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Can a group of hopeless romantics finally find love? Or are they destined always to be a bridesmaid and never the bride?

Abby Cameron is barely holding it together. She’s a single mom, farmhand, and a home health aide to her ailing, widowed grandfather. The last thing she needs is for her daughter to get constantly sick. At least her daughter’s pediatrician is easy on the eyes. She can’t help her growing attraction to him. After the dark past Abby’s had with her cheating ex, she’s sure she’ll never trust again. But maybe Dr. Howard will have the power to not only help her heal her daughter with his medical knowledge, but to also help Abby’s heart to mend from her painful past.

When Abby’s daughter comes down with an ear infection yet again, Dr. Matthew Howard doesn’t expect to end the appointment teamed up with Abby to compete in the town’s talent show. He’s not sure it’s the best idea since he’s so attracted to her. After all, his heart is empty after the tragic death of his fiancée from cancer. But as he spends more time with his little patient and her beautiful mother, he wonders if having a family might be in his future. He’s just not sure he can allow someone into his heart after experiencing so much loss.

The Hopeless Romantics of Willow Ridge series are sweet, small-town contemporary romances. Each book is a standalone and can be read individually or as part of the series.

Hopeless Romantics of Willow Ridge series

Book 1: Falling for the Boss

Book 2: Falling for the Fireman

Book 3: Falling for the Doctor

Book 4: Falling for the Deputy

Book 5: Falling for the Hockey Player

Book 6: Falling for the Single Dad

Book 7: Falling for the Farmer

Book 8: Falling for the Scotsman

211 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 22, 2022

26 people are currently reading
59 people want to read

About the author

Cindy Ray Hale

59 books562 followers
Cindy Ray Hale loves to write romcoms set in small towns and has been writing and publishing books since 2012, all the while, laughing at her own funny stories. She is married to the sweetest guy and has a blended family with him, consisting of seven kids.

She loves nerding out on video games, creating book covers, and drinking too much caffeine. When she can find a moment, she loves to sing and play the piano and often includes acting and singing somewhere in her stories.

She was born and raised in the hills of Tennessee in a large crazy family and as an adult, has moved all over the United States. She's finally settled down in a small town in the mountains of western Virginia where she loves to go hiking, boating, and dig in her garden.

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5 stars
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24 (33%)
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
Profile Image for Sierra.
979 reviews
March 21, 2022
Reader’s Notes:

– this is book 3 of a series but can be read as a stand-alone

– this is told from Matthew and Abby’s points of view

– there is an age gap (the exact gap is unknown as we only have an idea of what one of their ages is)

– Matthew’s fiancée passed away due to cancer prior to the beginning of the story

Review:

I loved this heartfelt romance! I loved that it wasn’t just one of them that needed to work through past feelings to get to their happily ever after, they both had to reconcile with different past hurts to move forward. I loved that Abby and Matthew met through Abby’s daughter’s doctor appointments and then connected even more through their practices for the talent show. I loved the scene where they go on a boat to an island and get stranded for a little bit. I enjoyed how the two of them were able to have time for just them and to talk (and kiss). I also liked that for their first kiss, Matthew asked Abby if she was open to him doing so. I also loved seeing Clementine (Abby’s daughter), Matthew’s pets, Abby’s grandfather, and both their parents interacting with them all and rooting for their relationship.

Abby is a single mom who was burned by her ex-boyfriend and her best friend. She doesn’t think she can trust a guy again with her heart, let alone her daughter’s. But that doesn’t keep her from being interested in her daughter’s doctor, who she has been seeing a lot of with her daughter’s ear infection coming back again and again.

Matthew is still longing for the life he planned with his passed fiancée. His mother wants him to get out and meet someone new, but he just can’t let go of her memory. Though he doesn’t plan on it, Matthew’s mind constantly drifts to one of his patient’s mothers. He just can’t get Abby out of his head.

When a talent show is announced, Abby thinks about entering to win the prize money to cover her daughter’s sudden medical bills. Matthew thinks about entering when his friends suggest he’d be good at it. When they both find out the other is entering they decide to enter together in order to have a better chance at winning. But with practices comes more time together and hearts getting closer.

Can they get past their pasts and start something new with each other? Or will they back down when things get to be too much?
Profile Image for Lindsy.
696 reviews15 followers
May 12, 2022
Falling for the Doctor is considered a stand-alone in a new series but each book is by a different author. This is the only one I have read so far in this “series” and the author did a nice job of making it feel like a stand-alone.
Abby is a single mother who is also taking care of her ailing grandfather. He is struggling with dementia so her and clementine moved in with him to give him round the clock care.
Dr. Howard or Matthew is Clementines doctor. He is struggling with the loss of his fiancée still after two years. They have an instant attraction to each other but they hide it pretty well. Matthew realizes that he is still struggling with the fact that his fiancée passed away and he never properly grieved for her.
Abby has a lot going on but is developing feelings for Matthew. The problem is that she doesn’t know if she is good enough for him because of his late fiancée. They end up having to work together though because of the talent show. Unfortunately they did go back and forth a bit before being able to figure things out.
I loved that Matthew was also a songwriter and a really good male figure to clementine. I did feel like this story could have had more passion or more intense feelings between the two characters.
This series definitely has an interesting premise and I may look into reading the others eventually.
Profile Image for Amanda Marlowe.
2,415 reviews26 followers
March 29, 2022
Matthew is Clementine's doctor, she's the four year old daughter of Abby, a health care worker for her grandfather, who has dementia. Matthew hasn't got over the death of his fiancee two years ago. He's put her on a pedestal, and although he has deep feelings for Abby, he feels guilty that he might be forgetting Kenzie. Abby is wary cos Clementine's father disappeared after finding out she was pregnant, with her best friend, whom he'd been having an affair with.
Can they both get passed their pasts and make a go of it?
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

Another great read from Cindy Ray.
Profile Image for Ellie.
436 reviews8 followers
April 24, 2022
I'd give this three and a half stars. I love the idea of the series - a book club where it seems one person finds love with the type of person that month's book is about. In this case, the book club is reading a book about a doctor and Abby enters into a relationship with a doctor. Abby is likable as is her daughter. The doctor, Matthew, hasn't healed from the death of his fiance, however, as the book goes on, it seems that he does deal with her death and quickly gets over it. I thought the story was a little too simple and fell a bit short for me. However, if you are looking for a quick, sweet, simple read, this one could be for you!
179 reviews4 followers
December 21, 2022
This was such a good book. So relatable to me since I am the caregiver to someone with dementia. Abby was a great character, always protecting her heart after a bad relationship and finally following and opening her heart to someone new. Poor little Clementine with all her ear infections. That brought back lots of memories with my son with the constant ear infections and needed the tubes in his ears. Matthew had a hard time letting go of his past which is understandable. The heart has to heal before you can move on. Highly recommend this book.
Profile Image for Pauline .
548 reviews2 followers
March 28, 2022
The story of two people who are attracted to each other but suffering from ' once bitten , twice shy 'syndrome. Abby is a young single mum , looking after her grandfather who has started with dementia. Matthew, her paediatrician whose fiancèe died of cancer.
Everything changes when the couple decide to sing together at the local talent show but will they get over their fears and be able to start again?
Clean romance to lose oneself in, one carefree afternoon.
Profile Image for Sherry Sias.
657 reviews1 follower
August 9, 2023
Romance at its best

I adore Abby and Matthew. So cute together. Both have issues to work through. Her with her ex and best friend getting together after finding out she was pregnant at 18. Matthew lost his brother to cancer and then his fiance. Can Abby learn to trust again? Can Matthew deal with losing his fiancé after so long so he can move forward?
A cute hallmarky story.
275 reviews1 follower
March 20, 2022
This is a clean romance and Abby, Matthew, and Clementine are great characters. This story deals with the hard things that come in life -- death, ex's, etc., along with healing that needs to happen. While I enjoyed the book, I like other stories by Cindy Ray Hale better. This one did seem to repeat what had been said before in earlier chapters quite often.
2,223 reviews12 followers
April 4, 2022
Falling for the Doctor

This is a sweet romance about two people who have experienced the pain of losing someone they loved. Matthew lost his fiancé to cancer. Abby lost the father of her daughter to her best friend. Will Matthew be able to overcome the pain of his loss to move on to a future with someone else? Can Abby learn to trust again?
1,246 reviews10 followers
June 3, 2022
Drama

Abby is taking care of her grandfather and raising her young daughter. Her daughter has issues with ear infections which requires her to always be at the doctor. Matthew is the doctor and despite what he knows he falls for Abby. They hook up for the talent show, can they get together away from that?
320 reviews
November 26, 2022
Refreshing!

The author kept this G rated which can be hard to do with romance books. She also shows us the raw pain of losing your dreams ( fiancé, parents, personal goals). This book also covered hurt and betrayal.
2,388 reviews17 followers
March 18, 2022
I loved this story of Abby, Matthew and little Clementine. I love that it was a real relationship that dealt with hard stuff. This is a really sweet, clean romance.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews

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