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Madrona Island #1
The Guestbook
This book weaves together the heart of Nicholas Sparks, the romance of Nora Roberts, and the charm of Debbie Macomber.
Fleeing her picture-perfect marriage among the privileged set of Brentwood and the wreckage of a failed marriage, Lily Parkins decides to move to the only place that still holds happy memories, her grandmother’s old farmhouse. The lush and majestic setting of the Pacific Northwest calls to her and offers a place of refuge and perhaps renewal. Her grandmother has passed away, leaving the Madrona Island Bed & Breakfast Inn to Lily.
Left with only an old guestbook as her guide–a curious book full of letters, recipes, and glimpses into her family history–Lily is determined to embrace her newfound independence and recreate herself, one page at a time. With the help of the quirky island residents she has befriended, she slowly finds the strength to seek out happiness on her own terms. But as soon as she has sworn off men and is standing on her own two feet, Lily meets Ian, the alluring artist who lives next door, and her new life is suddenly thrown off course. The last thing she wants to do right now is to open her heart to another man.
Ultimately, Lily must decide if it’s worth giving up her soul for security or risking everything to follow her heart.
Fleeing her picture-perfect marriage among the privileged set of Brentwood and the wreckage of a failed marriage, Lily Parkins decides to move to the only place that still holds happy memories, her grandmother’s old farmhouse. The lush and majestic setting of the Pacific Northwest calls to her and offers a place of refuge and perhaps renewal. Her grandmother has passed away, leaving the Madrona Island Bed & Breakfast Inn to Lily.
Left with only an old guestbook as her guide–a curious book full of letters, recipes, and glimpses into her family history–Lily is determined to embrace her newfound independence and recreate herself, one page at a time. With the help of the quirky island residents she has befriended, she slowly finds the strength to seek out happiness on her own terms. But as soon as she has sworn off men and is standing on her own two feet, Lily meets Ian, the alluring artist who lives next door, and her new life is suddenly thrown off course. The last thing she wants to do right now is to open her heart to another man.
Ultimately, Lily must decide if it’s worth giving up her soul for security or risking everything to follow her heart.
336 pages, Paperback
First published July 26, 2012
About the author
Andrea Hurst
9 books259 followersWhen not writing, visiting local farmer’s markets, or indulging her love for dark chocolate, Andrea enjoys meeting fans at signings and working as an editor for other authors. She writes hopeful books in charming settings that take readers on uplifting journeys and leaves them with lasting impressions. She lives with her rescue poodle, Ellie, near Raleigh, North Carolina.
Her published books include the Amazon bestseller, The Guestbook, Tea & Comfort, and Island Thyme Café. Two novellas have been added to the Madrona Island trilogy, including Madrona Island: B&B and Christmas on Madrona Island. Her other publications are Always with You, The Lazy Dog’s Guide to Enlightenment and Everybody’s Natural Foods Cookbook, and she co-authored A Book of Miracles: Inspiring True Stories of Healing, Gratitude, and Love with Dr. Bernie Siegel.
To be alerted of upcoming new releases and receive contest and giveaway notifications, please follow her on Facebook where she shares beautiful pictures of the island, new recipes and, of course, photos of Ellie. Newsletter subscribers enjoy special bonus content as well.
Become more involved and join the Lavender Lane community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Andre...
Follow Andrea on social media!
Instagram: instagram.com/andreahurst_author
Twitter: twitter.com/AndreaHurst_
Facebook: facebook.com/andreahurstauthor
Her published books include the Amazon bestseller, The Guestbook, Tea & Comfort, and Island Thyme Café. Two novellas have been added to the Madrona Island trilogy, including Madrona Island: B&B and Christmas on Madrona Island. Her other publications are Always with You, The Lazy Dog’s Guide to Enlightenment and Everybody’s Natural Foods Cookbook, and she co-authored A Book of Miracles: Inspiring True Stories of Healing, Gratitude, and Love with Dr. Bernie Siegel.
To be alerted of upcoming new releases and receive contest and giveaway notifications, please follow her on Facebook where she shares beautiful pictures of the island, new recipes and, of course, photos of Ellie. Newsletter subscribers enjoy special bonus content as well.
Become more involved and join the Lavender Lane community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Andre...
Follow Andrea on social media!
Instagram: instagram.com/andreahurst_author
Twitter: twitter.com/AndreaHurst_
Facebook: facebook.com/andreahurstauthor
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 439 reviews
July 6, 2013
3.75 to 4 stars
After finding out that her husband was cheating on her, Lily Parkins left her comfortable life in Los Angeles for Madrona Island. The island was a significant part of Lily's childhood. It is also where her grandmother lived as a proprietor of B&B, which she left to Lily when she died.
I enjoyed this little gem of a story. This wasn't really your typical romance book, although it certainly has a lot of that. The Guestbook is also about friendship, family, letting go and moving on.
Lily was such a sympathetic character. After spending 10 years of her life with a man who neither loved or appreciated her, she was ready to start anew. You can feel her uncertainty, her insecurities being that her husband has traded her for a much younger woman. Not only that, in the beginning of the book, it seems like Lily herself doesn't quite know who she is.
It took time, with the help of some of her grandmother's guestbook, for Lily to find herself again, to feel comfortable and to accept her new life. Of course, a big part of Lily moving on was Ian McPherson, her artist neighbor.
The romance took awhile to materialize, which was understandable given that Lily just got out of a 10 year marriage and isn't officially divorced yet. And Ian also wasn't quite over the death of his wife. He's a successful painter who comes to Madrona Island to visit his grandfather. Both of them were hesitant to start something but when they did, their love story was sweet and immensely satisfying to read.
There's also a bit of a mystery element to the book, which I feel wasn't really fully developed, which was okay for me since I was really more interested in the people that surrounded Lily and Ian. I was intrigued by Jude and Ryan. I know there's a story there and I'm looking forward to that. I was also intrigued by Kyla and Lucas and even John McPherson's love affair with Lily's grandmother. I thought that was really sweet.
Overall, The Guestbook was a well-written and enjoying read. I especially enjoyed Ms. Hurst vivid description of Madrona Island and the island life in general. I would definitely recommend this for readers who like their romance sweet and without the angst.
After finding out that her husband was cheating on her, Lily Parkins left her comfortable life in Los Angeles for Madrona Island. The island was a significant part of Lily's childhood. It is also where her grandmother lived as a proprietor of B&B, which she left to Lily when she died.
I enjoyed this little gem of a story. This wasn't really your typical romance book, although it certainly has a lot of that. The Guestbook is also about friendship, family, letting go and moving on.
Lily was such a sympathetic character. After spending 10 years of her life with a man who neither loved or appreciated her, she was ready to start anew. You can feel her uncertainty, her insecurities being that her husband has traded her for a much younger woman. Not only that, in the beginning of the book, it seems like Lily herself doesn't quite know who she is.
It took time, with the help of some of her grandmother's guestbook, for Lily to find herself again, to feel comfortable and to accept her new life. Of course, a big part of Lily moving on was Ian McPherson, her artist neighbor.
The romance took awhile to materialize, which was understandable given that Lily just got out of a 10 year marriage and isn't officially divorced yet. And Ian also wasn't quite over the death of his wife. He's a successful painter who comes to Madrona Island to visit his grandfather. Both of them were hesitant to start something but when they did, their love story was sweet and immensely satisfying to read.
There's also a bit of a mystery element to the book, which I feel wasn't really fully developed, which was okay for me since I was really more interested in the people that surrounded Lily and Ian. I was intrigued by Jude and Ryan. I know there's a story there and I'm looking forward to that. I was also intrigued by Kyla and Lucas and even John McPherson's love affair with Lily's grandmother. I thought that was really sweet.
Overall, The Guestbook was a well-written and enjoying read. I especially enjoyed Ms. Hurst vivid description of Madrona Island and the island life in general. I would definitely recommend this for readers who like their romance sweet and without the angst.
October 28, 2020
Interesting, likeable characters make this story an absorbing read. Yummy food, plus author shares several recipes at end of story.
April 21, 2015
This would normally be a total fluff read with the typical scripted story frame of a harlequin romance, but it's biggest failing was the horrid inconsistencies and errors throughout the book. I'm not a critical reader by any means, but these inconsistencies were so glaringly obvious, I wonder if anyone ever edited this book at all and if they did they should be fired. Things as glaringly obvious as on one page Lily is baking cinnamon scones (that are browning nicely in the oven) and less than a page later she is serving up coffee and cinnamon ROLLS to the visitor. Another example is the couple is taking a walk on the beach, the sun is streaming trough the clouds, but a few paragraphs later they are soaked from the rain that was never mentioned. Add to this that lilacs and daisies and honeysuckle don't bloom at the same time or that dormer windows are not found on main floors of houses, and you can see what I'm talking about.
If the book had been so charming that I could overlook these flaws and errors I might have a different review, but sadly that wasn't the case. I will not be reading the other books in this series as I simply don't care a hoot for the characters or their predicaments.
If the book had been so charming that I could overlook these flaws and errors I might have a different review, but sadly that wasn't the case. I will not be reading the other books in this series as I simply don't care a hoot for the characters or their predicaments.
March 20, 2014
At best, this is a mediocre book. Lily and Ian are both terrific people and a great match-they find each other unexpectedly as she's still trying to get through a divorce and he's still recovering from his wife's death. Probably my favorite character in the story though is Betty, how hilarious!! I still think the divorce/money situation is suspicious and Brad hid money somewhere from Lily that she definitely should have been entitled too...or at least be able to sell some of her jewelry and designer clothes! The one really frustrating part of the book was the poor time tracking-one page it would be 4pm and the next page someone would be saying good morning even though it was very clearly still the same day. This happened consistently and frequently enough throughout the book to make it pretty irritating.
January 11, 2013
really disappointed in this book. I tried but it was hard to make it through
June 7, 2016
This book is very poorly written to the point where I can't figure out why it's getting so many good reviews. The author constantly violates the rule of "show, don't tell." I'm pretty sure the author doesn't have a good dictionary in her arsenal because she used the same set of adjectives to describe things. Ian's body was always beautiful which tells me nothing about how he looks. Jude was always wonderful. The dialogue was unbelievable as well. No one talks like that. It was too formal and sounded very strange when I tried to hear the characters talk in my head.
Lily was an absolute doormat throughout this whole book and I couldn't get attached to her at all. Her behavior was wishy-washy all the time and when she contemplated going back to Brad, I wanted to throw the book across the room. Except I didn't because it was on my Kindle. The plot had so many holes in it and conflicts arose and then disappeared without a trace. Lily's dad sends her threatening notes and then tries to sue her for the house. Lily sort of reconciles with Brad and within three sentences, he's taken care of the lawsuit and her dad vanishes as mysteriously as he arrived. There was so much potential a plot with substance if the author had included an abusive dad trying to take back the house and a bigger divorce battle between Lily and Brad. Instead, I got lame wrap ups that were very unsatisfying.
Let's talk about the "romance" or lack thereof. It was probably the blandest "love story" ever between Lily and Ian. It was uninteresting and there was zero chemistry between two of the most boring characters ever. I just couldn't imagine them together because the author didn't create any kind of emotional connection between them.
I couldn't figure this book out. Was it a book about food and cooking? There are so many descriptions of food and ingredients plus it includes recipes at the back of the book. Is it a book about clothes? The author feels the need to describe what every single character is wearing as if I really care. The clothing descriptions added nothing to the story at all. I'm not sure what point of the book is but I do know that I won't be continuing with the series.
Lily was an absolute doormat throughout this whole book and I couldn't get attached to her at all. Her behavior was wishy-washy all the time and when she contemplated going back to Brad, I wanted to throw the book across the room. Except I didn't because it was on my Kindle. The plot had so many holes in it and conflicts arose and then disappeared without a trace. Lily's dad sends her threatening notes and then tries to sue her for the house. Lily sort of reconciles with Brad and within three sentences, he's taken care of the lawsuit and her dad vanishes as mysteriously as he arrived. There was so much potential a plot with substance if the author had included an abusive dad trying to take back the house and a bigger divorce battle between Lily and Brad. Instead, I got lame wrap ups that were very unsatisfying.
Let's talk about the "romance" or lack thereof. It was probably the blandest "love story" ever between Lily and Ian. It was uninteresting and there was zero chemistry between two of the most boring characters ever. I just couldn't imagine them together because the author didn't create any kind of emotional connection between them.
I couldn't figure this book out. Was it a book about food and cooking? There are so many descriptions of food and ingredients plus it includes recipes at the back of the book. Is it a book about clothes? The author feels the need to describe what every single character is wearing as if I really care. The clothing descriptions added nothing to the story at all. I'm not sure what point of the book is but I do know that I won't be continuing with the series.
March 18, 2014
Great storyline, but the writing was terrible! The author does an excellent job of describing scenery and what's going on, but the dialogue is badly written, very stilted. I wouldn't mind finding out about the other character's stories in books 2 & 3 but I think I'll pass due to the writing in the first book.
March 11, 2016
Good read!
November 22, 2015
Judging by some of the other reviews, this seems to be a love it or hate it book. I really enjoyed it. I honestly don't understand what some of the negative reviews were for. The writing style was wonderful. Beautifully descriptive painting a scenery I could easily imagine myself in, feeling and smelling as the characters were, and tasting. This was a torturous book to read while pregnant. My mouth has been watering for the Orange scones with icing, the chocolate cherry muffins, and all of the other recipes and goodies mentioned. I feel like the people who negatively reviewed this book have little scope for the imagination. I would hate to be as nitpicky as they are. It seems as if they need everything fed to them and have no ability to carry on the story in their own minds. I suggest for them a walk in some nice, breezy air to clear their stuffiness away. I enjoyed the character of Kyla, particularly her interest in natural healing, herbs, and teas as that is a particular fondness of mine. I am interested to read her story in the next installment of the series. I also loved the neighbors. I want to go visit the B&B now!
The only reason I gave this 4 instead of 5 stars is because of the fact that right after Lily left her husband, she was already falling for another guy, and they wind up sleeping together without any commitment and with so many questions while she is still married. That is a particular sore spot for me as I value marriage, no matter what a pig Brad was. I would have liked this story more had Lily waited until the divorce was final and her own feelings were finalized with Brad and even with Ian, before hopping into bed with him. That is a weakness in society that I thoroughly can't stand. Had that been removed, this book would have been added to my personal book shelf collection.
While love is part of the story, the most important aspect for me was the friendship that grew and people still doing kind and selfless things for one another. That is such a rare thing to see these days, so it was refreshing to read about it, even if it was fiction. I would have liked to have had more resolution with the father situation, but other than that, I feel it was a well-written story. I am ready to go bake now as my mouth is still watering thinking about some of those goodies!
The only reason I gave this 4 instead of 5 stars is because of the fact that right after Lily left her husband, she was already falling for another guy, and they wind up sleeping together without any commitment and with so many questions while she is still married. That is a particular sore spot for me as I value marriage, no matter what a pig Brad was. I would have liked this story more had Lily waited until the divorce was final and her own feelings were finalized with Brad and even with Ian, before hopping into bed with him. That is a weakness in society that I thoroughly can't stand. Had that been removed, this book would have been added to my personal book shelf collection.
While love is part of the story, the most important aspect for me was the friendship that grew and people still doing kind and selfless things for one another. That is such a rare thing to see these days, so it was refreshing to read about it, even if it was fiction. I would have liked to have had more resolution with the father situation, but other than that, I feel it was a well-written story. I am ready to go bake now as my mouth is still watering thinking about some of those goodies!
December 13, 2012
My Love for the three mentioned authors in the synopsis' only heightened my interest in this book. But, once inside the pages, I was never more pleased and engrossed with the story of Lily Parkins by author Andrea Hurst. She won me over very quickly to say the least.
Author Andrea Hurst is now on my list to continue to find and read as many as I can get my hands on, author read n review list. Her way of telling the story of main character Lily Parkins and her grandmothers old farmhouse kept me enthralled within the pages of this wonderful novel. Never a lull or over my head so to speak part with in the book.
I would love for my family to find such a book as Lily did. To be able for my grandchildren to learn more about themselves and their heritage in a "guestbook" would be an adventure I feel they would love.
As you all must know by now though is I try not to give any thing away with my reviews. I mostly try to just keep it to where either I let you know how much I like the book or not. Well make sure to put THE GUESTBOOK on your 2013 book list as a Must Read!
I recommend this to all my romance readers.
So due to the above, I am giving this book a Breath of Life ratings of:
Five Clock Rating!!!
Disclosure: I did receive this book for my honest opinion and review. But the opinions are my own and yours may differ.
Author Andrea Hurst is now on my list to continue to find and read as many as I can get my hands on, author read n review list. Her way of telling the story of main character Lily Parkins and her grandmothers old farmhouse kept me enthralled within the pages of this wonderful novel. Never a lull or over my head so to speak part with in the book.
I would love for my family to find such a book as Lily did. To be able for my grandchildren to learn more about themselves and their heritage in a "guestbook" would be an adventure I feel they would love.
As you all must know by now though is I try not to give any thing away with my reviews. I mostly try to just keep it to where either I let you know how much I like the book or not. Well make sure to put THE GUESTBOOK on your 2013 book list as a Must Read!
I recommend this to all my romance readers.
So due to the above, I am giving this book a Breath of Life ratings of:
Five Clock Rating!!!
Disclosure: I did receive this book for my honest opinion and review. But the opinions are my own and yours may differ.
June 5, 2013
I was lucky enough to have stumbled across this book as a freebie on Amazon and it did not disappoint! Lovely book about love, loss and the struggles to overcome obstacles in order to get back up on one's feet again.
The characters were believable and the imagery made me feel like I was standing on the outside looking in watching the as the story unfolded.
A must read!
The characters were believable and the imagery made me feel like I was standing on the outside looking in watching the as the story unfolded.
A must read!
July 16, 2019
Round up to 4.5 stars. Exquisite.
August 19, 2017
.
When I began reading many years ago, I enjoyed the minute details of descriptions and the introduction of new words tremendously.
However, many current writers eliminate so many of the unnecessary details and depend more on dialogue. The new type of format creates more entertainment and less mundane diatribes. The point being that I feel the intricate details in this story took focus away from it, instead of enhancing it.
This was a gripping tale of the struggle associated with so many changes that follow the break-up of a marriage.
.
Lily made onfe pivotal slip that enraged me, but she quickly came to her senses. It would be phenomenal if we could all recoginize this type of pitfalls and rcover as quickly.
The huge range of commrarderie and love help captivate the reader's attention.
When I began reading many years ago, I enjoyed the minute details of descriptions and the introduction of new words tremendously.
However, many current writers eliminate so many of the unnecessary details and depend more on dialogue. The new type of format creates more entertainment and less mundane diatribes. The point being that I feel the intricate details in this story took focus away from it, instead of enhancing it.
This was a gripping tale of the struggle associated with so many changes that follow the break-up of a marriage.
.
Lily made onfe pivotal slip that enraged me, but she quickly came to her senses. It would be phenomenal if we could all recoginize this type of pitfalls and rcover as quickly.
The huge range of commrarderie and love help captivate the reader's attention.
June 12, 2017
This was a charming book. Lily's marriage goes bad, her estranged grandma leaves her a lovely old B&B on Medrona Island in the Pacific NW. I loved the setting and longed to explore. Lily's love of cooking is a shared passion with me, and the food was also a high point. The characters were well done and the love story, while a bit predictable, was sweet. I would have liked a bit more from Grandma. Perhaps a few more secrets uncovered. I kept wondering where her money went. The Inn had been turning a profit, so why not uncover a hidden bank account, or even a cashbox under the mattress? I imagine the next book in this series will be about one of Lily's friends adventure in love, and I'll be looking forward to reading about that. Overall this was a very good read.
June 15, 2014
Uggh
Uggh
Oh my gosh! I found myself counting the multiple times she used certain adjectives. Moist-about ten times. Multiple adjectives for simple things like bedside tables for heaven's sake. Can you say filler word count?? There were also many typos. Proof reader? I wanted to like this book but I just couldn't. I would not recommend it.
Uggh
Oh my gosh! I found myself counting the multiple times she used certain adjectives. Moist-about ten times. Multiple adjectives for simple things like bedside tables for heaven's sake. Can you say filler word count?? There were also many typos. Proof reader? I wanted to like this book but I just couldn't. I would not recommend it.
May 27, 2014
The premise for this book was good, but the writing was too forced. Major conflicts were resolved in ridiculously easy ways that would never happen in the real world. There were huge gaps in much of the plot and the flow was choppy.
September 27, 2015
I usually don't give 2 stars, but after reading other reviews, I tend to agree that 3 is just one too many. I just erased my long explanation because it ended up sounding harsh. Let's just say this wasn't my favorite read of the year, but I did finish it.
May 27, 2018
The magic of small communities did not work for me this time.. The premise was good, the characters had promise and even Lily's friends - Kayla and Jude are all set to headline books 2 and 3, but I found the writing dragging and the pacing of the story was too slow. I feel the 38 chapters could've been shortened to 30 (who spends whole chapters on musings?), like the writer had to meet a word count quota or something. With the end so obvious and barely a dash of conflict, the island story can very well put you to sleep.
December 29, 2022
I really wish I could have connected more with this book. The plot was very plain, I’ve read it countless times. A grandmother left her Inn to her granddaughter who’s a big city girl. I felt like Lily was really immature, even though she was over 30. I thought some parts were cute, but it just wasn’t for me
July 3, 2020
This was fine.
Its a wholesome romance, nothing dramatic or really nasty happens you think it may and I kind of wanted it to. It needed something to happen, it just plods along and they live happy ever after and that is nice. I just felt it was missing something.
Its a wholesome romance, nothing dramatic or really nasty happens you think it may and I kind of wanted it to. It needed something to happen, it just plods along and they live happy ever after and that is nice. I just felt it was missing something.
April 17, 2018
Zorlanmadan akışında giden bir hikayeydi . Yazarı beğendim umarım kalan 2 kitabı da çıkar , takibimde olacak .
October 9, 2019
I tried my best to power through but nope! Moving on...
August 24, 2021
This started in a promising manner but got bogged down and there were a lot of inconsistencies.
June 21, 2024
Easy, enjoyable read. Pretty predictable
May 11, 2019
DNF awful
August 5, 2020
3 stars
A light and sweet story, quick read. I especially like how she bakes for others to share her love. Cookies and brownies are the perfect comfort food
A light and sweet story, quick read. I especially like how she bakes for others to share her love. Cookies and brownies are the perfect comfort food
April 9, 2013
Lily Parkins inherits her grandmother's B&B just in time as her marriage hits the rocks. Discovering her husband has been having extra marital affairs, Lily immediately leaves her all ready unhappy marriage with her overbearing, controlling husband and heads to Madrona Island and her inheritance.
Lily hadn't seen her grandmother for years after her father walked out on her mother. As Lily begins to sort through her feelings and try to get back on her feet, she meets several of the islanders who form a tight knit of support for her.
Included in the group is 80 year old neighbor John, handsome grandson and artist, Ian who also has a son, 8 year old Josh. Ian and Lily really hit it off and although she feels it is too soon and doesn't trust herself or what's going on between them, fate keeps bringing them together.
Amid starting her own baking company, pulling the B&B back together, getting her divorce, finding new friendships, sorting out her feelings and trying to become independent, Ian and Lily fall in love.
There were moments of the book that dragged out for me and some of the supporting characters seemed a little two dimensional. I was expecting greater strides and "a-Ha!" moments with Lily's development and I really wanted to see more quality of emotion as well as more of what was going through Ian's head as the main characters fell in love. Trying to set up elements for the next two books didn't work well for me either, although I "get" why the author tried to fit them in.
Nice, easy light read.
Lily hadn't seen her grandmother for years after her father walked out on her mother. As Lily begins to sort through her feelings and try to get back on her feet, she meets several of the islanders who form a tight knit of support for her.
Included in the group is 80 year old neighbor John, handsome grandson and artist, Ian who also has a son, 8 year old Josh. Ian and Lily really hit it off and although she feels it is too soon and doesn't trust herself or what's going on between them, fate keeps bringing them together.
Amid starting her own baking company, pulling the B&B back together, getting her divorce, finding new friendships, sorting out her feelings and trying to become independent, Ian and Lily fall in love.
There were moments of the book that dragged out for me and some of the supporting characters seemed a little two dimensional. I was expecting greater strides and "a-Ha!" moments with Lily's development and I really wanted to see more quality of emotion as well as more of what was going through Ian's head as the main characters fell in love. Trying to set up elements for the next two books didn't work well for me either, although I "get" why the author tried to fit them in.
Nice, easy light read.
November 5, 2012
I cannot express how very much I enjoyed The Guestbook. A wonderful debut from author Andrea Hurst and I cannot wait for the next book in this trilogy!
We meet Lily as she given the push she has needed to make a major decision in her life. Lily was married young and by 30 realizes that perhaps the life that she has chosen or was chosen for her isn't the life she wants. Re-building her life becomes more about finding herself and putting her own needs before others all the while learning to trust and be cared for.
Beyond this story of self discovery is one of friendship, love, family and community. The backdrop is the beautiful Pacific Northwest and an island that draws the reader in as much as the wonderful food so brilliantly described throughout the book.
While at first glance this is a "romance" novel but I found it to be much more. I would recommend this to any reader that wants to cuddle up with a cup of tea or a glass of wine and spend an afternoon lost in a beautiful story.
We meet Lily as she given the push she has needed to make a major decision in her life. Lily was married young and by 30 realizes that perhaps the life that she has chosen or was chosen for her isn't the life she wants. Re-building her life becomes more about finding herself and putting her own needs before others all the while learning to trust and be cared for.
Beyond this story of self discovery is one of friendship, love, family and community. The backdrop is the beautiful Pacific Northwest and an island that draws the reader in as much as the wonderful food so brilliantly described throughout the book.
While at first glance this is a "romance" novel but I found it to be much more. I would recommend this to any reader that wants to cuddle up with a cup of tea or a glass of wine and spend an afternoon lost in a beautiful story.
March 25, 2014
I bought this quickly on a daily deal and saw all the good reviews that I really didn't explore it further. After reading, I sure wish I had. Should have realized when it was compared to Nicholas Sparks that it wasn't going to be my cup of tea, but I do enjoy a good drama in a small town with quirky characters and a shred of mystery. This book was not that. Basically had no character development whatsoever, no story, and no climax and it's a trilogy! But, hey, each to their own. If you enjoy one-dimensional characters, the predictability of the same story which has been told a thousand times, no substance of any consequence, and endings tight up in a nice neat bow with sugar on top then this book is for you. Bored me to tears and actually had me laughing at some of the absurd wording which was probably not the intention of the author.
October 29, 2015
A nice story about Lily -- who has just inherited a Bed & Breakfast from her grandmother. After she is confronted by her husband's betrayal, she finds solace in the house and the island on which it is located. The story follows Lily as she attempts to create a career for herself with her baking skills and wonders if she could ever re-open the B&B. It also follows the story of her marriage through ups/downs as well new friendships she makes on the island.
It is a book of loss & betrayal as well as survival and hope. Lily and the other island characters find a way into your heart as they demonstrate what real kindness and friendship is all about -- lessons from which we could all benefit.
My only criticism is the aspect of sex outside of marriage. Fortunately, the description was not explicit.
It is a book of loss & betrayal as well as survival and hope. Lily and the other island characters find a way into your heart as they demonstrate what real kindness and friendship is all about -- lessons from which we could all benefit.
My only criticism is the aspect of sex outside of marriage. Fortunately, the description was not explicit.
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