Lisa is 36, tired of the dating scene in Getaway Bay, and practically the only wedding planner at her company that hasn't found her own happy-ever-after. She's tried dating apps and blind dates...but could the company party put a man she's known for years into the spotlight?
Lisa Ashford can't skip the party; she's in charge of the whole thing. So she goes to the top of the fancy resort, determined to step out of her comfort zone and ask someone to dance.
Cal Lewiston lost his wife a couple of years ago, and he's floundering to raise his fourteen-year-old daughter alone. He does a lot of contract work for Your Tidal Forever, and when Lisa, a pretty blonde wedding planner, asks him to dance at their company party, he does something he hasn't done in a long, long time.
He says yes.
He also has to help her stay safe as a tsunami hits the island during the party. And after that, Cal and Lisa are once again thrown together as he gets hired by her HOA to repair any damage to the homes in her neighborhood.
As they navigate the storms of rebuilding her house and starting a relationship, he also has to face letting go of his late wife. Lisa has to figure out how to support him as a dad and build a relationship with his daughter.
Can Cal and Lisa overcome the odds stacked against them? Or will Lisa be back to square one and facing a different kind of storm: attending another party without a date?
3-time USA Today bestselling author Elana Johnson writes adult contemporary beach romance. She is the author of over 130 books across two names, and there's nothing better than sun, sand, and swoon-worthy kisses! Unless it's a sweet-and-sexy cowboy - read those under her pen name of Liz Isaacson. Or an emotional, heartfelt women's fiction novel - read those under her pen name of Jessie Newton.
ARC for honest review with no compensation 4.5 starts
The Carpenter’s Bride is book 6 in the Getaway Bay Brides and Beaches series by Elana Johnson.
Lisa Ashford, wedding planner for Your Tidal Forever and practically the only planner without a significant other. Tired of the dating scene and dating apps that gets no results she decides to find her own man....just not sure where to look...
Cal Lewiston, widower with a teenage daughter and contractor for Your Tidal Forever attends one of the weddings that he helped with A very pretty lady asked him to dance and he says yes but a tsunami hits the beach before that can happen.
Thrown together by the tsunami, his company sets out to help the many people who have damage in their homes and one of those is the pretty lady who asked him to dance. He’s been asked by her HOA to be one of the contractors in repairing the homes. As he’s working on her home the sparks fly but he still hasn’t gotten over his late wife...
Well these to open their hearts to each other and find their HEA or will Cal never be able to let his late wife go? Only time will tell...
Lisa is outgoing and brave. I love that she is honest and open about things. I love how she interacts with Sierra. Cal doesn’t like to mingle but he doesn’t want to spend the rest of his life alone either. I love that he is willing to do whatever it takes and get help to be able to move on with his life. I love how they get together when Lisa asks Cal to dance. And I like that their dance is a recurring part of the story. And I definitely love a happy ending!
This felt completely different style wise from others in this series. The flirting between the main 2 was over the top compared to what was written in other books. The main character having a daughter woulda made it more likely these 2 woulda been more cautious thn the childless characters for this series (1st book vs this ) just based on the personality written for them. Also Lisa saying she didnt want to interfere w parenting but she did anyway at the same time.... just dont like character who says 1 thing and at the same time does another.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Thought the tsunami was a great start for this story, loved the obvious start of their bonding during the demolition of Lisa's house after the storm. The misunderstanding and breakup was great for added suspense to the story as was their getting back together, the trip to the cabin and the proposal out in the boat was outstanding, Cal building the altar out of a tree jungle around the cabin was beautiful and Sierra walking Lisa down the isle was really beautiful.
The Carpenter's Bride is a truly sweet love story of Lisa, one of the wedding planners and Cal, who built the alters for Your Tidal Forever wedding planners. Cal is a widower raising a 14 year old daughter. It is a second chance at love for Cal that is put on hold due to the opinion of the daughter. But Sierra finds out that Lisa is nothing like she thought and that her Dad needs Lisa back in his life. A story full of excitement, heartbreak, tears, and as promised, as happy ending.
I had a free copy of this book, but this is my honest and voluntary opinion. Lisa Ashford works at a wedding planning business and is responsible for planning the company party. She would like to find a boyfriend, and at the party she interacts with carpenter, contractor, and widower, Cal Lewiston. After a tidal wave hits, she goes with him to locate his teen daughter. The plot includes handling grief and beginning to date again. A great heartwarming story.
It is impossible to put into words the loss of your soul mate, in death. This is what Cal was dealing with when he met up with Lisaxatvthe company party. It took a tsunami to bring them together, and some hard thinking to repair some hurtful words, spoken through devastation. Open communication is what brought them back together. Excellent fun read.
Another sweet romance and our series is almost finished. I really liked these beachy romances and connected characters. This one started off with a bang. I really liked the parenting of a teenager parts.
I received a complimentary copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.
I loved this book about a widowed man and his new love. I was able to understand their lives and how their relationship progressed. I recommend this book highly. Renee Goldberg rgoldberg227@gmail.com
I enjoyed this book that started with a Tsunami and dealt with the aftermath of it. I enjoyed seeing the main character learning to move on in life from his first love that had passed and enjoy life with another.
I always enjoy these sweet romances that also involve real everyday issues, in this case starting a new relationship while trying to raise a 14 yr old daughter. A lovely read.
This is the last in the series... it felt completely different style wise. The flirting between the main 2 was over the top compared to what was written in other books. The main character having a daughter woulda made it more likely these 2 woulda been more cautious thn the childless characters for this series (1st book vs last ) just based on the personality written for them.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I enjoyed this story - just what we expect from this author - an uplifting romance. Love the Getaway Bay group. As an aside and a little off topic re this particular book: I read the first couple chapters of the Carpenter's Bride in the middle of the night planning to finish the next day, and let me explain why. (Romance is my favorite genre, but occasionally I check out some bios, mysteries, suspense, educational, etc., partly to keep myself open and a little rounded in my choices.) Well, prior to reading The Carpenter's Bride I had just finished a scary, suspenseful book by a new author that touched on MANY depressing topics. you know, one of those Amazon promotes. I had to continue to the end of that particular sad story though part of me hated it, as I was drawn into the mystery solving, etc. and needed the conclusion. During the last few chapters I promised myself I would follow with at least a couple chapters of an Elana Johnson book. I knew I had downloaded a couple in my kindle. I did start the Getaway Bay story at 3 a.m. and finished today and it did the trick! I felt a lot better. I read mostly for entertainment. That's me.
This is such a lovely series, we have met Lisa in earlier books but here we really get to know her, her hopes, her fears and her insecurities. Cal may be a widower and a little out of his depth when it comes to dating, but he cannot explain or resist the pull he feels towards Lisa. It is a rocky road to a HEA with a tsunami, teenage grief, the ghost of Cal's wife and Lisa's fears all providing bumps in the road and diversions. But their love is worth fighting for and fight they do! I had an ARC of this but today downloaded and read it again on Kindle Unlimited as I enjoyed it so much, the views here are my own. This whole series is available on Kindle Unlimited, so if you have missed the first books in the series you can easily go back and read them...again and again and again! Feel good, sweet romances, all with a HEA.
I received a free copy and am voluntarily leaving my review
How do you know if you are ready to start dating again after the loss of your spouse of many years? How do you know if your teenage daughter is ready for you to start dating again? This is something that Cal is trying to figure out when he starts dating Lisa and his daughter thinks she is fake. Dating someone with kids from a previous marriage is hard especially when the spouse had died. The kids might not be ready for you to start dating or they might think that person is trying to replace the one who died. Can Lisa and Cal make it work or will Sierra come between them? Is Cal really ready to start dating again? Can Lisa win over Sierra or will she always think Lisa is fake?
A realistic modern day romance. Lisa Ashford single is a wedding planner now she and Shannon are setting up for a company BBQ and who walks up and asked if he could help was Cal Lewiston and as the author said "Tall, broad, bearded". The author now puts in a little interesting event at the BBQ and the fun really starts. Cal likes Lisa but he is not sure about dating with the loss of his wife and with teenager? This book has all this wonderful ups and downs that make it more realistic plus she has given the characters depth not easy to do in a quick read. I enjoyed the book it was a good story. Hope you pick it up and I think you will enjoy it too. I did receive a free copy of this book and voluntarily chose to review it.
This was a sweet story that tackles a lot of modern family drama. Nothing’s ever simple when trying to blend into an already established family unit and Lisa’s going to learn that the hard way. Neither Cal nor his daughter realize that there’s emotional baggage they still need to unpack, no matter how “over it” they think they are. Can Cal overcome the loss of his wife to be able to find love a second time around? Does Lisa have the patience and grace to allow Cal and Sierra the time needed? I really enjoyed this book and already I’m looking forward to the next. I received a complimentary advanced copy of this book from the author.
Another sweet romance set in Getaway Bay! Lisa felt like all her friends were getting married and she was being left behind. She was tired of the dating scene and was ready for a committed relationship. When she met Cal at a company party she was interested, then the tsunami hit! Cal is a widower and raising his fourteen year old daughter alone. He really likes Lisa, but is he really over his first wife? Can his daughter accept someone new in his life? This story deals with real life situations that more mature couples face when dating and blending families. Don’t miss this clean read from Elana Johnson!
There is something very ironic about a wedding planner who feels that a happily ever after will never happen for her. Buying a fixer upper puts Lisa in need of a carpenter. Enter Cal who she knows from the work he has done for Your Tidal Forever, the event planning company Lisa also works for. He sees her vision for the farmhouse and works to bring it to life. Elena Johnson is not about to let everything go smoothly and the twists and turns she creates in the path to happily ever after are clever and realistic. This was a fun book to read.
Lisa steps out of her comfort zone and asks Cal to dance. He steps outside of his and says yes. I loved these two as a couple and really enjoyed reading about their progressing relationship. Then the angst began - I'll admit I got frustrated with Cal and didn't like how he handled his reservations. But of course the author did a great job of bringing about a truly happy ever after for these two.
Lisa is missing her BFF Riley and hasn’t found “the one” yet. At the company picnic, she invites Cal to dance which they never do because she ends up in the pool, but they did start to date. Cal is a widower, with a fourteen-year-old daughter and it’s complicated. Is he ready to date again and is it too late for Lisa already? Will they ever get their dance? I was given an ARC and I am leaving this honest review voluntarily
This is a clean well written story and I love the characters . Lisa Ashford was a party and wedding planner. She met Cal Lewiston, a carpenter, at a party. She asked him to dance. Cal has a fourteen years old daughter, Sierra. His wife died three years ago with cancer and he was having a hard time getting over it. He started dating Lisa but his daughter thought she was shallow. This story has lots of drama. I was given a ARC of this book and this is my honest opinion.
I'd forgotten how much I enjoy this series. Life got in the way and I missed a few; I'll have to go back. This one was a little weightier than some because Cal lost his wife prior to this story and he still lives with that reality daily. I thought the author handled his grief realistically and respectfully. I cheered for both Cal and Lisa the whole way.
I do love a good Elana Johnson because she is an amazing writer, who can bring her characters to life life an artist can bring a painting to life. Cal is a widower and Lisa is a wedding planner who can't seem to find a groom of her own but can that change for the both of them. Awesome series.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Lisa works at the wedding planners in Getaway Bay. Cal is a carpenter with his own company. They start dating but his fourteen year old daughter doesn't like it. Then things change, they realize that they aren't on the same page. Can they get back together again?
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.