#TheSandcastleHurricane – Rosepoint Publishing

November was a mere flash of a month, eclipsing present goals, and creating new ones. Never a dull moment—guess that’s a good thing at this age!

November weather was so mild that the CE and I got to explore a new trail close by and walking was inspired by the cyclists whizzing by. Remembering the years we rode our own bikes, nostalgia took over and I went on the quest for a bike—not the motorcycle kind (had to give that up), a bicycle. My new, used Trek bicycle. Our son delivered his wife’s mountain bike and proving too big and heavy for me, defaulted to the CE. I finally found a guy who carefully guided me into a good used Trek that fits. LOVE this hybrid cruiser!

Then a crisis with our daughter diverted our attention to a quick trip to southern Illinois and another crisis in our son’s wife’s family short-circuited Thanksgiving plans, so it turned out to be a quiet, private Thanksgiving. How was yours? I hope you enjoyed family, a fabulous dinner, and lots of love. Speaking of—our little great-grandson had his first birthday the latter portion of November. Phew!

We did manage to do some reading in November though. (I did some reading, the CE the driving.) Together we read or listened to twelve books in November, most from NetGalley (still our primary resource).

November reads

The Rising Tide by Ann Cleeves (audiobook)
Back in the USSR by Patrick D Joyce (CE review)
Defending Jacob by William Landay (audiobook)
What Have We Done by Alex Finlay(CE review)
More Harm Than Good by Jean Grainger
Hell and Back by Craig Johnson (audiobook)
The Nature of Secrets by Debra Webb (CE review)
The Sandcastle Hurricane by Carolyn Brown
Mitzy Moon Mysteries Books 2 and 3 by Trixie Silvertale
Clive Cussler The Sea Wolves by Jack Du Brul (audiobook)
Devil’s Way by Robert Bryndza (CE review)
Hang the Moon by Jeannette Walls

Reading Challenges

I think I pretty well caught up my challenges page. As mentioned before, all my challenges have been achieved with the exception of the Goodreads Challenge of 180, now at 177 and 98% which is also my Feedback Ratio on NetGalley. Check my Reading Challenges page for updates.

I cranked up the speaker and listened to a number of my YouTube favorites, Queen, Abba, Andrea Bocelli, and 2Cellos (which, btw, did you know they quit as a team? Gees!!), and started my inside Christmas decorations. Almost done—next, the outside lights. Are you getting ready for the season as well? Do you celebrate with a crèche, cards, trees, and lights? Next week, my annual trek to the post office with my boxes. Pray for me.

I appreciate the follows; thank you to those who like, share, and comment—especially comment! And, please, let me know if you saw something above that got your interest.

Me and the CE

Book Blurb:

Family, wounded hearts, and a Texas bed-and-breakfast are in need of repair in New York Times bestselling author Carolyn Brown’s inviting novel about down-home comfort and second chances.

Cousins Tabby and Ellie Mae are due for a change. Running their aunt’s beachfront bed-and-breakfast in Sandcastle, Texas, is just the thing to shake things up…though their lives spin out of control in more ways than one when a hurricane barrels into the coastline. It’s a miracle it didn’t carry them off to Kansas. Not so lucky are the assisted-living center and a small eclectic group of local folks who take shelter with the cousins.

Two estranged sisters, rowdy as a circus, need a referee for a battle that goes back decades. And a pair of veterans, best friends for years, hash out bittersweet old times. There’s also handyman Alex LaSalle and his business partner, Ricky, experts at repairing the hurricane’s damage—and at making Tabby’s and Ellie Mae’s hearts beat a little faster.

As unpredictable, crowded, and stormy as it gets, the Sandcastle B and B is still the perfect harbor for healing past wounds, finding romance, and making up for lost time. Add in Tabby’s homemade pecan pie, and the Texas shore feels like a little slice of paradise.

My Review:

Ah, a novel of damaged souls bound together in the face of nature’s forceful notice that there are worse things out there. Time to count the blessings and coincidentally this is the perfect time of year to do that.

Cousins Tabby and Ellie May have had their full share of tragedy and the timing is right for their Aunt Charlotte to sign over her beachfront B&B to her nieces and split for drier pastures. Heaven knows they have ideas on what to do with the property which will require some updating but the relocation for both of them to the south is a great time for them to band together, start over, and do it.

Unfortunately, they barely unpack their bags before they are notified of an impending hurricane and dear ole auntie calls to tell them he’s sending Alex to them with four assisted living persons who could not be evacuated—no place to go.

Well, at least Alex and his partner Ricky can provide some eye candy as well as a built-in repair crew after the hurricane.

Hurricane Delilah is taking her old sweet time decimating the formerly peaceful village and it appears their elderly guests will be forced to stay until everyone is bosom buddies. The two old sisters are like a couple vipers while the two old veterans swap war stories. The cousins manage to make it work without B&B experience or electricity and discover the group is a family in itself.

Nothing like a feel good Hallmark type novel to set a reader up for the upcoming holiday season. Not as syrupy sweet as Hallmark, as there might be some objectionable language and implied sexual activity, but it is a lesson in coming together for the common good. There are themes of kindness, loss, grief, and recovery. Fresh starts are a good thing, families are a good thing, pets are a good thing, and so are romances but these are just too convenient to be very realistic.

I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the author and publisher through @NetGalley that in no way influenced this review. These are my honest thoughts.

Rosepoint Rating: Three point Five Stars

Book Details:

Genre: Small Town & Rural Fiction, Contemporary Women’s Fiction, Women’s Romance Fiction
Publisher: Montlake
ISBN: ‎ 1542038383
ASIN: B09S37L4Q7
Print Length: 315 pages
Publication Date: November 8, 2022
Source: Publisher and NetGalley

Title Link(s):

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

The Author: Carolyn Brown is a New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Publisher’s Weekly and #1 Amazon and #1 Washington Post bestselling author. She is the author of more than 100 novels and several novellas. She’s a recipient of the Bookseller’s Best Award, Montlake Romance’s prestigious Montlake Diamond Award, and also a three-time recipient of the National Reader’s Choice Award. Brown has been published for more than 20 years, and her books have been translated 21 foreign languages.

When she’s not writing, she likes to plot new stories in her backyard with her tom cat, Boots Randolph Terminator Outlaw, who protects the yard from all kinds of wicked varmints like crickets, locusts, and spiders.

Visit her at http://www.carolynbrownbooks.com.