FORTUNATE HARBOR

Author: Emilie Richards ISBN: 9780778327707 7/2010 CONTEMPORARY Publisher: MIRA

Tracy Deloche finally gets a chance to swap business for a romantic evening with Marsh Egan, but dinner goes cold when she spots her ex-husband prowling outside her cottage. CJ is supposed to be in prison and out of her life for good. Exactly what is this modern-day pirate seeking and what will it mean for Tracy's future? Janya Kapur envies eveiy pregnant woman she sees, but Rishi, her husband, is suddenly reluctant to talk about children. Is he disappointed in her inability to conceive? Their marriage was a contract between strangers. Can they ever hope for anything more? Waitress Wanda Gray loses her job after new owners turn the Dancing Shrimp into a tapas bar. Wise neighbor Alice Brooks"s suggestion that Wanda start her own business seems like a brilliant solution, until Wanda starts Pie War I with the owners of the local bakery. When the empty cottage at Happiness Key is rented by single mother Dana Turner, everything seems perfect. With Alice volunteering to watch Dana's daughter while she works and Wanda's offer of a job, this spit of Florida Gulf Coast land should be a fortunate harbor for a mother and daughter who have moved far too often. Except for Dana's shocking secret. As the women of Happiness Key struggle to discover the truth in time to help their new neighbor, their only weapon is friendship. But will friendship be enough?

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

Emilie Richards has quickly become one of my favorite authors. The first book in this series, HAPPINESS KEY, touched me so deeply that I’ve been recommending it to all of my friends. FORTUNATE HARBOR is just as delightful. This book is the continuation of the story of a woman trying to make a new life for herself after the man she’s married to shows himself for what he really is—a con man and crook. Her attempt to trust another man and find romance, while supporting her new friends in the Florida cabin community she’s left with after her ex goes to prison, is both heartwarming and entertaining.

The thing I enjoy most about Ms. Richards’ tales is the way she doesn’t skimp on giving her characters human qualities. Some are good, others show themselves in less-than-favorable lights, but all are real and there is no glossiness to her characters. They think, act, and say what most of us, in their positions, might. I appreciate that, and find myself feeling more deeply for the people on her pages than I do for many fictional characters.

The women of this seen-better-days enclave form their own family of sorts, supporting each other through good times and bad. They have no compunction about making decisions which, while not always perfectly above board, are right for the situation. They protect their own, even when those they surround are bound for other places.

Opening one of Ms. Richards’ books is like coming home. At least that’s how I felt when I sat down to read FORTUNATE HARBOR. Personally, I can’t wait to come home to another of this talented author’s tales!

Kay James