The Bright Spot
by Jill Shalvis
Sunrise Cove - Book 5
Publisher: Avon
Release Date: January 16, 2024
Reviewed by PJ
Luna Wright is a lot of things, but sweet and trusting isn’t on the list. However, she’s a sucker for the underdog and a hard-luck story. Adopted at birth, with scant knowledge of her biological family, she’s created her own inner circle, a motley crew which includes her bestie Willow, to help her run the struggling but charming Apple Ridge Farm.
With a farm-to-table café as well as a menagerie of rescued animals (complete with a baby goat who keeps escaping to the pantry to eat the secret stash of decidedly not organic potato chips), it’s the best home she’s ever known. But when the owner Silas, who they secretly call The Grinch, passes away, Luna discovers the farm is now under control of his investment manager, the enigmatic Jameson Hayes….and her. And that Silas had many, many secrets.
Now Luna’s carefully controlled corner of the world is threatened and she—along with some help from her friends—has to dig deep to find true strength and the real meaning of love and family.
PJ's Thoughts:
The Bright Spot is the fifth book in Shalvis's Sunrise Cove series. Each book in the series stands alone, having only location as the common factor among them so feel free to jump in and enjoy at any point.
The Bright Spot is indeed a bright spot on the reading landscape. There's found family (both two and four legged), heart-tugging rescue animals, an over-the-top grandmother (a hilarious handful), friend drama, opposites-attract romance, and more than a little emotional baggage.
I love that many of the characters in this series are flawed and have multiple layers to be explored. I love the relationship between Luna and her adopted grandmother, how their conversations expose some of those layers and help Luna evolve. I do wish there had been a bit more exploration of those layers when it came to Luna's relationship with Silas and the decisions he made.
It was fun watching "by the numbers" investment manager, Jameson slowly loosen his tie and fall under the spell of Luna, Apple Ridge Farm, and especially Dammit Ziggy, an adorable orphaned baby goat who thinks Luna is his mama but falls head over heels in love with Jameson. No lie, Dammit Ziggy pretty much steals the whole book. Jill Shalvis and adorable animals are a magical combo.
Luna's found family at the farm offer plenty of humor, conflict, emotion, and insight into this woman - who has found a way to draw people to her while still keeping them at a safe distance - to keep the story moving forward. I love their complex relationships, the way they (mostly) have her back (friend drama, remember?), and bring Jameson into the fold. Their antics provide humor, poignant emotion, and those much needed nudges for those times certain characters are reluctant to move forward on their own.
If you're looking for an upbeat, charming, opposites-attract story with emotion, humor, growth, and animals who will steal your heart, give The Bright Spot a try. But don't be surprised if you spend at least a week happily going down the online rabbit hole of adorable baby goats once you turn the final page.
Have you read any of the books in the Sunrise Cove series?
Have you ever spent time with goats, babies or otherwise?
What are your favorite animals to be featured in the books you read?
One randomly chosen person who posts a comment before 11:00 PM, January 17 will receive a print copy of The Bright Spot.
*U.S. only
*Must be 18
I have read the first book in the series, The Family You Make. I enjoyed this book and planned on reading the next books in this series , especially as I noticed that my public library kept purchasing subsequent books in the series. I have been overwhelmed by all the other books on my “to be read” list and kept putting this series off, knowing I had library access to these titles. I still plan to get to them and don’t think I have to read them in any order.
ReplyDeleteThis current book in the series sounds wonderful and I am going to attempt to fit this into my reading schedule, especially since the author will be visiting my zoom book club group in the near future.
I have had contact with babies - my own two children, and hope to have contact with any future grand babies.
I enjoy books that feature all sorts of animals but I have a preference to dog characters!
I've not read this series but her books are always good. goats seem like a hoot lol. i enjoy any animals in my stories - love them all.
ReplyDeleteI love Jill Shalvis books, but have not read this series yet. We live in a small farm and have 14 goats! They are so fun to watch as babies and when they grow up, they follow us around just like the dogs!! I think any animals in a storyline just adds a little extra fun to the story!
ReplyDeleteI am a Shalvis fan, but have not read any of the books in this series. I am a sucker for animals....pretty much any animal- even some of those who do not have fur. I once had a relationship with a small black spider with bright green eyes....but I digress. I like Ms Shalvis' books because of the humor and the relationships with secondary characters. Thanks for this review. As always....just what I need is another book I "really, really need."
DeleteI love this series!! Reading now and loving!! The baby goat is adorable. Love when authors put animals in their stories!!
ReplyDeleteWonderful series and author! Animals add so much enjoyment to a story. Dogs, cats and even pigs. Thanks for this wonderful feature and review.
ReplyDeleteI haven't read Jill's books in awhile so need to catch up on this series. I enjoy here posting glimpses of her life with kids, dogs & cat. Baby goats are adorable!
ReplyDeleteI haven't started this series yet, but have most of the books on my tbr. My daughter and I took care of a friend's small goat herd when she was out of town for over a month. There were 11 baby goats and every day my daughter asked if we could bring some of them home with us. They were cute but nope. I find myself loving most animals in books honestly.
ReplyDeleteI have not spent any times with goats or have read in this series yet. I love books with dogs in them.
ReplyDeleteHi PJ, Great review! I've read a few of the books in this series. I've not spent any times with baby goats, though! Looking forward to reading this book!
ReplyDeleteI haven't yet read any of the books in the Sunrise Cove series
ReplyDeleteI have never spent time with goats
My favorite animals featured in books are dogs, cats and birds
Thanks for the review. I've read all of the other books in this series. I have not spent any time with baby goats, but that could be fun. I'm a fan of dogs as secondary characters in some of the books that I read. Thanks for the chance!
ReplyDeleteLove her books!!
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, I've read the series .
Baby goats, I would love to go to a farm and just have fun with them.
Animals in books, I love cats and dogs also.
They make me want to read the book.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI have one of this series in my TBR pile.
ReplyDeleteOur daughter had several different varieties of goats for many years. She has just sheep and llamas now. I liked the pygmy goats best. They are more manageable, but still can get into a lot of trouble. Unlike larger goats and sheep, they don't hurt as much when they ram you. They also hit your legs not your torso.
My favorite animals to be featured in books are dogs and horses. Dogs are great companions and understand human emotions better than other animals.. Cat people may argue with that, but cats understand human emotions, they just don't tend to care. We and our son are dog people. Our daughters are both cat people, so there is no agreement in this family on this question.
I love this series, I can't wait to read it.Any animals in books are great, it shows the characters depth and compassion by they way they react to the animals
ReplyDeleteI’m a long time fan of Jill’s books. Love her sense of humor!
ReplyDeleteI have not started this series. She’s such a prolific writer. It’s hard to keep up!
I haven't read any of the Sunrise Cove stories yet, but am definitely a fan of Jill Shalvis's books and writing. And alas, no time spent with goats of any age ;) As for favorite animals, I have quite enjoyed the many animals in Erin Nicholas's Boys of the Bayou Gone Wild series, including river otters!
ReplyDelete--flchen1