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dreriv1219's review against another edition
4.0
I love this series. The characters are lovable and original and you find yourself immersed in their lives. I feel that I could walk outside and run into some of the Bellamy family. Susan Wiggs has woven great, heartwarming stories in the little town of Avalon and I am always happy to return for a visit.
brandiwyne4018's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 A lot going on. An emotional ride. Get your Kleenex.
tita_noir's review against another edition
3.0
I am giving this book 3-stars. Not because it wasn't really good. It was. Not because it wasn't well written. It was wonderfully written. By all rights based on enjoyment and connection with the story this should be a 4-star or higher book.
But it isn't. And it is because the romance in this book was almost non-existent.
Sonnet Romano, daughter of Nina (heroine of earlier Willow Lake book [b:Dockside|958714|Dockside (Lakeshore Chronicles, #3)|Susan Wiggs|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1179807929s/958714.jpg|943624]), is feeling a bit blue after her best friend Daisy has gotten married. By all rights her life should be perfect. She is connecting with her estranged father, she has a great new boyfriend and she has just learned that she's won a prestigious fellowship. And yet, all that seems bland in light of Daisy's happiness at her wedding. Prodded by her post-wedding glow mood and a bunch of jell-o shots, Sonnet has sex with her best friend Zach, now a hot and handsome videographer.
The next day she realizes it was a colossal mistake and runs back to New York, determined to move on with her life. Except she is dragged back home by some devastating news.
Here's the thing...I have been reading the Willow lake series since forever. It is a romance series. Well, it was a romance series. And therein lies my problem. You start out reading a series that is romance and the somewhere along the way it becomes less about romance and more about the inner struggles of the heroine. You get a serious sense of disconnect. I noticed this first with the preceding book in this series, [b:Marrying Daisy Bellamy|8637125|Marrying Daisy Bellamy (Lakeshore Chronicles #8)|Susan Wiggs|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1300144332s/8637125.jpg|13507939] which featured Sonnet's best friend and step-sister Daisy. I also gave that book 3-stars for the same reason I am giving this one three stars. To wit, I expected romance but I got women's fiction. I thought it was an anomaly. I guess not.
My affection for the characters and town that I have gotten to know is a large part of the reason why I do continue to read. And frankly SW writes a good story. However, you can't go into a book expecting a romance and not get that. It will have an effect on how you perceive the book.
After Sonnet and Zach's hook up at the wedding, their romance stalls until pretty much the last fourth of the book. The lion's share of the story is taken up with Sonnet helping Nina out with some bad news. And with Sonnet working on a reality show. And with Sonnet's preoccupation with her father's senatorial campaign. Basically with all kinds of things that have nothing to do with Zach. He disappears for whole swaths of the book. As I was reading I kept wondering when he would come back and we'd get some forward action on the romance front.
All in all this is a good book. Romance readers will find it a disappointment in the romance dept. Wiggs fans and fans of the series should still enjoy it with the caveat to expect it to be more about Sonnet and Nina than Sonnet and Zach.
But it isn't. And it is because the romance in this book was almost non-existent.
Sonnet Romano, daughter of Nina (heroine of earlier Willow Lake book [b:Dockside|958714|Dockside (Lakeshore Chronicles, #3)|Susan Wiggs|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1179807929s/958714.jpg|943624]), is feeling a bit blue after her best friend Daisy has gotten married. By all rights her life should be perfect. She is connecting with her estranged father, she has a great new boyfriend and she has just learned that she's won a prestigious fellowship. And yet, all that seems bland in light of Daisy's happiness at her wedding. Prodded by her post-wedding glow mood and a bunch of jell-o shots, Sonnet has sex with her best friend Zach, now a hot and handsome videographer.
The next day she realizes it was a colossal mistake and runs back to New York, determined to move on with her life. Except she is dragged back home by some devastating news.
Here's the thing...I have been reading the Willow lake series since forever. It is a romance series. Well, it was a romance series. And therein lies my problem. You start out reading a series that is romance and the somewhere along the way it becomes less about romance and more about the inner struggles of the heroine. You get a serious sense of disconnect. I noticed this first with the preceding book in this series, [b:Marrying Daisy Bellamy|8637125|Marrying Daisy Bellamy (Lakeshore Chronicles #8)|Susan Wiggs|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1300144332s/8637125.jpg|13507939] which featured Sonnet's best friend and step-sister Daisy. I also gave that book 3-stars for the same reason I am giving this one three stars. To wit, I expected romance but I got women's fiction. I thought it was an anomaly. I guess not.
My affection for the characters and town that I have gotten to know is a large part of the reason why I do continue to read. And frankly SW writes a good story. However, you can't go into a book expecting a romance and not get that. It will have an effect on how you perceive the book.
After Sonnet and Zach's hook up at the wedding, their romance stalls until pretty much the last fourth of the book. The lion's share of the story is taken up with Sonnet helping Nina out with some bad news. And with Sonnet working on a reality show. And with Sonnet's preoccupation with her father's senatorial campaign. Basically with all kinds of things that have nothing to do with Zach. He disappears for whole swaths of the book. As I was reading I kept wondering when he would come back and we'd get some forward action on the romance front.
All in all this is a good book. Romance readers will find it a disappointment in the romance dept. Wiggs fans and fans of the series should still enjoy it with the caveat to expect it to be more about Sonnet and Nina than Sonnet and Zach.
bookwyrm_lark's review against another edition
4.0
Review originally published at The Bookwyrm's Hoard, along with an interview with author Susan Wiggs.
I really enjoyed Return to Willow Lake. I've read (and loved) a number of books by Susan Wiggs before, but hadn't read any of the Lakeshore Chronicles until now. Before starting this book, I checked several of the earlier books out of the library and read them first. I'm very glad I did. Although Return to Willow Lake can certainly stand on its own, having some familiarity with the recurring characters and their backstories made reading it more satisfying.
Sonnet and Zach are high school students in the first books in the series. Here, the former best friends get their chance at romance, though for a long while Sonnet remains willfully blind to what she could have with Zach. (In fact, there were times I wanted to grab her shoulders and shake some sense into her, which shows how involved with the characters I became.)
Also returning are Nina and Greg Bellamy, Sonnet's mother and stepfather, whose romance is the focus of Dockside, and Zach's father, a convicted embezzler. Several other characters show up in cameo roles. Getting to "visit" with old friends is one of the delights of a series, though in this case, Nina's illness remains a concern throughout much of the book. The scenes depicting her treatments and the toll they take on Nina and those who love her are well written, sometimes even wrenching to read.
Sonnet's desire for her successful-but-absent biological father's love and approval have influenced many of her adult decisions, but her mother's illness and Sonnet's return home provide an opportunity to re-evaluate what really matters to her. Sonnet's father, a decorated general with a perfect family, is making a bid for the Senate, and the existence of Sonnet (conceived out of wedlock during his years at West Point) could prove an embarrassment to his campaign unless it's handled carefully. That's one of the jobs of campaign aide Orlando, whose other role is as Sonnet's "ideal" boyfriend. Ideal, that is, from the point of view of pleasing her father, something the reader sees immediately although Sonnet cannot. She tries to ignore the fact that their relationship lacks... sparks. Both the campaign and Sonnet's relationship with her father remain intermittent but significant issues in the book, and provoke some of the tensest moments. Yet watching Sonnet reconnecting with her true self and her dreams is one of the major satisfactions of Return to Willow Lake.
Meanwhile, both Zach and Sonnet are working for a reality TV show filming in Avalon, one involving an ex-con female rapper named Jezebel and a group of poor, inner-city children. Jezebel is a fascinating young woman: street-smart, irreverent, funny, and outspoken, but also compassionate and even wise. One of my few regrets about Return to Willow Lake was that we did not get to see more of Jezebel; she's one of the best characters in the book.
Zach Alger is almost too good to be true: gorgeous, sexy, and absolutely smitten with Sonnet. Thankfully, he has a few flaws. For one thing, he used to be a bit of a womanizer (though of course, now that he's in love with Sonnet, that's in the past.) And his heart is firmly planted in Avalon, while Sonnet's life has been in New York until now. But how could any woman resist the combination of best friend and passionate lover? It beats me, but Sonnet manages to for most of the book, before finally (inevitably!) coming to her senses. One mark of a skilled romance writer is the ability to maintain the reader's interest in the principals' relationship despite the fact that the end result -- their "happily ever after" -- is a foregone conclusion. Wiggs is indeed good at this; I never lost interest in Sonnet, Zach, or their relationship. Wiggs doesn't rely on sizzling scenes of physical intimacy to keep the reader's interest, either; although there are a few distinctly sensual scenes, this is mainly a book about Sonnet's emotional journey.
My only other regret about Return to Willow Lake is that there is so much going on -- Nina's pregnancy and illness, the reality TV show, Sonnet's relationship with her father and his Senate campaign -- that the book occasionally seemed a little choppy. I felt that I didn't get to experience the emotional highs and lows quite as deeply as I wanted to because of the frequent shifts in focus from one subplot to another. Nonetheless, I had no trouble connecting to and caring about these characters and their stories, particularly Sonnet, Zach, and Nina. Kudos to Susan Wiggs for a very satisfying and heartwarming Return to Willow Lake.
FCC disclosure: A review copy was provided by the publisher.
Read more of my reviews at The Bookwyrm’s Hoard.
I really enjoyed Return to Willow Lake. I've read (and loved) a number of books by Susan Wiggs before, but hadn't read any of the Lakeshore Chronicles until now. Before starting this book, I checked several of the earlier books out of the library and read them first. I'm very glad I did. Although Return to Willow Lake can certainly stand on its own, having some familiarity with the recurring characters and their backstories made reading it more satisfying.
Sonnet and Zach are high school students in the first books in the series. Here, the former best friends get their chance at romance, though for a long while Sonnet remains willfully blind to what she could have with Zach. (In fact, there were times I wanted to grab her shoulders and shake some sense into her, which shows how involved with the characters I became.)
Also returning are Nina and Greg Bellamy, Sonnet's mother and stepfather, whose romance is the focus of Dockside, and Zach's father, a convicted embezzler. Several other characters show up in cameo roles. Getting to "visit" with old friends is one of the delights of a series, though in this case, Nina's illness remains a concern throughout much of the book. The scenes depicting her treatments and the toll they take on Nina and those who love her are well written, sometimes even wrenching to read.
Sonnet's desire for her successful-but-absent biological father's love and approval have influenced many of her adult decisions, but her mother's illness and Sonnet's return home provide an opportunity to re-evaluate what really matters to her. Sonnet's father, a decorated general with a perfect family, is making a bid for the Senate, and the existence of Sonnet (conceived out of wedlock during his years at West Point) could prove an embarrassment to his campaign unless it's handled carefully. That's one of the jobs of campaign aide Orlando, whose other role is as Sonnet's "ideal" boyfriend. Ideal, that is, from the point of view of pleasing her father, something the reader sees immediately although Sonnet cannot. She tries to ignore the fact that their relationship lacks... sparks. Both the campaign and Sonnet's relationship with her father remain intermittent but significant issues in the book, and provoke some of the tensest moments. Yet watching Sonnet reconnecting with her true self and her dreams is one of the major satisfactions of Return to Willow Lake.
Meanwhile, both Zach and Sonnet are working for a reality TV show filming in Avalon, one involving an ex-con female rapper named Jezebel and a group of poor, inner-city children. Jezebel is a fascinating young woman: street-smart, irreverent, funny, and outspoken, but also compassionate and even wise. One of my few regrets about Return to Willow Lake was that we did not get to see more of Jezebel; she's one of the best characters in the book.
Zach Alger is almost too good to be true: gorgeous, sexy, and absolutely smitten with Sonnet. Thankfully, he has a few flaws. For one thing, he used to be a bit of a womanizer (though of course, now that he's in love with Sonnet, that's in the past.) And his heart is firmly planted in Avalon, while Sonnet's life has been in New York until now. But how could any woman resist the combination of best friend and passionate lover? It beats me, but Sonnet manages to for most of the book, before finally (inevitably!) coming to her senses. One mark of a skilled romance writer is the ability to maintain the reader's interest in the principals' relationship despite the fact that the end result -- their "happily ever after" -- is a foregone conclusion. Wiggs is indeed good at this; I never lost interest in Sonnet, Zach, or their relationship. Wiggs doesn't rely on sizzling scenes of physical intimacy to keep the reader's interest, either; although there are a few distinctly sensual scenes, this is mainly a book about Sonnet's emotional journey.
My only other regret about Return to Willow Lake is that there is so much going on -- Nina's pregnancy and illness, the reality TV show, Sonnet's relationship with her father and his Senate campaign -- that the book occasionally seemed a little choppy. I felt that I didn't get to experience the emotional highs and lows quite as deeply as I wanted to because of the frequent shifts in focus from one subplot to another. Nonetheless, I had no trouble connecting to and caring about these characters and their stories, particularly Sonnet, Zach, and Nina. Kudos to Susan Wiggs for a very satisfying and heartwarming Return to Willow Lake.
FCC disclosure: A review copy was provided by the publisher.
Read more of my reviews at The Bookwyrm’s Hoard.
ickamae's review against another edition
5.0
I really enjoyed watching Sonnet grow since her introduction but even more so in this book! I really love the whole Lakeshore Chronicles! I hope there are more books to come in this series!!
kpmav9's review against another edition
3.0
Very typical susan wiggs story. Predictable and cute. Fun, fast, light read.
allingoodtime's review against another edition
4.0
Almost as much as I was itching to read Daisy’s story in this series, I wanted to see Zach get his HEA. More than that, I wanted to see Zach get the girl of his dreams. So, for me, this was a cherry on my sundae after reading Marrying Daisy Bellamy.
Poor Zach has been through so much in this series. He’s always in the background and working away, never quite getting his due. He is just such a good guy. Atoning for the sins of his father when he has no obligation to do so, still trying to keep a relationship with his father when he has every reason not to, always the one his friends can count on no matter what. Yet the boy who is now a man never complains and never even lets on that he’s not 100% happy with the way things are going in his life.
Sonnet is always prepping for the next step in her life. Whether it’s school, work, her relationships with friends and family, her love life, she has a plan. She has an idea in her head as to what each step should look like. Unfortunately, that doesn’t really leave her with any feelings of satisfaction. She works hard and is getting ahead in her professional life, but what does that even mean? Does what she is doing really make her happy or just make her happy that her father is proud?
While Sonnet and Zach have known each other since early childhood and always been the best of friends, their lives have taken drastically different turns. They always find a way back to each other and their old rhythms when Sonnet is in town though. It’s inevitable that they’ll someday open their eyes and see they are meant to be more than friends. Not because a man and woman can’t be just friends…that is not something I believe at all. But because nobody truly understands them the way they understand each other. Nobody, not even Daisy, has been there for them through so many ups and downs in such an unwavering fashion as they have been for each other. Before Sonnet went away for school and then her career, they weren’t ready for the depth their relationship had the potential to have. Now they’re adults. Now they have experienced life in many different ways. Now they know what they truly want and need.
There are some fun and different elements to this story that surprised me. The whole storyline with Jezebel was one I thought I would abhor. The author did a beautiful job of showing two sides to the same coin while also giving the main characters their impartial sounding board. While that was a fun part of the story, Nina’s health issues were gut wrenching. Such a thought provoking and important storyline within this book.
Over the course of this series, I have truly found myself becoming fully invested in Avalon’s residents. Each new story is going on a trip with beloved friends.
This review can also be found at All In Good Time.
Poor Zach has been through so much in this series. He’s always in the background and working away, never quite getting his due. He is just such a good guy. Atoning for the sins of his father when he has no obligation to do so, still trying to keep a relationship with his father when he has every reason not to, always the one his friends can count on no matter what. Yet the boy who is now a man never complains and never even lets on that he’s not 100% happy with the way things are going in his life.
Sonnet is always prepping for the next step in her life. Whether it’s school, work, her relationships with friends and family, her love life, she has a plan. She has an idea in her head as to what each step should look like. Unfortunately, that doesn’t really leave her with any feelings of satisfaction. She works hard and is getting ahead in her professional life, but what does that even mean? Does what she is doing really make her happy or just make her happy that her father is proud?
While Sonnet and Zach have known each other since early childhood and always been the best of friends, their lives have taken drastically different turns. They always find a way back to each other and their old rhythms when Sonnet is in town though. It’s inevitable that they’ll someday open their eyes and see they are meant to be more than friends. Not because a man and woman can’t be just friends…that is not something I believe at all. But because nobody truly understands them the way they understand each other. Nobody, not even Daisy, has been there for them through so many ups and downs in such an unwavering fashion as they have been for each other. Before Sonnet went away for school and then her career, they weren’t ready for the depth their relationship had the potential to have. Now they’re adults. Now they have experienced life in many different ways. Now they know what they truly want and need.
There are some fun and different elements to this story that surprised me. The whole storyline with Jezebel was one I thought I would abhor. The author did a beautiful job of showing two sides to the same coin while also giving the main characters their impartial sounding board. While that was a fun part of the story, Nina’s health issues were gut wrenching. Such a thought provoking and important storyline within this book.
Over the course of this series, I have truly found myself becoming fully invested in Avalon’s residents. Each new story is going on a trip with beloved friends.
This review can also be found at All In Good Time.
jotyler2021's review against another edition
3.0
The book was good, but not great. The only reason I say this is because the main characters, Sonnet and Zach, are rarely together until the end of the book, so you don't really get a feel for their relationship. The whole book is mostly focused on Sonnet and her mother. I guess that there was just too much going on in the story to really focus on one thing. Hopefully the next book in the series will focus much more on the main couple like the rest of the books in the series do.