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City of Sails #1
Falling for Jack
A heart-warming romance of second chances and self discovery, of family and the love that overcomes all. Set in New Zealand.
Jack Fletcher has survived his rough upbringing to become a mega success, but with his personal life down the toilet, discovering he has a son sends his life even further into turmoil.
Robyn Taylor was the brainy girl destined for great things who now waits tables for a living to support her twins. Life is a struggle, but when Jack convinces her he needs her to look after his son, the conditions are too good to turn down.
Robyn has always had a bit of a crush on Jack, but being this close means the crush is rapidly turning into something else altogether, and when Jack gets shocking news, it draws the two of them even closer together.
But how can Jack ever believe he can be a father to his son, and a husband to a woman who must learn not only how to trust him - but to have faith in herself as well.
Jack Fletcher has survived his rough upbringing to become a mega success, but with his personal life down the toilet, discovering he has a son sends his life even further into turmoil.
Robyn Taylor was the brainy girl destined for great things who now waits tables for a living to support her twins. Life is a struggle, but when Jack convinces her he needs her to look after his son, the conditions are too good to turn down.
Robyn has always had a bit of a crush on Jack, but being this close means the crush is rapidly turning into something else altogether, and when Jack gets shocking news, it draws the two of them even closer together.
But how can Jack ever believe he can be a father to his son, and a husband to a woman who must learn not only how to trust him - but to have faith in herself as well.
205 pages, ebook
First published June 1, 2013
168 people are currently reading
324 people want to read
About the author
Joanne Hill
16 books20 followersI write contemporary romance and romantic comedy, stories that celebrate family, friends and love.
Favourite authors include Abby Gaines, Fiona Brand, MC Beaton, Sophie Kinsella, and Nora Roberts.
I live in New Zealand with my family and our lovely tabby cats, Billie and Bobbie.
Founding member of Romance Writers of New Zealand.
Sign up for my newsletter and receive a free copy of my short story collection, Love The Commute, at: https://landing.mailerlite.com/webfor... or follow the link from my website.
Favourite authors include Abby Gaines, Fiona Brand, MC Beaton, Sophie Kinsella, and Nora Roberts.
I live in New Zealand with my family and our lovely tabby cats, Billie and Bobbie.
Founding member of Romance Writers of New Zealand.
Sign up for my newsletter and receive a free copy of my short story collection, Love The Commute, at: https://landing.mailerlite.com/webfor... or follow the link from my website.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews
May 17, 2014
Falling for Jack by Joanne Hill
Jack's life is a mess. His supermodel girlfriend is having an affair with his best friend and he gets a phone call out of the blue from a former girlfriend explaining that for the past eight years she has been raisng his son without informing him he was a father. With the media hot on his trail and having a child involved, he asked an old high school aquaintance, Robyn, a single mother with twins if she would help care for his son, Eric , until he can find a permanent caregiver.
Robyn had an incredibly bright future. She was given a full scholorship and was in pre-med when she suddenly dropped out and never completed her education. Now she is divorced, trying to raise her twins without much help from their father and run a business. When she and Jack strike up a conversation it's really just a "Hey, don't I know you?" sort of thing. But, they talk awhile and when Jack needs help with Eric, Robyn seemed like the perfect person. Robyn agrees to help him but something tells her Jack is going to become a big problem for her.
This sweet romance chronicles the massive changes that Jack's life takes in a very short period of time. Robyn's decision to take the job Jack offered has her more involved in Jack's life than she intended. She helps him adjust to parenthood, tries to help him bridge the gap between himself and his family, helps the young pregnant woman abandoned by Jack's best friend, and deals with her own disappointments and her perceived failures.
This is the type of thing real people deal with on a daily basis. Parenthood is difficult, job pressures, relationships with family, and the our own goals, hopes and dreams round out life giving us good times and stressful times and bad times. I liked how the book felt so down to earth without a lot of immature angst. These were adult people that while they had their share of pity parties they also behaved like mature people just trying to cope with how things turned out for them.
There were some moments when the daily routines got a bit like, well, like a daily routine. I do wish we could have had a little more romance between Jack and Robyn. I can see why Robyn might have drawn the conclusion that Jack was just looking for a woman to help him out rather than someone he actually was in love with. So, a tiny bit of steam level would have been nice. I think the falling in love part for this couple sort of snuck up behind them and tapped them on the shoulder and said, " Wow! I love this person". This too was so natural and right but it was also too low key for romance readers.
The setting of New Zealand was nice for a change of pace, but one will have to adjust to the different way of wording things and certain phrases might not be familiar if you are from the US.
Overall this is was a pleasant enough read and I think this author shows potential. I have one or two more books by Joanne Hill in my TBR list and I'm looking forward to seeing how those turn out. This one gets 3 stars.
Jack's life is a mess. His supermodel girlfriend is having an affair with his best friend and he gets a phone call out of the blue from a former girlfriend explaining that for the past eight years she has been raisng his son without informing him he was a father. With the media hot on his trail and having a child involved, he asked an old high school aquaintance, Robyn, a single mother with twins if she would help care for his son, Eric , until he can find a permanent caregiver.
Robyn had an incredibly bright future. She was given a full scholorship and was in pre-med when she suddenly dropped out and never completed her education. Now she is divorced, trying to raise her twins without much help from their father and run a business. When she and Jack strike up a conversation it's really just a "Hey, don't I know you?" sort of thing. But, they talk awhile and when Jack needs help with Eric, Robyn seemed like the perfect person. Robyn agrees to help him but something tells her Jack is going to become a big problem for her.
This sweet romance chronicles the massive changes that Jack's life takes in a very short period of time. Robyn's decision to take the job Jack offered has her more involved in Jack's life than she intended. She helps him adjust to parenthood, tries to help him bridge the gap between himself and his family, helps the young pregnant woman abandoned by Jack's best friend, and deals with her own disappointments and her perceived failures.
This is the type of thing real people deal with on a daily basis. Parenthood is difficult, job pressures, relationships with family, and the our own goals, hopes and dreams round out life giving us good times and stressful times and bad times. I liked how the book felt so down to earth without a lot of immature angst. These were adult people that while they had their share of pity parties they also behaved like mature people just trying to cope with how things turned out for them.
There were some moments when the daily routines got a bit like, well, like a daily routine. I do wish we could have had a little more romance between Jack and Robyn. I can see why Robyn might have drawn the conclusion that Jack was just looking for a woman to help him out rather than someone he actually was in love with. So, a tiny bit of steam level would have been nice. I think the falling in love part for this couple sort of snuck up behind them and tapped them on the shoulder and said, " Wow! I love this person". This too was so natural and right but it was also too low key for romance readers.
The setting of New Zealand was nice for a change of pace, but one will have to adjust to the different way of wording things and certain phrases might not be familiar if you are from the US.
Overall this is was a pleasant enough read and I think this author shows potential. I have one or two more books by Joanne Hill in my TBR list and I'm looking forward to seeing how those turn out. This one gets 3 stars.
December 25, 2014
A sweet, emotional love story - Falling for Jack is a perfect rainy-day read. The characters were very down to earth and even the hero, who was obviously very wealthy, didn't come across as the boring/stereotypical rich mogul - a real plus in my opinion. Loved the little romance within a romance sub-plot with the two best friends Sage and Ethan. I'm looking forward to reading more from this author.
September 17, 2016
Nice romance
Sometimes you just need something happy to read getting away from all the stress of life. Nice characters and happy ending.
Sometimes you just need something happy to read getting away from all the stress of life. Nice characters and happy ending.
Want to read
June 9, 2013Amazon freebie 6/9/13
December 5, 2018
Quick Info
Standalone/Cliffhanger?: Standalone but I think follows on
Part of a Series?: Yes
POV: Both
----------------------------------
Meeting the Characters
Jack Fletcher - A millionaire business man who rose from really a crap background to where he is today
Robyn Taylor - A smart woman whose life is in a completely different direction to what she expected. Shes a divorced single mother of twins.
----------------------------------
What happens?
Jack starts off his story by being cheated on by his long term girlfriend with his married friend. Him and another friend support the man's pregnant wife to get back on her feet after their shared public humiliation, although that leaves a bitter taste in my mouth because they shouldn't be humiliated they didn't do anything to be humiliated. He is also dropped a bombshell of a 7 year old.
Robyn is living a life she didn't expect or really want to live and is full of regret and a bit of anger. She loves her children but really they are the reason she isn't the doctor her parents wanted and dreamed for her to be. The father of her children is absent and therefore it leaves her struggling to make ends meet to give her kids the life they deserve so when an old friend comes back into her life and asks her to be his son's live in nanny for the month he is over she hesitatingly agrees because it means money and spending time with her kids.
Final thoughts
I think this book was really nice. Its a sweet romance between two people that have known each other but not known each other for a long time. They are both in stages of their lives that they didn't expect or really maybe wanted.
Would I read again?: Yes
Would I read this author again?: Yes
Standalone/Cliffhanger?: Standalone but I think follows on
Part of a Series?: Yes
POV: Both
----------------------------------
Meeting the Characters
Jack Fletcher - A millionaire business man who rose from really a crap background to where he is today
Robyn Taylor - A smart woman whose life is in a completely different direction to what she expected. Shes a divorced single mother of twins.
----------------------------------
What happens?
Jack starts off his story by being cheated on by his long term girlfriend with his married friend. Him and another friend support the man's pregnant wife to get back on her feet after their shared public humiliation, although that leaves a bitter taste in my mouth because they shouldn't be humiliated they didn't do anything to be humiliated. He is also dropped a bombshell of a 7 year old.
Robyn is living a life she didn't expect or really want to live and is full of regret and a bit of anger. She loves her children but really they are the reason she isn't the doctor her parents wanted and dreamed for her to be. The father of her children is absent and therefore it leaves her struggling to make ends meet to give her kids the life they deserve so when an old friend comes back into her life and asks her to be his son's live in nanny for the month he is over she hesitatingly agrees because it means money and spending time with her kids.
Final thoughts
I think this book was really nice. Its a sweet romance between two people that have known each other but not known each other for a long time. They are both in stages of their lives that they didn't expect or really maybe wanted.
Would I read again?: Yes
Would I read this author again?: Yes
June 7, 2023
it ok
It is ok. I really liked the blurb I read about it but it just wasn’t something I had to read and not put down it didn’t keep me that interested. The story is good though. About two people who ran into years later after highschool one is very wealthy and very well to do while the story is also about a divorced single parent who has two adorable twins. When the male main character gets a shocking phone call that changes everything. One person is looking for that feeling of life having meaning and another is trying to keep her heart closed off to avoid going through heartache. Can these two people who found eachother again help heal the other? And how does twins and a 7yr old boy factor into all of this going on? Read to find out
It is ok. I really liked the blurb I read about it but it just wasn’t something I had to read and not put down it didn’t keep me that interested. The story is good though. About two people who ran into years later after highschool one is very wealthy and very well to do while the story is also about a divorced single parent who has two adorable twins. When the male main character gets a shocking phone call that changes everything. One person is looking for that feeling of life having meaning and another is trying to keep her heart closed off to avoid going through heartache. Can these two people who found eachother again help heal the other? And how does twins and a 7yr old boy factor into all of this going on? Read to find out
March 15, 2025
good clean love story
Robyn and Jack were high school classmates and their paths cross again in their 30s. Jack is a successful businessman and Robyn is a single mom raising 5 year old twins. When Jack discovers he has a 7 year old son, he hires Robyn to be a live-in nanny while his son comes to visit for a month. During this time, Robyn and her kids bond with the boy, Eric. But when tragedy strikes everyone’s world is about to change.
▪️Language - mild
▪️Sex scenes - none
▪️Violence - none
Robyn and Jack were high school classmates and their paths cross again in their 30s. Jack is a successful businessman and Robyn is a single mom raising 5 year old twins. When Jack discovers he has a 7 year old son, he hires Robyn to be a live-in nanny while his son comes to visit for a month. During this time, Robyn and her kids bond with the boy, Eric. But when tragedy strikes everyone’s world is about to change.
▪️Language - mild
▪️Sex scenes - none
▪️Violence - none
Read
September 8, 2022Fantastic!
Although an easy, quick read the story is fantastic. Jack and Robyn are characters I enjoyed getting to know and their story continues in the next book of the series.
There is no overt sex and it was wonderful that Robyn chose to not become intimate with Jack although the desire was there.
Some not too surprising events. Although I did wonder why Val delayed so long.
Good writing, storyline and characters make this a very enjoyable book.
Thank you, Joanne Hill.
Although an easy, quick read the story is fantastic. Jack and Robyn are characters I enjoyed getting to know and their story continues in the next book of the series.
There is no overt sex and it was wonderful that Robyn chose to not become intimate with Jack although the desire was there.
Some not too surprising events. Although I did wonder why Val delayed so long.
Good writing, storyline and characters make this a very enjoyable book.
Thank you, Joanne Hill.
February 4, 2023
I liked the story of Jack and Robyn, and the children were a nice part of the story. The story is set in New Zealand. Couldn't quite figure out why Val didn't talk to Jack sooner. Some sad parts as well as funny ones. Good to see Robyn realize that a lot of the pressure she felt to succeed came from her own feelings and not her family. And I liked how Jack tries with his parents, with limited success. There was one scary part where Ruby is separated from Jack and her brother, and it scares Jack a lot. Nice ending.
January 25, 2025
Lovely story
Really enjoyed this story about a single mother finding love. It was great to read a story where the MMC had concerns and doubts. Although the time frame of the story was very short, as the couple had known each other as teenagers, it made sense that they would connect quicker.
Really enjoyed this story about a single mother finding love. It was great to read a story where the MMC had concerns and doubts. Although the time frame of the story was very short, as the couple had known each other as teenagers, it made sense that they would connect quicker.
Read
June 8, 2022Good clean book
This was a very good book. Two emotionally abused learned to trust their heart. Build up of love and build up of fatherly love as well. I would recommend this book to anyone.
This was a very good book. Two emotionally abused learned to trust their heart. Build up of love and build up of fatherly love as well. I would recommend this book to anyone.
November 4, 2022
Well written!
Very touching, well constricted story. Ms. Hill layered the emotions of her main characters so fully you feel invested in their happiness quite quickly. Keep writing, be encouraged!
Very touching, well constricted story. Ms. Hill layered the emotions of her main characters so fully you feel invested in their happiness quite quickly. Keep writing, be encouraged!
June 19, 2017
Good romance. Realistic deep characters. A relationship based on respect and friendship. 4 star.
November 17, 2017
I liked how the relationship developed between Jack and Robyn. Jack certainly had a lot happen to him in a short time. I also liked the inclusion of James, Ruby, and Eric.
January 21, 2023
Falling in love
This was a fun book about single mother's struggle, finding herself as well as falling in love with someone from her past. I would recommend this to everyone.
This was a fun book about single mother's struggle, finding herself as well as falling in love with someone from her past. I would recommend this to everyone.
June 23, 2024
Cute read!!
This story was really cute, I absolutely love stories with babies and this had twins in it. Now on to the next book.
This story was really cute, I absolutely love stories with babies and this had twins in it. Now on to the next book.
January 26, 2025
Superbly crafted tale
Outstanding romance with great characters. Exceptional plotting of a well worn trope. Sensitive treatment of loss and grief. Aware depiction of children.
Outstanding romance with great characters. Exceptional plotting of a well worn trope. Sensitive treatment of loss and grief. Aware depiction of children.
April 15, 2025
Beautiful heartwarming story!
September 12, 2022
I liked Jack and Robyn's story. They were places I laughed, cried, and became so frustrated because they wouldn't realize what was right in front of them.
December 1, 2022
thumbs up
This is the first time I read this author and I Really enjoyed this book. Im going going to grab the next book. The characters are enjoyable .
This is the first time I read this author and I Really enjoyed this book. Im going going to grab the next book. The characters are enjoyable .
August 15, 2016
He remembered her
Jack, a very successful business owner, runs into a waitress that seems very familiar to him. It finally dawns on him that it's Robyn, a girl he knew from high school. What he can't figure out is why the girl headed to med school is doing waiting tables. Before he can get to the bottom of her mystery, his whole life implodes during a scandal. Suddenly Jack and Robyn find themselves in the middle of crisis after crisis. The twists and turns abound, there are anger issues galore, and misunderstandings that threatens their futures. Sometimes the storyline was too complex and other times almost too simplistic. Not a bad read, and I will definitely check out other books by this author.
Jack, a very successful business owner, runs into a waitress that seems very familiar to him. It finally dawns on him that it's Robyn, a girl he knew from high school. What he can't figure out is why the girl headed to med school is doing waiting tables. Before he can get to the bottom of her mystery, his whole life implodes during a scandal. Suddenly Jack and Robyn find themselves in the middle of crisis after crisis. The twists and turns abound, there are anger issues galore, and misunderstandings that threatens their futures. Sometimes the storyline was too complex and other times almost too simplistic. Not a bad read, and I will definitely check out other books by this author.
May 12, 2015
Thank you to the author for the book to review. I received it as part of the boxed set "Love Down Under". Jack Fletcher and Robyn Taylor meet years after attending the same high school. Jack has done well for himself and Robyn is pursuing a different dream from the one she had in high school. A previously unknown son appears in Jack’s life and Robyn steps in to help as a temporary nanny. This is a great story with wonderful characters and a storyline that I thoroughly enjoyed.
July 4, 2024
Clean but emotional tugging
This is a clean story with emotional journey. Great characters meeting up with each other after making their way through life on different paths then they were thought to take. I appreciate that its not a second chance as those are usually too back and forth emotional for me. This one has unexpected happenings and life realizations that get you in the feels. Well done curious where it will go from here.
This is a clean story with emotional journey. Great characters meeting up with each other after making their way through life on different paths then they were thought to take. I appreciate that its not a second chance as those are usually too back and forth emotional for me. This one has unexpected happenings and life realizations that get you in the feels. Well done curious where it will go from here.
August 16, 2013
This one was ok. I don't know if it was the New Zealand English or if there were just that many grammar mistakes, but I had a bit of hard time following the story at some points. But could be just my lack of knowledge.
The story was quite normal romance, everyone is head over heels in just a few weeks time.
The story was quite normal romance, everyone is head over heels in just a few weeks time.
August 26, 2016
Mostly sweet romance that takes place in New Zealand. I liked both the main characters, and that they weren't perfect but both working through problems. I thought some things were pretty unrealistic, such as the heroine's range of career choices. It was a quick read with kids and interesting side characters, which were both pluses.
Read
July 1, 2013Considering I'm really not that in to reading love stories I'm unsure why I picked this book up. I didn't put my rating in stars since I felt it would be unfair. I'd give it a 1.5. It is a very quick read and I like happy endings so it was ok.
July 12, 2013
I really enjoyed this book, was a little disappointed with the end, I would of liked to of read more of the story.
Other than the end it was a good read, I laughed and I cried. Well worth it seeing as it was a freebie on amazon
Other than the end it was a good read, I laughed and I cried. Well worth it seeing as it was a freebie on amazon
August 4, 2013
Good story but the end!!! Ugh all the books I'm reading lately are so rushed to finish feeling to me. I want to know how her fashion thing went! Why not a epilogue ?? Tell the readers how it went and their wedding.. Ugh I give it 3 stars although I kinda wanted to give it 1...
April 9, 2016
Nothing special really. Billionaire falls in love with a poor girl, sweeps her off her feet and they live happily ever after. Speaking of, why is always the man who is filthy rich? Hmmm....Anyways, the only remotely interesting thing was the setting in New Zealand. Bucket list country :D
July 2, 2013
This book wasn't perfect, but it was sweet. After the last book I read, I needed sweet.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews