Virgin River won over Netflix viewers about small town life — but how does the TV adaptation compare to the original book?
Based on the book series written by Robyn Carr, Virgin River centers around the lives of residents living in a small town in Northern California, including Mel (Alexandra Breckenridge) and her love interest, Jack (Martin Henderson). The series also stars Colin Lawrence, Annette O’Toole, Tim Matheson, Benjamin Hollingsworth, Sarah Dugdale, Zibby Allen, Marco Grazzini, Mark Ghanimé and Kai Bradbury.
After many ups and downs — including a miscarriage in season 5 — Jack and Mel finally ended season 6 as husband and wife. Elsewhere, exes Brie (Allen) and Brady (Hollingsworth) slept together before Brie told her boyfriend, Mike (Grazzini), about her affair with Brady, which made him propose to her.
The drama at the center of the show has taken on a world of its own. Keep scrolling for the main differences that took place on the show compared to Carr’s version:
Adapting the Characters — and Relationships — Differently
Alexandra Breckenridge and Martin Henderson in ‘Virgin River’ season 6. Courtesy of Netflix
From Preacher and Paige’s romance to Hope and Doc, the TV show explored the same dynamics with new additions. Book fans will likely notice that the characters aren’t exactly the way they were written on the page.
The Focus on Mel and Jack
With over a dozen books, Mel and Jack couldn’t always be at the center of the book series. The show, however, had more freedom to focus the show around one main couple.
Missing Characters
21 books in the series means more characters, which isn’t the case for the show. Some examples include Vanessa, who played a role on the page — unlike the Netflix series. Side note: crucial details have also been changed as a way to accommodate storytelling.
The Speed of Certain Events
As viewers know, Virgin River on our screens has only covered a year while the book series has the ability to check in on a larger timeframe.
The Rating
Certain situations are much more PG on the show while the books didn’t shy away from romance — in all sense of the word.
Mel’s Backstory — and Future
In addition to the show changing details about Mel’s husband, her love story with Jack is still going on. A big portion that the show hasn’t touched on is the idea of kids, which they have on the page but not on screen yet.
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