The Perfect Hope

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY 19 NOV 2012

Ghosts, betrayal, misunderstanding, and jealousy take a hand in this enchanting final installment of the Inn BoonsBoro Trilogy by bestselling romance writer Roberts (The Last Boyfriend). Hotelier Hope Beaumont leaves her post at a swanky Washington, D.C., hotel following a humiliating romantic breakup with the owner's son, to reunite with friends in Boonsboro, Md., and become innkeeper of the charming Inn BoonsBoro, owned by the Montgomery family. Hope is warmly welcomed by all except Ryder Montgomery, the gauche yet sexy inn owner's son. Teasing sexual tension develops between cool, urbane Hope and unpolished Ryder, culminating in more than one heated liaison. Hope believes their burning obsession is only filling a carnal need; the reader will have less trouble recognizing the truth. Roberts provides a spectral subplot fraught with sightings and physical contact between the inn's resident lovelorn, meddling ghost, Lizzy, and Hope, Ryder, and one very annoying guest. Incredibly, no one questions the existence of the long-departed honeysuckle-scented Lizzy, who is desperately searching for her deceased beau, Billy, a Civil War soldier. Although Roberts sets a slow pace, presumably to mirror life in a small town, she doesn't disappoint when all the loose ends come together at the end.