the release of BAD DECISIONS AND BACK ROADS. We wish you all the best.
