Light Reading: Debbie Macomber & Catherine Alliott

Thanks to NetGalley I’ve just read two new books, both destined to be bestsellers. Rose Harbor in Bloom is the latest from Debbie Macomber. It’s the second book in the Rose Harbor series; readers of the Cedar Cove books will recognise some of the walk-on characters. Jo Marie Rose still can’t quite believe that her husband Paul has died in Afghanistan because his body has never been found. She’s making a new start by opening The Inn at Rose Harbor and has a prickly relationship with Mark, a handyman and gardener who is supposed to be helping her out. The story centres on the guests at the inn. Annie has organized a fiftieth wedding anniversary party for her grandparents, Kent and Julie Shivers. They’re supposed to have a perfect marriage, so why are they constantly sniping at each other? They’ve been driven down by Oliver, a family friend. This horrifies Annie, who dislikes him, while everyone else thinks she and Oliver were made for each other. The anniversary crowd fills most of the inn but there’s room for a solitary guest, Mary Smith, a successful career woman until she was struck by cancer. She’s still undergoing treatment but wants to get in touch with her former fiancé, George. Several story threads, a pretty setting, a sure hit with fans of Debbie Macomber.
( My Husband Next Door )