Thank you William Morrow for sending
two wonderful books to read!
Check these out and see if they
should be on your TBR list.
Look What Landed on My Doorstep
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Tag Archives: Susan Wiggs
Starlight on Willow Lake
Author: Susan Wiggs
Publisher: MIRA
Genre: Romance
Source: Kristin of Kritters Ramblings
Goodreads: 1 New York Times bestselling author Susan Wiggs sweeps readers away to a sun-drenched summer on the shores of Willow Lake in a stunning tale of the delicate ties that bind a family together… and the secrets that tear them apart…
When caregiver Faith McCallum arrives at the enchanted, lakeside estate of Avalon’s renowned Bellamy family, she’s intent on rebuilding her shattered life and giving her two daughters a chance at a better future. But she faces a formidable challenge in the form of her stubborn and difficult new employer, Alice Bellamy. While Faith proves a worthy match for her sharp-tongued client, she often finds herself at a loss for words in the presence of Mason Bellamy—Alice’s charismatic son, who clearly longs to escape the family mansion and return to his fast-paced, exciting life in Manhattan…and his beautiful, jet-setting fiancée.
The last place Mason wants to be is a remote town in the Catskills, far from his life in the city, and Faith McCallum is supposed to be the key to his escape. Hiring the gentle-hearted yet strong-willed caregiver as a live-in nurse gives his mother companionship and Mason the freedom to return to his no-attachments routine. For Faith, it means stability for her daughters and a much-needed new home. When Faith makes a chilling discovery about Alice’s accident, Mason is forced to reconsider his desire to keep everyone, including his mother, at a distance. Now he finds himself wondering if the supercharged life he’s created for himself is what he truly wants…and whether exploring his past might lead to a new life—and lasting love—on the tranquil shores of Willow Lake.
Ope’s Opinion: Oh, this book had me from beginning to end. I enjoyed the whole story, all the characters, even the minor ones. It was well written and kept a great pace throughout the book. Even though this is part of a series ( I have not read it all ), it could stand alone.
Parts of the book were predictable ( especially the ending ), but that is part of the charm of the story. Knowing where it was going didn’t ruin the journey to get there.
Return to Willow Lake
Author: Susan Wiggs
Publisher: Harlequin
Genre: Romance
Source: Kristin of Kritters Ramlbings
Goodreads: Sonnet Romano’s life is almost perfect. She has the ideal career, the ideal boyfriend, and has just been offered a prestigious fellowship. There’s nothing more a woman wants – except maybe a baby.sister? When Sonnet finds out her mother is unexpectedly expecting, and that the pregnancy is high-risk, she puts everything on hold – the job, the fellowship, the boyfriend – and heads home to Avalon. Once her mom is out of danger, Sonnet intends to pick up her life where she left off. But when her mother receives a devastating diagnosis, Sonnet must decide what really matters in life, even of that means staying in Avalon and taking a job that forces her to work alongside her biggest, and maybe her sweetest, mistake – award-winning filmmaker Zach Alger. So Sonnet embarks on a summer of laughter and tears, of old dreams and new possibilities, and of finding the home of her heart. At once heartbreaking and uplifting, Return to Willow Lake plumbs the deepest corners of the human heart, exploring the bonds of family, the perils and rewards of love, and the true meaning of home.
Ope’s Opinion: This is Lakeshores Chronicles #9. This is the first one I read and I did not feel like I missed a thing. Lakeshores #11 is on my shelf and I plan to read it soon.
Susan Wiggs writes such full characters with a lot going on in their lives. Her books always keep my attention from the beginning until the end. This book is no exception. I like that her female characters are not only looking for love, but they are busy doing other things. There is very little steamy sections in this book – which is a positive for me.
The mother – daughter relationship in this story is strong and reminds me of myself and my girls. It was awesome to see Sonnet put family before a job and other things pulling her in other directions. Her mother needed her, but wasn’t whiny about it and actually didn’t want to ask her daughter to give things up to be beside her. The whole relationship felt real and strong.
I am looking forward to more of Susan Wiggs.
Family Tree
Author: Susan Wiggs
Publisher: William Morrow
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: HarperCollins
Goodreads: For readers of Kristin Hannah and Jodi Picoult comes a powerful, emotionally complex story of love, loss, the pain of the past—and the promise of the future.
Sometimes the greatest dream starts with the smallest element. A single cell, joining with another. And then dividing. And just like that, the world changes.
Annie Harlow knows how lucky she is. The producer of a popular television cooking show, she loves her handsome husband and the beautiful Manhattan home they share. And now, she’s pregnant with their first child.
But in an instant, her life is shattered. And when Annie awakes from a year-long coma, she discovers that time isn’t the only thing she’s lost.
Grieving and wounded, Annie retreats to her old family home in Switchback, Vermont, a maple farm generations old. There, surrounded by her free-spirited brother, their divorced mother, and four young nieces and nephews, Annie slowly emerges into a world she left behind years ago: the town where she grew up, the people she knew before, the high-school boyfriend turned ex-cop. And with the discovery of a cookbook her grandmother wrote in the distant past, Annie unearths an age-old mystery that might prove the salvation of the family farm.
Family Tree is the story of one woman’s triumph over betrayal, and how she eventually comes to terms with her past. It is the story of joys unrealized and opportunities regained. Complex, clear-eyed and big-hearted, funny, sad, and wise, it is a novel to cherish and to remember.
Ope’s Opinion: I was enjoying this book so much, I slowed my reading down just so I could savor each page. The whole story was wonderful, the characters are amazing and the writing just flows. I have read Susan Wiggs before, this is one of her best.
It was fun to see Annie travel outside her family home to find her happiness back at her family home. It was a long journey, with a lot of turns along the way.
The ending is predictable and that is a good thing as far as I am concerned. It was a sweet love story.
This Just In….
These books are from HarperCollins.
Publication Date: September 13, 2016
Publisher: Harper
Goodreads: One Sunday afternoon in Southern California, Bert Cousins shows up at Franny Keating’s christening party uninvited. Before evening falls, he has kissed Franny’s mother, Beverly—thus setting in motion the dissolution of their marriages and the joining of two families.
Spanning five decades, Commonwealth explores how this chance encounter reverberates through the lives of the four parents and six children involved. Spending summers together in Virginia, the Keating and Cousins children forge a lasting bond that is based on a shared disillusionment with their parents and the strange and genuine affection that grows up between them.
When, in her twenties, Franny begins an affair with the legendary author Leon Posen and tells him about her family, the story of her siblings is no longer hers to control. Their childhood becomes the basis for his wildly successful book, ultimately forcing them to come to terms with their losses, their guilt, and the deeply loyal connection they feel for one another.
Told with equal measures of humor and heartbreak, Commonwealth is a meditation on inspiration, interpretation, and the ownership of stories. It is a brilliant and tender tale of the far-reaching ties of love and responsibility that bind us together.
First saw this on HarperCollins BEA pre-view – been wanting it since then!!
Publication Date: August 9, 2016
Publisher: William Morrow
Goodreads: or readers of Kristin Hannah and Jodi Picoult comes a powerful, emotionally complex story of love, loss, the pain of the past—and the promise of the future.
Sometimes the greatest dream starts with the smallest element. A single cell, joining with another. And then dividing. And just like that, the world changes.
Annie Harlow knows how lucky she is. The producer of a popular television cooking show, she loves her handsome husband and the beautiful Manhattan home they share. And now, she’s pregnant with their first child.
But in an instant, her life is shattered. And when Annie awakes from a year-long coma, she discovers that time isn’t the only thing she’s lost.
Grieving and wounded, Annie retreats to her old family home in Switchback, Vermont, a maple farm generations old. There, surrounded by her free-spirited brother, their divorced mother, and four young nieces and nephews, Annie slowly emerges into a world she left behind years ago: the town where she grew up, the people she knew before, the high-school boyfriend turned ex-cop. And with the discovery of a cookbook her grandmother wrote in the distant past, Annie unearths an age-old mystery that might prove the salvation of the family farm.
Family Tree is the story of one woman’s triumph over betrayal, and how she eventually comes to terms with her past. It is the story of joys unrealized and opportunities regained. Complex, clear-eyed and big-hearted, funny, sad, and wise, it is a novel to cherish and to remember.
I am a fan of Susan Wiggs, so I am looking forward to this one.
THANK YOU HARPERCOLLINS!!
Ope's Opinions 