Category: Romance

Contemporary Romance, Fiction, Romance, Women's Fiction

Saving Sandcastles by Meredith Summers

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  • Title: Saving Sandcastles
  • Author: Meredith Summers
  • Series: Lobster Bay #1
  • Genre: Romance, Women’s Fiction, Contemporary Romance
  • Takes Place:  Lobster Bay, Maine
  • Main Character: Claire, Rob
  • Other Characters: Jane, Sally, Hallie, Addie, Maxie
  • Stars: 5

This is the first book I have read by this author and I will be reading more. I really enjoyed this first book in the Lobster Bay Series.

Claire is divorced with a grown daughter trying to navigate the world as single again. She loves to bake and runs the only bakery in town. She has thrown her heart and sole into her bakery business and is doing great until a competitor opens a bread bakery across the street. She is threatened and fears that this competition could destroy the business she has worked so hard build. Not only this but there are some issues with the building’s faulty pipes. She has tried to hold off till she can get a loan but they seem to just be getting worse.

Everyone in town seems to like the owner of the new bread bakery, except for Claire. All she sees is that he is a threat to her business.

We also meet Claire’s 2 best friends, Maxi & Jane who are dealing with their own issues. Jane’s mother has Alzheimer’s and is dealing with decisions on the best way to care for her mother. Maxi and her husband are recent empty nesters and are trying to navigate their marriage now that there aren’t any kids living under their roof.

If you love a sweet heartwarming story of friendship, community with some romance thrown in, then you will enjoy reading this story.

Happy Reading,

Fiction, Romance

Restaurant on the Wharf by Kay Correll

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  • Title: Restaurant on the Wharf
  • Author:Kay Correll
  • Series: Blue Heron Cottages #4
  • Genre: Romance
  • Takes Place:  Moonbeam, FL
  • Main Character: Tara, Joey, Lance
  • Other Characters: Walker, Aspen
  • Stars: 5

This is another great read in the Blue Heron Series. I am really enjoying the characters in this book which takes place in Moonbeam ,Florida.

Tara’s high school reunion is coming up and she can’t decide of she wants to go but her brother Walker talks her into it. Her ex neighbor, friend and classmate, Joey, shows up early for the reunion and stays at the Blue Heron Cottages. He hasn’t been back to Moonbeam in a couple of decades and has decided to come to the reunion and wants to reconnect with his friend Tara.

Joey shows up at the restaurant that Tara works at and her parents own. Joey lived next door to Tara and they were best friends and inseparable growing up. Tara is excited to see Joey and their friendship picks right back up as if no time has passed between them. Things are going great with Joey and Tara until an old crush, Lance shows up for the reunion. Tara had a huge crush on him in high school but he never asked her out. He evidently hasn’t changed that much and is still good looking so Tara still gets butterflies when she sees him. She still has dreams of her teenage crush asking her out. When Tara and Joey run into a Lance, she gets her wish. Lance asks her to dinner! She can’t believe it and is so excited. Joey is a bit hurt that she is still hung up on Lance. Do you think this date turns out as well as she has imagined? You will have to read to find out if things work out for Tara and Lance or if destiny has other plans.

In my opinion, this story is a bit unrealistic that she would still have a crush on someone after 20 years but overall, I loved the story.

It is a sweet, clean romance of finding expectant love and realizing people don’t really change and they aren’t exactly who you imagine they are.

If you love a clean romance with great characters, then you will love this series.

Fiction, Romance

Bookshop Near the Coast by Kay Correll

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  • Title: Bookshop Near the Coast
  • Author: Kay Correll
  • Series: Blue Heron Cottages #3
  • Genre: Romance
  • Takes Place:  Moonbeam, FL
  • Main Character: Violet, Collette, Mark, Rose
  • Other Characters: Rob, Evelyn,
  • Stars: 5

This is another sweet book by Kay Correll. It is the 3rd book in the Blue Heron Cottages series. It took me a bit longer to get into it but I did enjoy it.

Mark Wheeler is staying at the Blue Heron cottages for a vacation that was highly suggested by his boss. Okay it was actually required by his boss and Mark really didn’t get a vote. There was an innocent at the hardware store where Mark works and he feels like it was his fault so his boss sent him on a 2 week vacation so he could decompress.

Collette owns the bookstore in town. She is an avid reader and feels like everyone should read. Whatever your interests, Collette can suggest the book you should read. She befriends Mark and invites him to come to her bookshop. Mark is not a reader. Collette is well read, well traveled and is extremely smart in a lot of areas. Mark has never left the state of Florida and doesn’t read and he feels like he isn’t smart. Collette talks him into reading a book that was written by Violet’s brother Rob. Mark knew he would never read the book but was embarrased to tell Collette. Then he discovers audio books and becomes addicted but he is still embarrased to tell Collette that he listens to the book instead of reading it.

Collette knows he is hiding something and they always seem to be running into each other. Collette just isn’t sure if he is interested in her so she tries to avoid him. Mark is afraid to share his secret and he has a couple of them. He is afraid Collette won’t think he is smart enough.

This is a story romance, a wedding & realizing life is too short to wait for love and happy ever after.

Happy Reading,

Fiction, Romance, Women's Fiction

Walks along the Shore – Kay Correll

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  • Title: Walks along the Shore
  • Author: Kay Correll
  • Series: Blue Heron Cottages
  • Genre: Romance
  • Takes Place:  Moonbeam, FL
  • Main Character: Christie, Tony, Jill, Scott
  • Other Characters: Violet, Rose
  • Stars: 5

This was a sweet story of rekindled love along with a Wedding mishap

Christie and Tony are getting married and choose the quaint Blue Heron Cottages as their destination but things don’t quite go as planned. First her wedding planner is ghosting her and her wedding dress ends up being shipped to Paris. Everything seems to be falling apart until her best friend & maid of honor Jill steps up, along with the owner of the cottages, Violet and others in this small town and plan the perfect wedding in less than a week. It shows that if everyone pulls together miracles can happen.

During the wedding planning, the maid of honor, Jill and the best man, Scott seem to have a history that is causing a lot of stress since they are both participants in the wedding party. As much as Jill tries to avoid Scott they keep being thrown together.

This is a sweet, clean story of Community, friendship & rekindled love. I really liked this sweet romance.

When you read it, be sure to download the bonus epilogue to read the rest of Jill & Scott’s story. In the Ebook version, there is a link at the end of the book to join the author’s newsletter. Once you join, you will be emailed the bonus epilogue. It is worth the read.

Let me know if you read this book and give my your thoughts in the comments.

Happy reading

Contemporary Romance, Fiction, Romance, Women's Fiction

Memories of the Beach by Kay Correll

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  • Title: Memories of the Beach
  • Author: Kay Correll
  • Series: Blue Heron Cottages #1
  • Genre: Women’s fiction, Romance, Contemporary Romance
  • Takes Place:  Blue Heron Cottages in Moonbeam, FL
  • Main Character: Aspen & Willow
  • Other Characters: Violet, Walker, Tara, Rose
  • Stars: 5

This is was my first book by this author and I absolutely loved it. I read it in one sitting because I couldn’t put it down. I can’t wait to read book 2 which I will be starting today.

This is the best story of 2 sisters who didn’t know the other existed until they both receive a letter to go to Blue Heron Cottages.

Aspen’s mother deserted her when she was 17. She didn’t have the best mother and they moved around a lot, never settling in one place. Aspen’s dad left them when she was a little girl so she never knew her dad. Even when she was little, her mom would leave her days at a time and she wouldn’t tell anyone because she was afraid of being taken away. She didn’t have a good mom but it was all she knew and she was afraid it could be worse if she was taken away from her mom.

Imagine her suprise when she received mail from an attorney that included a letter from her mom telling her to go to Blue Heron Cottagres in Moonbeam, FL . She has a weeks paid reservation there in her name. The letter said that she would find out about her past.

Aspen was suspicious but she had a dead end job so she figured why not. When she asked for a week off of work she was fired so she loaded everything she owned into her car, left her apartment and drove to Blue Heron Cottages.

Willow received an almost identical letter asking her to go to Blue Heron Cottages to find out about her past. Willow’s mom had died less than a year before and she was still grieving. Her mom tried to tell her something important on her deathbed but died before she could say it. Maybe this trip could answer some questions.

This is a story of these 2 women, not knowing about each other and then developing a bond they never could have imagined. Aspen has never had a real family and in Moonbeam she finds family, friends who are like family and even romance.

I recommend this book to anyone who loves a good story about family and friendship and then there is also the beach.

Happy Reading

Contemporary Romance, Fiction, Romance, Women's Fiction

Chasing Sunsets by Rachel Hanna

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  • Title: Chasing Sunsets
  • Author: Rachel Hanna
  • Series: South Carolina Sunsets #10
  • Genre: Romance, Women’s fiction
  • Takes Place: Seagrove
  • Main Character: Heath Dutton, Emma
  • Other Characters: Julie, Dawson, Janine, Meg, Colleen, Dixie, William, Tucker, SuAnn
  • Stars: 5

Chasing Sunsets is the latest book in the South Carolina Sunsets series and just like the other books in the series, this does not disappoint. I really enjoy reading anything by this author. She knows how to bring the characters to life so you feel like they are your friends. It always leaving me wanting more

It is always great to catch up with the residents of Seagrove. As we are catching up we are introduced to a new guy in town, Heath Dutton. After the passing of his beloved wife, he traveled around the world painting sunsets. His wife loved sunsets so painting them brought him closer to her, After 3 years, he decided he needed to settle down and he chose Seagrove. Now that he is in Seagrove, will a love from his past help him find love again?

Catching up with the residents , we have come to love, Colleen and Tucker have come home from traveling and They have a secret that Colleen is having trouble sharing with her mother. Not only do they have a secret, they also have big surprise.

SuAnn and her bakery are instant famous.

Dixie is having some health problems.

Janine is learning to be a new mom.

Meg is struggling at her new job.

This author really knows how to bring you into her story. I recommend this book. If you haven’t read the first book, The House, I definitely recommend you read that one first so you can get to know the characters. The entire series is great.

If you decide to read this book, tell me what you think in the comments

Happy Reading!

Cozy Mystery, Fiction, Holiday, Romance

The Halloween Haunting by Kathi Daley

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  • Title: The Halloween Haunting
  • Author: Kathi Daley
  • Series: Tess & Tilly #7
  • Genre: Cozy Mystery
  • Takes Place: White Eagle, Montana
  • Main Character: Tess, Tony, Bree, Mike
  • Other Characters: Brady, Hap, Hattie, Tess’ mom, Star Moonwalker
  • Pets: a golden retriever named Tilly and a cat named Tangletoe (Tang for short) and a cat named Tinder and Tony’s german sheppard Titan plust lots of other shelter dogs that come and go.
  • Stars: 5

It’s Halloween in White Eagle so we have a Haunted house, a skeleton, a dead body, a mystery surrounding Tess’ dad and a maybe sister. Lots of mysteries and lots of twists and turns.

I really love Tess, her dog Tilly and all the other characters we come to love in this series. This time Tess, Tilly and Brady are putting on a haunted house as a fundraiser to expand the shelter. While getting the house ready, they come across a skeleton hidden in the wall in the attic. Upon further investigation they also find a dead body in the clock tower. Even though Mike is investigating the skeleton and the murder, you know that Tess and Tony have to do their own investigation. So who is the skeleton and how long has it been hidden in the wall. Who killed the man in the clock tower. This takes us on quite a roller coaster ride before all is revealed.

On a side note, Tess discovers some disturbing information about her dad before he married her mom. This story is throughout the series and keeps us guessing.

This is another great read in the Tess & Tilly mystery. The author really knows how to keep the reader engaged throughout her books. If you like a good mystery with some romance thrown in, this series is for you.

Fiction, Romance

Dreamland by Nicholas Sparks

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  • Title: Dreamland
  • Author: Nicholas Sparks
  • Genre: Romance
  • Takes Place: Florida & North Carolina
  • Main Character: Colby & Beverly
  • Other Characters: Morgan, Tommie, Page
  • Stars: 4

Review:

Two Journey’s, two hearts, two different stories to tell with an ending that I didn’t see coming. And since it is Nicholas Sparks I wasn’t surprised that there were tears at the end.

I have read all of Nicholas Sparks books and this one was different than any of his others. It follows two different stories throughout the book.

First there is Colby, a wanna be musician who was raised by his Aunt & Uncle and his sister, who is 6 years older than him. His mom died when he was 5 so he and his sister went to live with his aunt and uncle, who didn’t have kids and really wasn’t sure how to deal with kids. Most of his raising was done by his sister so they were very close. His sister got married young and moved away. Then Colby’s world was turned upside down when his uncle died. He found out his aunt and uncle’s farm was going under and they were deeply in debt. He helped his aunt turn that around and stayed to help her run her farm. Through circumstances out of her control, his sister also moves back to the farm.

Colby seriuosly needed a break from the farm and his aunt and sister convinced him he should go to Florida for a few weeks and take a short term job playing and singing at a bar. Then he meets Morgan. Morgan is 21 and has dreams of moving to Nashville to become another Taylor Swift. She just finished college so this Florida trip is a celebration of sorts before she moves to Nashville to hopefully make her dreams come true. Colby and Morgan have music in common so they bond and there is a story there to be told.

Now Colby has a big decision to make and he struggles with this until a tragedy happens and his world is rocked upside down once again.

Then there is Beverly’s story. She is mom of a 6 year old boy who is running from her abusive husband. She takes several buses and rides from people until she decides to settle in a town far away where hopefully her husband won’t find her. She sees danger around every corner and will do anything to protect her child.

All through the book, I felt like I was reading two books instead of one and I kept wondering how these stories could be related in any way. I actually had a hard time finishing and was hoping it would end soon so it all made sense.

It all came together in a way that I didn’t expect. It took me on a roller coaster ride till the end and it all made sense.

This wasn’t my favorite book by this author but I did like it and I am very glad a read it. I gave it 4 stars because I found the first of it a bit slow and wondered if I should just quit reading but I am so glad I didn’t give up.

Don’t give up. Read it to the end, you will be glad you did. Have your tissues ready for the ending.

“Hold on to Dreamland
Forever, not just today
Someday Dreamland will be ours
Hold fast, don’t fall away”

Cozy Mystery, Fiction, Holiday, Romance, Women's Fiction

The Thanksgiving Trip by Kathi Daley

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  • Title: The Thansgiving Trip
  • Author:Kathi Daley
  • Series: Tess & Tilly #5
  • Genre: Cozy Mystery
  • Takes Place: White Eagle, Montana
  • Main Character: Tess
  • Other Characters: Tony, Bree, Mike, Brady, Hap, Hattie, Tess’ mom
  • Pets: a golden retriever named Tilly and a cat named Tangletoe (Tang for short) and a cat named Tinder and Tony’s german sheppard Titan plust lots of other shelter dogs that come and go.
  • Stars: 5

This is the 5th book of the Tess & Tilly series and Tess’ mom wants to take a trip to the moutains where Tess’ dad used to go every yea tofish. So Tess’, her mom, Tony, Mike & Bree head to the lake for Thanksgiving week.

What should they find when they arrive but a dead body in the leak by their cabin. The local police is called but you know that Tess & Tony also have their own investigation to do.

The author takes on a roller coaster ride through some twist and turns to find out who the killer is. There are a lot of suspects but who really did it.

Then to top this off, Tess finds out some more info into the myster of her dad. What do you think that mystery couldl be? Has he been alive all these years or does someone just want Tess to think he has been? Read to find out.

I am really enjoying this series and when I finish one book, I can’t wait to read the next one. Even though there is a stand alone mystery in each book, the mystery of Tess’ dad is carried out throughout the series, at least so far.

Can’t wait to start the nest book.

Fiction, Mystery, Romance, Women's Fiction

No Place too Far by Kay Brat

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  • Title: No Place too Far
  • Author: Kay Bratt
  • Series: By the Sea
  • Genre: Romance, Mystery, Women’s fiction
  • Takes Place: Maui, Hawaii
  • Main Character: Maggie Dalton, Quin
  • Pets; Woodrow (Maggie’s service dog)
  • Stars: 5

Review:

This is the 2nd book in the By the Sea series by Kay Bratt. This book takes up where the first book, True to Me, left off.

If you have read the first book, then you know it was about Quin going to Maui to search for the father she never knew about and discovers a whole family she didn’t know existed.

This book follows the journey of her best friend, Maggie. Maggie and her young son has a stalker who is now in prison. She needs to get away and needs a place to start over with her young son. Quinn is now running an inn in Maui and encourages Maggie to come and stay with her. She takes Quinn up on her offer. She gets a job as a vet tech and makes a new home for her and her young son. She is settled in and starts to feel at peace and comfortable again until strange things start to happen. Maggie’s past is catching up with her and is about to rock her peace & security and any safety she was starting to feel. =Maggie isn’t sure what to do but she fights for herself and for her son.

This takes you on a lot of twists and turns. It is definetly a page turner.

The author has a way of making you feel like you are there. Not only are the characters so well developed that you feel like you know them but I felt like I took a virtual tour of Hawaii.

This book is about love, hope, friendship, family, survival and starting over. I loved this book and can’t wait till the next one in the series.