In Blythe Barton Stowe’s considered opinion, justice would have been better served if the earthquake fault that ran under the Los Angeles County Courthouse had simply cracked open and swallowed her husband’s vulgar white stretch limousine, passenger and all.
A Cottage by the Sea
By Ciji Ware
Blythe has every right to feel less than generous towards her soon to be ex-husband. Just as she was returning from her grandmother’s funeral she finds out her husband has been cheating on her with her sister. Being that he is a famous movie director the papparazzi won’t let Blythe have a moment of peace and all she wants is to put an end to things and escape.
As she emerges from the courthouse with a very good divorce settlement she still can’t help but see that her own career is in tatters and her own heart has taken a serious beating. One final blow is that Christopher and her sister are expecting a baby. A baby she had longed for but Christopher had said they couldn’t have.
Blythe figures the best thing she can do is put a lot of distance between her and Christopher and Hollywood so she heads off to a remote cottage in Cornwall. No phone, no car, just some peace and quiet is what she expects. Of course when she arrives at Painter’s Cottage she meets the handsome owner Lucas Teague and before too long she realizes she has a chance for a new life.
With Lucas she embarks on a business venture to save his ancestral home, and while spending time with Lucas she realizes she is falling for him. Blythe tends to be cautious as she has some doubts about Lucas though. He doesn’t have a good connection with his son and she’s not sure if he’s still grieving for his first wife and as she tries to understand these relationships, Blythe realizes that since she arrived at Painter’s Cottage more secrets from her past are slowing cropping up and just wait until you see exactly how this develops in the book.
There’s lots of romance and drama and did I mention some time travel of a sort? I really liked that this didn’t just turn into a woman-scorned-finds-love type novel. I think via the visions Blythe has of the past she’s able to learn forgiveness and understanding. She is protective of her heart, with good reason, but she is open to change and falling in love again.
While this novel was a bit more heavy on the romance from my usual reads it was a light and entertaining book. I could imagine walking around in the beautiful gardens, having tea in the cottage and settling down with a Du Maurier novel for the evening. Blythe becomes quite the fan of Daphne’s books and I couldn’t help but like that.
Source: Advance Review Copy
Your husband cheating on you with your sister??? That is likely one of the worst scenarios I can imagine! I don’t know if I could read this one.
I must admit that I don’t read many romance novels anymore, but this one does sound like it has a lot more to it.
What is not to love with Daphne’s books??? I think I must read this one. It has got it all!
This sounds good to me right now. I think I’m craving a little romance – it’s been awhile (in my reading, anyway!)
This sounds like a nice escapist sort of story–I’ll have to watch out for it.
I’m not usually a big “romance” fan but this one sounds like it is so much more than that and I think I would definitely enjoy it.
This sounds right up my alley. Great review 🙂 And I like that she becomes a fan of Du Maurier.
Stephanie – I know, can you imagine? I was a bit worried at first when the ex re-appears but luckily Blythe didn’t disappoint me.
vivienne – I don’t either and so I wasn’t sure what to expect but it was entertaining.
Sandy – That was actually one of my favorite parts of the book. How she finally discovers Daphne!
Care – Glad to hear you like the sound of this one!
Danielle – Definitely escapist. I wouldn’t mind being in Cornwall right now 🙂
Kathleen – I hear you. I went through a phase a long time ago when I did read romances but not so much anymore.
bookworm – I hope you’ll enjoy it. I loved the Du Maurier parts! 🙂
I loved reading this book. It was one of those books to just read with a sense of whimsy. The Du Maurier tie in made me want to revisit her and read one of her books I have not read.
I found myself wanting to read a du Maurier novel when I finished with this one too!
I loved the connection to du Maurier’s books, too. It was a bit too romancey for me, but not enough to set the book aside.