Beach House No. 9

November 5, 2012
Prolific author Ridgway (Can't Hurry Love) begins a new series with a beach-worthy seaside contemporary. After editor Jane Pearson makes a professional and personal break with a bestselling author, she's determined to succeed with her next client. War journalist and boozehound Griffin Lowell thinks he doesn't need a book doctor for his memoir, but his agent disagrees and hires Jane, who packs up and moves to the beach house next door to Griffin. He impudently invites his unhappy sister and her children to move in with her, prompting "Governess Jane" to relocate to his place. Though Griffin thinks Jane's a pest and she's disgusted by his tantrums, they're overwhelmed by mutual lust. This conventional tale is elevated by realistic details of Griffin's post-traumatic stress and flashbacks, an adorable retro beach setting, and intriguing supporting characters with a heart-wrenching troubled marriage subplot concerning Griffin's sister. Agents: Andrea Cirillo and Christina Hogrebe, the Jane Rotrosen Agency.

December 15, 2012
Her last job ended badly so Jane Pearson, a book doctor, is determined to redeem her career by midwifing the memoir of a war correspondent's time in Afghanistan. Griffin Lowell was so affected by what he saw that he has gone into seclusion in a beachside cottage, where Jane finds him drunk, partying, and not writing. Moving into the cottage next door, she plans to be a thorn in his side, but Griffin's sister turns up with her four children in need of a place to stay. So Jane moves in with sexy Griffin. As they delve into the notebooks, photos, and drafts Griffin sent home before he left Afghanistan, Jane begins to perceive the depth of his pain, while he likens her to a sexy librarian. If only their crusty old neighbor, a WWII war correspondent who has known Griffin and his sister since they were children, would lighten up. Ridgway launches a new series with wonderfully compelling characters, from the flawed and conflicted protagonists down to bit players, in a great work of smart, escapist reading.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)