Key Lime Garden Inn

Captiva Island Series #1

by Annie Cabot

High-school sweethearts Daniel and Maggie Wheeler live an idyllic and picture-perfect life in the suburbs of Boston. Daniel works at a prestigious investment firm in the city, and Maggie has been his devoted and supportive wife for over thirty years. They have five children, two boys, and three girls, and are the envy of all their friends. Everything about the Wheeler home seems full of joy and love just as long as no one looks too closely. When Daniel makes an announcement that Maggie never anticipated, her world is turned upside down.

With her faith in everything she has ever known completely shattered, Maggie is forced to look within to understand how she ended up where she is. When an unplanned trip to visit her friend on Captiva Island, Florida presents, she decides to use that time to come to terms with her new reality. It will take all her courage to forge a new life for herself and her family.

A trip to paradise, new friends, a beloved property, and a handsome stranger open a new world with exciting possibilities for Maggie and a belief that just when you think that you can't go on, a beautiful future awaits.

Genres: Fiction, Romance, Contemporary, Chick Lit, Womens Fiction, Contemporary Romance, Beach Reads

290 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 11, 2022

About the author

Annie Cabot is the author of contemporary women's fiction and family sagas. Annie writes about friendships and family relationships, that bring inspiration and hope to others.

With a focus on women's fiction, Annie feels that she writes best when she writes from experience. “Every woman's journey is a relatable story. I want to capture those stories, let others know they are not alone, and bring a bit of joy to my readers.”

Annie Cabot is the pen name for the writer Patricia Pauletti. A lover of all things happily ever after, it was only a matter of time before she began to write what was in her heart, and so, the pen name Annie Cabot was born.

When she's not writing, Annie and her husband like to travel. Winters always involve time away on Captiva Island, Florida where she continues to get inspiration for her novels.

Annie lives in Massachusetts with her husband.

Reviews

[Diana · Rating 3 out of 5]

3-1/2 Stars!

You had me at margarita.

Okay, so no one actually said margarita at any point that I can remember but look at that cover! My first thought was margarita and I immediately craved one after looking at this cover. In addition to that margarita craving, this cover said to me: nice, light, summer read, should be lots of fun.

It was true, this book was fun for the most part. There were some more serious topics in it than what the cover implied. (I know I'm not supposed to go by the cover, of course.) This book excels in character development. It is basically a family drama type story told from the perspectives of a few female family members. The book is largely told from the perspective of Maggie, the matriarch of the family. Right from the get-go, Maggie has a whole lot going on and she has a lot to deal with, a lot to figure out. Thus, we end up having some pretty good quotes. Two of my favorites are:

"When two people only want to be heard but don’t want to listen, nothing gets accomplished."

“A woman’s path isn’t a straight line, Maggie, but if you stop resisting, if you stop fighting against the changes and let them come, you can ride an amazing wave.”

This book is very positive and it is squeaky clean. Some of the characters are almost... too perfect? My thoughts on the series: I will continue if I am able to borrow from my library but it's not likely I would purchase other books in the series.

Very close to the end of book (don't worry there are no spoilers) we finally talk about the pretty cover. Here is the quote from the book:
“Well, first you put lime juice and sugar around the rim of the glass. Then you mix rum, vanilla vodka, melon liqueur, pineapple juice, lime juice, and simple syrup. You shake it up and pour the strained liquid into the rimmed glass, then you add a piece of lime on the side. See for yourself.”
So, there you have it…Sounds good but I still drank a margarita instead.

[Elaine C. · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story was nicely written, and it was enjoyable - if you like the "slice of life," every day of a family, kind of story. We begin with a married couple going through some turmoil, but the wife puts on a brave front and a false facade, leaving friends, neighbors and her own children in the dark about what's really going on. This sort of non-communication has the children all choosing their life paths based on what they think the perfect life (like they think their parents' life) should be! As the novel progresses, there is much introspection both with each other and for each individual, until the ending is wrapped with a tidy, neat bow. However, life isn't that neat, and I think I'll stick to my espionage series, mysteries, or historical fictions, rather than visit this series again.

[Paul McBride · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is always interesting to read what I consider to be beach books for women, if for no other reason than to learn to see things from the female point of view.
Half of this book takes place in Captiva Florida and half of the book is in Massachusetts.
While the story was pretty predictable the characters were all interesting, and the story was much better than a lot of similar books.
A sequel is due out in may and I admit I look forward to seeing what happens to many of the characters.
This is a very enjoyable quick read.

[Jordan Nicholas · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this one! My family had a house in the Florida keys, which was a different area of Florida from the book, but was still a great visual as I read the book! I love the characters & the psychology of the dad’s influence on them all. I loved the inn. I wish there would have been more details in some parts, as the timeline was very quick throughout the book. But overall, I really enjoyed this one! It was different and unique!

[Morgan Horst · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was super cute, a great summer read! Lots of character development.

[Suzanne Morgis · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really did not enjoy this book. There was no chemistry at all between any characters. The story line was just unimaginative. Wife learns her deceased husband had another life. That should have been an interesting plot but instead the author drones on about her immediate family. Blah blah blah. There could have been potential.

[Nancy Rowland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great

The characters are well developed story line engaging. You are caught up in wanting to check out other books by the author

[Barbara Cryer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Blah

[mylifewellread · Rating 2 out of 5]

Much too Hallmarky and predictable for me! I honestly couldn’t get to the very end and quit at 85% through, which i never do! I was just bored and the writing was too cheesy.

[Jen · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a DNF for me. Maybe I've just read too many books with similar storylines, I don't know. It just didn't grab me. stopped reading at 25 %

[Kim Soder · Rating 2 out of 5]

Starts out good, but 1/3 of the way thru becomes very, VERY predictable. Everything perfectly falls into place for every character in this book totally predictable, (thereby boring).

[Carol Malnati · Rating 1 out of 5]

I felt like I was reading a Hallmark movie script

[Susan L · Rating 3 out of 5]

Captiva Island by Annie Cabot was an easy read.

The story about Maggie, a youthful mother of 5 grown children was a pleasant way to spend an afternoon. I don’t like to report the details of a story in a review in effort not to give away too much information.
I recommend this book if you are looking for a light read about pleasant characters. Ms Cabot deserves credit for creating characters who have unique personalities and whose viewpoints are shared. The story moved quickly, a little too quickly for my personal taste because the characters’ decisions and actions happened so abruptly without benefit of knowing how they held one belief and in the next paragraph they abruptly changed their minds. This happened many times throughout the book. We did not get to see for ourselves what influenced that change. There was a little more introspection with Maggie, but her decisions also changed on a dime.

The main reason I gave this book 3 stars instead of 4 is the editing. Two inconsistent details really bothered me. In chapter 8 we are told that Maggie’s honeymoon took place on Captiva Island, FL, and then a few chapters later we are told that she and Daniel had honeymooned in California. That stood out immediately to me. Another overlooked detail was that the day Maggie and her daughter, Sarah, arrived in Captiva Sarah announced suddenly that she was flying back to Boston the very next day to attend a meeting. Then a bit later someone mentioned that Sarah had made a decision affecting her plans after spending only a week in Captiva. I can’t help being put off when a story is inconsistent like that.

Despite that and the fact that I can read the series for free on my Kindle Unlimited membership, I will read the second book in the series.

[Suzie Weber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Series based on Captiva Island. Starting over.

Part of my Kindle Spring Challenge was to read the first book in a series. I chose this book, this series. This book sets the course for this series. We meet the Wheeler family. Father Daniel, mother Maggie and their five grown children. Maggie is a stay at home mother who loves to cook and garden. We learn quickly that Daniel had an affair early on in their marriage but they worked through it. Daniel comes home from work telling Maggie he is in love with someone else, is moving out and filing for divorce. Well okay!? Within a week Daniel dies from a heart attack.

Through out the story we learn the quirks and traits of the five Wheeler children. Captiva Island has been a vacation spot for this family for many years. One of Maggie’s best friend lives on the island. Chelsea came to Massachusetts for Daniel’s funeral. She invites Maggie to come get away from all of this for a week or so.

The story goes back and forth with the children, some things they kept to themselves, things they have recently learned. Maggie falls in love with a house on the beach and then a lovely woman Rose who owns it. Can Maggie leave Massachusetts and start over?

This is a contemporary book. I am not sure if I can even call it a romance. There is not even a kiss in this story. Just an entertaining story. I am disappointed that neither of my two library apps have anything by this author.

[Tina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wanted to like this book much more than I did. First, Captiva is on the Gulf of Mexico not the ocean. Who was Anne? Barely remembered who June was. At the end of the book, it states that Lauren was staying home with her daughters and her husband was going to work outside the home, yet earlier in the book, just the exact opposite was stated. What happened to Michael and Brea’s baby that was conceived after they lost a baby earlier. To me this book was just another ho hum romantic adventure on an island.

[John Irby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, this was a good read. It's well-written and rich in detail. There's a large cast of characters, but the focus was on Maggie, the FMC.

The FMC was a 50-year old mother (who got married at 18!) and a grandmother. She had to find her way after her philandering husband not only left her, but died in the arms of his lover almost immediately afterwards. Oddly, this part of the story missed out on the needed flashbacks that would have better explained her ex-husband's cheating and secret life. Later in the book it came out that the FMC even knew about her husband's illicit affairs and 'turned the other cheek' for the sake of holding the family together. But when she found out, did she confront her husband then? How did he react? Did he tell her why he felt compelled to cheat? The author didn't let us know.

Another problem I found were the offshoot stories involving her adult childrens' individual lives that had little to do with the main story arc. This muddied up the telling of the primary story.

There was a stylized view of life on Captiva that read like a tourist brochure. But towards the end, the author did mention the horrible traffic on the Sanibel-Captiva islands, which is a very real problem. However, she failed to mention that Captiva was dominated by the giant South Seas Island Resort on the northern end, and the rest of the island consisted almost entirely of Winter estates for the very rich with small signs out front of gated driveways saying things like 'Passing Wind - Private'.

The FMC trespassed and accidentally met an elderly female sage who lived in a defunct seaside inn known as Key Lime Garden Inn. Even though the sage only met the FMC twice, she decided to ultimately leave the inn to her. Then the sage passed leaving no relatives. Uh...Yeah...OK???

The book closes out with a flurry of actions by the FMC as she (and others) prepared the Inn for its grand opening. There is also a sneak peek of the follow-on novel in the series.

[Nanci · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you want a light, unrealistic story with totally understanding characters and a happy ending in almost every chapter, this is the book for you. For all the characters and situations in this novel, none were really developed. Tension is never allowed to build, everything is resolved with great love and understanding and forgiveness. The premise of an elderly woman who gives over her inn at her death, to a woman she has met twice, briefly, a person coming in off the street to admire her garden, is so far fetched,that pretty much ended it for me. It’s an easy read, a light read, an escape perhaps from all the turmoil in our world today, but it wasn’t a satisfying read, one with any depth or one that I will remember and think about in the future. I won’t bother with the rest of the books in this series. This was available for free in my Kindle Unlimited subscription. I’m glad I didn’t pay additional for it.

[Elizabeth Sofia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Key Lime Garden Inn is the first book I have read by Ms. Annie Cabot, but it certainly won't be the last. Trigger warning for sudden, unexpected death and pregnancy loss.

Key Lime Garden Inn is the first book in a seven book series. The characters are interesting, and I am looking forward to seeing how they develop and grow in the other books in the series. The tropes and plot lines are believable.

The Wheeler family lives in Massachusetts. The sudden death of a main character throws everything and everyone into flux. Mrs. Wheeler takes a trip to visit a close friend in Florida, and life is forever changed for the family. Mrs. Wheeler, and the others as well, must decide whether or not to let tragedy and grief, as well as hidden lies destroy them or make life significantly better as they react to opportunities.

[Gay M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great central character

Being a multigenerational native Floridian and raised at the beach I found the constant hot tea drinking as not well thought out. Yes we love old tea cups but you are always offered iced tea or iced coffee. I would have liked the surprise turn of events to be more flushed out. While southerners are not ones to talk about money I would have liked at least a paragraph or two about what happens to a homemaker financially when faced with such a drastic change in life.
I loved the new relationship that bonded Rose to Maggie. Of course Rose’s family home and history were a great addition to the story. Believe it or not there are still people and places like that in Florida.
Keep up the good writing. I look forward to more adventures!

[Cassie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was .. emotionless while trying to have emotions. You know what I mean? It was written in such a formal way that it just took the emotion out of things. The dialogue was stilted and forced and fake. Like no one actually talks the way the characters talked in this book. At one point someone says "would you please send me the details via email" and I just thought... no one speaks likes that to a friend. That is a sentence that you type in an email to a professional colleague or something. Anyways, the writing was too formal and did nothing to keep the flow and pace of the story.

Story had great potential though. Loved the premise and the overall details, just wish it was executed better.

[Hanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting story, weak writing

This family story of loss and growth has an interesting cast of characters and great setting. Unfortunately the writing is pedestrian and the editing mediocre.

Some places have lots of unnecessary detail--what was eaten at a well-described restaurant in an incident of absolutely no importance, for example; places where text was supposed to replace other text but the old was not removed; lots of exposition when demonstrating the action would have been much more interesting (telling, not showing). It is sad that the author did not polish this manuscript before sending it out into the world.

[Lisa Malmquist · Rating 4 out of 5]

Daniel and Maggie Wheeler live a nice life in Boston. Daniel works at an investment firm in the city and Maggie has raised their 5 children. Everything looks great from the outside.
However, when Daniel makes an announcement that Maggie never expected her world is turned upside down.
She takes a vacation to Captiva Island to try and sort things out and make sense of things.
She must decide what way to go in life at this point.
But with the support of good friends and her family as well as an unexpected friend in Captiva, she takes a different route in her life and she has a future that she never expected.

[Claire Mc Partlin · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was looking forward to reading a new author to me but was only in the first chapter and Maggie, the main character, was talking about how to make gourmet dinners and keep the house immaculate to ‘please’ her husband, ‘hours studying everything she could about the politics of other countries and the price of gold’ to impress him, all because he was out working… even though she was bringing up their children! Even though he’d had an affair previously and now had just dumped her for someone else he’d fallen in love with?!! So no, that just annoyed me too much straight away I really didn’t care what else happened so I had to DNF IT!!

[Patty Guerard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely story by Annie Cabot about a woman, Maggie Wheeler, whose life changes dramatically over a few days. After her husband quits his job and walks out on her, she is left to wonder how to tell their five adult children and her friends. He has a massive heart attack and dies in his lover’s arms before she can. Now, she is left to pick up the pieces. Her friend who lives in Captiva Island makes her come visit to clear her head and start thinking about her new reality and how she will move forward. New beginnings, new friends, bravery and exciting new possibilities for Maggie and her family makes this such a great read that you won’t want to put down.

[Rebecca Guido · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure, but liked it enough that I’m going to give Book 2 a try.

I wanted to love this book so much. I love Captiva & I’m in mid-life with adult children, so it seemed right up my ally. I appreciated the premise of the story, but Maggie’s dialogue & actions were stilted & didn’t ring true, or plausible at times. I liked the kids & really liked Sarah. Something about the writing style…. I can’t put my finger on it, but it just missed for me. I read the preview of Book 2 & noticed that Paolo’s dialogue was smoother, not as much of accent & I like that change. I’m starting on Book 2 & hope I get in a groove, so as to read more of the series.

[Samantha Liles · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was an easy read for the most part but took everything in me to finish. The story was superficial and the writing had so many issues that my college professor loved pointing out. Instead of using past tense “planned” or what not, she loved saying “would plan” even though it was from the perspective of past tense. Very wordy in spots that weren’t needed. Decisions were made paragraph by paragraph and it was predictable. Not sure it was even realistic in the story choices. I’m glad it’s finished…

[Sandra Kent · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read

Maggie had shock after shock from her husband Daniel. Now she had an opportunity to live the life she wanted but wasn't too sure she could follow through. Maggie and her five adult children are each rocked by the revelations but are so close that they can support each other. Maggie escapes to Captiva Island to visit her friend, and her world begins to open up in ways she could not have imagined. The characters and storyline were nicely developed, but there could have been more details along the way. Looking forward to book 2.

[Goth Gone Grey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Captiva tourism approved!

The book is written in a fairly upbeat fashion, complete with boosting others, Captiva Island, and tea.

"Rachel’s hair was the envy of everyone in the group. It was auburn and wild with ringlets that framed a freckled face with beautiful green eyes. She had a bohemian appearance. An elementary school teacher, Rachel was an artist who loved to paint and sculpt."

It's an easy, light beach read that doesn't compel me to read further in the series. Conflict is introduced, then resolved fairly easily, with an overall Hallmark-improbable plot.

[Janet · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book isn't bad, it's just not for me. I don't connect with someone who basically sticks their head in the sand and ignores the fact that things are imploding around them. No overreactions needed, just face it and make some decisions. There was way too much perfection of the people, the timing, the place, etc. It was pretty unrealistic - along with some of the storyline. Also, if she had made one more pot of tea for them to sit and discuss things I probably would have screamed. Almost a DNF but I did make it through. I will not continue with the series. Again, just not for me.

[Susan Mead · Rating 5 out of 5]

Key Lime Garden Inn rocks

Key Lime Garden Inn set the stage for a wonderful evolving series. I was intrigued by the book because I am “wintering” in Punta Gorda Florida and realized Captiva Island is real and “Maggie’s” description of the island and SW Florida is exactly how I see it. I enjoyed the character development in the first book of the series and can’t wait to see what awaits the various members of the Wheeler family.