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Review

3.5 stars

This was a really sweet read. A heartfelt and surprising second-chance-romance, and a story of soulmates finding their way back to each other.

Jake Jameson is a doctor who is returning to his small home town – the island of Ocracoke in North Carolina – following the death of his father. They didn’t have the best of relationships, but his father left him the medical practice that he ran on the island, and though he has no intention of staying put in the town that he escaped as a teenager, he is visiting for the funeral and to get things in order so that he can leave again. But returning home means that he is returning to the place where he broke the heart of the only girl he ever loved.

Molly McIntyre is an Ocracoke girl through and through. She grew up on the island, and now runs her family’s inn. She grew up with Jake, and the two of them started dating in high school. They were each other’s first everything, and they fell in deep, all-consuming love, becoming each other’s soul mates and knowing they would be together forever. That was all shattered when Jake left. Molly has tried to move on with her life, and though on the surface she’s done exactly that, the reality is not that simple.

It’s been 12 years since Jake and Molly have seen each other. They are both in completely different stages in their lives from where they once were, but their deep feelings for each other are still very much alive – just buried under grief, guilt, anger and confusion.

“I tried, Molly. God, how I tried.”
“Tried what?” I asked, pinching the bridge of my nose.
“I tried to forget you. But I never could. I tried to forget this place and all it represented, but the memories never faded. You never faded.”

There’s a whole heap of emotion between Jake and Molly, and their coming together was never going to be easy, but as they wade their way through their complicated feelings, they discover that their feelings for each other were as intense as they ever were, and they blissfully and passionately succumb to the inevitable.

In all my life, this girl—this woman—was always my one weakness, even after a decade apart.

But as Jake finally begins to deal with the demons of his past, and Molly starts to recognise that things in her life aren’t as idyllic as she once believed, they will both need to examine where their life choices have brought them, what they want from the future, and then figure out how to get it.

It’s an emotional ride for Jake and Molly, and I loved the chemistry, the fun moments, the sweet moments, and the swoony romance. And while I figured I knew what to expect going in, there is some is unpredictability about the story – though honestly I’m still unsure how I feel about it. It wasn’t the mega-swoonfest that I was hoping for, but it was still a realistic, heartfelt love story, and I liked how functional Jake and Molly were in sorting through their issues and finding their way forward.

I’m looking forward to reading Dean’s book up next.

3.5 stars.

 

By the Bay