Welcome back to Sweet Lake. This second book follows one of 3 besties, this time its Cat's turn. Even though this book is a series, it can stand by itself. Although, I recommend reading the first one also. Ms. Nolfi did not disappoint. Her writing feels like a friend telling you a story over a cup of coffee.

Cat and Ryan have instant chemistry! But, there are a lot of secrets they need to confront before making permanent plans. These secrets are painful, and gives the reader a glimpse into how far a Mom will go, and how no one is left unscarred.

Thank you Ms Nolfi for the ARC. This review is my personal opinion of the book. ( )

I loved the Sirens and wish that I had them in my life! I have never read any books by this author before but loved this one. What a fun but touching story. I look forward to this authors next book. ( )

Like the populations of so many other small towns across the country, the residents of Sweet Lake, Ohio, pride themselves on knowing everything about their neighbors' business. Sometimes they even know more about their neighbors business than their neighbors do. However, the town of Sweet Lake certainly lives up to its name - it's a close-knit, caring community that takes care of its own. Such is the case with Catalina Mendoza.

Cat Mendoza is the youngest daughter of the Mendoza family; a spirited young woman who has seen her fair share of struggles in life. She has lived in the tiny town of Sweet Lake for her entire life and can't honestly imagine herself living anywhere else. Her mother, Sylvia is a founding member of the eccentric Sweet Lake Sirens and so Cat is generally considered to be an honorary member as well. As a matter of fact, she loves the Sirens as much as the members of her own family.

After spending years following her impulsive nature both in life and in business, Cat must now convince the residents of Sweet Lake that she has learned her lesson. With the shadow of a business failure hanging over her head - as well as several failed relationships behind her - she is finally ready to turn things around. She is determined to prove to everyone that she is a capable person; able to take her responsibilities seriously. And she hopes to make her family proud of her again.

As the recently hired events director of the newly refurbished Wayfair Inn, Cat is truly feeling the pressure of being given this second chance. She certainly doesn't want to disappoint anybody, even though she knows that she has the support of her best friends Linnie and Jada. However, it seems as if everyone else - from her overprotective mother to the well-meaning Sweet Lake Sirens - are all eager to offer her advice from their various areas of 'corporate expertise'. While she sincerely appreciates their input and suggestions, Cat can't help but feel slightly overwhelmed by the Sirens' seemingly unquenchable eagerness.

Although she always tries her best to be considerate of their feelings, Cat freely admits to herself that the Sirens can occasionally try her patience. From presenting her with a calendar of hypothetical community events hosted by the Sweet Lake Sirens to offering quiet critiques of her apparently too-tight clothing, Cat is painfully aware of the number of times that she has had to bite her tongue to keep herself calm. As a matter of fact, she doesn't even want to mention some of the Sirens more outlandish ideas to their newly-contracted advertising agency. After all Miri is an old friend of hers, and she's doing Cat a favor by taking the Wayfair Inn on as a new client with her agency; so, Cat's hoping to keep the 'Sweet Lake Sirens Motivational Speaking Tour' on the back burner...way, way back on the back burner!

However, the Sirens can't help but chime in with advice about Cat's dormant love life, her unique fashion choices, and her undeniable attraction to Ryan D'Angelo - the charming advertising executive hired to promote the inn. Although her confidence is shaken by his arrival, Cat knows that she should keep Ryan at a distance. She wants to be taken seriously and needs to remain professional in all her dealings with him. Yet the closer they get to each other, the more Cat is drawn to the heartbreak that Ryan tries to hide.

Cat's heart goes out to him for all the pain he has gone through in his past, but her mind is troubled by so many unanswered questions. Could discovering Ryan's deepest secrets actually endanger everything and everyone that she holds dear? She has so many dreams that she wants to achieve in life, does she stand to lose much more than just her heart - or will she gain something to cherish forever?

I have to say that once again, Ms. Nolfi has written a wonderful book. In my opinion, the story was fast-paced and well-developed. I appreciated that while this was the second book in the series, both stories were actually easily differentiated from each other. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and would definitely give it a strong A! I look forward to reading more from this author in the future. ( )

I received a digital copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Author Christine Nolfi returns to the idyllic Sweet Lake, Ohio and its wonderful and quirky small-town inhabitants in The Comfort of Secrets. This amazing follow-up to the first book in this series, aptly named Sweet Lake, sees another romance on the horizon between Sweet Lake resident Cat Mendoza and big-city ad executive Ryan D'Angelo. While they both work to help the Wayfair Inn with marketing, they must overcome their initial attraction to one another that quickly becomes much more. Adding spice to the mix are all of the secrets that abound around them, individual secrets, family secrets, and Sweet Lake Siren secrets. Will these past secrets come back to haunt everyone's present or can they be finally be laid to rest?

I've read and enjoyed a number of Ms. Nolfi's books and The Comfort of Secrets has been added to the list of enjoyable reads by this author. I found this to be a pleasing and quick read. Ms. Nolfi provides a bit of comic-relief, by way of the Sirens (trust me, these ladies and their antics are hilarious) along with much more serious tones. The Comfort of Secrets touches on some weighty matters such as family estrangement, domestic abuse, child abuse and depression. The author may not go into depths about these matters but she doesn't sugarcoat them either as these themes are crucial to the storyline. Obviously, there's a lot more going on in this story, but if I tell you everything then you won't need to read it. It is sufficient for me to tell you this if you enjoy well-written, women's fiction then you'll need to grab a copy of The Comfort of Secrets. For those of you that read Sweet Lake, you already know you'll need to get yourself a copy of The Comfort of Secrets and I presume you have it on pre-order. If you haven't read anything by Ms. Nolfi (and I don't know why because I already recommended Sweet Lake to you), get a copy of Sweet Lake to read and then grab a copy of The Comfort of Secrets to read. These might just be the perfect vacation or even staycation reads! I'm enjoying the Sweet Lake series, thoroughly enjoyed reading The Comfort of Secrets, and can't wait for the next installment in the Sweet Lake series just to see what the Sirens will get up to next.

This review originally posted on 07/16/2017 at http://www.thebookdivasreads.com/2017/07/2017-book-240-comfort-of-secrets-by.htm.... ( )

MY REVIEW OF "THE COMFORT OF SECRETS" by Christine Nolfi

"THE COMFORT OF SECRETS by Christine Nolfi is the second book in the "Sweet Lake " series. This is a delightful and charming story that describes the Wayfair Inn in Ohio and the quirky, complex and complicated characters. Many of the characters are the same as in the first book.

The genres for this story are Women's Literature, Literature, Romance, and a touch of Mystery. I love the different layers in this story. The timeline is mostly in the present and mostly takes place in Ohio surrounding the Wayfair Inn, which is undergoing major renovations.

Lizzie, Jada, and Cat are all involved in the new and improved Wayfair Inn. Cat has been promoted to the events director. There is enough money to bring in a major advertising company and a friend has offered reduced rates. The friend sends Ryan, a top advertising executive to help put the Wayfair Inn on the map. There will be a big concert and many events. Cat and Ryan seem to have an attraction. Ryan lives with his troubled mother Julia, and takes care of her. There seem to be major secrets in Ryans's and Julia's lives.

My favorite characters, "The Sweet Lake Sirens", an eccentric and quirky group of older women who put sisterhood first, and doing a special secret kindness are quite active in this story. At times some of them non-intentionally causing trouble, and at other times they are helpful and protective. I find that they are amusing and have big hearts.

Christine Nolfi describes family, friends, love, support and hope. I would recommend this enchanting, feel good story highly. I received this ARC from Lake Union Publishing, and Christine Nolfi for my honest review and opinion. Happy Reading. ( )