Donna Kauffman - - Rest in Peace

I'm so very sad to share the news of the death of Donna Kauffman. The romance community has lost another beloved author. (Read her USA Today obituary) 

I didn't know Donna well but I did have the opportunity to meet her in person on several occasions. One of those was at last year's Book Lovers Con (photo below). 

Liz Talley, PJ, Donna Kauffman, Sally Kilpatrick

As usual, Donna was upbeat and joyous. In fact, I can't remember a single encounter with her over the years when she wasn't smiling, gracious, and kind. 

Donna's most recent book, Under a Firefly Moon, was released in January and takes readers back to Blue Hollow Falls for another witty, heart-tugging story. As is typically the case with her books, it has garnered plenty of wonderful, 5-star reviews. 

My condolences go out to Donna's family, friends, and all who loved her and her stories. May she rest in peace and may her kindness and joy be a guiding light to us all. 

Review - - Bluestone & Vine

Bluestone & Vine

By Donna Kauffman

Publisher: Kensington / Zebra

Release Date: June 26, 2018

Reviewed by Janga

 

Seth Brogan loves his youngest sister Moira, but he is not pleased when she calls him to let him know about a house swap she has arranged. Moira will be living in house in an Irish village that belongs to the sister of Katie MacMillan, a college roommate, and the sister, who needs a quiet, peaceful place to retreat, will be living in Seth’s home. Seth has enough to do caring for Dexter, his music-loving llama, and his vineyard and winery, Bluestone & Vine. He is already making plans to find Katie’s sister another place to live when she lands on his land and in his life, courtesy of a borrowed snowmobile.

Pippa MacMillan is a renowned fiddle-playing folk singer, a super star in the United Kingdom, although lesser known in the United States. Her vocal cords ruptured during a performance, and recovery from the surgery to repair them is taking longer than anyone expected. The media buzzards are circling, speculating that Pippa’s career is over. Pippa longs to escape from their scrutiny. The fact that she has not sung since her surgery is a closely guarded secret. Even more disturbing to Pippa is that the inner music she has heard all her life has also gone silent. Tiny Blue Hollow Falls, Virginia, seems an ideal place to get away from her troubles.

Despite Seth’s reservations about his uninvited guest, he and Pippa connect almost immediately. They are kindred spirits who share an explosive chemistry as well. The only problem is that Pippa will be returning to Ireland in two months and Seth’s life is his land in Blue Hollow Falls. The community opens its heart to Pippa whom they recognize as one of their own. From octogenarian farmer Mabry Jenkins to thirteen-year-old Jake McCall, his ten-year-old best friend Bailey Sutton, and Dexter the llama, the citizens of Blue Hollow Falls adopt Pippa. Only Seth, the man who helps her recover her music and who wins her heart completely, focuses on an obstacle rather than searching for a compromise and stubbornly refuses to admit his feelings.

This is a series that just keeps getting better. Blue Hollow Falls is an interesting, artsy community that has the feel of home to many who relocate there. This third story in the series (following Blue Hollow Falls and The Inn at Blue Hollow Falls, a novella) is a quiet story that captures the reader with its sweetness and its likable, sympathetic characters. Pippa is a delight with her gifts and her openness, and Seth is a great-hearted beta hero who cares for his family, his friends, and every animal or person who needs his attention. The supporting characters are just as appealing. Readers who loved the first novel will be pleased to see more of the lovable Addison Pearl Whitaker and her youngest adoptee, the old-soul Bailey. Sawyer, Seth’s best friend, and his love, Sunny are also a part of the tale, and readers fascinated by the reclusive Wilson McCall in the first book will learn more of his story and that of his son Jacob. Mabry, the old farmer with his wisdom and his romantic streak, is a heart-stealer and a scene-stealer.

Kauffman makes this place and these people so warm and real that I was ready to return to Blue Hollow Falls as soon as I turned the final page. I can’t wait for Lavender Blue, Wilson’s story, which will be released January 29, 2019. If you are a fan of small-town romance with characters who will win your heart and a setting you wish were real, I suggest you rush to add Bluestone & Vine to your TBR list.

Review - - The Inn at Blue Hollow Falls

The Inn at Blue Hollow Falls

By Donna Kauffman

Publisher: Kensington / Zebra

Release Date: October 31, 2017

Reviewed by Janga

Stevie Franklin is using her vacation time from her job at the U. S. Botanic Garden in Washington, D. C., to visit Blue Hollow Falls, Virginia, to help Sunny Goodwin, her best friend and former colleague, start her new business in the historic greenhouse she inherited (Blue Hollow Falls). But when frozen pipes at Sawyer’s home lead Sawyer and Sunny to seek refuge with Addie Pearl, Stevie ends up at the local inn, owned and operated by Noah Tyler, who is the embodiment of Sunny’s promise that hot lumberjack-types can be found in Blue Hollow Falls.

Noah, a native of Ohio, moved to Virginia to attend William and Mary and became so captivated by the region that he never left. When he found the old mill at Blue Hollow Falls and began renovating it, he knew he had found his place. Two and a half years out of a long-term relationship that ended without drama, he is ready to find someone special. Stevie may be just the person for whom he is looking. He just needs to convince her of that.

Kauffman’s Christmas novella is sweet, funny, and filled with good cheer all around. Stevie was a likable character as Sunny’s bestie in Blue Hollow Falls, and she is even more heart-winning as the heroine in this story. And I adored Noah, a beta hero extraordinaire. How can a romance reader resist a hunky hero who has a sense of humor, loves his extended family, sings “Winter Wonderland” without embarrassment, and can cook when he needs to do so? Stevie and Noah are also winners as a couple. They give new—and literal—meaning to the term “striking sparks off each other.” Moreover, they are essentially the same kind of person, a fact that Stevie recognizes: “He was a man who thought about things, who lived his life with purpose, was forward looking, and embraced his world with passion. She did the same thing.” It was easy to believe in them and to root for their HEA,

There are other things I loved about the story, including, but not limited to, the snow storm (which makes for a nice twist on a “cabin romance”), the setting (always a strong point with Kauffman), and glimpses of Sunny and Sawyer’s HEA in progress. If you are looking for adventure, action, and angst, this novella is not for you. But if you like character-driven tales with humor, heart, and a bit of heat, I predict you will enjoy this holiday novella. It has given me one more reason to expect the Blue Hollow Falls series to become a favorite. I have already starred the release date of Bluestone & Vine (June 26, 2018) on my book calendar and am eagerly anticipating Seth’s story.

Review - - Blue Hollow Falls

Blue Hollow Falls

By Donna Kauffman

Publisher: Kensington/Zebra

Release Date: June 27, 2017

Reviewed by Janga

         

Freed from two decades of playing the parental role for her free-spirited mother, Sunny Goodwin, a horticulturist for the U. S. Botanic Garden in Washington, D. C., is celebrating her freedom despite her very real grief for her mother. Sunny was brought up by her mother who after Sunny’s birth left the Virginia commune where she had lived for nearly twenty years to rear her daughter in a row house in Old Alexandria deeded to her by Doyle Bartholomew Hartwell. Eight months after her mother’s death, Sunny discovers that Hartwell was her father and that he has left her part ownership in an old silk mill located in Blue Hollow Falls, a Virginia mountain town that is a world away from Sunny’s urban life. Her inheritance also includes Bailey Sutton, a ten-year-old half-sister who is an old soul; Addison Pearl “Addie” Whitaker, a stepmother who insists Sunny is family; and Sawyer Hartwell, a handsome veteran who Sunny suspects may be her half-brother.

Sunny never plans for Blue Hollow Falls and the people there to become a significant part of her life. She does feel a connection to Bailey, but the feelings Sawyer evokes are not at all fraternal. Sunny is eager to return to her own world, but Addie has claimed Sunny as part of her makeshift family, and Sunny finds the pull of family hard to resist. Blue Hollow Falls and its residents offer Sunny peace and a sense of belonging that she needs, and Sawyer’s plans for the old silk mill offer their own fascination. When Sawyer proves to be her father’s adopted son and no blood relation, the pull grows even stronger. Can she reconcile her two worlds, or will she be forced to choose one and reject the other?

Kauffman excels at creating a powerful sense of place through geographical and historical details of Blue Hollow Falls. Sunny and Sawyer are likable characters who deserve happiness and readers will find it easy to root for their HEA. I especially appreciated that Sunny’s work as a horticulturist and Sawyer’s vision for transforming the old mill are essential parts of the story rather than mere throwaway references to their jobs. Earth mother Addie and young Bailey are also well-developed characters who add to the story’s emotional appeal. Seth Brogan, Sawyer’s war buddy and fellow Blue Hollow citizen, is a charming flirt with hidden layers, and he clearly merits his own story, as does the mysterious Will McCall.

Blue Hollow Falls is a promising introduction to this series. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and look forward to more stories set in this Virginia town. If you like contemporary romance rooted in community and connection in the vein of RaeAnne Thayne and Sherryl Woods, I recommend that you add this book to your TBR stack. The charms of the Blue Ridge Mountains claim the heart of another heroine in the next in the series, a Christmas novella, The Inn at Blue Hollow Falls, an October 31 release that I have added to my must-read list.