SUMMER AT SEASIDE COVE grabbed me with the first sentence
and didn't let go. How do you resist a book that starts
with a decapitated pink flamingo as a welcome to the
vacation rental from hell? Ms. D'Alessandro has crafted a
fun and funny romance featuring lots of family drama,
personal exploration, and flirtatious passion. This is my
first book by Ms. D'Alessandro and I am already on the hunt
for more.
Jamie Newman abruptly left New York (after finding out her
half-sister is sleeping with her boyfriend!) to spend the
summer at a lovely beach house in Seaside Cove, North
Carolina. After many hectic years working at her family's
restaurant, she plans to spend the time resting, walking the
beach, and reconnecting with herself. Plans change when her
beach house turns out to be more a shack recently vacated by
frat boys. When the landlord, Nick Trent, finally shows-up
the sparks fly, first in anger then in unexpected
attraction. Jamie's budding "friendship" with Nick is
complicated by the arrival of Jamie's family carrying lots
of baggage, both literally and figuratively.
Seaside Cove is populated with lots of colorful permanent
and temporary residents. Both Nick and Jamie have big,
loving hearts that push them to care and get involved, even
when they are determined to stay out of it. Why else would
Jamie find herself organizing the Clam Festival? I loved
Nick and Jamie as a couple and enjoyed their budding
romance, but their relationships with their family and
friends were just as compelling. At the end, I found myself
wishing we could visit Seaside Cove again. I'm hoping there
is a sequel in there somewhere.
Sisters are known to share many things - but not the same boyfriend. The most basic "girl code" states that you never date a friend's ex. So wouldn't it be obvious that a current boyfriend is really off limits - especially to your own sister? Apparently Jamie Newman's half sister Laurel didn't get the memo. Leaving behind New York - and the humiliation - Jamie heads to the tiny barrier island of Seaside Cover, North Caroline, for a quiet summer of healing her broken heart and reassessing her sudden disaster of a life. But instead of solace in a cozy beach cottage, she finds a rundown bungalow complete with stray cats and a leaky roof - and of course it's raining - and the repairman is M.I.A... Strays and colorful neighbors are nothing compared to her next visitors. First her drama-prone mother barges in. Then her angst-ridden teenage niece arrives. And the grand finale of the crazy storm is the arrival of Laurel, who's been dumped by Jaime's ex. And of course there's the repairman, who's finally shown his face - and is way too attractive for Jamie's own good. It's clear there's more to him than meets the eye, and Jamie would like to know what, but with the family she tried to escape now crammed in her ramshackle cottage, she may never get the chance...