Tess has the shock of her life when her dead husband’s ex-best friend collapses in her bookshop. She and River never talk, which has something to do with him trying to stop her wedding. Tess has hated him ever since. She can’t imagine why she wasn’t good enough to marry Jared.
But after River recovers, he explains his past actions. He found Jared with another woman before the wedding. He wanted Jared to tell Tess the truth, but Jared never did. When Tess sees an unidentified woman in a picture with her late husband, she asks for River’s help identifying her.
As a private investigator, River knows how to track people down and ask tough questions. He’s not sure Tess is ready to hear Jared’s secrets. River knows Tess is grieving with this new information. He also knows that he can’t stay away from her. Could she ever fall for someone she hated?
THE TRUE LOVE BOOK SHOP is the third book in Annie Rains's Somerset Lake series featuring small town charm and an entertaining cast of characters. Tess’s story is heartbreaking and yet hopeful at the same time. There’s so much to admire about Tess from her love of books, her friendships, and her kind heart. Tess and River spark with chemistry and banter. Watchers of Hallmark Channel movies will not want to miss this romance.
For Tess Lane, owning Lakeside Books is a dream come true, but it’s the weekly book club she hosts for the women in town that Tess enjoys the most. The gatherings have been her lifeline over the past three years since her husband’s mysterious death. Tess has tried to move on, but when River Harrison shows up on her doorstep, all her lingering questions come rushing back.…River, a former marine turned private investigator, was her husband’s best friend, and seeing him again is a reminder of everything Tess lost. At first, she tries to ignore him, but Tess comes to realize that this is her chance, once and for all, to find the answers that have troubled her for years.With the support of her friends, Tess joins River on a journey of discovery that leads them to the edges of Somerset Lake and on a road trip down the Carolina coast. Although their adventure isn’t always easy, Tess starts to find the joy in life again. But when secrets surrounding her husband’s death are finally revealed, can Tess find it in her heart to forgive the mistakes of the past … and maybe even open herself up to love again?
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