Rookhurst Hall

Author: Elizabeth Jeffrey
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publisher: Severn House Publishers, 2010
Pages: 220
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: The discovery of two old photographs, one of a large house, the other of three teenage girls in Edwardian dress, puzzles twent-year-old Lucy Armitage and send her off on a quest with antique dealer Ben Manton to find their origins. Because although she is sure it can have nothing to do with her, one of the girls in the photograph is uncannily like Lucy herself.

Review: I didn't realize when I picked this book up that I had ready another book by Elizabeth Jeffrey, but I read Meadowlands in 2019. As with this book, it was the cover that drew me to that one. And, the covers are quite similar, both are graced by estate homes.

Regardless, I like Jeffrey's writing style. She tells a good story with no wasted words and the plot moves, each conversation and scene propelling the novel forward. Despite it's relative predictability in plot, I couldn't put this one down, and that is the marker of an excellent storyteller.

I will seek out more novels by this author.

Beach Wedding Weekend

Author: Rachel Magee
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Hallmark Publishing, 2019
Pages: 298
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: When Brody broke up with Paige and went to Europe, he suggested that someday, they'd pick up right where they left off. A hopeless romantic, she believed him. But when they meet again, Brody's dating a gorgeous actress.

They're all going to attend the same wedding, and Paige plans to win Brody back. She even enlists her best friend's brother, Aiden, to pretend to date her and make her ex jealous. A breezy, charming restaurant owner, Aiden actually avoids serious relationships, but as a fake boyfriend, he's perfect.

As old friends and  exes take part in wedding preparations and enjoy the beauty of the Florida coast, they begin to see themvelseves - and each other - in a new light.

Review:  Super cute and exactly the type of "fluff" I wanted. Someday I'll get back into reading heavier novels, but there's nothing wrong with light reading and escapes.

The Next Always

Author: Nora Roberts
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group, 2014
Pages: 336
Rating: Do Not Recommend

Synopsis: The historic hotel BoonsBoro, Maryland, has endured war and peace, changing hands, even rumored hauntings. Now it's getting a major facelift from the Montgomery brothers and their eccentric mother. As the architect of the family, Beckett has little time for a social life. But there's another project he's got his eye on: the girls he's been waiting to kiss since he was sixteen.

After losing her husband and returning to her hometown, Clare Brewster settles into her life as the mother of three young sons while running the town's bookstore. Though busy, Clare is drawn across the street by Beckett's transformation of the old inn, wanting to a closer look, both at the building and the man behind it.

Review: I wanted another fun, fluff novel, but this one just didn't do it for me. The fluff factor was there in a predictable romance, but the supporting plot was very much meh. This was my first Nora Roberts novel and if this is "typical" then I don't think I'll read another, not even to continue this trilogy (at least not right now).

 

Ladies' Night

Author: Mary Kay Andrews
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: St. Martin's Press, 2014
Pages: 480
Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: Take a splash of betrayal, add a few drops of outrage, give a good shake to proper behavior and take a big sip of a cocktail called. . .Ladies' Night.

Grace Stanton's life as a rising media star and beloved lifestyle blogger take a surprising turn when she catches her husband cheating and torpedoes his pricey sports car straight into the family swimming pool. Grace suddenly finds herself locked out of her palatial home, checking account, and even the blog she has worked so hard to develop in her signature style. Moving in with her widowed mother, who owns and lives above a rundown beach bar called "The Sandbox," is less than ideal. So is attending court-mandated weekly "divorce recovery" therapy sessions with three other women and one man for whom betrayal seems to the best only commonality. When their "divorce coach" starts to act suspiciously, they decide to start having their own Wednesday "Ladies' Night" sessions at The Sandbox, and the unanticipated bonds that develop lead the members of the group to try and find closure in ways they never imagined. Can Grace figure out a new way home and discover how strong she needs to be to get there? 

Review: This book was pure entertainment and a great escape. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Other Mary Kay Andrew Novels
The Weekenders

The Weekenders

Author: Mary Kay Andrews
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: St. Martin's Press, 2017
Pages: 464
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Some people stay all summer long on the idyllic island of Belle Isle, North Carolina. Others come only for the weekends, and the mix between regulars and "the weekenders" can sometimes make sparks fly. Riley Griggs has a season of good time with friends and family ahead of her on Belle Isle when things take an unexpected turn. While waiting for her husband to arrive on the ferry one Friday afternoon, Riley is confronted by a process server who thrusts papers into her hand. And her husband is nowhere to be found. 

So she turns to her island friends for help and support, but it becomes clear that each of them has their own secrets, and the clock is ticking as the mystery deepens. . .in a murderous way. Now Riley must find a way to investigate the secrets of Belle Isle, the husband she might not really know, and the summer that could change everything.

Review: This was my first Mary Kay Andrews novel. She and Diane Chamberlain, one of my fave authors, are friends in real life so I had been wanting to read her for awhile. As far as I can tell by reading reviews this isn't one of her better novels, but I enjoyed it. I was looking for a book I could escape into, and I found it. Success. 

Other Mary Kay Andrew Novels
Ladies Night

You Belong with Me

Author: Tari Faris

Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group, 2019
Pages: 368
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Realtor Hannah Thornton has many talents. Unfortunately, selling houses in the town where her family name is practically poison isn't one of them. WHen a business tycoon determines to raze historic homes in the small town of Heritage, Michigan, and replace them with a strip mall, Hannah resolves to stop hi. She sets about helping Heritage win a restoration grant that will put the town back on the map-and hopefully finally repay the financial debt Hannah's mother caused the town. But at first no one supports her efforts-not even her best friend, Luke.

Luke Johnson may have grown up in Heritage, but as a foster kid he never truly felt as if he belonged. Now he has a chance to score a job as assistant fire chief and earn his place in the town. BUt when the interview process and Hannah's restoration project start unearthing things from his past, Luke must decide if belonging is worth the pain of being honest about who he is-and who he was.

Review: There was a lot going on in this book. The author tied everything up nicely, but it was a lot to follow. Definitely a cute, fast read though. I liked it.

The Happy Camper

Author: Melody Carlson
Genre: Fiction

Publisher: Baker Publishing Group, 2020
Pages: 352
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Home is the place to heal, right? At least, that's what Dillon Michaels is hoping as she leaves her disappointing career and nonstarter love life behind to help her grieving and aging grandfather on his small Oregon farm. The only problem? Her eccentric mother beat her there and has taken over Dillon's old room. After a few nights sleeping on a sagging sofa, Dillon is ready to give up, until she receives an unlikely gift, her grandfather's run-down vintage camp trailer, which she quickly resolves to restore with the help of Jordan Atwood, the handsome owner of the local hardware store.

But just when things are finally beginning to run smoothly, Dillon's non-committal ex-boyfriend shows up with roses. . .and a ring.

Review: I chose this book for the cover. It was light, fluffy, and pure entertainment. I loved it so much I read it in a few hours. Thoroughly predictable and fun. For a little while I got to be Dillon.