A sweet, heartfelt series love story.
O’Hara’s debut romance stars a former Major League Baseball superstar with a major chip on his shoulder, a woman with an aversion to commitment, and a raucous crew of elderly vacationers.
In the second book of the Thurston Hotel series, our romantic heroes meet-cute on a tour bus containing 50-odd senior citizens, headed for Golden, British Columbia. Oliver Pike, 28, is the straight-laced tour guide who’s running the bus company temporarily for his sick brother. He discovers Page Maddux, 25, an orphan who attempted to stow away in the bus’s luggage compartment because she didn’t have money for bus fare; it was so cold inside that it left her as blue as the dyed streaks in her hair. Although she thaws relatively quickly, she finds herself squashed between two scantily clad seniors, Mavis and Avis, who debate the ethics of “checking if the collar and cuffs match.” It takes longer for Oliver’s icy temperament to warm up. When a winter storm strands the entire group in Harmony, Alberta, Oliver hires Page to help wrangle the pensioners. Although the younger couple’s will-they-or-won’t-they plot is good fun, it’s the “oldsters” who are the real heart of the novel. They include Mr. Dubois, an impeccably dressed resident “geriatric sex machine” who specializes in “horizontal crocheting,” and Mr. Lee, an elusive vacationer who later reveals unusual skills and a dry wit. O’Hara shows a mastery of situational comedy, as when 95-year-old Mrs. Horton snoozes through Page’s erotic dancing debut at the Wobbly Dog, as well as tragedy, as when Mavis and Avis deliver some heartbreaking news. All the while, Page is on the hunt for a mysterious man who stole her backpack from the luggage hold, and Oliver gradually copes with the accident that ended his baseball career; both make for nice subplots. It all leads up to a finale involving a seedy man with a snowmobile, snow kayaking, and, naturally, a marriage proposal. If O’Hara’s next books are anything like this one, she’s got a long career ahead of her.
Pub Date: Nov. 11, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-9953012-1-4
Page Count: 292
Publisher: Tartitude Publishing
Review Posted Online: Nov. 28, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Packed with riveting drama and painful truths, this book powerfully illustrates the devastation of abuse—and the strength of...
Hoover’s (November 9, 2015, etc.) latest tackles the difficult subject of domestic violence with romantic tenderness and emotional heft.
At first glance, the couple is edgy but cute: Lily Bloom runs a flower shop for people who hate flowers; Ryle Kincaid is a surgeon who says he never wants to get married or have kids. They meet on a rooftop in Boston on the night Ryle loses a patient and Lily attends her abusive father’s funeral. The provocative opening takes a dark turn when Lily receives a warning about Ryle’s intentions from his sister, who becomes Lily’s employee and close friend. Lily swears she’ll never end up in another abusive home, but when Ryle starts to show all the same warning signs that her mother ignored, Lily learns just how hard it is to say goodbye. When Ryle is not in the throes of a jealous rage, his redeeming qualities return, and Lily can justify his behavior: “I think we needed what happened on the stairwell to happen so that I would know his past and we’d be able to work on it together,” she tells herself. Lily marries Ryle hoping the good will outweigh the bad, and the mother-daughter dynamics evolve beautifully as Lily reflects on her childhood with fresh eyes. Diary entries fancifully addressed to TV host Ellen DeGeneres serve as flashbacks to Lily’s teenage years, when she met her first love, Atlas Corrigan, a homeless boy she found squatting in a neighbor’s house. When Atlas turns up in Boston, now a successful chef, he begs Lily to leave Ryle. Despite the better option right in front of her, an unexpected complication forces Lily to cut ties with Atlas, confront Ryle, and try to end the cycle of abuse before it’s too late. The relationships are portrayed with compassion and honesty, and the author’s note at the end that explains Hoover’s personal connection to the subject matter is a must-read.
Packed with riveting drama and painful truths, this book powerfully illustrates the devastation of abuse—and the strength of the survivors.Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-5011-1036-8
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2016
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
Anyone who believes in true love or is simply willing to accept it as the premise of a winding tale will find this debut an...
True love flares between two people, but they find that circumstances always impede it.
On a winter day in London, Laurie spots Jack from her bus home and he sparks a feeling in her so deep that she spends the next year searching for him. Her roommate and best friend, Sarah, is the perfect wing-woman but ultimately—and unknowingly—ends the search by finding Jack and falling for him herself. Laurie’s hasty decision not to tell Sarah is the second painful missed opportunity (after not getting off the bus), but Sarah’s happiness is so important to Laurie that she dedicates ample energy into retraining her heart not to love Jack. Laurie is misguided, but her effort and loyalty spring from a true heart, and she considers her project mostly successful. Perhaps she would have total success, but the fact of the matter is that Jack feels the same deep connection to Laurie. His reasons for not acting on them are less admirable: He likes Sarah and she’s the total package; why would he give that up just because every time he and Laurie have enough time together (and just enough alcohol) they nearly fall into each other’s arms? Laurie finally begins to move on, creating a mostly satisfying life for herself, whereas Jack’s inability to be genuine tortures him and turns him into an ever bigger jerk. Patriarchy—it hurts men, too! There’s no question where the book is going, but the pacing is just right, the tone warm, and the characters sympathetic, even when making dumb decisions.
Anyone who believes in true love or is simply willing to accept it as the premise of a winding tale will find this debut an emotional, satisfying read.Pub Date: Oct. 16, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-525-57468-2
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: July 30, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2018
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