Love by the Book
A Smitten Novella
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4.0 • 3 Ratings
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- $8.99
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- $8.99
Publisher Description
A sweeping love story set in a lavish seaside mansion in 1901 Rhode Island.
Melinda Hollister is a society lady, intent on finding a rich husband before her peers discover her quickly diminishing wealth. Nick Bryson is all business, focused on making a name for himself in his father's teamship line. Despite the marriage of their siblings, they rarely gave each other a second glance—until a tragic accident results in Melinda and Nick being appointed as co-guardians of their three-year-old niece Nell.
In order to get better acquainted with Nell and one another, Melinda and Nick agree to spend the summer in their own private quarters of the Bryson family vacation home, Summerhill. As their love for Nell grows, so does their attraction to each other. And for the first time in their lives, they sense that God has a bigger plan in motion.
Yet old habits die hard and Melinda and Nick each find it difficult to resist the pull of their former worlds.
When the unthinkable happens, they find themselves faced with seemingly impossible choices and a new understanding of God's true love.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Inspirational fiction author James (Love on a Dime) returns to offer her love-struck fans another romance, this one featuring the pampered Melinda Hollister and her deceased sister's dashing brother-in-law, the bachelor Nick Bryson. Melinda is rather spoiled and fun-loving, while Nick is overly somber and serious. The two have nothing in common except for a grand devotion to their orphaned niece, three-year-old Nell. As co-guardians, the two must find a way to overcome their disagreements for the sake of Nell; overcome they do, by agreeing to marry for the sake of convenience. That's not exactly the happy ending either of them envisions, as scheming relatives and money problems threaten their union from the start. James does a tidy job of writing characters who are believable and whose circumstances are plausible; her growing fan base won't be disappointed, even if there isn't a great deal of depth in the story itself.
