Monday, March 17, 2014

[Pat's Review]: "Evening Stars"



Evening Stars by Susan Mallery
Publisher: Harlequin MIRA (February 25, 2014)
Series: Blackberry Island, 3
Genre: Contemporary Romance

New York Times bestselling author Susan Mallery returns to Blackberry Island with the poignant tale of two sisters on the verge of claiming their dreams. 

Small-town nurse Nina Wentworth has made a career out of being a caretaker. More "Mom" than their mother ever was, she sacrificed medical school—and her first love—so her sister could break free. Which is why she isn't exactly thrilled to see Averil back on Blackberry Island, especially when Nina's life has suddenly become…complicated. 

Nina unexpectedly finds herself juggling two men—her high school sweetheart and a younger maverick pilot who also wants to claim her heart. But as fun as all this romance is, Nina has real life to deal with. Averil doesn't seem to want the great guy she's married to, and doesn't seem to be making headway writing her first book; their mom is living life just as recklessly as she always has; and Nina's starting to realize that the control she once had is slipping out of her fingers. Her hopes of getting off the island seem to be stretching further away…until her mother makes a discovery that could change everything forever. 

But before Nina and Averil can reach for the stars, they have to decide what they want. Will Averil stay? Will Nina leave? And what about the men who claim to love them? Does love heal, or will finding their happy ending mean giving up all they've ever wanted?




Where to Buy*:
Amazon | Kindle | BN | NOOK | ARe
More Info:





Pat's Review:



This is another heartwarming addition to Ms. Mallery's Blackberry Island series. In my opinion it reads more like women's fiction, than typical contemporary romance. Their are family relationships good and bad, friends, romance and life changing decisions for some characters.  In either genre, this story is worth reading.



Nina Wentworth and her sister Averil had a very unconventional childhood. Their mom Bonnie was caring and attempted to be, but was not very mothering.  Even as a child, Nina took charge. She has been doing so ever since. She gave up her dreams of going to medical school, so her sister could get off the island and go to UCLA.  As much as Nina's dreams pulled her, she never left. She became a nurse, works for her friend in her pediatric practice, and lives with her Mom and her Mom's partner Bertie.  They own a antique shop called Blackberry Preserves which is more junk than antiques in Nina's opinion, but Bonnie and Bertie love to go on trips to bring treasures home to sell.  Bonnie hired a young woman to work in the store to help out when they are on their trips, who was arrested trying to sell items from the store!  Nina takes charge.  Hiring a woman she feels is perfect for the job, she breathes a sigh of relief.  Not for long.



Nina's quiet somewhat boring life is about to implode. Her sister suddenly appears with an identity crisis, and a stray dog she found in a parking lot.  The love of her life Dylan, who broke up with her and shattered her heart, returns to help in his fathers medical practice, and stirs up painful memories.  A Naval Fighter Pilot, Kyle, returns to his home town pursuing Nina. He has been infatuated with her since he was twelve, and wants to date and hopefully even more with his dream girl, despite their difference in age.  She seems to run into Dylan often, and he is trying at the very least to rekindle their friendship, and explain his mistake in leaving her.  Meanwhile, an amazing discovery is made at Blackberry Preserves which could totally change Nina, Averil, Bonnie and Bertie's lives.  But will free spirit Bonnie allow it to?



This story of relationships past and present, loves lost and found, and the small town atmosphere is a wonderful read.  It can be read as a stand alone, but the previous novels in the series are so enjoyable, I would highly recommend reading them.  I hope their are more Blackberry Island stories to tell.



    4 STARS!









~ * ~ * ~

Pat received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for her honest opinion.


~ * ~ * ~



Meet Pat:




Hi I'm Pat Fordyce. I am a retired pediatric nurse living in coastal North Carolina. Being retired I get to do one of my favorite things .....READ..... I love to read and talk about books, and my reviews are my voice. I also volunteer at our Public Library a few days a week. So glad to be joining The Book Queen's group of guest reviewers.







~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ 

Thanks for the review, Pat! :) I haven't read any of Susan's books, but perhaps I'll have to look into them! 

Have you read Susan Mallery? Do you have a favorite?





Enjoy! 



Until Next Time,


 Photobucket


*TBQ's Book Palace is a member of both the Amazon and Barnes and Nobles affiliates program. By using the links provided to buy products from either website, I receive a very small percentage of the order. To read my full disclosure on the matter, please see this post!

3 comments :

Anna@herding cats&burning soup said...

Thanks for the heads up Pat! I've read her her Fools Gold series but that's it so far. I'm glad to hear these are so good!

Kame said...

Nice Job Pat

Pat Egan Fordyce said...

I really enjoy the Blackberry Island series Anna.