Sweet Laurel Falls

Very good reunion story. Maura is still reeling from the death of her younger daughter in a car accident. She tries to put a good face on things for her friends and family but she isn't really in the mood for the holidays. Her world is rocked even further when her older daughter comes home from college with a visitor - the father she never knew. Maura had never told anyone who he was after he left their town saying he wouldn't be back. She had tried to contact him but he didn't return her calls, so she continued on her own. Maura has built a good life with family and friends and owns her own business. Seeing Jack again has brought back memories, both good and bad. I loved seeing the way that she and Jack were able to deal with each show more other in a civil manner from the beginning. She was still angry with him for leaving and never contacting her, but she also admitted that there was still an attraction to him. She also has to deal with the idea of Sage getting to know her father, and having to share Sage with him. I liked the way that she was honest enough to admit to herself that she was jealous of Sage's new relationship with her father, fearing that she'll lose her special relationship with her daughter. When an issue comes up with Sage that needs both her parents' support, Maura and Jack have to learn to coexist. What they discover is that their love hadn't really died after all. I loved the fact that they didn't just jump back into an intense relationship but took the time to get to know each other again and make sure that they had something that would work.

Jack couldn't wait to leave Hope's Crossing when he was a teenager. His mother had had mental issues when he was growing up before killing herself, and his father had withdrawn to his business world. When his father basically stole the land Jack had inherited from his mother, Jack had enough and left. He wanted Maura to go with him, but she wasn't ready to leave everything behind. Jack worked hard and became a successful architect, frequently appearing as a guest lecturer at colleges, which was how he met Sage. After discovering their connection he was furious at Maura for cheating him out of all those years of knowing his daughter. As angry as he was, I appreciated the fact that he didn't get vocally mean to her and generally be a jerk. He let her know that he planned to stay around and get to know Sage. It was fun seeing his confusion about staying in Hope's Crossing when he had sworn he would never come back. He couldn't understand why he felt compelled to stay. I loved his growing feelings for Maura and loved it when he told her he wanted to see where their feelings would lead them. I liked the fact that it wasn't an overnight decision but a slow progression. Jack also had to deal with seeing his father again. He still had a lot of anger toward his father and it was very hard to let it go. That resolution wasn't an overnight thing either, which made it much more realistic.

I liked the part that Sage had in this book. Her feelings of betrayal were real when she found out about Jack, but she also still loved her mother and told her so. I wasn't surprised by the problem that she had and found the way it echoed her mother's life pretty ironic. That it did was one of the things that helped Jack and Maura deal with it so well. I thought she showed pretty good maturity in her decision making. I also enjoyed her relationship with her grandfather and the part she played in Jack and Harry's reconciliation. Her emotions over the decisions she had to make at the end of the book were very realistic and I loved the solution that Harry came up with. show less

I think this one is my favorite of the series so far. I really liked the way that Maura's grief was dealt with in this book--both how the author wrote about Maura and the other characters' reactions. It was really well done. Jackson and Maura's courtship was perfect for both where they were in life and their history--I really enjoyed reading it. I was a bit disappointed with Sage's "problem", though--first, it was may to easy to figure out what it was, and second, I wasn't crazy about the person who ended up being the cause of it. It seems to take the whole small-town-everyone-is-connected-somehow bit just a tad too far. The solution at the end of the novel also has me torn--it could be a good idea, or it could cause waaaay to many show more problems down the road, but either way it deserves more than a minute and a half discussion in a hospital room. Still, I am liking this series quite a bit and anxious to see what will happen next in Hope's Crossing. show less

Sweet Laurel Falls is one of those wonderful stories that take a hold of your heart and just won’t let you go. Starting with the beautiful cover (who wouldn’t want to sit on a purple bench with a view like that) until the very last page, I found myself captivated with this book.

Maura has had a tough year. Her youngest daughter was killed in a car crash and now at Christmas time she just needs some time to cope with it. Unfortunately during her bookstore’s party her oldest daughter Sage shows up with someone she hadn’t seen in quite awhile, Sage’s father Jackson.

Jackson never knew that when he left he had given Maura a child. After a chance meeting with Sage he was shocked to learn that he was her father. Jackson comes back and show more Maura has to deal with him and with the fact that there is something going on with Sage that she doesn’t want to talk about…

Sweet Laurel Falls is the third book in the Hope’s crossing series but could easily be read as a standalone. I have only had a chance to read the second in the series but I am planning on reading the first book as well as any others that might come next in this touching series. show less

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Sweet Laurel Falls is the third book in the Hope Crossing series. This book was published by Harlequin and released in September 2012. Maura is trying to live one day to the next the best she can after her youngest daughter is killed in an accident. The holiday season is here and Maura is trying to focus on her book store and not on the first Christmas without her daughter. She is surrounded by her family and friends who are trying to as supportive a possible. But, when her oldest daughter comes home for the holidays with a visitor, Maura's world does another flip. Jack hated his hometown and his father. He left for college and never looked back. What he didn't know was that when he left his girlfriend had been show more pregnant with his child. Twenty years later he discovers he is a father and is furious that he lost twenty years with his daughter. He comes back to his hometown with his daughter Sage and to confront the mother of his child. Sage, delighted to have found her father, but going through some intense personal challenges has a shocking announcement that will require the help and support of both her parents. This book is more on the Women's fiction side that contemporary romance but works in both categories.
It is a sweet story about second chances and new beginnings and forgiveness. I think all of us have made choices that we thought were right at the time, but later found that we should have done things differently. Maura finally realizes her mistakes and owns up them, while Jack must learn to forgive the wrongs done to him by Maura, the town and his father. The chemistry is still alive between Jack and Maura, though the timing is not the best. Will they be able to let go of past hurts and rebuild a solid relationship? I give this on a B+ Thanks to edelweiss for the ARC. show less

Maura McKnight-Parker has had a rough year dealing with losing her young daughter Layla. She is just trying to cope with the Christmas season, when she is shocked to see her ex-love Jackson Lange walk into her book store, even more shocked that her daughter Sage is with him. Jackson didn't know Maura was pregnant with his child when he left town. Jackson & Sage discovered their relationship after a lecture at the College Sage attends. As Jackson plans to stay in town to get to know his daughter, old sparks start to fly between he & Maura. As they band together to support their daughter through a life altering situation will they discover their love is still strong?

I really enjoyed this book. It was great to see Maura have some show more happiness after experiencing so much pain.

We also learn who the Angel of Hope is in this book. show less

4 STARS Sweet Laurel Falls is a Hope's Crossing book 3 Okay was I on a emotional roller coast with this book. I admit to sharing some tears and smiling in other parts of the book. RaeAnne characters were real to me and I cared what happens to them. In other Hope's Crossing books we learn that someone is going around and helping people and the notes are signed Angel. In this the 3 book we find out who started it but others are copying the Angel. Maura McKnight-Parker had lost her teen daughter less than a year ago to drunk driving accident. She is puting on a good job to others that she is coping alright. When she is not ready to let her daughter go just yet. She is getting settup to host another Christmas Book club in her book store show more when a old boyfriend Jackson Lange from over 20 years ago shows up in her store with her other daughter Sage in tow. Maura had never told anyone who the father of her baby was. She never told Jackson that she was pregnant. Never told her 19 year old daughter Sage. Jackson was at Sage's Collage giving a lecture and after Sage went up to him. Sage told him that they were from the same little town and she saw his father around town. Jackson asked who her parents were to see if he knew them. She told him that she never knew who her father was but told him Maura was her mother. He figured out fast that he was the father. Jackson hated his father and the small town of Sweet Laura Falls. He left for collage and never came back to his home town untill now. He was upset to find out he was a father all these years and did not know. He was going to stay at least threw the holidays and get to know his daughter. It has been a rough year on Sage too. She really missed her younger sister even though thier was a 4 years between them they were close. Thier is not much of anything to complain about this book except I did not have tissues handy. I will definately be reading more books by RaeAnne in the future. 09/25/2012 PUB Harlequin Imprint HarlequinHQN show less

Maura is still reeling from the death of her daughter in a car accident. Then her college-age daughter comes home, with her father in tow. Jackson never knew his daughter existed - Maura didn't tell him about the pregnancy when he left for college. And now 20 years later, he has a full-grown daughter and still loves Maura as much as ever.