A charming and thoughtful Regency romance.
One lord flattens her life and the next one restores it.
Katrina Denby’s life has been ruined twice by the same man. Four seasons ago, Lord Landon tried to climb into her window, despite her complete lack of interest in him. Now, he’s tracked her down to the sleepy seaside resort on the Isle of Synne to do it again, and the problem is that, this time, he's fallen out of the window and died. Even though she’s been living quietly with her beloved dog, Mouse, as a companion to a dowager viscountess, her already-tenuous reputation is suddenly in tatters. She’s accepted the fact that at this point, she just needs to marry any man who’ll have her to avoid being completely shunned, but that changes when she learns that Sebastian, Duke of Ramsleigh, is in town. Both are shocked to see each other again, as their flirtations were on the verge of becoming more serious just before Lord Landon ruined her season. Unfortunately, Sebastian has had a rough few years as well and is now practically engaged, desperate to marry an heiress to save his bankrupt dukedom. He’s only on Synne at his future father-in-law’s request, charged with helping his soon-to-be fiancee’s brother, but both he and Katrina quickly forget the depths of their despair when they feel the flame they were stoking four years ago flare back into life. Though their chemistry is instantly obvious to everyone they know, there are real obstacles between them, so their connection is the driving force of the plot, giving the story an almost naïve sweetness through some difficult circumstances and a few steamy moments. Katrina and Sebastian are easy to root for, and the small-town setting provides a Regency backdrop that shows life at the beach could be as cruel as society in London—readers are advised to check the content warnings at the start of the book. Though the ending is almost unbelievably tidy, devoted historical romance readers will enjoy another trip to the Isle of Synne.
A charming and thoughtful Regency romance.Pub Date: July 11, 2023
ISBN: 9781538710425
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Forever
Review Posted Online: April 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.
The sequel to It Ends With Us (2016) shows the aftermath of domestic violence through the eyes of a single mother.
Lily Bloom is still running a flower shop; her abusive ex-husband, Ryle Kincaid, is still a surgeon. But now they’re co-parenting a daughter, Emerson, who's almost a year old. Lily won’t send Emerson to her father’s house overnight until she’s old enough to talk—“So she can tell me if something happens”—but she doesn’t want to fight for full custody lest it become an expensive legal drama or, worse, a physical fight. When Lily runs into Atlas Corrigan, a childhood friend who also came from an abusive family, she hopes their friendship can blossom into love. (For new readers, their history unfolds in heartfelt diary entries that Lily addresses to Finding Nemo star Ellen DeGeneres as she considers how Atlas was a calming presence during her turbulent childhood.) Atlas, who is single and running a restaurant, feels the same way. But even though she’s divorced, Lily isn’t exactly free. Behind Ryle’s veneer of civility are his jealousy and resentment. Lily has to plan her dates carefully to avoid a confrontation. Meanwhile, Atlas’ mother returns with shocking news. In between, Lily and Atlas steal away for romantic moments that are even sweeter for their authenticity as Lily struggles with child care, breastfeeding, and running a business while trying to find time for herself.
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.Pub Date: Oct. 18, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-668-00122-6
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2022
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
A heartfelt look at taking second chances, in life and in love.
Two struggling authors spend the summer writing and falling in love in a quaint beach town.
January Andrews has just arrived in the small town of North Bear Shores with some serious baggage. Her father has been dead for a year, but she still hasn’t come to terms with what she found out at his funeral—he had been cheating on her mother for years. January plans to spend the summer cleaning out and selling the house her father and “That Woman” lived in together. But she’s also a down-on-her-luck author facing writer’s block, and she no longer believes in the happily-ever-after she’s made the benchmark of her work. Her steadily dwindling bank account, though, is a daily reminder that she must sell her next book, and fast. Serendipitously, she discovers that her new next-door neighbor is Augustus Everett, the darling of the literary fiction set and her former college rival/crush. Gus also happens to be struggling with his next book (and some serious trauma that unfolds throughout the novel). Though the two get off to a rocky start, they soon make a bet: Gus will try to write a romance novel, and January will attempt “bleak literary fiction.” They spend the summer teaching each other the art of their own genres—January takes Gus on a romantic outing to the local carnival; Gus takes January to the burned-down remains of a former cult—and they both process their own grief, loss, and trauma through this experiment. There are more than enough steamy scenes to sustain the slow-burn romance, and smart commentary on the placement and purpose of “women’s fiction” joins with crucial conversations about mental health to add multiple intriguing layers to the plot.
A heartfelt look at taking second chances, in life and in love.Pub Date: May 19, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-9848-0673-4
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Jove/Penguin
Review Posted Online: March 1, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2020
BOOK TO SCREEN
PERSPECTIVES
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
