Book Description:
Blind-sided by her fiancé’s questionable behavior, Lauren Carter returns to the one place she’s managed to avoid, the small Alaskan town she used to call home. She’s spent years running from her scandalous past and now she’s forced to confront an uncertain future.
Blake Tully, wildly successful owner of Emerald Cove’s new whitewater rafting and kayaking business, finds Lauren’s unexpected reappearance in his life ignites old feelings. Although she broke his heart once, he longs to give his childhood sweetheart a second chance.
Will Lauren allow her shameful secret to define her? Can Blake forgive her when he discovers the reason she’s been hiding?
Follow the story of these two shattered hearts as they discover the beauty of grace and forgiveness.
Narelle’s Thoughts:
Unraveled is the first book in Heidi McCahan’s Emerald Cove series. We meet Lauren in Portland, Oregon, when her life is in chaos. She needs to find a new job, her car is falling apart, the girl who shares her townhouse may be addicted to prescription painkillers, and her fiance bails on the vacation they’ve planned to visit her family in Alaska.
Lauren is very concerned about the future of her relationship with her fiance, who is a surgeon and supposedly a good catch. When she arrives in Emerald Cove, Alaska, she’s perplexed to discover her attraction to childhood sweetheart, Blake, hasn’t gone away. She ran from Blake and her family to start a new life in Oregon. She has hidden a big secret from everyone in Emerald Cove. A secret that still haunts her eight years later.
Blake was devastated when Lauren left him, and he struggled to get his life back on track. He now owns a successful whitewater rafting and kayaking business with his brother, and he’s intrigued by Lauren’s reappearance in his life. His faith is strong and he has forgiven Lauren for walking out on their relationship. He’s a lovable hero who is very different in character to her self-absorbed fiance.
Lauren’s beloved granny is struggling with health issues and she is admitted to the hospital. Lauren’s parents want her to stay longer in Emerald Cove to help out at the family owned inn. When Lauren’s engagement is called off, she has no compelling reason to return to Portland. The Emerald Cove setting is stunning – who wouldn’t want to take an extended vacation in a gorgeous location in Alaska?
We journey with Lauren as she reconnects with family and old friends, and questions the direction of her life. A long held secret in Lauren’s family is exposed, and Lauren’s growing relationship with Blake is threatened by her inability to communicate and talk with him about why she left Emerald Cove. When all of Lauren’s past secrets are exposed, her lukewarm faith is challenged and she risks losing what she values the most – a future with Blake.
Unraveled is an emotion-charged and powerful story that delves into some big issues that can confront families. The characters make mistakes and have to deal with the consequences of their decisions, often many years later. I loved the small town setting of Emerald Cove, and the well developed minor characters added to the authenticity of the story. I highly recommend Unraveled to contemporary romance readers who enjoy small town reunion romance stories.
To learn more about Inspy Romance author Heidi McCahan and her books, please visit her website.
A fun loving Aussie girl at heart, Narelle Atkins was born and raised on the beautiful northern beaches in Sydney, Australia. She has settled in Canberra with her husband and children. A lifelong romance reader, she found the perfect genre to write when she discovered inspirational romance. Narelle's contemporary stories of faith and romance are set in Australia and international locations.
I read this book last year and thoroughly enjoyed it. Always nice to discover great books:)
Thanks for the recommendation, Narelle! Heidi’s latest sounds wonderful. I’m with you, I love a small town setting…and Alaska…that’s even better!
Sounds like a awesome story!!
I read and enjoyed this recently myself. Good pick!
Thank you for the recommendation. This book is in my to-be-read list, but I haven’t had a chance to get to it yet. I might give it a try sooner rather than later.
Thanks for the recommendation! I am always looking for new books and authors. This sounds like a great read!
Looks like a good one!
Unraveled is such a lovely store! So sweet. Loved this one.
Sounds like an interesting book. Thanks for introducing the author.
Narelle, thanks for the review. Sounds like a wonderful story.
Thank you for the shout out and for reading Unraveled. I’m happy to hear you all enjoyed it.
This has been on my ridiculously long “want to read” list for a while! Hope to get to it soon!
Hi Wemble, I’m glad you enjoyed reading it :)
Hi Jill, The setting was a definite highlight for me, and I’d love to go an Alaskan cruise :)
Hi Carlien, I hope you’ll have a chance to read Unraveled :)
Hi Elizabeth, I’ve really enjoyed reading books by our Inspy Romance authors :)
Hi Priscila, I hope you can bump Heidi’s book higher up your tbr list :)
Hi Beth, I hope you’ll have an opportunity to read Unraveled :)
Hi Katy, Yes, it’s a great read :)
Hi Sally, Yes, it’s a lovely sweet romance – my kind of story :)
Hi Colleen, I hope you’ll have a chance to read Heidi’s books :)
Hi Merrillee, Yes, it’s a wonderful story and a worthwhile read :)
Hi Heidi, You’re very welcome :) Thanks for writing a great story!
Hi Julie, Your tbr list sounds like mine! Once upon a time we mainly reviewed and recommended new releases because they went out of print so fast. Now, we can mine the depths of our overly long tbr lists and pull out the ebook gems we discover :)