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From the publisher:

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Susan Mallery comes an unforgettable beach read about the unbreakable bond between mothers and daughters and finding friendship with the unlikeliest person, perfect for fans of Elin Hilderbrand and Emily Giffin…

As the owner of Twisted, Seattle’s best salons, Erica knows that the sharpest cuts come from the people we love. She’s terrified that she’s losing her teen daughter, Summer, to her “other” family, especially to her stepmom, Allison.

All it takes to blow up Allison’s happy life is one collect call. From prison. Her beloved husband, Peter, has been arrested, leaving Allison pregnant, broke, scared and alone with a toddler. But when her stepdaughter ferrets out the truth, the teen rushes to the last person Allison wants to ask for help—her husband’s battle-ax ex.

Erica would do anything for Summer, even take in the woman her daughter loves like a second mom. Allison feels intimidated by Erica—a woman who would never let herself become so dependent on a man. But the more time they spend together, the more Allison realizes what Erica truly needs is a friend. Can two women who married the same man move beyond their complicated past and rethink what it means to be family?

“Beautifully illustrates the power of female friendship and the importance of reaching for one’s dreams”-Publishers Weekly

https://amzn.to/3XgXsll

Erica has the career of her dreams, and she’s worked damned hard to get it. As the owner of Twisted, a small chain of high-end, full service spas that include hair salons, she is big on giving back, especially to single moms. Top-tier stylists at her salons make six figures, and many of them came through her scholarship and training programs. But her personal life isn’t quite as full as her professional life.

Divorced for many years, she had pushed her ex-husband to start his own accounting business. And when he shocked her by demanding a divorce that she never saw coming, she pulls her business from his firm. Eventually, he meets and marries Allison, and fills her head with tales of his horrible ex-wife. But when she gets a call from him that he’s in prison, she is completely lost. All their bank accounts have been frozen, she’s six months pregnant and has a toddler. With no formal education, Allison works part time at the day care center to earn enough to cover daycare while she works her other job as a grocery store cashier. Both jobs are becoming more difficult as the physical aspects of her pregnancy make it hard to be on her feet all day or to get up and down from the floor at the preschool.

Erica’s daughter, Summer, is a pretty good kid for a sixteen-year-old. Erica doesn’t know her ex’s wife, but Summer adores her and her little half-brother. So when Summer finds out what happened to her dad, she goes into savior mode and convinces her mother to let Allison and her little boy move in with them. She has no family and no other resources, and Erica reluctantly agrees.

Erica and Allison slowly get to know one another, and while their worlds are completely different, they were both married to the same man, so they have that in common. As her pregnancy progresses, Erica starts doing more for Allison, from buying nursery furniture and having her mother, Summer’s grandmother, help out with the little boy. As the days move on, they become pretty close friends.

Erica has a boyfriend, or rather a man who takes her out for lovely dinners, and she accompanies him to business social events. And they have sex. But after being burned by her ex, Erica has refused to put her heart on the line. Eventually, everyone can see that he is besotted with her, but she is burying her feelings so deep she can’t even find them.

This was such a good read! I loved all these characters and all the little moments that made up their lives. The romance takes a back seat to the women’s burgeoning friendship, but in the end, everything works out the way it is supposed to. Another terrific read by one of my favorite authors.

6/2024 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

FOR THE LOVE OF SUMMER by Susan Mallery. MIRA; Original edition (June 4, 2024). ISBN: 978-0778305521. 400p.

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From the publisher:

Jackie Lau, author of the “full of heart” (Ali Hazelwood, New York Times bestselling author) The Stand-Up Groomsman, returns with a charming rom-com about a young woman’s desperate attempts to fend off her meddling mother…only to find that maybe mother does know best.

Mark Chan this. Mark Chan that.

Writer and barista Emily Hung is tired of hearing about the great Mark Chan, the son of her parents’ friends. You’d think he single-handedly stopped climate change and ended child poverty from the way her mother raves about him. But in reality, he’s just a boring, sweater-vest-wearing engineer, and when they’re forced together at Emily’s sister’s wedding, it’s obvious he thinks he’s too good for her.

But now that Emily is her family’s last single daughter, her mother is fixated on getting her married and she has her sights on Mark. There’s only one solution, clearly: convince Mark to be in a fake relationship with her long enough to put an end to her mom’s meddling. He reluctantly agrees.

Unfortunately, lying isn’t enough. Family friends keep popping up at their supposed dates—including a bubble tea shop and cake-decorating class—so they’ll have to spend more time together to make their relationship look real. With each fake date, though, Emily realizes that Mark’s not quite what she assumed and maybe that argyle sweater isn’t so ugly after all…

“Heartfelt and hilarious . . . Lau brings the goods.” ― Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Lau’s books have some of the best effort-to-emotional-payoff ratios in romance.” ― The New York Times Book Review

https://amzn.to/4c0Hgsy

I loved Lau’s last book, Donut Fall in Love, so I was super excited to get this one, and it was a heartwarming, joyous and rollicking read!

Emily is the last of her sisters to remain single, and her over-the-top pushy mom is determined to fix that pronto. She talks up Mark Chan until Emily can barely stand hearing his name, then seats them together at the youngest sister’s wedding. Mark and Emily do not get along at that wedding, so when her mom asks her to brunch the following week, Emily figures she’ll go and tell her to lay off. But when she shows up for brunch, her mother isn’t there but guess who is? Mark Chan, of course.

This time things go a tiny bit better than at the wedding, but Emily is convinced he is so not the man for her. But to get her mother off her back, she asks Mark if they could fake date to keep her mother happy for a while. But by fake date she means to just tell her mom they are dating but not actually go anywhere together. Mark reluctantly agrees, but things get complicated when her mother’s network of spies/friends/relatives report they haven’t seen Emily and Mark together anywhere. Emily caves and asks Mark if they can fake date for real, by which she means meet up for dinner or whatever just so they can be seen together. Pictures are taken and shared, but her mother is still somewhat suspicious.

Then something odd happens. Emily realizes she is starting to really like Mark, even though he is not her type and really, what does her mother know. As it turns out, her mother knows quite a lot about her daughter and what she needs. After several fake dates, they decide to really date but things come to a head when her older sister accuses her of faking the relationship and spills the beans. Emily is humiliated and ghosts Mark, but their feelings are strong enough that she decides to stop cutting off her nose to spite her face (one of my mother’s favorite expressions!) and just live with the controversy, as long as she gets to do it with Mark.

There were many, many laugh-out-loud moments here, but I also wanted to wake Emily up to the possibility she was missing out on. Luckily, she figured that out for herself, and they got their happy ending. This was such a fun, compelling read that I couldn’t put it down and finished it in one night. Another terrific read from Jackie Lau and Emily Bestler books.

6/2024 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

LOVE, LIES, AND CHERRY PIE by Jackie Lau. Atria/Emily Bestler Books (May 7, 2024). ISBN: 978-1668030769. 352p.

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From the publisher:

Two lives spent searching. One summer to never forget.

Life in Blossom Branch hasn’t always been sweet for Leah Marks. Growing up in the shadow of her overachieving siblings, the shy psychology grad has struggled to find her own place in the world. So when she inherits a long-forgotten summer camp, Leah sees an opportunity to help other kids who are struggling—and maybe find happiness for herself.

Her plan takes an unexpected turn, however, after a scorching encounter with the local fire chief, Lucas Carter. He’s brave, he’s kind…and he’s not quite ready to settle down. Leah is drawn to the rugged firefighter—but she fears she’ll be burned if she gets too close.

Still, Leah and Lucas can’t help but fall harder for each other, until the ill-fated uncertainty of their future can no longer be ignored. As another sizzling summer unfolds in Blossom Branch, will they both finally find the home—and the love—they’ve been searching for?

Blossom Branch

Book 1: The Runaway Bride of Blossom Branch
Book 2: One Sweet Southern Summer

https://amzn.to/4e4U0jQ

I don’t recall reading this author before, and she has written over 80+ books! So I wasn’t sure what to expect here besides the clues from the cover and the title: I thought it would be a romance on the sweet side, but there was plenty of heat. I loved the premise of the story, too. Leah grows up with a bunch of overachieving brothers, and as the only girl with a less than prestigious degree in psychology, she is thrilled to find out her aunt has left her a home and a summer camp in the small town of Blossom Branch. She gets the idea to renovate the camp and turn it into a charity camp, taking in middle school aged kids who have bad home situations or have gotten into trouble.

Working with some foundations, she hires a staff and funds the camp with grants. Campers will come for two weeks, then the staff will get a week off before the next set of campers comes in. It’s a big project, but Leah’s heart is in it and she makes it a success.

Unfortunately, on the first night of camp, one of the troubled youths starts a small fire in the kitchen. The fire department keeps it controlled until they get it out, but there is quite a bit of damage to the dining hall. Fortunately, the oh-so-hot fire chief, Lucas Carter, is willing to help and gets friends to start on the cleanup and rebuild.

Lucas is immediately drawn to Leah, but he is not looking to settle down any time soon. Leah finds him very attractive as well, but her first priority are the kids in her camp. And she has no plans on staying in this small town all year round, so geography is not their friend either.

As Leah and Lucas spend time together, they are both falling in love. It takes a lot to get them together, but it is so much fun getting to their happily ever after. I really enjoyed this romance, and I love that this author has so many books – I’ll always be able to find something to read!

6/2024 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

ONE SWEET SOUTHERN SUMMER by Janice Maynard. Canary Street Press; Original edition (April 23, 2024). ISBN: 978-1335523068. 368p.

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From the publisher:

A woman returns to her family’s Hamptons beach house for a final time—and a final chance at the love she’s lost before, in this contemporary retelling of Persuasion, perfect for fans of Emily Henry and Rebecca Serle.

Olivia Taylor’s marriage is in a death spiral when she agrees to come home to the Hamptons to help her father and sisters pack up the family estate. If it looks like she’s running away from her soon-to-be ex, Wes, and New York City, well, she is. But someone has to take care of things and that’s always been Olivia’s role in the family. After years of financial trouble, someone’s finally bailing them out with a huge offer to buy their beachfront property, which is a good thing, although it means losing the home she grew up in, where her mother died, and where she first met Fred, the love of her life.

It’s been five years since the last time things blew up between Olivia and Fred, but much longer since the first time. At this point, Olivia fears it was never meant to be, so there’s no reason to feel butterflies in her stomach at the idea of seeing him again. They’ve already tried, and tried again…and again…but she’s newly single, and she isn’t the same person she was the last time–and Fred has changed too.

This time, things will be different. Maybe, just maybe, the fifth time’s the charm.

“Impressive debut . . . The cutthroat world of pro tennis and the glitz of the Hamptons create a fascinating backdrop for these multilayered characters.” —Publishers Weekly

“[Readers] will rejoice when their HEA is reached.” —Booklist

https://amzn.to/3wPZa2g

I love finding new authors, and this debut novel is a winner. I grew up on Long Island, so I’m familiar with the Hamptons and that is the setting of this story. It is a seasonal resort area comprised of several towns that make up the Hamptons, and there are some people who do live there year round, although certainly a minority. It is beautiful and lush and wild in areas, and congested and quaint in others.

Olivia’s family has owned their Hamptons home and huge, beachfront property for generations. But her father has mismanaged the family fortune to the point of bankruptcy – the only way out is to sell the property. Olivia has just left her husband after catching him cheating on her, and she goes out to the family home to help her sisters clean it out for the new owner.

Turns out the new owner is Fred, the love of Olivia’s life. The summers of the title refers to their relationship, which begins and ends multiple times over multiple summers. Olivia is a professional tennis player, just a dream when she meets Fred, and nearing retirement when the house is sold. The story moves back and forth between the current day and the various summers of Olivia and Fred.

There are some interesting twists here that I never saw coming, and as their story unfolds, the book is unputdownable. The setting is bucolic, the characters are three-dimensional, and the romance unfurls beautifully. I am looking forward to more books from this new author.

5/2024 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

SUMMER AFTER SUMMER by Lauren Bailey. Alcove Press (May 7, 2024). ISBN: 978-1639106554. 336p.

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