Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Genre: Christian Fiction
Source: Thomas Nelson ( Netgalley )

GOODREADS: Cole and Laila have been inseparable since they could crawl. And they’ve never thought about each other that way. Except for when they have. Rarely. Once in a while, sure. But seriously . . . hardly ever.

Cole Kimball and Laila Olivet have been best friends their entire lives. Cole is the only person (apart from blood relatives) who’s seen Laila in her oversized, pink, plastic, Sophia Loren glasses. Laila is always the first person to taste test any new dish Cole creates in his family’s restaurant . . . even though she has the refined palate of a kindergartener. Most importantly, Cole and Laila are always talking. About everything.

When Cole discovers a betrayal from his recently deceased grandfather that shatters his world, staying in Adelaide Springs, Colorado, is suddenly unfathomable. But Laila loves her life in their small mountain town and can’t imagine ever living anywhere else. She loves serving customers who tip her with a dozen fresh eggs. She loves living within walking distance of all her favorite people. And she’s very much not okay with the idea of not being able to walk to her very favorite person.

Still, when Cole toys with moving across the country to New York City, she decides to support her best friend–even as she secretly hopes she can convince him to stay home. And not just for his killer chocolate chip pancakes. Because she loves him. As a friend. Just as a friend. Right?

They make a Laila won’t beg him to stay, and Cole won’t try to convince her to come with him. They have one week in New York before their lives change forever, and all they have to do is enjoy their time together and pretend none of this is happening. But it’s tough to ignore the very inconvenient feelings blooming out of nowhere. In both of them. And these potentially friendship-destroying feelings, once out in the open, have absolutely no take-backs.

If When Harry Met Sally had a quippy literary love child with Gilmore Girls’ Luke and Lorelai, you’d get Cole and Laila. Just . . . don’t tell them that.

Ope’s Opinion: This was a very cute, easy to read story. It was a clean, slow burn romance. The way it was written, you root for Cole and Laila to realize their feelings for each other. Then you root for them to finally tell each other.

There were a few times the miscommunication got a little old and frustrating. They kept misunderstanding what the other person was trying to say or not saying. I wanted them to just be honest with each other.

The different points of view really helped the story move along.

Publisher: Griffin
Genre: Romance
Source: Library

Goodreads: The Bookshop by the Bay is a breezy, escapist beach read from powerhouse bestselling women’s fiction author Pamela Kelley.

Two lifelong friends. One bookshop by the beach. And the summer that could change everything.

Jess loves her work as a high-profile lawyer in the respectable and austere city of Charleston. But when she finds her husband, Parker, has been cheating on her with his assistant, she retreats, with her thirty year-old daughter Caitlin for support, to her childhood home on Cape Cod, in Chatham. Caitlin has always been bright but directionless, looking for her passion but keeps coming up blank. And Jess needs to regroup with the help of good food and wine, the company of her best friend, Allison, and come up with a plan for the future.

Allison’s career has hit a low. After twenty years as an editor for the Chatham magazine, circulation is dwindling and though her boss and long-time friend, Jim, does everything to keep her, she has no choice but to take a step back. With a career on hiatus and her main relationship being with Chris, her ex-husband who is still a good friend, Allison is at a pivotal point in life. Her daughter Julia opened her own artisanal jewelry shop a year prior, and she has the kind of day-to-day fulfillment Allison yearns for.

When Allison stops into her beloved local bookstore one day and learns that the owner wants to sell, a long-held dream turns into a reality, thanks to Jess. Allison and Jess set a plan in motion and what was once a place that held warm childhood memories is now theirs to run. As the two friends, along with the help of their daughters, reopen the doors of the cherished bookstore and adjacent coffee shop to the community, they also open themselves up to the possibility of romance, the bonds of mothers and daughters, and the magic of second chances.

Ope’s Opinion: I really enjoyed this book. Each character had some romance, but the female friendships were the center of the story lines. The woman were supportive of each other, they were accepting of each other and they were honest with each other. I liked how they were kind and encouraged so each one could find the right path.

The main street where the bookshop is located sounded so cute. A place that seemed like it would be fun to visit and maybe stay there. The book cover is absolutely wonderful too.

I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys strong woman with great friendships.

Publisher: William Morrow
Genre: Romance
Source: William Morrow ( Netgalley )

Goodreads: From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Eleanor & Park and Attachments comes Slow Dance—a bright, beaming power ballad of a novel about a love so true it refuses to be forgotten.

Back in high school, everybody thought Shiloh and Cary would end up together . . . everybody but Shiloh and Cary.

They were just friends. Best friends. Allies. They spent entire summers sitting on Shiloh’s porch steps, dreaming about the future. They were both going to get out of north Omaha—Shiloh would go to college and become an actress, and Cary would join the Navy. They promised each other that their friendship would never change.

Well, Shiloh did go to college, and Cary did join the Navy. And yet, somehow, everything changed.

Now Shiloh’s thirty-three, and it’s been fourteen years since she talked to Cary. She’s been married and divorced. She has two kids. And she’s back living in the same house she grew up in. Her life is nothing like she planned.

When she’s invited to an old friend’s wedding, all Shiloh can think about is whether Cary will be there—and whether she hopes he will be. Would Cary even want to talk to her? After everything?

The answer is yes. And yes. And yes.

Slow Dance is the story of two kids who fell in love before they knew enough about love to recognize it. Two friends who lost everything. Two adults who just feel lost.

It’s the story of Shiloh and Cary, who everyone thought would end up together, trying to find their way back to the start.

Ope’s Opinion: Rainbow Rowell is an author I have really enjoyed, this one just didn’t catch me like her pervious stories did. The synopsis sounded amazing, but the title tells you a lot – it is a very slow dance. I felt like the story was prolonged beyond my attention span. For some reason I could not get attached to Shiloh and Cary.

The flash backs were suppose to help us understand Shiloh and Cary’s relationship then, so we would understand them now. But because the flashbacks were in particular order, I wasn’t sure where in the relationship I was reading. The current time was more interesting to me.

I know miscommunication is suppose to create tension in a story and it does in this story, but after a while I wanted to yell – talk to each other and be honest. Then at the end ( no surprises here ) all is swept under the rug and they are happy.

Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers
Genre: Christian Fiction
Source: Purchased

Goodreads: Can a promise made as kids bring them back together as adults? In this Nantucket-set beach read, “master of the genre” (Midwest Book Review) Courtney Walsh delivers a sparkling inspirational romance about first love and second chances.

Twelve years ago, Cody Boggs and Louisa Chambers made a pact that no matter where their lives took them, they’d return to Nantucket Island’s Brant Point Lighthouse on July 30, their shared golden birthday, and continue their tradition of exchanging birthday wishes. But that was before a tragic accident upended both of their lives, irrevocably pulling them apart.

Their worlds collide just months before that particular day when Louisa’s fledgling event planning company is hired by the local Coast Guard station, where she discovers Cody has recently returned to the island as the second in command. As they plan a regatta fundraiser, hoping to promote positive PR in the community, neither can deny the fireworks each encounter ignites. But working together also brings up memories of the day Cody’s father died, revealing secrets that have Cody and Louisa questioning everything they thought they knew and felt about their families and each other.

Ope’s Opinion: In my opinion this is how Christian fiction should be written. It has a message of forgiveness from God and each other, but it is not preachy at all. It has characters that have flaws that make them feel real and relatable.

The beginning drew me in and had me wanting to route for Cody and Louisa. The middle drug on and was very repetitive. I just wanted them to each say what they were thinking and feeling instead they kept walking away from each other. A little of that is okay to read, but after a while it gets tedious.

The end was what you want and expect in a romance.

Publisher: Harlequin Audio
Genre: Fiction
Source: Library

Goodreads: Elizabeth, Veronica, Rachel and Emily met at Camp Birchwood as girls in 1985, where over four summers they were the Clover Girls—inseparable for those magical few weeks of freedom—until the last summer that pulled them apart. Now approaching middle age, the women are facing challenges they never imagined as teens, struggles with their marriages, their children, their careers, and wondering who it is they see when they look in the mirror.

Then Liz, V and Rachel each receive a letter from Emily with devastating news. She implores the girls who were once her best friends to reunite at Camp Birchwood one last time, to spend a week together revisiting the dreams they’d put aside and repair the relationships they’d allowed to sour. But the women are not the same idealistic, confident girls who once ruled Camp Birchwood, and perhaps some friendships aren’t meant to last forever…

Ope’s Opinion: I enjoy stories about sisters and female friendships. There is a lot of angst with all the girls family relationships. There is also a lot of distance in the relationship between each other.

The chapters toggle between when they were young campers and now as adults. Each chapter is from a different friends perspective. This helps to see how each of them came into the friendship and how they developed as adults.

Some times it was hard to believe how mean they were to each other. I am not sure I would have been able to salvage a friendship after all they had done to each other. I think it is suppose to make you feel the strength in woman and their friendships, but it missed the mark.

Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
Genre: Fiction
Source: Lake Union Publishing ( Netgalley )

Goodreads: For three sisters, this Memorial Day weekend is a much-anticipated reunion—and a sizzling escape—where secrets, lovers, and betrayals collide in a small coastal town.

It’s Memorial Day weekend, the annual kickoff to summer for the Lancaster sisters. But the festivities take a deep dive when a mysterious boating accident occurs off their seaside town, sparking questions about how well the sisters know their neighbors—and each other.

Kate, whip smart and rich, lives a charmed life—if only her lawyer husband wasn’t always disappearing for his next big case. Older sister Shelby, when not selling houses, is falling hard for an on-again, off-again lover. He’s perfect for Shelby in many ways, and so wrong in others. And Bree, the youngest, is reeling from a recent breakup and in desperate need of her sisters. They’ve always been there for each other, but as secrets arise and gossip spreads like wildfire, the idyllic weekend takes a dramatic tailspin. Will this summer’s troubles change their bond before their sisterhood is righted again?

Ope’s Opinion: I am usually a huge fan of sister stories. I like to read about those relationships, but this one was just okay. I didn’t like Shelby’s on again – off again relationship.

There is a lot about the romances that I do not find enjoyable to read about. I do not want to spoil it, so I will not be specific.

There is some mystery in this book. I think that was actually my favorite part and what made it a three chair.

Publisher: Harper Audio
Genre: Fiction
Source: Libaray

Goodreads: The Lowcountry of South Carolina is where By Invitation Only begins at a barbecue engagement party thrown by Diane English Stiftel, her brother Floyd, and her parents to celebrate her son’s engagement. On this gorgeous, magical night, the bride’s father, Alejandro Cambria, a wealthy power broker whose unbelievably successful career in private equity made him one of Chicago’s celebrated elite, discovers the limits and possibilities of cell phone range. While the mother of the bride, Susan Kennedy Cambria, who dabbles in the world of public relations and believes herself deserving of every square inch of her multimillion-dollar penthouse and imaginary carrara marble pedestal, learns about moonshine and dangerous liaisons.

Soon By Invitation Only zooms to Chicago, where the unraveling accelerates. Nearly a thousand miles away from her comfortable, familiar world, Diane is the antithesis of the bright lights and super-sophisticated guests attending her son Fred’s second engagement party. Why a second party? Maybe it had been assumed that the first one wouldn’t be up to snuff? Fred is marrying Shelby Cambria, also an only child. The Cambrias’ dearest wish is for their daughter to be happy. If Shelby wants to marry Frederick, aka Fred, they will not stand in her way—although Susan does hope her friends won’t think her daughter is marrying more than a few degrees beneath her socially. At the same time, Diane worries that her son will be lost to her forever.

By Invitation Only is a tale of two families, one struggling to do well, one well to do, and one young couple—the privileged daughter of Chicago’s crème de la crème and the son of hard -working Southern peach farmers.

Dorothea Benton Frank offers a funny, sharp, and deeply empathetic novel of two very different worlds—of limousines and pickup trucks, caviars and pigs, skyscrapers and ocean spray—filled with a delightful cast of characters who all have something to hide and a lot to learn. A difference in legal opinions, a headlong dive from grace, and an abrupt twist will reveal the truth of who they are and demonstrate, when it truly counts, what kind of grit they have. Are they living the life they want, what regrets do they hold, and how would they remake their lives if they were given the invitation to do so?

By Invitation Only is classic Dorothea Benton Frank—a mesmerizing Lowcountry Tale that roars with spirit, humor, and truth, and forces us to reconsider our notions of what it means to be a Have or a Have Not.

Ope’s Opinion: Oh, this was such a great story. The narration was superb. One of the voices of one the southern ladies sounded just like Sally Fields in the Steel Magnolia’s movie. I could listen to the vices all day.

The characters felt realistic, the way they talked to each other. It was funny at times, and their change and growth felt genuine. I wanted to be friends and hang out with characters. I felt like I was there. I can’t say enough good about this book – read it!

Publisher: Berkley
Genre: Romance
Source: Berkley ( Netgalley )

Goodreads: Lark Smith has always had a plan for her life: find a fantastic guy, create a marriage as blissful as her parents’, pop out a couple of kids and build a rewarding career as an oncologist.

Things aren’t going so well.

For one, the guy didn’t work out. Theoretically, she’d love to find someone else, but it hasn’t happened. Two, she’s just been transferred out of oncology for being too emotional. (Is it her fault she’s a weeper?) Three, her parents just split up.

Deviating from the plan was…well, not in the plan. A potential solution comes from the foul-tempered and renowned surgeon Lorenzo Santini (aka Dr. Satan). He needs a date this summer for his sister’s wedding. His ancient Noni wants to see him settled. In exchange, he could make a few introductions and maybe get Lark back into the field of her choice.

As a sucker for old people and fake relationships, Lark agrees. Teeny problem—she instantly falls for his big, warm family. Especially his estranged brother.

Meanwhile, Lark’s mom has moved in with Lark’s flamboyant landlady, Joy, and an unlikely friendship blossoms. The three women have a long summer and a big beautiful house on the ocean to figure out what’s next…and quite possibly learn that the best things in life aren’t planned at all.

Ope’s Opinion: I usually love Kristan Higgins books. I was so disappointed that I just could not get into this one. Lark was not relatable for me. I did not like that in the first chapter they were criticizing her for showing her emotions. Dr. Santini was a very stiff character that never wiggled his way into my heart – his family was nice.

I know this may seem irrelevant, but the cover of this book is very misleading. It looks like a light beach read, but it is so much more than that. The different perspectives in the story helped it move along, but I couldn’t always see the connection between the characters.

I think I am in the minority with my opinion on this book. I will definitely read another Kristan Higgins. I have enjoyed some of her other books more than this one.

Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Genre: Romance
Source: Thomas Nelson ( Netgalley )

Goodreads: A near-death experience catapults workaholic junior editor Kelsey Worthington into changing her life–one yes at a time.

Kelsey Worthington always dreamed of being a writer, but she’s settled into a routine of helping other people tell their stories in her job as a junior editor. She doesn’t go outside of her comfort zone. Her relationships are safe. Her job is secure. Her existence is stable. And she’s great with that.

And then, the accident.

While she’s in the hospital overnight, she meets an older woman named Georgina Tate–a glass-ceiling-shattering, wildly successful businesswoman. Georgina sacrificed everything to become the woman she is today, but now, with a pair of failing kidneys and only a handful of months left to live, Georgina is forced to come face-to-face with her regrets. Kelsey is forced to reckon with her own list of “things I’ll do someday,” and she starts to ask a simple but life-changing What if I said yes to all the things I normally say no to? And The Yes Plan is born.

It takes some convincing, but Georgina finally agrees to go along with Kelsey on her Summer of Yes adventures. The two of them set off to see what might be out there waiting for them if they simply open themselves up to it. Together, they say yes to whatever comes their way–a whole day being tourists in their own New York City, dinner with strangers, a convertible that is far from practical but so much fun. But when Kelsey springs a surprise visit to Georgina’s son Hayden and Georgina’s ex-husband (who is not so much of an ex), the older woman is less than thrilled. But this is where the true journey begins.

Two stories of love, forgiveness, regret, romance, and finding a way to live a fearless life intertwine as these two women make an indelible impression on each other. And it all starts with a simple “yes.”

Ope’s Opinion: This was a very nice, easy read. I enjoyed the two points of view. One was an older woman and one a younger one. It was great to see them learn from each other. I like that each character gets a second chance – a do over. I especially appreciate the clean romance with no foul language – my kind of book!

Pack this book for the beach. You will enjoy the ease of reading and lighthearted feel of the read. These strong woman each have a story to share.

I have read several of Courtney Walsh’s book and she always leave me with a smile and a warm feeling.