Season of Wonder by RaeAnne Thayne

Season of Wonder by RaeAnne Thayne

A Haven Point novel

Published September 25, 2018 – HQN

Review copy courtesy of the publisher; Little Bird Publicity; NetGalley

Description:

It’s a long way from New York to Idaho…but could they have found a home at last?

Dani Capelli has never truly belonged anywhere. And from her earliest days as a foster child in Queens, she would have been lost if it weren’t for her love of animals. Until high school, when she fell hard for the wrong boy, and found herself pregnant—and married—by graduation. Two daughters later, Dani realized her mistake and filed for divorce, and with the help of scholarships and loans—and a lot of macaroni and cheese dinners—she enrolled in vet school. Things were finally looking up…until her ex-husband became her late husband, in the most notorious way possible.

Now Dani and her daughters need an out-of-town pass more than ever. So when the retiring Haven Point veterinarian offers her a chance to settle in the small Idaho town and take over his practice, she jumps at it. But adjusting to the charming mountain community isn’t easy; thirteen-year-old Silver begins acting out while six-year-old Mia is growing too attached to Haven Point and everything in it, especially their next-door-neighbor, Deputy Sheriff Ruben Morales. And Dani can’t blame her. Ruben is everything she’s secretly wanted—and everything she can’t bear to risk loving…and losing.

As the holidays draw near, their shared concern for Dani’s daughters brings them closer together, giving Ruben the chance to show this big-city woman just how magical Christmas in Haven Point can be…and that the promise of a home at last is very real in the most wondrous season of the year… (publisher)

My take:  RaeAnne Thayne takes us back to Haven Point at Christmas time. Dani and her daughters are new in town. She’s the new veterinarian set to take over the ready-to-retire Dr. Morales’ practice. Older daughter Silver isn’t happy in a new place and school but younger daughter Mia loves the town and everyone she meets. When Silver acts out in a big way their neighbor becomes involved with the family.

Deputy Ruben Morales (son of Dr. Morales) is someone Dani wants to avoid. If she offends him it could jeopardize her future in Haven Point. The problem is, there’s a growing attraction and it’s not one-way. Ruben has made it a policy not to date women with children. He doesn’t know what to do when he realizes he actually enjoys Dani and her girls. This could go well or very, very wrong for everyone involved.

For good reason Dani has had trust issues her entire life. She wants to provide her daughters with a different life. Is that even possible without opening herself to the possibilities that present in Haven Point. She’s about to find out. Season of Wonder is a lovely novel about the good that can come from rising above challenges both big and small.

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About the author:

New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author RaeAnne Thayne loves words. Her love affair started as soon as she learned to read, when she used to devour anything she could get her hands on: cereal boxes, encyclopedias, the phone book, you name it! She loves the way words sound, the way they look on the page, and the amazing way they can be jumbled together in so many combinations to tell a story.

Her love of reading and writing those words led her to a fifteen-year career in journalism as a newspaper reporter and editor.

Through it all, she dreamed of writing the kind of stories she loved best. She sold her first book in 1995 and since then she’s published more than 40 titles. Her books have won many honors, including three RITA® Award nominations from the Romance Writers of America and a Career Achievement Award from RT Book Reviews.

RaeAnne finds inspiration in the rugged northern Utah mountains, where she lives with her hero of a husband and their children. She loves to hear from readers and can be reached through her website at http://www.raeannethayne.com.

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