Herons Landing

March 12, 2018
A widower gets a second chance at love with his wife’s best friend in this predictable but sweet first book in Ross’s Honeymoon Harbor series. Seth Harper, a renovator of historic homes in the small Pacific Northwest town of Honeymoon Harbor, has spent two years mourning his wife, Zoe, an army nurse killed in a bombing in Afghanistan. When Brianna Mannion, Zoe’s best friend, leaves her chaotic job as a concierge in Las Vegas and returns to the quaint Victorian seaport town, she is reminded of her longtime affection for Seth, and he realizes that she may be the one person who could help him move past his grief. Seth is a likable and sympathetic protagonist whose emotional turmoil is convincing. Brianna’s intense emotions are overstated at times, but their history and steamy chemistry together make them a pleasing couple. The story is hampered by long-winded sentences and information dumps—Ross weaves in the rich history of the town, exhaustively introducing all its residents—but the dialogue is often natural and dynamic, and the main story is enhanced by a subplot featuring Seth’s separated parents. Fans of cozy small-town romances will be willing to read further in the series. Agent: Denise Marcil, Marcil O’Farrell Literary.

April 15, 2018

Two years after his wife, Zoe, was killed during a tour of duty in Afghanistan, contractor Seth Harper is still grieving. He's thrown himself into the family renovation and remodeling business, and his social life is nonexistent--he knows he'll never marry again. Then hotel concierge Brianna Mannion, a woman he'd grown up with and Zoe's best friend, returns to Honeymoon Harbor with plans to turn Herons Landing, an old Victorian mansion with a ghostly past, into a bed-and-breakfast--and the stage is set for a relationship Seth is determined to ignore. The connection between a deeply conflicted man slowly coming to terms with loss and the woman who understands him adds strength and intensity to a perceptive story that is more than the average friends-into-lovers romance. Vivid, detailed descriptions, real-life issues that resonate, a pair of perfect-for-each-other protagonists, and a wealth of colorful townsfolk form an emotionally compelling story in Ross's capable hands. VERDICT An excellent start to a promising community series with a stunning Olympic Coast setting. Ross (Long Road Home) lives in the Pacific Northwest.

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