The Last Boyfriend (Book 2 of the Inn Boonsboro Trilogy) by Nora Roberts

From Goodreads: A new novel of a shared past, a fresh start, and a lifetime of love. — #1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts introduces you to the Montgomery brothers -- Beckett, Ryder, and Owen -- as they bring an intimate bed-and-breakfast to life in their hometown. — Owen is the organizer of the Montgomery clan, r... more »unning the family’s construction business with an iron fist -- and an even less flexible spreadsheet. And though his brothers bust on his compulsive list-making, the Inn BoonsBoro is about to open right on schedule. The only thing Owen didn’t plan for was Avery McTavish...

Avery’s popular pizza place is right across the street from the inn, giving her a first-hand look at its amazing renovation -- and a newfound appreciation for Owen. Since he was her first boyfriend when they were kids, Owen has never been far from Avery’s thoughts. But the attraction she’s feeling for him now is far from innocent.

As Avery and Owen cautiously take their relationship to another level, the opening of the inn gives the whole town of Boonsboro a reason to celebrate. But Owen’s hard work has only begun. Getting Avery to let down her guard is going to take longer than he expected -- and so will getting her to realize that her first boyfriend is going to be her last…

My thoughts:
I had meant to save this book to read at the beach, but one night when I went to bed I found that all the books I am currently reading were either downstairs, in my purse or out in the car and this one was on the nightstand so I started it.  Once I started reading I just wanted to keep going with it.  I read The Next Always in January and knew I wanted to see what happened with the brothers, friends, Inn and the ghost.  It has elements from other series and stories, but is still it's own story.  In book one Clare and Beckett fell in love and got engaged overcoming obstacles like widowhood, children and a crazy stalker.  This time around organized and meticulous Owen starts to realize that his first childhood girlfriend, when they were 6 and 8, is still as alluring as she was then but both he and Avery worry that going somewhere as a couple might have repercussions in their friend and working relationships.  Avery is renting the space for her restaurant as well as her apartment from Owen's family company and she sees him all the time socially and professionally. 

Along with the relationship element of the story, more is revealed about the Inn's ghost and what she wants and who she is.  Owen and Hope spearhead the research into her past to identify her.  Lizzy has some surprising connections to the present day group.  As a backdrop to their story is the completion of the Inn and the parties, showers and weddings that are held there.  Everything seems to come together perfectly for the Inn and there are some new businesses in the works that I hope to see more of in the third book in the trilogy which is due out in November.


Product Details:

ISBN-13: 9780425246030
ISBN-10: 0425246035
Publication Date: 5/1/2012
Pages: 352

The Next Always by Nora Roberts (Book One of the Inn Boonsboro Trilogy)

Overview

"America's favorite writer" (The New Yorker) begins an all-new trilogy-inspired by the inn she owns and the town she loves.

The historic hotel in BoonsBoro, Maryland, has endured war and peace, changing hands, even rumored hauntings. Now it's getting a major facelift from the Montgomery brothers and their eccentric mother. As the architect of the family, Beckett's social life consists mostly of talking shop over pizza and beer. But there's another project he's got his eye on: the girl he's been waiting to kiss since he was fifteen...

The launch of a new Nora Roberts romance series always raised pulse-raising possibilities, but the first of her Inn Boonsboro trilogy is a pleasure onto itself. At its center are Beckett Montgomery, an architect with ambitious plans and a longstanding crush, and Clare Brewster, a young widow bookstore owner who has returned to her hometown. Roberts places readers inside the crosscurrents of small-town America, showing us how relationships evolve and hit speed bumps. With its French-flap cover, an attractive paperback original.



My thoughts:
This is my first library loaned e-book.  Our local library started carrying them last Friday and I checked this one out.  I made the mistake of clicking seven day loan instead of fourteen and felt a bit pressured as this was a busy week, but I managed to get it done before today.  I feel like my reading time has really dwindled lately.

This book was a nice comfortable read.  It reminded me a bit of her Sign of Seven trilogy and the In the Garden trilogy.  The characters had similarities to me to the ones in those books, but it was still a fun read.  Clare owns a bookstore, my dream job even though I know tons of them are going out of business, and Beckett is an architect who works with his family and still does a lot of the physical work as well.  His family is renovating an inn and they are making it into a one of a kind place.  There is a resident ghost who I will be interested to see more of in the second book due out in May.

Clare and Beckett have a grown up romance, she has three young boys and is a widow whose husband died in war and Beckett lost his father young and has always had a crush on her.  They move around obstacles and learn to trust each other.  They encounter the types of issues real people face, kids and job demands, trust and misunderstandings, and everything else.

I love how at the inn they are making each room different and to reflect a couple from a different book, like Elizabeth and Darcy.  It made me want to read the books the characters were taken from!


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780425243213
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Publication date: 11/1/2011
Pages: 352
Series: Inn BoonsBoro Trilogy, #1
Product dimensions: 5.30 (w) x 8.20 (h) x 1.10 (d)

Happy Ever After by Nora Roberts (Book Four in Bride Quartet)

Overview:
Dreams are realized in the eagerly-awaited fourth novel in Nora Roberts's Bride Quartet.


As the public face of Vows wedding planning company, Parker Brown has an uncanny knack for fulfilling every bride's vision. She just can't see where her own life is headed. Mechanic Malcolm Kavanaugh loves figuring out how things work, and Parker is no exception. Both know that moving from minor flirtation to major hook-up is a serious step. Parker's business risks have always paid off, but now she'll have to take the chance of a lifetime with her heart...

My thoughts:
I enjoyed finishing the series with the last of the four friends finding love.  I really enjoyed the first book but had more time getting invested as time went on.  I'm not sure if I just wasn't in the right mood but I had a difficult time really getting into this one.  I did not dislike it, but did not feel my usual pull to pick the book up and keep going.

Of the four friends, Parker was the one I had a harder time relating too.  She is very efficient and organized, both traits I wish I had more of, but she kind of took the fun out of things a bit.  I believe that was part of the point because she meets Malcolm who helps her let her hair down literally by doing things that are outside of her comfort zone like riding on a motorcycle.  Parker's dedication to her friends and the business they built together showed how she is looking out for others and wants to be successful in her own right, not just coast along on her families name and reputation.

Malcolm is a mechanic with his own childhood issues that he has trouble sharing.  They seem like opposites at first, but they both share a drive to be the best and a good work ethic in their own businesses.  Part of me is sorry to see the series end because I would love to see how they plan out the other three weddings, what they wear and eat and dance to, but Robert's pretty much just does romances so I doubt she will be revisiting one unless she decides to find a man for Mrs. Grady!

Details
•Pub. Date: November 2010

•Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
•Format: Paperback , 355pp
•Series: Nora Roberts' Bride Quartet Series #4
•ISBN-13: 9780425236758
•ISBN: 0425236757

"Vision in White" by Nora Roberts

Vision in White by Nora Roberts

Book One in the Bride Quartet

2009

Summary:


Mackensie Elliot and her three best friends formed a wedding planning business together named Vows. As children they used to play Wedding Day and stage weddings in Parker's backyard where they took turns playing bride, groom, minister, maid or honor and more. Years later as a team they have turned Parker's family home into both their home and their business. Mackensie's parents divorces when she was four and have both had more than one marriage since then. Her father is mostly absent in her life and her mother is very selfish and self-involved. Although she works as a wedding photographer, Mac does not believe that love and happily ever after is in the works for her until she is reintroduced to Carter Maguire a high school English teacher.





Thoughts:


I love how Nora Roberts is able to create dream jobs for her characters that make me wish I could try. When I read the In the Garden Trilogy I wanted to have a greenhouse and nursery even though I am terrible with plants, while this first book in the Bride Quartet made me think how fun it would be to plan a wedding even though my own wedding was in a chapel in Las Vegas. Maybe part of the yearning was because I never had a wedding dress, reception or any of the other bells and whistles that go with a formal ceremony. I really liked Mackensie and Carter, they were both very likable. I can't wait to see what Roberts has planned for the other three friends. The next installment in the series is set to be published in December of this year.





Prior to this year I had not really read much by Nora Roberts, but I have enjoyed the books I've selected to read so far this year. I loved the Circle Trilogy and the Sign of Seven Trilogy. I enjoyed the Key Trilogy and In the Garden Trilogy as well. One complaint I have is that some of her characters are starting to seem similar. Some of the mannerisms and even speech patterns feel like they are repeating, this could be because I read too many of her books in the past year. Had I spread them out more I might not have noticed it so much. That said, the book was enjoyable, the story felt authentic and believable and I would recommend it to other readers.