Audiobook Review - The Inn at Rose Harbor: A Novel by Debbie Macomber

Nothing helps the housework loathing part of myself get things done like listening to a good audiobook...in my hunt for a book to take me away, I found "The Inn at Rose Harbor" by Debbie Macomber.  I downloaded this from my public library via the Overdrive App on my Kindle.

The Inn at Rose Harbor - A Novel
Author:  Debbie Macomber
Reader:  Lorelei King
Random House Audio

About the book (from Goodreads): 
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Debbie Macomber comes a heartwarming new series based in the Pacific Northwest town of Cedar Cove, where a charming cast of characters finds love, forgiveness, and renewal behind the doors of the cozy Rose Harbor Inn.

Jo Marie Rose first arrives in Cedar Cove seeking a sense of peace and a fresh start. Coping with the death of her husband, she purchases a local bed-and-breakfast—the newly christened Rose Harbor Inn—ready to begin her life anew. Yet the inn holds more surprises than Jo Marie can imagine.

Her first guest is Joshua Weaver, who has come home to care for his ailing stepfather. The two have never seen eye to eye, and Joshua has little hope that they can reconcile their differences. But a long-lost acquaintance from Joshua’s high school days proves to him that forgiveness is never out of reach and love can bloom even where it’s least expected.  

The other guest is Abby Kincaid, who has returned to Cedar Cove to attend her brother’s wedding. Back for the first time in twenty years, she almost wishes she hadn’t come, the picturesque town harboring painful memories from her past. And while Abby reconnects with family and old friends, she realizes she can only move on if she truly allows herself to let go.

A touching novel of life’s grand possibilities and the heart’s ability to heal, The Inn at Rose Harbor is a welcome introduction to an unforgettable set of friends.


From the Hardcover edition.

My Review:  Can a story truly inspire a feeling of coziness and warmth?  Yes.  Within moments of beginning "The Inn at Rose Harbor," I felt as if I was walking into my very own dream.  I don't know if it is true for many, but I have often fantasized about living and running a small B&B in a coastal town.  "The Inn at  Rose Harbor" vividly opened that dream back up in its pages, and I delighted in the escape from my own reality into a place where I lived that dream along with the character Jo Marie Rose. 

Jo Marie Rose is a new widow who is finding healing in embarking on her own dream and also being a part, a gentle part, of healing for her two guests at Rose Harbor Inn, and perhaps some of the town's people as well.  There is a gentleness and sincerity captured in her that is so completely real, I had no trouble picturing Jo Marie and believing everything that she feels and does.  This is something I like about all the characters.  They are flawed indeed, but there is hope there, and not one change happens that does not make sense to the character or the story. 

I look forward to seeing how lives and hearts will be changed with the other visitors to Rose Harbor Inn.  I also am excited to see Jo Marie's plans for this Inn come to fruition, and also seeing how this place will continue to provide strength and healing to Jo Marie as well.  This is a series that I look forward to returning to again and again.  It is nice walking away from a story simply feeling refreshed and hopeful.


I do want to share that  I have not read any of the Cedar Cove books, so this was my first experience walking through the town, enjoying the sites and the smells of the streets, the eateries, and the characters that populate this town that has a magical quality.  I am delighted that this is my first foray into Cedar Cove, because that means there are lots of treasures to find in novels also based in this town.

Production Review:  As I listened to the audiobook, I would also like to comment on production.  It was very well done.  A good reader is so important to an audiobook.  Vital really.  I have stopped listening to more than one audiobook (from favorite authors) because the reader was distracting or simply had a grating voice) Lorelei King perfectly voiced Jo Marie and captured the emotion of the story.  She is a skillful reader, and I hope that I will find her involved with other books that I listen to.


I received this audiobook on loan through the Overdrive app and my public library.

Book Review - Starry Night By Debbie Macomber

After some serious cleaning and cooking (I made two soups with our ham leftovers from Thanksgiving), I was delighted to finish Debbie Macomber's "Starry Night."  I won it from Angela at Griperang's Bookmarks.  What an absolute wonderful win!  

About the book (from Goodreads): 

’Tis the season for romance, second chances, and Christmas cheer with this new novel from Debbie Macomber.

Carrie Slayton, a big-city society-page columnist, longs to write more serious news stories. So her editor hands her a challenge: She can cover any topic she wants, but only if she first scores the paper an interview with Finn Dalton, the notoriously reclusive author.

Living in the remote Alaskan wilderness, Finn has written a mega-bestselling memoir about surviving in the wild. But he stubbornly declines to speak to anyone in the press, and no one even knows exactly where he lives.

Digging deep into Finn’s past, Carrie develops a theory on his whereabouts. It is the holidays, but her career is at stake, so she forsakes her family celebrations and flies out to snowy Alaska. When she finally finds Finn, she discovers a man both more charismatic and more stubborn than she even expected. And soon she is torn between pursuing the story of a lifetime and following her heart.

Filled with all the comforts and joys of Christmastime, Starry Night is a delightful novel of finding happiness in the most surprising places

My Review:  I have read so many amazing reviews of Debbie Macomber's books.  I have friends who simply go on and on about how amazing she is.  They tell me about Hallmark type films and how romantic everything is.  To be honest, because of all my friend's romantic hype, I stayed away, but then, I read a little bit about Debbie myself.  I decided to read one book and see for myself.  That book was "The Inn at  Rose Harbor."  Well, that did it.  I decided to try my hand at one more.  Thus...here we are with Starry Night.

Starry Night was a book that immediately pulled me right in.  I was taken with Carrie and Finn from the get go.  I could completely understand Carrie's willingness to do whatever it took to move onto a more meatier beat at work.  Fly to Alaska?  Why not?  Of course when someone doesn't really want to be found, they aren't terribly joyful when they are located.  Even if the person who locates them is absolutely adorable (which of course Carrie is).  

I loved the direction the story went.  I liked that it was a clean read, because I want to read a story and not a love scene.  The characters were well developed and likeable.  If I had any complaint it would simply be that they were a little too perfect.  Is everyone always perfect looking in a romance novel?  I don't read enough of them to really know.   

The visual pictures created by the author were quite lovely too.  I had a complete film flowing through my mind as I read the book.  Which by the way, I had to slowly work my way through.  I wanted to devour it in one sitting, but I didn't want it to end so I purposely would put Starry Night at the top of my bookshelf so I would do other things rather than read.  

As it is a Christmas themed book, I will give it a snowflake rating.  I give it four out of five snowflakes. 

Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

Today my husband and I will take it easy.  As we do, we will talk about all that we are thankful for.  The list is pretty huge.  One big one, we are finally not underwater on our mortgage.  We are also thankful that even when we were, we were still able to pay our mortgage.  We are thankful of course for our Lord and the blessings that He has given us.  We are thankful for our family.  There is no special order to what we are thankful for.  We are simply grateful for it all.  We don't have everything we may want, but we have most of what we need, and that is a lot really. 

Dinner - 
 
We have enjoyed an amazing ham thanks to my dad and step mom.  You know...I've got to actually share it.  It was from Burgers' Smokehouse.  It arrived at our door last week in a box with a styrofoam box and cold packs.  I was just about to go to the store for a turkey so this was one of those amazing treats!  Less time out shopping and less money spent...YAY!!!!!  We received the Spiral Sliced City Ham and thankfully directions on how to cook it.  Talk about easy!  Face down, 350 degree oven for about 1 1/2 hours.  I glazed it near the end, and let me just say....it was THE best ham I've ever eaten.  It apparently was the best ham my husband had as well because through the whole meal he kept saying "This ham is incredible.  I want to eat more even though I'm full.  Wow.  Great job!"  

Normally this is not something I would purchase, but I'm thinking I just might save up so I can do this again.  A simple cooking project on Thanksgiving was a huge blessing.  I think I will do it again for Easter.  

Okay...now that dinner is out of the way here's what is on the horizon next.

My husband has to work tomorrow so it is all about dessert and relaxing tonight.  Dessert consists of leftover Costco pumpkin pie (we had it at the office and someone had to take it home -  YAY me again!!!!) and no bake cherry cheese cake.  I love this recipe because it is pretty much what my mom made when I was a kid.  Except at some point she changed from Comstock cherries to Marachino (not a good change in my opinion because the Comstock cherries are far more tart and offset the sweetness of the cheesecake).  If you don't like suffering for your art of dessert, check out this recipe here which I picked up at Moms Who Think (I used to get it right off the cream cheese package here it is the second recipe). 

Because recipes disappear, I am also posting it here:

No Bake Cheesecake

Ingredients:
Filling Ingredients:

1 pkg. Philadelphia cream cheese (softened)
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 can Eagle Brand milk

Crust:

1 graham cracker pie crust
or 

1/3 cup melted unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups of graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup granulated sugar
Combine all ingredients, form into a pie tin (9 inch) and bake in oven at 375 for 10 minutes.  

Topping:

Strawberry, blueberry or cherry pie filling

Directions:
1. Mix cream cheese, lemon juice and Eagle Brand milk until smooth and creamy.
2. Pour into graham cracker pie crust. Chill for 6 hours until firm.
3. Top with cherry, strawberry, or blueberry pie filling or serve plain.

Okay...now it is time to do some more reading.  I am enjoying Debbie Macomber's "Starry Night."  I won it from Angela at Griperang's Bookmarks.  You should check out her blog.  She has some great reviews.  

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!