Love in a Small Town

This is a perfect second-chance romance! Rafe and Olivia were just too young and idealistic when they rushed to the altar, causing their passion-fueled marriage to crumble under the weight of daily responsibilities. Two years after the divorce that nobody wanted, neither has been able to move on. One of the things I love most about this story is that neither one even tried to move on during their estrangement. Yes, there's a bit of OW drama in the beginning, but it's so minor that it hardly bears mentioning and proves only how hard it was for Rafe to even consider dating anyone else. This book's brilliant writing style immediately establishes the setting and characters. Even though I knew they'd get their HEA by the end, I was still fighting my own tears in the early chapter where they each tried to get the other to stop crying over their seemingly unsalvageable relationship. Between her new job and his criminal cases, this has a complex and sometimes tragic plot that goes deep into the community, well beyond just the two MCs. We get a thorough introduction to the Pine Harbour community and we can completely understand how his jobs make it difficult for him to prioritize his personal life. But even though he knows he mostly to blame for their separation, he never once thinks of her as his "ex-" wife. In his heart, she's still his and always will be. Such deep romanticism makes it very easy to root for him and the personal growth he needs to become the husband he wants to be. This was such a wonderful book, and and I'm now hooked on the entire series. I hadn't read the original version of this book before reading the revised version as an ARC so I can't speak to the updates and changes between the two, but I can say that this 2020 version is absolutely perfect.

I'm a sucker for a good second chance romance. This one fit the bill plus it's set in a small town. Which is another favorite of mine. This one pulled at all of my emotions. It had me laughing and smiling, but then wham it had me gasping and tearing up. It went in a direction I didn't see coming. You can tell right off the bat Olivia and Rafe still have strong feelings for one another. I was rooting for them right from the beginning. A favorite part for me was watching them fall in love all over again. This is a delightful read with a ton of emotion. The epilogue left me with a huge smile on my face.

4 star reviews Love In A Small Town (Pine Harbor #1) by Zoe York Book one in the Pine Harbor series. This is Rafe and Olivia Minelli’s story and was entertaining an second chance at love story. It was well written and I found myself invested in the story that Zoe York wove. These two have been married and divorced and yet neither has really gotten over the other despite parting ways. Now Olivia is at a crossroads, she needs to decide if she is going to stay in Pine Harbor or finally cut ties and leave for good. Despite divorcing and moving on, well trying to move on, both Rafe and Olivia still have feelings for one another. Having been badly hurt, Olivia is afraid to open her heart back up to Rafe and who can name her. However, Rafe wants another chance and is determined to show her that he has changed and is the man for her. Can Rafe convince Olivia to take one more chance? Will Olivia take a leap of faith and in doing so finally have the happily ever after she wanted with the love of her life Rafe?