Friday, May 14, 2021

Review & Giveaway - - The Secret at Sugar Sand Inn

The Secret at Sugar Sand Inn
by Leigh Duncan
Sugar Sand Beach - Book 2
Publisher: Gardenia Street Publishing
Release Date: May 13, 2021
Reviewed by PJ
 


Reggie has life all mapped out. The husband she put through law school has just landed his first big case. He’ll probably make junior partner within the year. In no time at all, they’ll move out of their cramped apartment, pay off the bills from the fertility clinic and buy a nice house in the suburbs, where they’ll raise the baby Reggie longs to hold in her arms.

Except…life goes seriously off course when Reggie’s husband walks out on their marriage the same day she receives the most devastating news. With her hopes and dreams for the future crumbling, Reggie turns to three of the best friends a girl could ever want.

Helping Michelle, Nina and Erin convert a run-down beach house into the Sugar Sand Inn is just the project Reggie needs to restore her self-confidence and heal her battered soul. A talented gardener, she volunteers to restore the neglected grounds around the inn to their former glory with the help of handyman Chris Johnson. In no time at all, Reggie’s world is filled with bright possibilities for the home and family she’s always wanted. But will the secret she harbors jeopardize Reggie’s new-found happiness?

Join Reggie, Michelle, Nina and Erin as they build new lives in Sugar Sand Beach, where fresh opportunities for life, love and happiness are as limitless as the blue Florida skies.



PJ's Thoughts:


The saga of the Sugar Sand Inn continues as best friends Reggie, Michelle, Nina, and Erin arrive in Florida with all their belongings and set about turning Michelle's inheritance into a lovely inn while also confronting the life issues that have put each of them at a crossroads. As in book one, this second installment of their journey is told from alternating perspectives of each woman, allowing us to discover more aspects of their stories and personalities. Each of them continues to evolve as they work through the process of restoring the inn, begin to forge relationships in the community, and settle in to their new home. The primary focus of this book, however, is on Reggie, the youngest of them and the one on the most tenuous emotional footing.


Like the gardens surrounding the Sugar Sand Inn, Reggie is just beginning to emerge from the tangled vines of her marriage and contentious divorce. It was such a joy to watch her begin to find her footing and reclaim her self-worth after enduring the emotional abuse of her controlling, almost ex-husband. I was in her corner, cheering her on the whole way, especially when closely-held secrets about the louse were revealed. Her journey is filled with humor, hope, self-reflection, an emotionally devastating secret, and the first steps toward healing and happiness. I have hopes that Reggie will continue to flourish and that, possibly, there is romance in her future with a single father who is deserving of her love...unlike her ex. 


Nina takes center stage next with book three, The Café at Sugar Sand Inn, due to be published on August 13. After the final sentence of The Secret at Sugar Sand Inn (who is the strange man Nina is clearly shocked to see?), I'm counting down the days!


If you enjoy heart-tugging and empowering women's fiction with mature female friendships, realistic issues, and drool-worthy food, set amidst the rugged natural beauty and scenic, soothing shores of the Gulf of Mexico on the Florida Panhandle, this series is for you. As each Sugar Sand Beach story builds upon the previous one, this is one time where I strongly recommend reading the books in order.


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The food in this book had me drooling all over my Kindle, especially the appetizers Nina prepared for the inn's open house. They made me want to head straight to my kitchen and start cooking. 


What's your go-to appetizer (or dish) to prepare for guests? If you don't cook, what appetizer is your favorite to eat?


One person who posts a comment before 11:00 PM, May 15 will receive a signed print copy of The Gift at Sugar Sand Inn


*Must be 18

*U.S. only










19 comments:

  1. This book is already on my wish list - have seen it around different sites. I love food related books. And one of my favorite appetizers is stuffed mushrooms.

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  2. This book is already on my wish list - have seen it around different sites. I love food related books. And one of my favorite appetizers is stuffed mushrooms.

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  3. This book sounds captivating. An appetizer which I make and enjoy is bruschetta on a baguette. Yummy and very well liked by all.

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  4. What a wonderful story. When I create an appetizer one of the easiest and most healthy and tasty is hummus with cut up veggies.

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  5. Sausage cheese dip with chips is a favorite appetizer of ours.

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  6. I love to cut up a veggie tray and make ranch dressing. This sounds like a wonderful series!

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  7. I have the first one on my kindle....and I just got this one. I love stories which are warm and comfy with relationships and care and overall love between women.

    Thanks for the review. I like shrimp dip and tortilla chips - and I also make good stuffed mushrooms.....I know, nothing new and exciting, but people like them.

    Hope everyone takes care and stays well.

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  8. This sounds like a wonderful series. I have a few appetizers: hummus with veggies, cheese & crackers, or mini quiches.

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  9. chips and guac! I hadn't heard of this series before, but it sounds wonderful. I'm off to see if my library has it. Thanks, PJ!

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  10. antipasto is something most people like.

    denise

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  11. I usually make sausage rolls or my home made liver pate with toast.

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  12. It has been so long since we had anyone come over, It is hard to think of what I used to fix. I would usually fix a heated tray with sausage balls (biscuit mix crumbled sausage, cheddar), spinach balls, and pigs in a blanket. If I have time and I feel like it I might add bacon wrapped figs stuffed with almonds.

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  13. It has been so long since we had anyone come over, It is hard to think of what I used to fix. I would usually fix a heated tray with sausage balls (biscuit mix crumbled sausage, cheddar), spinach balls, and pigs in a blanket. If I have time and I feel like it I might add bacon wrapped figs stuffed with almonds.

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  14. I am simple - love cheese and crackers and nuts.

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  15. Can't wait to read this book. My favor is stuffed mushrooms.

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  16. Go to appetizer is Pinwheels. Which is a tortilla with a flavored cream cheese, s couple slices of meat and cheese. Roll up and cut into thin slices. You can make all kinds of flavors

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  17. Jalepeno's stuffed with cream cheese wrapped in bacon.

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  18. I am not a cook. I like spinach dip!

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  19. Thanks for chance, this books looks so good!!! I love all foods and enjoy making strawberries with cream cheese and brown sugar!!

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