Category Archives: Cedar Key Series

Review: Farewell to Cedar Key by Terri DuLong

farewellTitle: Farewell to Cedar Key by Terri DuLong
Cedar Key Series Book Six
Publisher: Kensington
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Length: 321 pages
Book Rating: A

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Author

Summary:

New York Times bestselling author Terri DuLong welcomes you to the colorful community of Cedar Key, Florida–a place where hearts are warm and friendship is true…

Josie Sullivan adores her Cedar Key home. It’s been the ideal place to raise her daughter, Orli, who’s just turning sixteen. Now that Josie has realized her dream of becoming a registered nurse, she’s been offered the perfect job too–helping Dr. Simon Mancini run his new practice.

Until the clinic opens, Josie is filling in at Yarning Together, where she launches a series of knitting classes for men. Yet for all the vibrant changes, there are some tangled threads. Josie’s romance-author mother, Shelby, receives a worrying diagnosis. And though Josie has always guarded her independence, her connection to Orli’s father, Grant, seems to be rekindling. Most of all, as Shelby’s college classmates rally around their dear friend, Josie begins to see that “home” is more than a place;it’s the relationships woven into each life, strand by strand…

The Review:

Farewell to Cedar Key is the sixth and final novel in Terri DuLong’s delightfully heartwarming Cedar Key series. This charming installment is a little bittersweet since it is time to bid a fond farewell to the town and its inhabitants, but it is also another beautiful story of family, friendship and love.

Josie Sullivan is an independent single mother with strong ties to Cedar Key.  She never married Grant, her daughter Orli’s father, but they have a good relationship and he has always supported her decisions.   Josie has a sometimes difficult, but always loving, relationship with her controlling mother Shelby, a best-selling romance novelist. With a new career opportunity on the horizon, Josie’s life is turned upside down by romance, a scary health diagnosis for her mom and Orli’s unexpected decisions about her future.

Josie has not dated much over the years, so she is a little surprised by her attraction to newcomer Simon Mancini, the new doctor in town and Josie’s new boss. Although she has concerns about an office romance, Josie does see Simon socially, but she is unclear if his interest in her goes beyond friendship.

Even more surprising to Josie are her suddenly complicated feelings for Grant. They have maintained an easygoing friendship over the years and she has never questioned her decision to raise Orli on her own. But when she and Orli travel to Boston to celebrate Christmas and Orli’s sixteenth birthday with Grant, Josie is stunned at her renewed feelings for him. Returning to Cedar Key clarifies which man her heart belongs to, but that only makes her decisions about her future that much more difficult.

As with previous novels in the Cedar Key series, the storyline is refreshingly light and conflict free. Matters of the heart are resolved fairly easily with little angst or fanfare. The story arc that deals with Shelby’s health issue is handled realistically and this part of the plot is a turning point for Josie’s relationship with her mother.

While it is always difficult to say goodbye to familiar friends and faces, Farewell to Cedar Key is the perfect finale for the Cedar Key series. Many of the characters from previous installments make guest appearances and Josie is not the only person who unexpectedly finds love. It is another warm and inviting novel from Terri DuLong that old and new fans do not want to miss.

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Review: Secrets on Cedar Key by Terri DuLong

Title: Secrets on Cedar Key by Terri DuLong
Cedar Key Series Book Five
Publisher: Kensington
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Length: 320 pages
Book Rating: B+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

New York Times bestselling author Terri DuLong’s heartwarming new novel invites you to Cedar Key, Florida–a close-knit community that offers an easy pace, gorgeous scenery–and a whole new perspective on family and forgiveness. . .

In the wake of her husband Andrew’s sudden passing, there’s nowhere Marin Kane would rather be than back on Cedar Key. Marin plans to run the needlepoint store next to her mother Dora’s yarn shop, and settle once more into her tranquil hometown. Then a bombshell arrives: a secret daughter Andrew never revealed to anyone.

Now nineteen, Fiona was the product of a summer affair Andrew had when he was out of town teaching–while Marin was home with their two small sons. All Fiona wants is a chance to meet her half-brothers and Marin–and through them get some sense of the father she barely knew. Marin isn’t sure she can ever overcome her sense of betrayal. But buoyed by old friends–and a new love–the answers may unfold, guiding both Marin and Fiona to a true refuge at last.

The Review:

Secrets on Cedar Key is a very charming novel about friendship, family, forgiveness and love. This fifth installment in Terri DuLong’s Cedar Key series is a beautiful journey for Marin Kane as she reconciles her hurt and anger over her now deceased husband’s long ago betrayal and opens her heart to the unexpected love she finds with Worth Slater.

Marin Kane is faced with two setbacks in the new life she has created in aftermath of her husband Andrew’s sudden death seven months ago. The first is relatively minor, easy to solve and brings a surprising friendship. Marin’s Christmas grand opening of her needlepoint shop is in jeopardy when the contractor has a heart attack but luckily her mom Dora knows someone who can finish the job. Marin strikes up an immediate friendship with his substitute, the handsome and very sexy Worth Slater. Their instant rapport leads an easy and surprising friendship that grows into something much deeper as the months pass.

The second and much more serious complication that Marin is forced to deal with is the irrefutable evidence that Andrew had a secret affair that resulted in the birth of a daughter, Fiona, who is now nineteen years old. Marin’s reflections on her sometimes troubled marriage are painfully honest as she tries to decide what to do with this newfound knowledge. Battling her feelings of betrayal and resentment, she continues to put off making a decision but an impulsive trip abroad provides Marin much needed distance to sort through her emotions and figure out how to handle the situation.

One of the aspects I found most appealing about Secrets on Cedar Key is the fact that Marin and Worth are an older couple. Both are widowed with grown children and in Worth’s case, grandchildren. Their maturity is a refreshing change of pace and their life experiences provided added depth to their characters. Their romance gently creeps up on both of them and their transition to lovers is a natural extension of their friendship. It is a truly delightful romance that avoids angst and anguish as they embrace their evolving relationship.

Secrets on Cedar Key is the first book I have read from the well-established Cedar Key series, but I had no trouble jumping right into the series. There are numerous guest appearances by characters from the previous novels, but Ms. DuLong provides enough back story that I never felt lost. I am intrigued by the glimpses of the characters’ stories and I will definitely be picking up the previous books in the series.

A timeless love story that will appeal to the romantic in us all, Secrets on Cedar Key is captivating story of forgiveness and new beginnings. The picturesque town of Cedar Key is warm and inviting and serves as a lovely backdrop for the unfolding story. Terri DuLong has an engaging writing style and an uncanny ability to create realistic characters that readers will find easy to relate to. It is a heartfelt and emotional addition to the Cedar Key series that old and new fans do not want to miss.

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