The Sweetheart List (Sunrise Cove #4)

Jill Shalvis

Blurb:

What makes life sweet?

Freshly baked bread

A cool lake on a hot summer day

The comfort of a cozy bookstore

Second chances and new beginnings

When Harper Shaw’s life falls apart, she knows it’s time for a change. She removes everything that doesn’t spark joy—from her soul-sucking job to eating kale to making lists—and sets off for the last place she was happy, Lake Tahoe (who wouldn’t feel good there, right?) to fulfill her dream of opening her own bakery.

With her Sugar Pine Bakery in between a tavern, owned by sexy, grumpy Bodie Campbell, and a bookstore, run by her new BFF, she feels a peace she’s never experienced since…well, forever.. Then she meets Ivy, a teenage runaway, who barrels into her heart. She sees a lot of herself in Ivy and takes her under her wing, but the teenager has secrets…

When those secrets explode, it changes Harper’s new world, and she’ll learn, it’s never too late to start over, it’s never too late to figure out your life, and best of all, it’s never too late to let yourself believe in love.

Themes: Contemporary

Rating: 4.25 stars

Heat Rating: 3.5

Review:

The Sunrise Cove series continues with this new story of a woman unrooting her life and starting over in the one place she remembers truly being happy in her life, but forces are stacked against her, and she has to slog through some pretty series obstacles to get back on her path. Jill Shalvis has a way of tugging on your heartstrings in her newest series, combining romance, humor, pain and the healing power of love as she brings together people badly in need of one another and reminding them that sometimes all we need is one another and the love we can share. Harper Shaw has decided that her life is in shambles and the best way to fix it is an all-new setting, including a new job, new town, and new home; she takes herself and her dog back to Sunrise Cove off Lake Tahoe in order to open her very own bakery, but her new home isn’t ready for her—in many ways. Her new landlord definitely isn’t prepared for her and when Bodie Campbell tries to explain that its not safe for her to stay she is determined to go her own way. Bodie tries not to care that Harper is placing herself in danger, but she pulls at him, and he finds himself drawn to her, especially when she offers sanctuary to a teenage runaway. Soon they find themselves falling for one another, but Bodie is so damaged by his past and Harper is still fearful of making more mistakes, can they both look past all the barriers in their way in order to have a future? I loved both Bodie and Harper, but honestly Ivy and Ham were my favorite characters—who can beat a smartass and independent teenager with a tough streak and a kick ass pup? But that said Bodie was a grumpy but rightly so, damaged, guilt-ridden sweetheart just trying his best to get through each day and I felt for him as he found a way to forgive himself with Harper’s love and help. Harper was the kind of woman I truly admire, determined to pick herself up and move on with her life, despite all the drama that she has faced as her life feel apart, and always doing her best to help others. I truly enjoyed watching these two dance around each other and finally fall in love. I look forward to many more stories in this series.

*eBook provided by publisher (via NetGalley) for the purpose of an honest and unbiased review. No compensation was provided.