Sweet Story of Love and Healing -- Harbor Pointe

 

About the Book

When life throws you off pointe, love helps you find your balance.

As a principal dancer with a prestigious New York ballet company, Devyn Lee is far from her hometown of Hope Harbor on the Oregon coast. But when a family emergency compels her to return, her visit turns into an extended stay after complications arise.

Widowed mill worker Aaron Steele pays no attention to the buzz in Hope Harbor about the famous dancer in town. Until his grieving nine-year-old daughter takes a fancy to Devyn after she agrees to help with a fundraising show for a local charity in which the young girl is performing. As the show--and Devyn--begin to lift his daughter's spirits, his own life is brightened by the beautiful ballerina as she slowly but surely captures his heart.

But what are the odds that such an accomplished, polished woman from the city could ever fall for a small-town lumberman with two left feet?

Come home to Hope Harbor--where hearts heal . . . and love blooms.

My Thoughts

If I've said it once, I've said it at least a dozen times (and that's because there are now 12 books in the series), there is something very special about a trip to Hope Harbor.

Irene Hannon has created a special little town on the Oregon coast where the characters and their stories are so real that you feel at home when you open the next book. As is always the case in Hope Harbor, you will find Charley, the taco maker and town fountain of wisdom, a seagull couple named Floyd and Gladys who always manage to appear at just the right time, the friendly banter between a couple of clergymen who help keep townspeople and each other in line, as well as many other residents and visitors of the community.

In Harbor Pointe, Devyn, a professional ballerina with a fabulous career in New York, has come home to Hope Harbor temporarily to help her sister who is recovering from a serious accident. Aaron is a widowed lumberman concentrating on his work and raising his young daughter. Both find themselves dealing with loss and hurts from difficult family dynamics but not necessarily looking for any new relationships. Martin, Diane, and their son Lucas are suffering from long-time relational and business issues that have torn their family apart. 

As she does so masterfully, Irene brings all these characters -- and more -- to life and draws readers into their lives and stories. Through beautifully engaging storytelling, she crafts a series of personal and community happenings that provide a setting where "hearts heal and love blooms."

I highly recommend Harbor Pointe to anyone who enjoys contemporary sweet romance. Like all the other books in the series, this can be read as a standalone, so if you are a first-time reader in the series, you won't be lost. But I would expect that after reading this story, you will want to go back and read the previous 11 books and learn to love Hope Harbor even more.

(And in case you are interested, here are a couple of my favorite lines in the book:  "Yes, more stories are coming -- by popular demand!" and "Hope Harbor #13 will release in April 2027.")

I was very excited to be a member of the launch team for this book and am happy to share my own thoughts in this review.

About the Author

Irene Hannon is the bestselling and award-winning author of more than 65 contemporary romance and romantic suspense novels. In addition to her many other honors, she is a three-time winner of the prestigious RITA Award from Romance Writers of America. She is also a member of RWA's elite Hall of Fame and has received a Career Achievement Award from RT Book Reviews for her entire body of work. Learn more at IreneHannon.com.