The Return Of Benjamin Quincy

by Susan Lute

All Benjamin Quincy wants is to make a stable home for his ten year old daughter in the town he grew up in and left in bitter disappointment. Young and hot headed, he made a mistake. Eleven years later, he’s a divorced, single dad with a troubled child, and a lot to make up for.

Sydney Marshall has finally snagged the perfect job at a coveted travel magazine in New York. Does she care that her ex has returned to the tiny town of Rosewood with a precious daughter who’s not hers? Does it matter that every time he comes near, her heat flutters madly like in the old days? No! Her bags are packed; plane tickets are stashed in her carry on bag; the adventure of a lifetime is about to begin.

There’s only one problem. Life and Rosewood have a penchant for interfering in the best laid plans.

Genres: Contemporary Romance

243 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 28, 2011

About the author

Would you be surprised the best things in life come in unexpected packages? No, of course not. An ardent student of human nature, I love ancient history, myth, and dragons. I don’t remember thinking … someday I’ll grow up to be a writer. I just always had stories to tell. I love to travel, take pictures, garden, read, and work on remodeling the house. I live in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains with my husband, the occasional dear, and many hummingbirds. In between all that, I write whenever I can.

Reviews

[J.J. · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars.

[Christi Snow · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Review:
This was a highly enjoyable read. The story fit right into what I like to read in my contemporary romances. Eleven years ago, Sydney and Benjamin were in love with dreams of leaving Rosewood and travelling the world. But then Sydney's father fell ill and her dreams fell apart. She didn't want that for Ben though so she sent him on his way and broke his heart. When she discovered she'd made a mistake, it was too late for them.


It's been eleven years and Ben has seen the world and decided that Rosewood's where he wants to be and raise his ten yo daughter. Sydney is finally on the verge of heading out and living that dream she abandoned so long ago. But now Ben is home and needs her help. He's bought the local paper where she's been working. The former owner was supposed to ease the transition, but a sudden stroke has waylaid those plans.


There's a lot to this book that I really liked:
*Ben and Sydney are both great characters and they both were hurt eleven years ago. As a result, they don't want to run that risk again. Sydney doesn't want to give up her dream. Ben doesn't want her to shatter his or his daughter's heart when she leaves.
*I liked the writing aspect of the story. Sydney is a travel writer (a bit ironic for someone who never left home.) She's worked freelance and for the local paper for a lot of years, but now she has the chance to go work for a glossy magazine in NYC.
*Lauren (Sydney's mom) & Meredith (newspaper former owner) - I liked what both these characters added to the story. They're best friends and they love Sydney.
*Isabelle- Ben's 10 yo daughter who is so vulnerable and hurt by her mother's defection. Through her character, the author was able to show great depths to the main characters. I really liked that.
*Small town life--- just a great way to write a story. Everyone impacts life in a small town...from the football games, to the library fundraiser, to the town newspaper. A small town adds it's own element to the story.


There were a few issues with the writing on this book, but for me the quality of the story carried the book enough that I could overlook that. I did enjoy reading this one.

[Cocktails and Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sydney Marshall was on her way to finally realizing her dream, when her boss and good friend has a stroke. Suddenly she finds herself being guilted into helping the new co-owner of the town newspaper and face to face with the boy she loved but pushed away.

Benjamin Quincy returns to his hometown in hopes of creating a happy, stable home for his ten year old daughter. She hasn't had much of a home life while living with her mother and he hopes to change that. The only thing that doesn't fit into his plans is learning his high school sweetheart is still in town. Even worse is the feelings she rekindles in him and the attachment his daughter forms.

I really enjoyed this story. Coming from a small town, I could totally sympathize with Sydney's need to move to a big city and hope that whatever fantastic was going to happen to your life happened there. She was a woman who, for years, put everyone else's needs in front of her own and was looking forward to thinking about just herself. Of course, Ben coming back home threw her for a loop, but she stood strong with her conviction and was absolutely positive that leaving for New York City was going to bring her everything she ever wanted in life, even if the one thing she really wanted to was Ben.

I adored Ben. I loved how he wanted to try and make the type of home he had for his daughter. He wanted her to know she was the most important woman in his life. Any parent could appreciate the effort he made to give her what he felt was the ideal home life. But I could also appreciate his apprehensiveness at working with Sydney and then ultimately his goal to somehow work out a relationship with her. He knew what Sydney wanted and was determined to find a way to make a relationship work with her, even if it was long distance.

Susan Lute created a wonderful cast of characters and a charming town to help tell the story of finding your true happiness. I think each of us can find a little piece of Sydney in ourselves.

[Mindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Susan Lute has created a charming novel filled with meddling relatives and friends, bad decisions, good decisions, flawed people, and passionate love. The people in this book could be your friends, neighbors, or relatives. They aren’t perfect, but they try to do the best they can. The hero, Benjamin, and heroine, Sydney, have the traditional love story romance. You know, boy meets girl, problem tears them apart, they meet again, can’t stay apart but don’t trust each other, get pushed along, finally realize they are meant to be together and love triumphs. But the path she takes is what sets her apart from the pack.

These are real people. No silly flippant girls or muscle bound men. These people have problems brought on because they thought they were doing what was best for the person they loved. Add an emotionally fragile 10 year old girl who needs them and you have this wonderful story.

I have to say the 10 year old girl, Isabel, stole the story in my opinion. I ached to pull her from the pages and hold her on my lap and give her all the love and nurturing her mother had obviously not given her. And while her mother is never physically present in the book, I had a strong desire to shake her until her teeth rattled. Luckily for me things resolved well for her because I felt very protective of this little one.

I give this story 4 out of 5 clouds.

This product or book may have been distributed for review; this in no way affects my opinions or reviews.

[Melissa Rheinlander · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this short read. I read it within a couple of days. Lute creates real characters that you can relate to. Their struggles and aspirations... you will find yourself relating to any one of the characters in this sweet love story. I look forward to reading more from Susan Lute. I definitely recommend this to others who are fan of sweet romantic love stories.


Disclosure: I received a copy of the book for review purposes only through Bewitching Book Tours. I was not compensated to write a positive or favorable review. This is Keeping Up With The Rheinlander's personal opinion.

[Amanda Muller · Rating 4 out of 5]

A surprisingly good read. At first it was a little slow, then picked up and kept my interest. There was no drama, no bad pasts, no trauma bestowed on the main characters. I liked how the characters responded as it was an everyday life.

Syd and Ben had their past together. They were separated 10 years untill Ben moved back to his hometown with his daughter. Syd was always looking for a way out, but had always remained. She was finally getting out until she fell back in love with Ben. She fought against her urges, but finally realized everything she wanted was with him.

This was a good wholesome read and would recommend it.

[Deanne Wilsted · Rating 4 out of 5]

Susan Lute does it again with a fun book all about the choices between love and career. But what I love most about this particular story is the character of the daughter who is both fragile and funny, and makes the main characters that much more real in their decisions and lives. Susan is great at dialogue and description so that as a reader you feel like you understand the characters and their setting. A fun read by a fun author.

[Jessie · Rating 4 out of 5]

My friend's book.