Neil Pettit feels out of place in his own hometown of Shady Grove, Pennsylvania where everyone knows everything about everyone else and the past can never be lived down. Neil may be a big time hockey player for the NHL now but when he returns home to Shady Grove all his insecurities rise up to haunt him, especially his feelings for Maddie Montesano and their eleven year old daughter.
Maddie is not about to let Neil forget what he did eleven years ago nor will she never forgive him for leaving her alone and pregnant. She is raising their daughter Bree by herself and trying to protect them both from Neil as he makes one of his infrequent trips to Shady Grove, expecting to connect with Bree before blowing town again. But this time is different, Neil is truly trying to be a good father and his efforts touch Maddie’s heart.
Award winning author Beth Andrews begins a new heartwarming series, In Shady Grove, set in a small Pennsylvania town. This passionately charged second chance romance, TALK OF THE TOWN, has realistic characters with an age old problem. Neil and Maddie fell in love when they were teenagers and their love resulted in a pregnancy. Maddie thought she wanted a baby and a home in Shady Grove while Neil didn’t know what he wanted other than to get away from Shady Grove. TALK OF THE TOWN is their story and how their child helps to give them both a second chance. Talented Beth Andrews motivates her readers to emotionally invest in the characters through her distinct dialog and poignant plot. TALK OF THE TOWN is a gratifying read that must not be missed.
Nick Jordan can easily be described as having a type A personality, enjoying order and precision in his work and life in general. One area in his life is definitely out of control and messy to the max, his love life. When Nick was younger, he got back at his older brother Gabe for embarrassing him in front of his future boss and father-in-law by sleeping with Gabe’s girlfriend Laura. The brothers have been estranged ever since. Recently, Nick has begun to realize that his daughter needs her extended family and through her, Nick has reconnected with his brothers. He decides to make amends to Laura also but their instant lust and one unplanned unprotected night together rocks their world forever.
Mathilda Keith has always had the wanderlust, looking for the next place to explore and earning her the nick name, Waltzing Matilda. But when her best friend Bridget needed her, Mattie returned to Valley Ridge to be with her when she lost her battle with cancer. Bridget asked Mattie to be her children’s guardian and Mattie is determined to honor her request. Doctor Finn Wallace has other plans for his nieces and nephew. He believes he can better provide for the children in Buffalo and is suing Mattie for custody.
Callie MacKintosh finds herself between a rock and a hard place as she tries to do her job yet hang on to her principles. She was sent to Accord, Colorado by her boss, Nick Jordan, to get his brother, Gabe Jordan, to sign over his portion of the family land. Nick plans to build a ski resort on the pristine property and Gabe is in his way. Callie has no problem with that until she meets the ruggedly handsome Gabe and her heart beats double time with instant attraction. Gabe is a wounded soul; when he returned home from Afghanistan, where he lost his best friend, his home town had changed into a bustling tourist destination. All he wants is peace, a place to raise his sled dogs and to train for the Iditarod. He supports himself by offering dog sledding camps for adults on the weekend and for school kids during the week. As Callie takes part in one of these camps, she discovers the real Gabe; kind, caring and dedicated, not the recluse many folks in town profess him to be. How can she destroy his world by taking his land from him?
After a horrible accident MacKenzie Williams has spent the last year trying to recover from a horrific accident that completely debilitated her. Eagerly waiting like a lowering pendulum on the fate of her career, she manages to rudely alienate her new neighbor Oliver Barrett. Oliver has his own reasons for starting over, but his dog seems to have formed an attachment to his surly neighbor and her dog which keeps finding ways to see each other. Seeing a different side of MacKenzie intrigues Oliver and after a rocky start they find they have more in common than they thought especially a mutual attraction.