Hannah G
A delightful contemporary romance, enemies to lovers, with a cottage on the beach and a bookshop under construction. She's convinced her high school sweetheart is untrustworthy after he abandoned her in her greatest need the decade before. He's never quite been able to get her out of his memory. Both have tried to date others but somehow it simply doesn't quite work.
Her needy younger brother and sister take a hand in the story, and a hurricane barrels into the mix as well.
I really enjoyed the story and the efforts to get the bookshop open. It wasn't quite a five star for me because I don't care for the forced-proximity trope if there aren't any other people around, but it didn't ruin the story for me either. I was rooting for them from the very first, and I definitely loved watching them learn to trust each other after so long.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free reading copy. A favorable review was not required.
Epic story of one man's civil war era story and that of his young wife and several of his friends. Despite being caught in a bit of tragic circumstances in the beginning of the book, each one tries to do the right thing and make a moral choice no matter the personal consequences to themselves.
Content: battles and a few swears
A sweet little story of a boy who is recovering from serious polio just as he gets used to a new town. He and his mother have moved in with his grandfather during WW2 while his father is off fighting in the Pacific. First, as he comes home from the hospital, he gets a small dog and then they find a fallen blue jay fledgling; both become essential to his recovery as he learns to navigate life as a cripple and finds a purpose for his future.
Sadly, a miss. The hero is a bit too free with his kisses to begin with, which started me off on the wrong foot, but then he spends almost the entire story telling the heroine about what she can do to be better, how nearly everything she does can be improved–yeah, he's good with his family and tender to animals and he's a good reporter, but he just rubbed me all wrong and made me want to poke him in the eye. I don't think falling in love is going to make him less critical of the fair lady, either. Seemed like he was always wanting to “fix” her.
3.5 stars
While I disliked the idea of the guy sending letters as his annoying and snotty sister, I liked the couple well enough that I was willing to forgive the deception to a certain extent. Still, I can't say I liked the setup being based on a lie even though I really loved the other aspects of the story and the pen-pal trope.
Definitely continuing on this series and reading a lot more by this author.
I'll be honest, the heroine very nearly lost me with her huge lie she told, and I was tempted to lay the book aside. However, the hero handled the revelation of it so nicely that I kept reading and ended up enjoying the second half quite a bit.
Content: 16+ for how the lie was handled–not for the immature reader
4.5 stars
Such a fun, absorbing story as Jacob and Augusta both wish to figure out ways to provide for their families, yet seem unable to see each other under their own noses at first. Easy romance to believe possible, and definitely a comfort read.
I'm looking forward to the next in the series and also hoping Jane gets a story someday.
2.5 stars
Loved the characters and the plot but it would have been so much more interesting as a full length novel with the details fleshed out more. Ended up with a lot of essential stuff summarized/told including a lot of the romance being told instead of shown. It also could do with a good proofread for misspellings and such. Hopefully someday it gets a longer edition!
4.5 stars, rounded up
A short romantic tale, full of Karen's normal sprightly style and characters, a spunky woman and a brave and handsome hero. There's never enough of her writing in her short stories, but they help me get through the year to the next full-length release.
This kicks off a shared series and I'm enjoying the series also, despite the different authors.
Nice solid little story. I enjoyed the heroine and her dilemma and especially liked the resolution with her relationship with her mother and brother. Ewan wasn't as fleshed out a character as I prefer to read about, but he seems solid and interesting and I don't mind trusting the heroine to his care. I didn't see the unique fix to her problems coming, and liked that the story wasn't predictable. I'll definitely be continuing the series.
Josh, Gabi, and Rena made such a delightful story together. It's a fun story of a plain and definitely-going-to-be-single-because-plain young woman, and a widower with a darling daughter who isn't looking for a perfect exterior but instead longing for another chance at true love. Add in some danger, some hard work, and a little girl who needs a mother, and it's a winning combo.
4.5 stars
A simple-pleasure kind of read as a young couple separated by time gets another chance to get to know each other because of a maid's diligent mistake. It's fun because the hero is so determined he isn't going to fall for his old teen flame again and yet he immediately begins to, obviously to all but himself.
4.5 stars
I think this one's my second favorite of the entire series. Coast Guard pilot, mysterious shipments, DEA agent, and a whole passel of baddies trying to take them both out? The whole thing was one big race with danger. I definitely enjoyed the story and their romance, which springs up pretty quickly while they are on the run, but manages to stay believable at the same time.
4.5 stars
An engaging and interesting dual timeline story that grabbed my attention and kept me flipping pages. While it's a gentle story, the mystery in both timelines is well built and suspenseful despite being relatively dangerless.
The Lake District setting has always been one of my favorite English settings and I loved how the location itself was almost a character of its own. The two sets of characters are equally engaging, although I was left wanting a lot more. I'd have liked this story if it was 500-600 pages and the characters all had more page time! A number of the elements seemed brushed over just because of space and I'd have liked those areas to be expanded and deepened.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a free reading copy. A favorable review was not required.
Another fun family suspense in this fast-paced series set in the north-California shoreline. It's been fun to see previous characters reappear and it's also nice to settle in for another story in a similar flavor as the rest of the series I enjoyed.
Dante has a lot of demons from the past to battle and he hasn't felt ready before to let his family help him shoulder any of the burden of them with him. Rachel is sure her worst day of the past can never quite be forgiven and forgotten, but she's doing her best to reach out to needy teens with her shelter house.
Another fun story I'd like to have in hard copy.
4.5 stars rounded up
Loved this intense story! Will Natchez is kinda sorta in hiding—he can't officially go into witsec because he'd have to give up policing altogether, and he can't quit his calling, so he's tried to completely reinvent himself in a new place—and his friend warns him that it's time to run, that the guys after him are in town. But how can he run when the woman he loves is under attack at the same time? And when they get rid of some attackers and escape others, how do they figure out whose are the remaining threat?
Nice twisty mystery/thriller, set on the northern California coast, with a strong heroine whose family fully lives up to my expectations of them from book 1.
4.5 stars
Delightful little Christmas story with a gentle mystery. When Faith comes back home to her small town after her father sells their main business, she knows no one's going to welcome her, least of all her childhood sweetheart. But she made a solemn promise to her best friend, who died a month ago, and now she's going to go back and do what her friend asked her to, no matter what.
There's a small mystery threaded through it, of what is happening to various Christmas decorations in town.
Super cozy but with more depth than your average Hallmark show.
Gave this series another try although, annoyingly, #3 isn't available for me to read. This one had a lot of content to cover and the end came too swiftly, with numerous inconsistencies/plot holes along the way as the second in the series had. Oh well. Her writing could be really addictive if it weren't for the plot hole road bumps!