THE WINTER SEA by Susanna Kearsley

This story is told in two parts.  Carrie, a young writer, writing a piece of historical fiction, finds that she knows historical details before she has researched the facts.  She moves close to a castle where part of her story takes place because she feels the characters there. Carrie rents a cottage near the ruined castle and finds that she is attracted to the son of her landlord , Grahem, while the landlord's other son also takes a liking to her, also.  Grahem is a history professor and so has interests in common with Carrie.  He helps her with her research and they maintain a relationship.  Carrie writes a story about a hidden love affair in which an orphaned girl named Sophia is taken in by a kind relative whose family is secretly trying to return King James to his throne.  Sophia secretly marries a soldier who is a wanted man because of his political dealings.  He goes off to war and Sophia has been told that her husband has been killed in war.  She placed her young child in the care of a friend's sister and lives elsewhere in grief.  However, he is only injured and takes on the identity of another so that he can live a life where he is not wanted.  In the end, he is reunited with Sophia and they live happily ever after.

THE NEXT ALWAYS by Nora Roberts

This was a fantastic, romantic story that I enjoyed very much.  The story revolves around three brothers who are restoring an old inn in Boonboro.  They are all described as hunks with values.  Beckett, one of the brothers, is featured in this story as he becomes involved with a girl, Clare, he fantasized over through high school. She however married her high school sweetheart who was later killed in war.  She has returned home to Boonsboro to raise her three boys with the help of family and friends.  Clare owns the local bookstore and  is being stalked by a psychotic man who also was a high school classmate.  The only part of the story that seemed off to me was the part of the friendly ghost that inhabits the old inn.  I encourage my Book Club friends to read this book now even though we won't be discussing it until June.  The second book in this series  (The Last Boyfriend) will be coming out in May and you will want to be ready to read it the minute it is on the bookshelves!

THE CHRISTMAS WEDDING by James Patterson

This story is a about a widowed teacher who decides to get married on Christmas.  She does not tell her children who the groom will be nor does she tell the groom himself.  Gabby has been asked by three men to marry them and she lets everybody, even the goom  in the dark until the wedding ceremony.  Although the author tries to portray Gabby as a giving, thoughtful mother, grandmother, friend, etc.  I found her to be just the opposite.  She made all the plans, etc. and did not think of the men she strung along or the wants of the groom. I did not care for this book and found the characters and the story to be unrelatable to anybody or situation I could think of.  The characters and the action was too contrived and I felt the book had been written just to be a source of income for the author.  I would not read it again.

THE SEARCH by Nora Roberts

Fiona, an avid dog lover and trainer, was once abducted by a serial killer.  She was able to escape but later he killed her fiance as a way to get back at her.  Years have passed and her abductor is in jail but a second abductor is now hunting down young women using the tactics of Fiona's abductor and this new abductor seems to be making a path to Fiona.  Fiona has become romantically involved with a wood craftsman, Simon Doyle, who becomes her protector.  While she is supported by the law, family, and friends Fiona is haunted by the new reports of the abductor and his exploits.

THE CHRISTMAS BUS by Melody Carlson

When finding out that their adult children would not be coming home for Christmas, Pastor Charles and his wife Edith decided to open their Bed and Breakfast home for the holidays.  A varied group of people rented all of the available roooms and arrived before Christmas to participate in all of the Christmas Valley holiday activities.  One guest even helped with the church's Christmas program.  A young couple on their way over a nearby mountain had to stop at the Bread and Breakfast because the bus they were driving had mechanical problems and they were not able to reach their destination.  The young couple were low on money and had to sleep in their bus because the Bread and Breakfast had no more room.  One particular guest, Olive, was quite cantankerous and annoyed the other guests but her disappearance at the end of the story gave the others much to think about.

BURNT MOUNTAIN by Anne Rivers Siddon

Even though online reviews of this book were not good I was hooked on reading BURNT MOUNTAIN when I read the synopsis on the book jacket. I love reading southern stories especially if they are based around Atlanta or Savannah.  This book has some neat twists and turns that keeps you reading clear to the very last page.  The main character, Thayer, is devastated by the death of her father as her mother does not really care for her. She does have a close relationship with her Grandmother.  She goes off to camp and as a tennager and falls in love with a teenage counselor at a neighboring camp. They are in love and have made plans to meet each other beyond camp. When Thayer returns home and finds out that she is pregant her mother takes her to the doctor and tricks her into an abortion. When he tries to contact Thayer, her mother tells the boy, Nick Abrams, that Thayer has moved away. She thinks he has forgotten her. They lose contact and move on with their lives.  They both marry other people but they find each other during some planning events for the Atlanta Olympics. Thayer's first husband becomes pshchotic - events happen---- and Thayer and Nick end up happily ever after.