The Beekeeper's Ball

The Beekeeper's Ball by Susan Wiggs
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Isabel Johansen is about to open a cooking school on her family's sprawling hacienda in Sonoma Valley, California, when author Cormac (Mac) O'Neill roars into her life. Her sister and grandfather decided to hire Mac to write a book about her grandfather's life, particularly his role in the Danish Resistance as a teenager during WWII. Writing a biography means getting to know the family, and in spite of--or perhaps in reaction to--their calamitous introduction which resulted in an emergency trip to the doctor, rooted-in-place Isabel fascinates Mac, the perennial wanderer. Isabel is also drawn to Mac, but her disastrous past relationship and the secret she's kept since then have destroyed her trust in herself and her judgment, immobilizing her heart. Authors poke at secrets, however, and this one breaks free when Isabel's ex comes to town and threatens her fledgling business.

I love how Susan Wiggs slowly unfolds the story by alternating between present-day and the 1940s. Book two in the series fills in some of the details shared in book one and leaves plenty of room for book three, which I am eagerly awaiting. There are really two stories at play here: Isabel's personal growth and budding romance, and Magnus's survival as an orphaned teen determined to thwart the Nazis every way he can. Both absorbed my complete attention. This series should definitely be read in order, beginning with The Apple Orchard .

For readers' advisors: character doorway is primary, story secondary. A little bit of swearing, allusions to sex but no descriptions.

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Summer at Willow Lake

Summer At Willow Lake by Susan Wiggs
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Olivia Bellamy is a talented "fluffer" of real estate, but her eye for design doesn't transfer to her romantic life, and once again she has chosen poorly when it comes to men. She has been expecting a proposal, not another disillusionment, and when the ax falls, she takes her grandmother up on a summer-long job offer to escape the city and lick her metaphorical wounds. Olivia is tasked with getting Camp Kioga, the family's former summer camp, rehabilitated in time for her grandparents' 50th wedding celebration. Problem is, the only local contractor available turns out to be the very same man who broke her heart when they were teenage counselors at the camp ten years ago.

Connor Davis isn't quite the Bad Boy he likes to let people think he is. He has built a successful business and plans to build his dream home on a piece of property he bought. But dream homes cost money, so he takes the job at Camp Kioga not realizing that "Olivia" is the same person as "Lolly," his former best friend and the love of his life. He never told her what really happened all those years ago, so he's got a steep hill to climb to win her trust again.

This is the first installment in the Lakeshore Chronicles series, and it's interesting how many subplots/secondary characters end up getting novels of their own later. Ms. Wiggs does a good job of laying the groundwork early. Of course, part of the reason I know that is that I accidentally read this book fourth, or so, instead of first. I'm not sure how that happened, as I hate reading series out of order, and I've owned a copy of this book for so long, I no longer recall when/where/how I came to have it on my nightstand.

As with most, if not all(?), the other books in this series, this tale is non-linear in chronology, slowly doling out information to readers, while the main characters know most of what happened all those years (and even decades) ago. I like this style better in the other books where the characters are more often learning alongside the reader what really happened at crucial junctures in the past. This volume would have been better had the revelations occurred more quickly, in my opinion. As it was, I sometimes grew tired of Olivia's repetitive insecurity--by the age of 27, you'd think at least some of that would have worn off, especially when her business became so popular and she lost the weight she'd gained in adolescence. It's a good beach read, but lacks the depth of later books in the series.

For readers' advisors: story doorway is primary, character secondary. There are a couple of sex scenes, but they're not particularly explicit, as well as some inner dialogue (monologues?) of horny adolescents. Some mild swearing on occasion as well.

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The Winter Lodge

The Winter Lodge by Susan Wiggs
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Jenny Majesky has secretly always wanted to be a writer, but instead she's been running the family's bakery since her grandfather died and her grandmother had a stroke. Lately she has also been writing a popular food column for the local newspaper based on her grandmother's old recipes from Poland, and she dreams of turning her columns into a book, but her dreams go up in smoke one night when the family home burns to the ground only a few weeks after her grandmother passes away. Shell-shocked by her series of staggering losses, Jenny teeters on the brink of despair, rescued by the estranged love of her life, police chief Rourke McKnight, her newly discovered half sister Olivia, and the wider Bellamy clan.

When Rourke heard the address of the house fire, he broke all kinds of speed records racing to the scene, heart in his throat, bargaining with God the entire way. He vowed to never again be so stupid as to let Jenny go if only she could please survive the conflagration. And when he discovered her alive and well at the bakery, puzzled by his unexpected arrival, his relief confused her even further, for it had been years since the pair had allowed themselves to so much as be in the same room together. Then Jenny learned she was homeless, and Rourke leapt at the chance to make good on his promise and insisted she stay with him until she could get back on her feet...or forever. But first it will take a lot of work to overcome the years of pain and guilt that have kept them apart.

I absolutely LOVED this book. The characters felt so real, even when they made bad choices I could sympathize. The love triangle between Rourke, Jenny, and Joey was heart-breaking because each of them truly loved the other two and wanted what was best for them, despite disagreeing what that might be.

Wiggs continues her pattern of setting up future books in the series, most particularly with the Daisy sub-plot (see Marrying Daisy Bellamy). And I thought the structure of flipping back and forth between past events and present-day worked better in this book than in the first book in the series (which I admittedly accidentally read after this one). I am tagging this book "mystery" as well as "romance" because Jenny finally uncovers the truth about her mother's disappearance all those years ago, and it has repercussions--and dangers--for her life today.

For readers' advisors: character and story doorways are both strong, and setting (bucolic Avalon, NY) seems to be a big draw for some readers as well. There is a little swearing and some sex, but not terribly explicit. I had a very hard time putting this book down.

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Candlelight Christmas

Candlelight Christmas by Susan Wiggs
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Logan O'Donnell is a dedicated father who's worked hard to provide for his son, Charlie, creating and running a prosperous insurance company in the small town of Avalon. When his ex-wife's new husband gets transferred to a far away military base, Logan is left with a Charlie-sized hole in his life, and he decides to embark on a new business venture, one that fills him with the passion and purpose his insurance company never has. It's his sister's friend, Darcy, who gives him the idea.

Darcy has just divorced her cheating ex-husband and vows never again to marry, especially not a man with kids. Giving up her stepchildren was as difficult as giving up her marriage. Still, it's hard to resist Logan, and even harder when he sets out to persuade her to give them a chance.

I am so delighted to see Logan get the happiness he deserves! I felt so bad for him in Marrying Daisy Bellamy because he tried so hard to make things work and be the best father he could be, and it wasn't his fault that Daisy was in love with someone else. I'm glad Ms. Wiggs gave him his own book. Interestingly, according to the timeline of book #2 in this series, The Winter Lodge, this book takes place in about 2018.

For readers' advisors: story and character doorways. Some sex scenes but nothing terribly explicit.

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Halfway to Heaven

Halfway to Heaven by Susan Wiggs
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Senator Cabot's younger daughter, Abigail, is a brilliant astronomer and a lousy dresser. Freshman Congressman Jamie Calhoun decides the best way to win her father's influence is to "help" Abby romance and win the husband of her dreams. So why are neither truly happy when it works?

For readers' advisors: character doorway is primary. Story and setting (circa 1870s or 1880s Virginia) are secondary. Mild sexual content and swearing.

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The Apple Orchard

The Apple Orchard by Susan Wiggs
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Tess has worked hard to get where she is in her career as a sort of modern-day treasure hunter who tracks down lost objects such as Annalise Winters' mother's necklace, missing since the day Ms. Winters' mother was taken by the Nazis in Denmark. Her firm not only locates items of immeasurable personal and monetary value but also arranges auctions for the items clients wish to sell, and Tess is expecting a big promotion when an unexpected visitor arrives and upends her world. The grandfather she never knew is in a coma, and she must work with the half sister she never knew she had to save the family's property, an apple orchard in Sonoma, CA, from imminent foreclosure.

I "shelved" this book as both romance and non-genre fiction because although there are strong romantic elements (i.e. Tess falling for the banker who comes to tell her about her grandfather), the romance isn't central to the story. It's every bit as much about Tess learning to slow down and really allow people into her life. It's also about family history, told in flashback scenes from the point of view of her grandparents when they were children in Denmark during the Nazi Occupation, as well as Tess's mother during her pregnancy. And it's a bit of a mystery, solving the puzzle of what happened to a particular family heirloom. I'm glad this is book #1 because I'm hoping to learn more of Isabel's story in book #2.

The one thing I didn't like?  As a stepmother myself, I found the epilogue highly improbable, at least as far as the children's reaction went.

For readers' advisors: character doorway is primary, story is secondary, and setting is fairly strong, too. There are a couple of sex scenes, but nothing explicit--more the "fade to black" type.

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Marrying Daisy Bellamy

Marrying Daisy Bellamy by Susan Wiggs

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


It took me a while to get into this novel. I wasn't all that particularly interested in the characters at first. They seemed...well, like kids in their early twenties. But then at a certain point, the story started to get interesting and more complicated, and eventually I was really hooked. I did guess a couple of the plot twists in advance, but Wiggs handled them with more depth and maturity than is usual for the romance genre.

Daisy Bellamy has been in love with Julian Gastineaux since they were teenagers; however, a drunken weekend party her senior year in high school resulted in an unplanned pregnancy with Logan O'Donnell as the father of her son Charlie. Logan turned out to be a good, responsible father, and he wants them to be a family. But Julian is the one who lights Daisy up, and when he proposes, she says yes. Unfortunately, Julian's secret mission for the air force wreaks havoc on all their lives.

For readers' advisors: story and character doorways



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The Summer Hideaway

The Summer Hideaway (Lakeshore Chronicles, # 7) by Susan Wiggs

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This was the very first audiobook I listened to on my car's CD player. I love listening to books on my way to and from work! It makes even traffic jams delightful. :) Listening takes much much longer than reading for myself, but that's OK.

In this particular story, a dying George Bellamy hires a young private nurse, Claire Turner, to take care of him in his final days...and to fall in love with his grandson, Ross. George's family thinks Claire abducted him, since they don't understand why he is returning to the town and summer camp where he spent several significant summers during his youth. Claire, however, merely wants to keep a low profile and do her job. She & Ross both object to George's matchmaking scheme.

The story is really three alternating stories: present day, George's youth, and Claire's traumatic past. I was very impatient to get back into my car every day to hear what happened next! The funny thing about listening was how obvious it was when Wiggs got a little repetitive, however. For example, I'd recommend removing a few of the times Claire insists (to herself) that she can never ever have a family, as well as most instances where Claire is described as "intriguing." I got it the first time!

The one thing I had a hard time listening to was at the beginning when Wiggs is telling of Ross's final day as a med-evac pilot in Afghanistan. Although my husband is not being redeployed this spring, I still have a hard time listening to tales of war.

Overall, I loved this book. Time to check out more audiobooks!

For readers' advisors: story doorway, with character secondary



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Home Before Dark

Home Before Dark by Susan Wiggs

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars

I would actually give this book 3 1/2 stars if I could. Susan Wiggs usually writes romances, and that's what I expected when I put Home Before Dark on hold. But although there are definitely romantic themes in this book, it's really more a story about two sisters and the complicated bonds of love that tie families together.

The premise of the book is that Jessie, the free-wheeling photographer, comes home to her sister's house in Texas to see her family one last time. Sixteen years ago she gave away her baby daughter to her sister Luz, and now Lila is just as rebellious as Jessie. Sixteen years ago, Luz gave up her own promising photography career to get married and raise not only Lila but also three boys born over the next few years.

What kind of lies do we tell ourselves or our loved ones in the name of protecting them? At what cost?

I'd say more, but I don't want to give anything away. :)


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