Basia's Bookshelf

Sea Glass Island (Ocean Breeze #3)
By Sherryl Woods
Publisher: Harlequin MIRA
Publication Date: May 28, 2013
Genre: Adult Contemporary Romance
Source: Netgalley

 

With her two younger sisters heading for the altar, will Samantha Castle exchange old dreams for new ones? Lately she’d rather be on the North Carolina coast with family than in New York with agents and actors. Though she vows not to let her teenage crush on Ethan Cole influence her decision, it’s hard to ignore her feelings for the local war hero.

Ethan lost more than his leg in Afghanistan. He lost his belief in love. Even being surrounded by couples intent on capturing happily-ever-after won’t open this jaded doctor’s heart. It’s going to take a sexy, determined woman—one who won’t take no for an answer.

Goodreads Summary

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I started Woods’ Ocean Breeze series because of my fondness for this particular author and I’m ending it with my love for series romances centered around families and places rejuvenated. Each of these books can be read as a standalone, but they tell a much better story when read in order as a series since there’s an overall story arc. You also don’t want to miss a triple helping of Boone’s steaks, Castle burgers or warm chocolate doughnuts, do you?

After successfully “helping” her other two granddaughters find their happily ever afters, Cora Jane Castle is finally getting the chance to work more of her matchmaking magic with the entire family gathering in Sand Castle Bay for Emily’s wedding. Oldest granddaughter Samantha is still unattached and at a set of crossroads in her life – a perfect time for her to fall in love as far as Cora Jane is concerned. She’s even got the target picked out: Dr. Ethan Cole, someone Samantha had a crush on in high school.

As soon as Samantha gets there, the scheming starts. Cora Jane, Emily and Gabi do everything they can to get Samantha alone with Ethan. Since the last thing this group is capable of being is subtle, the pair know they’re being shoved together and they try to lower any expectations of a grand romance. Ethan isn’t interested in being anyone’s match, even the lovely Samantha’s. When he came back from fighting in Afghanistan as an amputee, his fiancée ruthlessly broke his heart and he’s too cynical to think he’s going to have a happily ever after with anyone. Samantha is attracted to Ethan, but he keeps coming up with excuses not to be alone for very long with her so she tries to keep things light and casual.

Samantha’s career as an actress was never blazing, but it’s definitely fizzling now. When she comes back to Sand Castle Bay for the wedding, she doesn’t tell anyone how bad it is, but she’s ready for a change and romance. Ethan’s kind of a hard case though – he’s emotionally scarred, vulnerable and completely averse to smooching, which she keeps pestering him to do. Their romance is a very, very slow starter – they talk a lot and negotiate a lot before getting down to the really swoon-worthy things.

I didn’t feel as strongly about Samantha as I did about Emily or Gabi. Emily had the first book without anyone else’s story in the way, so she was easy to define. Gabi had a big personality and a big issue book, so she was easy to define. Samantha is a relatively easygoing person who didn’t come across as having a deep burning passion for her career like her sisters’ do, no tormented love life or any other unusual history for me to pin any attachment onto. She’s a nice beautiful woman at loose ends with her career and a meddling family trying to fix her up with a guy with giant issues. Ethan seemed like a really quiet guy that needed someone to spike his punch. I don’t mean that in a not-nice way, just that he seemed so caught in a rut and serious that I couldn’t help but hope that when Samantha really got ahold of him, she loosened him up.

Sea Glass Island isn’t just Ethan and Samantha’s story, but it also finishes all three Castle sisters’ romances. Emily and Boone are having their giant wedding finally, Gabi and Wade are enjoying their new life together and making plans and now Samantha is back and thinking about making a future with Ethan. I didn’t think there was a lot of romance in Gabi and Wade’s book, but they’re so adorable here! I love both of them and Gabi is a lot of fun. Emily on the other hand – ugh. Emily is not a pleasant bride-to-be. I enjoyed her book and thought it was probably the most romantic of the three and still think she and Boone are the most swoony, but she was just horribly whiny and terrible to her sisters. The guys are fantastic, all of them – Boone is still my favorite, and now along with Ethan I got to add his medical clinic partner Greg, who was hilarious.

Samantha and Ethan’s story wrapped up perfectly, in a way that only this particular series could have. I admit to laughing a little over the last several pages. I enjoyed my time in Sand Castle Bay and look forward to seeing where Woods is heading to next.

My Rating: A-

Click on the covers to read my reviews of Sand Castle Bay (Ocean Breeze #1) and Wind Chime Point (Ocean Breeze #2)

Harlequin MIRA is offering a complete paperback set of the Ocean Breeze series (Sand Castle Bay, Wind Chime Point, Sea Glass Island) to two lucky winners (US/Can). Just fill in the Rafflecopter!

About Sherryl Woods

With two other careers to her credit before becoming a novelist and four states in which she’s lived for extended periods of time, Sherryl Woods has collected friends and memories, along with way too much unnecessary junk.

“The friends are the only things I’ve brought with me through the years that really matter,” she says. “I could probably live without one more chintz teacup, another tin-litho sandpail or another snowglobe, but I need those friends.”

Author of more than 100 romance and mystery novels, Sherryl Woods grew up in Virginia. Over the years she had lived in Ohio and Florida, as well as California. Currently she divides her time between Key Biscayne, Florida and Colonial Beach, Virginia, the small, river-front town where she spent her childhood summers.

A graduate of Ohio State University School of Journalism, Sherryl spent more than ten years as a journalist, most of them as a television critic for newspapers in Ohio and Florida. For several years she also coordinated a motivational program for the more than 8,000 employees at the University of Miami-Jackson Memorial Medical Center.

Her first book, RESTORING LOVE, was published in 1982 by Dell Candlelight Ecstasy under the pseudonym of Suzanne Sherrill. Her second book, SAND CASTLES, under the pseudonym of Alexandra Kirk, was published later that same year by Bantam. She began using her own name when she moved to the Second Chance at Love line at Berkley Publishing. In 1986, she began writing full-time and also began her long career at Silhouette Books with the Desire title NOT AT EIGHT, DARLING, set in the world of television which she covered for so many years.

In addition to her more than 75 romances for Silhouette Desire and Special Edition, she has written thirteen mysteries — nine in the Amanda Roberts series and four in the Molly DeWitt series.

When she’s not writing or reading, Sherryl loves to garden, though she’s not at her best on a riding lawn mower. She also loves tennis, theater, and ballet, even though her top spin has long since vanished, she’s never set foot on a stage, and she’s way too uncoordinated to dance. She also loves baseball and claims anyone who’s ever seen Kevin Costner in “Bull Durham” can understand why.

Biography courtesy of SherrylWoods.com