Meant For Love is the story of Jenny and Alex.
Jenny Wilks is a 37-year-old woman who stopped living twelve years before, when she lost her fiancé in the 9/11 attacks. After years of letting life pass her by, she ended up in Gansett Island after submitting to the lighthouse keeper position. Her letter to the city council was one of the most beautiful and emocional things I've read, even if I know her particular story isn't real. It's been a year since she moved to the island and found a bunch of friends who have helped her move on with her life, even setting her up on dates when she tells them she's ready.
Alex Martinez was born and raised in Gansett and had to return home from his dream job in DC after his mother's Dementia took a turn to the worst and his brother couldn't handle it all - their mom and the family business - alone anymore. It's heartbreaking to read the scenes where she's present, but it's incredible how much Alex and his brother, Paul, stood up to the challenge.
In the middle of a heat wave, Alex gets to the lighthouse to mow the lawn after months of delaying it due to his mother willness. He wakes Jenny up from a dream that's been haunting her for years and she angrily storms out to have words with him. Neither of them expected the instant attraction they felt for each other, though. And even if Alex isn't sure there's room in his life for love and even if Jenny has still some demons that keep her from completely surrendering, they're not able to stop the pull and quickly engage in a relationship. It starts out as pure heat, but it climbs to meaningful really fast, taking them both by surprise.
Alex is a little rough around the edges and a swear-at-every-turn kind of guy, which is a stark contrast to Jenny's sweet personality. He's also impulsive and has some jealousy issues that'll make you laugh and want to pull his hair out a few times along the book. Alex doesn't expect anything from Jenny and he feels like he can't drag anyone into his life with the huge space his mom occupies at the moment, but Jenny doesn't care about it and is constantly surprising him with her willingness to help and to accept him and his life, just as it is. As for Jenny, she still strugles with the loss of Toby, her fiancé, and she has to deal with the guilt, but also the elation of finding out she was able to find a connection to another human being again. She has some trouble sharing her story with Alex in the beginning, out of fear of it changing the way he looks at her and treats her. I can't imagine being in her place, but what a burden it must be to be seen only for the tragedy you've lived through. She's one amazing and resilient woman and Alex sees that. He's the perfect fit for her.
"The more time she spent with him, the more she began to suspect he could actually be all right for her."
One of the things I like the most in Marie's stories is that they seem real, not fiction. I could easily imagine her characters living just like it's told on her books and it means we can relate to them, which makes for a great reason to love it. Her writing is incredible and her characters are always complex and likable, so it's always a plus when we get to meet the couples from past books and "see how they're doing".
This is the tenth book in the Gansett Island series and, although I imagine you could follow Jenny and Alex's story without previous knowledge, I fully recomend reading them all in order, especially for the secondary stories, which are mostly abouth past characters. There have been a couple of books in the series that left me wanting more cause I didn't much like Adam and Abby or David and Daisy, but that was my personal feelings for them and I could still enjoy the books, especially for the glimpse into other couples in between the main plot. This one has done it for me again and I was so hooked I simply couldn't stop reading.
If you're already a Marie fan, I'm sure this one will go up there amongst your favorites. If you're not, yet, just get to it and surrender, starting with Maid For Love, which is currently, and almost always since I first read it, free.