Contemporary Romance published by Montlake 21 Jun 22
This is a whole new side of Catherine Bybee, and I have to say that I really like it. The story is real, rich, emotional, messy with an absolutely delightful cast of characters that I’m looking forward to getting to know better as the series progresses.
Brooke’s long-term relationship is failing as she flies out to California to deal with her aging father’s health issues. When she finds out that he cannot live independently, she moves him into an assisted-living facility while she moves herself closer to him. Craving the water, she picks San Diego as her and her father’s new base. Over lunch at a family-owned Italian restaurant in Little Italy, she meets the D’Angelo family and finds herself a tenant in one of the tiny family apartments located above the restaurant.
Soon she’s making friends with the entire family, particularly the so-very-handsome Luca and his motherless daughter, with whom she relates given similar circumstances of her upbringing. Before she knows it, she’s giving Luca parenting tips and doing the horizontal mambo, even as he’s there to provide emotional support as she deals with issues related to her dad. Luca’s family, from his sister to his brother to his mother, are all delightful and absolutely matchmaking to the hilt.
Trouble in the form of Luca’s ex-wife shows up, and they have to deal with the emotional fallout that impacts Luca’s daughter, even as Luca has to dodge the wiles of an ex who makes no bones about getting her man back. The story just sweeps you in and you find yourself living along with the characters as they go about their daily lives, laughing, doing yoga, playing ball at the park, or flying off to deal with high-powered clients.
I absolutely can’t wait to read the next book in the series that is queued up already to get more of these characters.
Grade: A
See SandyM’s review.
Summary:
Brooke Turner has always had a complicated relationship with her father. But when his health takes a turn for the worse, she drops everything to care for him. He’s her dad, after all, and he needs her. What Brooke doesn’t anticipate is the unraveling of her long-term relationship and a cross-country move to San Diego’s Little Italy.
Luca D’Angelo is the oldest of three children and a single father to a young daughter. When his mother rents the top floor of their house to Brooke, he’s angry. Who is this beautiful stranger with no ties to the neighborhood? Can she be trusted in such close proximity to his family?
As Luca learns of Brooke’s difficult journey with her ailing father, his heart softens. And Brooke, who witnesses Luca’s struggle as a single parent, develops feelings for him, too. But when it all falls apart, will love heal their wounded hearts?
Read an excerpt.
Other books in this series:
