Series:
Hearts on Main Street (Book 1)
Only love can make them whole
Poppy Sawyer has spent years struggling with survivor's
guilt over the car wreck that killed her high school boyfriend. But when her
grandfather wills her part of his antique shop in Christmas Bay, she returns
home to face the pain in her past -- and Justin Frost, the deceased's brother.
Neither expected their long-buried, forbidden attraction would spark at their
first meeting. Nor the healing they find in each other's arms. But guilt is a
hard obstacle to overcome, as is Justin's family. The only way forward together
is to find forgiveness -- with their loved ones and each other.
Good story about love and healing. Poppy returned to
Christmas Bay after her grandfather's death to take up the conditions of his
will - to run his antiques shop with her two cousins. It was a difficult decision
because of the guilt she felt over the death of her high school sweetheart. Her
attraction to Justin, Danny's older brother, complicates matters.
Justin spent the first years after Danny's death blaming
Poppy, but sustaining the grief and anger is exhausting. Seeing her again
creates a resurgence of his teenage feelings for her. His desire to avoid her
and the grief she reminds him of wars with his need to get closer to her.
I enjoyed seeing the relationship between Poppy and
Justin develop. Their first meeting surprises Justin when he discovers he can't
sustain his anger at Poppy. He attempts to maintain his distance from her but
can't stay away. Poppy is equally drawn to him, but some obstacles keep her
from believing they have a future together. One is Justin's mom's continued
bitterness and grief over Danny's death. An early confrontation with Poppy
shows that Evelyn still blames her. However, the biggest obstacle is Poppy's
self-blame and belief that she doesn't deserve love. Every time she takes a
step forward in their relationship, something happens to push her back. I ached
for Poppy and her struggle to forgive herself. I loved seeing them getting to
know each other and working past their grief together. The ending was very
emotional, with an unexpected twist.
I enjoyed the secondary characters also. Poppy's cousins,
Beau and Cora, and Coras's daughter, Mary, were brought together by their
grandfather's will after they'd drifted apart. Each is at a crossroads in their
lives, and their return to Christmas Bay is the perfect time to reevaluate. I especially
enjoyed young Mary. She struggles to deal with her father's death, which leads
to an unexpected connection with Justin's mom. I liked how Mary helped Evelyn.
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