SUNSHINE & CINNAMON

A sweet summer romance blossoms in a small town in this debut novel.

Chase Davidson, a 20-something, attractive massage therapist, is sick of all his clients trying to set him up on dates when in walks Ruby Butler. Ruby has come to the Maine town of Laurel Falls to visit Amelia Butler (aka Ms. Millie), her grandmother. Ruby is helping out Ms. Millie at her bakery as she recovers from shoulder surgery. Chase manages to screw up his first meeting with Ruby but slowly wins her over as her grandmother keeps throwing them together. What follows is a charming romance that treads a familiar path, with a storyline that is sometimes predictable pushed forward by occasionally clichéd dialogue. But Rochester’s two main characters are anything but two-dimensional. Chase is trying to balance his desire to be an artist with the grief of losing his best friend while Ruby is in a period of transition. Although she’s sure that she will not stay in Maine, she is finding it increasingly hard to find reasons not to. Chase’s creative journey offers some of the most poignant moments in this series opener, first in the form of local artist Ryan Kishlar, who mentors the massage therapist. Then Chase opens up to Ruby, despite previously promising himself he would “pour myself into my art and that will be enough for me.” Particularly intriguing is the swapping of perspectives between both main characters as well as the chapters that go back in time to follow Ruby and Chase. Readers who enjoy the tropes associated with a small town will particularly love Laurel Falls. The author includes town busybodies and seemingly ridiculous but fun community events, such as a dance in which a date with Chase is auctioned off for charity. This all makes for an endearing setting that will hopefully shine even more in the sequel.

An entertaining, character-driven tale for romance fans.