(3.5 / 5)

It's near the end of winter in Cape Light and a time for new beginnings for many of its residents. This includes the newest resident, Dr. Matthew Harding, who has just moved to town with his teenage daughter, hoping to start a new life three years after his wife's death. Molly Willoughby is toying with the idea of starting a new business, Sophie Potter has to figure out how to move on after her ailing husband is gone, and a controversy from many years past shakes things up for Tucker Tulley.

One of the best things about this book is that the story moved away from the Warwick family, after 3 books about them in some capacity. They were in the background, which was fine, but the main storyline in this book involved Dr. Harding and Molly Willoughby. Overall, it was a decent read. Parts of it were better than others, and some characters were better than others.

The romance thread in this story didn't draw me in like it probably should have. I liked how both grew as individuals and how they had a hand in helping each other see what they needed to work on. But even by the end, I didn't feel much chemistry between them. They seemed more like really good friends. And there was an obstacle in there that seemed completely pointless.

On another story front, I was appalled by Fran Tulley's actions in the book, even if she did feel bad about it later. And Tucker began to wear on me after a while too, since most of his own thoughts were about how uncertain he was of his feelings and actions at pretty much every step of the way.

In the end, the book was decent, but I didn't love it enough to continue this series that has been mostly just okay so far. It feels like a good stopping point anyway, though, because all of the books after this are Christmas-themed, and the final page of this book provided a nice wrap-up to the first 4 books. I don't know if that was intentional or not--maybe the series wasn't originally meant to continue? However, I do have a copy of book #9, and with Christmas coming up and feeling like I have a good enough introduction to the series and the town, I do still plan to read that book, most likely my final go at the Cape Light series. ( )

"Ever since her bitter divorce, single mom Molly Willhoughby has felt disillusioned by matters of the heart. But then she meets newcomer Dr. Matthew Harding, who inspires her to take another look at her life. Matthew is a widower who's come to Cape Light to make a new start for himself and his teenage daughter. He may be reluctant to risk a new relationship, but he knows if he doesn't find a way to put the past behind him, he may miss out on a once-in-a-lifetime love.

But Matthew and Molly aren't the only Cape Lighters who must find a way to believe in the possibility of miracles. A surprise visitor has turned up on Tucker Tulley's doorstep-someone not entirely welcome. It will take Reverend Ben's guidance for Tucker and his loved ones to turn over a new leaf and let the power of forgiveness fill their hearts."

This is the 4th book in the series about the town of Cape Light (geddit? Cape LIGHT?), so I was missing some things about what had happened in previous books. This one--I haven't read the others, nor will I, so I don't know if they have similar themes--is About Second Chances. Two main story threads--a bitter divorced mom and the new doctor in town (who's moved, by the way, to give his daughter a second chance--she has a "horrible" stuttering problem which seems to be nonexistent except in his mind), and a long-lost black-sheep brother who comes home. And there was a man who dies and his widow wants to keep their orchard. The stories were uninspired, the characters cardboard cut-outs, and the resolutions of the problems too easy and sugar-sweet--all it takes is a little chat with saintly Reverend Ben. *gag* ( )

got from a friend in Morehead ( )

got from a friend in Morehead ( )