Welcome to Black Dog Bay, a tiny seaside town in Delaware known as “the best place in America to bounce back from your breakup.” Home to the Better Off Bed-and-Breakfast, the Eat Your Heart Out bakery, and the Whinery bar, Black Dog Bay offers a haven for the suddenly single.
Flight attendant Summer Benson lives by two rules: Don’t stay with the same man for too long and never stay in one place. She’s about to break rule number one by considering accepting her boyfriend’s proposal—then disaster strikes and her world is shattered in an instant.
Summer heads to Black Dog Bay, where the locals welcome her. Even Hattie Huntington, the town’s oldest, richest, and meanest resident, likes her enough to give her a job. Then there’s Dutch Jansen, the rugged, stoic mayor, who’s the opposite of her type. She probably shouldn’t be kissing him. She definitely shouldn’t be falling in love.
After a lifetime of globe-trotting, Summer has finally found a home. But Hattie has old scores to settle and a hidden agenda for her newest employee. Summer finds herself faced with an impossible choice: Leave Black Dog Bay behind forever, or stay with the ones she loves and cost them everything....
The first book in the series started out incredibly addicting, with a rather intense scene involving flight attendant protagonist Summer and a plane crash. I wasn't expecting the story to start off with such a major plot element, especially since I went into it anticipating something super fluffy and light. However, I was definitely hooked from the first few pages and flew through Summer's story, from the aftermath of the crash to her hospital drama to her eventual escape to Black Dog Bay. The story had all of the elements I love about a small town- colorful and quirky locals, adorable businesses (the Eat Your Heart Out Bakery, the Better Off Bed and Breakfast, the Whinery, etc.) and decades old traditions and feuds.
While Summer was sometimes a protagonist who came off as a little unbelievable and over the top with how plucky and impulsive she was, I liked seeing the town welcome her as one of their own and how she used her status as an outsider to her advantage, not succumbing to the social conventions and bullying that many of the townspeople were susceptible to. I especially loved her ability to diffuse almost any situation, since her training as a flight attendant had prepared her for almost any situation. The romance was also refreshing, as she falls for a level headed, responsible type (the town mayor) instead of a typical romance novel bad boy.
Overall: This book was sweet and quick and just plain fun. I loved everything about Black Dog Bay, from the zaney town dynamics to the mythical black dog that's supposed to appear to visitors once they've found what they're look for or moved on. I love how it feels like the town functions in a little bubble separate from the influences of the outside world. I'm curious to see how the characters from this novel function in the rest of the companion novels in this series!This review was originally posted on Girl in the Pages
Reading updates
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Started reading
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3 September, 2017:
Finished reading
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3 September, 2017:
Reviewed