Love Found in Cranberry Cove is the second book in my Cranberry Cove series. I was blessed to see the first book, The Inn at Cranberry Cove, win first place in the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers contest, a Selah award for romantic suspense. So, writing book 2 was a challenge to live up to the standards of book 1.
Most of the characters are the same as in book 1, and Gracie Mayberry, who befriended Ashton Price, the heroine in book 1, is the heroine of Book 2. She quits her job at Starbucks to help her mother at the inn since Ashton is on maternity leave. She meets the handsome, wealthy executive from Seattle who’s known opulence all his life, though he’s worked hard in his father’s thriving business.
Since Gracie’s family struggles financially, the contrast between the hero and the heroine is evident.
Gracie’s father is a wounded vet who lost both legs in a training exercise in the army and suffers from PTSD. This character makes me think of my husband who served for twenty years. Thankfully he didn’t lose limbs and doesn’t suffer from PTSD, but he does remember the time in Vietnam when he barely dodged enemy fire.
The hero, Blake Sloan, sees Gracie’s godly character and spirit within and wants what she has, a relationship with the Lord. He comes to realize spiritual wealth is much more important than earthly wealth. So, when a stalker makes late night visits to Gracie’s home, Blake wants to provide protection. Together they work to discover who threatens both Gracie and Blake’s lives.
The inn is patterned after a real-life inn, the Inn at Harbour Village, in Ilwaco, Washington where my husband and I visited when we lived in the Pacific Northwest. Though I tried to describe the inn from my memories of twenty years ago, most of the story is fictionized.
Gracie Mayberry wants to study marine science at the community college in a neighboring coastal town. But a degree takes money, and she must remain in Cranberry Cove to help her mother support her disabled father who lost both legs while serving his country and now suffers from PTSD. She leaves her job at Starbucks to work at The Inn at Cranberry Cove while the owner is on maternity leave. When the sophisticated, good looking Blake Sloan arrives at the inn, she’s attracted to the guy with eyes the color of rich honey.
Seattle resident Blake Sloan takes time off from his job in his father’s thriving fishing vessel company. He admits he’s followed his father’s dream instead of his heart’s desire—to run his own business and start a non-profit to benefit wounded vets. When he meets Gracie’s father, he’s sure God has placed the longing within him.
But when a stalker makes terrifying midnight visits to the humble Mayberry home and threatens their lives, Blake discovers he’s also a target of extortion.
Can Blake and Gracie learn who’s behind the danger that threatens them? Will a small-town girl and big-city boy find a life together?
Love can conquer forces of darkness when love dwells deeply within two hearts.
An award-winning author, June Foster is also a retired teacher with a BA in Education and a MA in counseling. She is the mother of two and grandmother of ten. June began writing Christian romance in 2010. She penned her first novel on her Toshiba laptop as she and her husband traveled the U.S. in their RV. Her adventures provide a rich source of information for her novels. She brags about visiting a location before it becomes the setting in her next book.
To date, June has written over twenty contemporary romance and romantic suspense novels and novellas. She loves to compose stories about characters who overcome the circumstances in their lives by the power of God and His Word. June uses her training in counseling and her Christian beliefs in creating characters who find freedom to live godly lives. She’s published with Winged Publications. Visit June at www.junefoster.com to see a complete list of her books.
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