Higgins’ masterful storytelling and penetrating study of human nature combined with a dollop of humor make for breathtaking,...
When Connor O’Rourke decides he wants to marry longtime on-again, off-again secret girlfriend Jessica Dunn and she turns him down flat, he tells her it’s over—but no one else will do, despite his sister’s attempts at matchmaking and his wish to get over her once and for all.
Connor fell in love with Jessica when he was 12 years old, and despite being one of the few boys she never slept with in high school, his feelings for her have never changed. Now, 20 years later, and after 10 years of sneaking around Manningsport in a relationship that grows hot and cold—depending on Jessica’s moods and what's going on in her life—Connor is convinced they're ready to take the next step and proposes. Jessica wants none of it. Her mentally challenged brother hates Connor after a childhood trauma, and she knows he’ll never accept Connor as her husband. Plus, her father, who abandoned them years ago, is back, claiming to be sober and wanting to try again. Just when Jessica thinks her life is going well—landing her dream job at Blue Heron Winery, saving enough money for a home of her own, Davey settled into some level of independence—the messy emotions of her past are rising up, complicating things. When Connor tries to convince Jessica that some obstacles might not be impossible, she lashes out, until more emotionally intense events reset their mercurial cycle. Finally Connor draws a line, and Jessica must decide if she’ll reach for a future with the man she loves, despite her fear and insecurities. Blue Heron fans will not be disappointed in this emotional novel that spans Connor and Jessica’s 20-year love story and offers peeks into their volatile relationship that make the final chapter of their romance and the series even more poignant and gratifying.
Higgins’ masterful storytelling and penetrating study of human nature combined with a dollop of humor make for breathtaking, heart-wrenching, compelling romance.Pub Date: Dec. 29, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-373-78908-5
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Harlequin
Review Posted Online: Sept. 22, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
With frank language and patient plotting, this gangly teen crush grows into a confident adult love affair.
Eleven years ago, he broke her heart. But he doesn’t know why she never forgave him.
Toggling between past and present, two love stories unfold simultaneously. In the first, Macy Sorensen meets and falls in love with the boy next door, Elliot Petropoulos, in the closet of her dad’s vacation home, where they hide out to discuss their favorite books. In the second, Macy is working as a doctor and engaged to a single father, and she hasn’t spoken to Elliot since their breakup. But a chance encounter forces her to confront the truth: what happened to make Macy stop speaking to Elliot? Ultimately, they’re separated not by time or physical remoteness but by emotional distance—Elliot and Macy always kept their relationship casual because they went to different schools. And as a teen, Macy has more to worry about than which girl Elliot is taking to the prom. After losing her mother at a young age, Macy is navigating her teenage years without a female role model, relying on the time-stamped notes her mother left in her father’s care for guidance. In the present day, Macy’s father is dead as well. She throws herself into her work and rarely comes up for air, not even to plan her upcoming wedding. Since Macy is still living with her fiance while grappling with her feelings for Elliot, the flashbacks offer steamy moments, tender revelations, and sweetly awkward confessions while Macy makes peace with her past and decides her future.
With frank language and patient plotting, this gangly teen crush grows into a confident adult love affair.Pub Date: April 10, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5011-2801-1
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Gallery Books/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2018
Heartfelt and funny, this enemies-to-lovers romance shows that the best things in life are all-inclusive and nontransferable...
An unlucky woman finally gets lucky in love on an all-expenses-paid trip to Hawaii.
From getting her hand stuck in a claw machine at age 6 to losing her job, Olive Torres has never felt that luck was on her side. But her fortune changes when she scores a free vacation after her identical twin sister and new brother-in-law get food poisoning at their wedding buffet and are too sick to go on their honeymoon. The only catch is that she’ll have to share the honeymoon suite with her least favorite person—Ethan Thomas, the brother of the groom. To make matters worse, Olive’s new boss and Ethan’s ex-girlfriend show up in Hawaii, forcing them both to pretend to be newlyweds so they don’t blow their cover, as their all-inclusive vacation package is nontransferable and in her sister’s name. Plus, Ethan really wants to save face in front of his ex. The story is told almost exclusively from Olive’s point of view, filtering all communication through her cynical lens until Ethan can win her over (and finally have his say in the epilogue). To get to the happily-ever-after, Ethan doesn’t have to prove to Olive that he can be a better man, only that he was never the jerk she thought he was—for instance, when she thought he was judging her for eating cheese curds, maybe he was actually thinking of asking her out. Blending witty banter with healthy adult communication, the fake newlyweds have real chemistry as they talk it out over snorkeling trips, couples massages, and a few too many tropical drinks to get to the truth—that they’re crazy about each other.
Heartfelt and funny, this enemies-to-lovers romance shows that the best things in life are all-inclusive and nontransferable as well as free.Pub Date: May 14, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5011-2803-5
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Gallery Books/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: March 2, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2019
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