Chateau Wedding
By
Tess Thompson
This sweet novella takes us to the Loire Valley in France for the dream wedding of Pepper and Stone.  Pepper, Lisa and Maggie have been best friends since their college days and they come together with the loves of their lives to help make Pepper's fairy tale wedding come true.

It all seems like it's going to be perfect until a series of unexpected events start to happen and things go haywire!  But there is never any doubt that the Dogs, Wags, and Wolves will stick together and make this the wedding Stone and Pepper will treasure and remember all their lives.  That true love is in their hearts and that's what matters.

Thank you, Tess Thompson, for the gift of this story.  Not only is the cover beautiful but the story is perfect!

It's a Tess Thompson five star adventure with Cliffside Bay friends!

Thank you, Tess Thompson for the honor of this read.  All opinions and thoughts are my heartfelt own.

True to Me
By
Kay Bratt

"Aloha......Most mainlanders were under the impression that aloha was the word used for both "hello" and "goodbye". But the article stated it was much more, that aloha meant "love," "peace," and "compassion." More than a word, a life of aloha meant the heart was overflowing, and when using it, one should be sincerely happy to see the person they said it to." This passage from the book spoke to me. It's how I feel when I am going to pick up one of Kay Bratt's novels. My heart is happy and overflowing.

True to Me is another GREAT read written by the talented and amazing Kay Bratt. She has such a gift of bringing the reader on an emotional journey and adventure with her characters. In this book, the journey is with the character of Quinn Maguire. The story starts out with her mother's death bed confession that rocks Quinn's world. This revelation had me shocked right along with Quinn.

Quinn has been raised by a very loving mother who gave her a great childhood and losing her is such a tragic loss. Her mother's last wishes were to be taken back to her homeland of Maui, Hawaii and have her ashes scattered there. Quinn has always been a bit self insecure but she decides she needs to do this without her longtime boyfriend, Ethan. The journey of self discovery and who the person Quinn is begins at this point. Not only who she is but who her family is. I was fascinated by how DNA lineage was written into the plot. How it was used to solve the mystery of Quinn's family and who they were. Ms. Bratt took me into an emotional adventure in the pages of this book. I loved the characters and how they connected with each other. Even the not-so-likable Ethan. He is part of who Quinn became in the end. I met amazing characters who blended together and I became attached to them.

Kay Bratt writes stories from her heart. I become a part of them as I'm reading them. Quinn's story is no different. Quinn's story is one of finding herself and who she is. The unbelievable events in her life that take her to become who she is meant to be had me captivated. The setting in the book was picture perfect by the descriptive writing talent of Ms. Bratt. I have never been to Hawaii but I sure have been on a virtual visit with Quinn and her close friend, Liam. I experienced the different traditions, customs and ceremonial events. I felt the time honoring reverence of them. It all came together to Quinn being true to herself.

I am very grateful for the opportunity of reading this novel. Kay Bratt brings it every time with her heart and emotions that pour out on the pages. I love this book and whether I'm saying "Aloha" at the beginning or "Aloha" at the end, it's a fantastic read in between.

I want to thank Netgalley and Kay Bratt for my advanced review copy of this book. All opinions and thoughts are my heartfelt own.  

Jilted: Nico and Sophie
By
Tess Thompson
From the time Sophie was eight-years-old, she dreamt about who her soulmate was going to be. She recognized him as soon as she laid eyes on him. Nico. Now the challenge was to overcome the reservations and doubts he seemed to live with and carry. To convince him they belonged together. Is she able to cross the age barrier reasoning he's put up? She is an "old soul" and goes after what she wants. She is impulsive and driven, has no doubts and knows what she wants. And she loves and wants Nico.

Nico's been jilted and it's stingingly painful. He's afraid to put himself "out there" to be possibly rejected again. Just like he's been all his life. But who can resist the "warrior princess and gorgeous Sophie"? He was going to have to be strong and determined to not give in to her but is it possible? In his mind, he's not good enough for her. She deserves better that him. Oh, but how hard to resist her!

Ms. Thompson has once again taken me back to Cliffside Bay and drawn me into the pages of a story that is filled with wonderful characters. The story of Nico and Sophie brings with it unexpected surprises, drama, heartbreak and doubts. It's also filled with hope, excitement, love and some spiciness that warms you up. Ms. Thompson's writing brings all these things together in her storytelling talent in a book I couldn't put down. Then she brings in two characters I absolutely loved. Jen...the cutest little pup that won my heart along with Nico's. "Dogs made everything better.....dogs love unconditionally." I love dogs in books and Jen is perfect. And then there's Mrs. Coventry. She's an elderly, sprightly lady who sees that Nico and Sophie belong together. She has a plan to accomplish this and isn't afraid to set it in motion. She's full of energy and humor. She is such a fun character.

I love going to Cliffside Bay each time a new novel comes out in the series. Tess Thompson writes with such heart and soul that it emits from the characters. They have become a part of me and visiting, reconnecting and going deeper with new characters makes this series a fantastic read for me.

I am honored to have read Tess Thompson's Jilted: Nico and Sophie. I loved everything about the endeavor of Sophie and Nico to find their HOA. It pulled at my heart. I love going to Cliffside Bay and spending time there....and I'm excited for the next book in the series. Thank you, Ms. Thompson, for this wonderful read!

All opinions and thoughts in this review are my own.

One For the Blackbird,One For the Crow
By
Olivia Hawker
I am in an utterly and hopeless book hangover after reading this book!  Oh! My! Gosh!  I am speechless!  I Just had an "experience"!  It was more than just reading a book.  It was like going into the pages and becoming a part of the story.  It was a complete bonding with the characters, the remote and endless landscape of the Wyoming territory and with the vegetation and animal life that dwelt within that habitat.   It was an unbelievable and unforgettable encounter with an epic read. 

I don't even know how I can write a review close to worthy of this book.  There are so many emotions  I felt that were as real as if I were dealing with them myself. This is the first book I've read by Olivia Hawker and I'm in awe of her talent to pull so much out of me with her extraordinary prose.  Each page in this magnificent novel drew me deeper into the lives of the characters.  I'm just mind boggled at the intimate and minute details that created a living journey for me to travel in the pages of this book.

There are passages that blew me away with the depth and meanings they held.  Passages that made me stop and ponder.  This is one that is particularly profound:

This is a dream Beulah is having about a worm eating the leaf of a beanstalk...."The worm moved its terrible jaws and spoke. God is said to be great, the worm told me, So great you cannot see Him. But God is small, with hands like threads, and they reach for you everywhere you go.  The hands touch everything-even you, even me.  What falls never falls; what grows has grown a thousand times, and will live a thousand times more.  Wherever hand touches hand, the Oneness comes to stay.  Once God has made a thing whole, it cannot be broken again." 

The characters are unforgettable people.  They are based after the author's ancestors and are truly unique and memorable.  I so appreciated the Author's Notes and Acknowledgement added at the end of the book.  It was so interesting how she developed and came to write this amazing novel.  This is a very lengthy novel but so worth every word that's written in it.  I truly didn't want it to end.  I want to thank Lake Union and Olivia Hawker for the extreme privilege I had of reading this book!  This is my honest and heartfelt review of a book that ranks as one of my top 5 this year.