'I love you. Of course I do. But we haven't any choice in the matter, do we? If our little boy's health, even his survival, is at stake, we have to do whatever it takes.'
1928, New York City: Ellen and Lucas Lyman have made a heart-wrenching decision to leave their beloved Amherst Island behind in search of a new life. The island was once the home of their hearts: where they had met as children, become friends, and over time found love.
But New York City was calling, and it was everything they'd hoped for and more. With Lucas making money on the stock market, and Ellen finding fulfilment as a mother, at first they are happy raising their family, together, in the most exciting city in the world.
Until their beloved son Jamie becomes perilously ill, and Ellen is given an impossible choice. With Lucas unable to leave his job, it is down to her to take Jamie to a place he might recover even if it means making the journey across America without him.
Ellen knows what she must do. What every mother would do to save their child. Even if it takes her further away from the man she loves-and every place she has called home-than ever before.
Can she find happiness and love in the place she once only wanted to leave?
As the youngest Holley sister, Miriam has always been a bit of a rebel. After spending several years backpacking through Europe and Australia, she's now back home ... unemployed and pregnant, with no boyfriend or husband in sight.
At first, Miriam only wants to hide away from the shocked and prying eyes of her father's parishioners, but her sisters won't let her. Determined to help her find her way, they urge Miriam to accept a job working as an assistant to Simon, the new vicar ... and to think about what will happen when the baby comes.
As Miriam starts putting down roots, she finds an unexpected friendship in her sister Rachel's ex-fiancé, Dan Taylor. And as she thinks about her future, she finds hope and healing in the most unexpected places. But when the past rushes up to meet both her and Dan, can Miriam stay the course?
Rachel Holley has always dreamed of a wedding-the white dress, the fairy tale, and of course, the happily-ever-after. But when her fiancé breaks it off the night before, claiming she doesn't love him, Rachel's fairy tale ends in ashes.
Homeless, hopeless, and feeling like her life has been completely derailed, Rachel must start over in all sorts of ways-and hold her head up high in the fishbowl of her tiny village. The last person she expects to become a friend is Sam West, the taciturn owner of the Bell, Thornthwaite's rougher pub, and a little rough around the edges of himself.
But as Rachel gets to know Sam, and sees him caring for his orphaned nephew, she finds herself drawn to this enigmatic man. Nothing about Sam is what Rachel expected in a life partner, and yet she can't deny their increasing closeness. But can love flourish on the rebound? And will there be a vicarage wedding after all?
Welcome to Thornthwaite, a quaint village tucked up in England's beautiful but rainy Lake District ... where homecomings and surprises await the four Holley sisters ...
Esther Holley, the eldest in the family, has always had her life firmly in control until a miscarriage knocks her off course. Two months later, still emotionally spinning, she separates from her husband Will, a sheep farmer and man of few words and moves back in with her parents.
Life as a singleton thirty something living in her parents' house is miserable, but Esther is determined to reboot her life, including going on a few unfortunate dates. She's shocked when tight-lipped Will shows up on her doorstep determined to woo her back. They've been married for seven years, but Will wants to return to the beginning, dating and getting to know each other again.
New challenges face them as they start over-and new chances too. Can Esther and Will save their marriage, especially when faced with the hardest decision of all.
Welcome to Thornwaite, a quaint village tucked up in England's beautiful but rainy Lake District ... where homecomings happen and surprises are in store for the four Holley sisters ...
Anna Holley, the third of four sisters, has always felt a little bit forgotten. A family tragedy when she was a child had her retreating deep into shyness, and social anxiety kept her on the fringes of the cozy chaos of the busy vicarage.
After several years away from home, Anna returns for Christmas ... and an important announcement from her father. As much as she once loved the village, coming back is hard and puts Anna's social capabilities to the test.
Avoiding her sisters' bossy questions, she heads out to the local pub one night, and meets a handsome stranger nursing a pint. Somehow, unburdened by expectations, Simon seems like the perfect person to spill all her secrets to-including a hopeless, long-held crush on her sister's boyfriend. Confident she'll never see him again, Anna returns home ... only to discover the next day that Simon is actually her father's new curate!
Anna is beyond mortified, but Simon won't let her retreat into her usual shyness-and for once Anna is forced to confront the past, and all the fears and feelings she'd tried so long to hide. But with his own heartache that needs to heal, can Simon help Anna to make this the most magical Christmas either of them have known?
Always the baker, never the bride ...
Olivia James has always been happy running a tea shop and bakery in the Cotswold village of Wychwood-on-Lea, and helping her friends find their happily-ever-afters, topped by the perfect wedding cake. But as Christmas approaches, Olivia is home alone and questioning her choices while eating too many of her own specialty confections.
When Simon Blacklock, a handsome, whimsical stranger, breezes into her shop and buys a cupcake and then returns the next day and the day after, Olivia begins to dream. Can romance blossom amidst the sugar and flour? And after a lifetime of living on the side lines, is she brave enough to star in her own story?
Simon may be hiding a painful secret, but Olivia harbors secrets of her own. If they can dare to risk their hearts, this Christmas might be the most magical yet!
Welcome back to Willoughby Close, with four new residents and happy endings to deliver.
Laura Neale is grieving. A year after her beloved husband's death, she is still left with far too many questions and is struggling with feelings of guilt, anger, and grief. Hoping to rebuild her life and her children's, she moves to Wychwood-on-Lea with her two troubled kids-an eleven-year-old son with too much energy and a fourteen-year-old daughter flirting with the same depression that afflicted her father.
The warm community of women who have lived in Willoughby Close welcome her with open arms, and their friendship helps Laura find a semblance of peace. But when she finds herself with an entirely unexpected attraction to her son's teacher, James Hill, Laura is gobsmacked. James is charming, funny, and ten years younger than her, thus completely unsuitable. Besides, her husband Timothy was her soulmate-wasn't he?
As revelations about everything she once held dear surface, Laura wonders if she is reckless or maybe just brave enough to try for love a second time.
When Laurel West discovers her estranged sister Abby has checked herself into rehab and wants her to take care of her fourteen-year-old son, she doesn't hesitate to step in. Abby was there for Laurel a long time ago, and she longs to be able to offer the same. However, as a single woman who still dreams of the fairy tale, Laurel isn't prepared for teenaged Zac's sullen moods or silent rage. When he's expelled from school, she decides to take drastic measures and temporarily relocate them to her great aunt's cottage on the windswept hills of the Orkney islands north of Scotland ... about as far as she can run from their problems, but will it be far enough?
From the moment they step onto the island's shores, everything seems to go wrong ... including a run-in with eccentric sheep farmer Archie MacDougall. When Zac gets in trouble at the village pub and is rescued by Archie, Laurel thinks things are only getting worse. But Archie's suggestion of putting Zac to work on his farm might be the change he needs, and Laurel strikes up a surprising friendship with a man who is about as far from the fairy tale as she can imagine. Can such an unlikely and impractical love bloom in such a brief moment out of reality? And will two lost and lonely souls find each other at the edge of the world?
Welcome to Willoughby Close ... a charming cluster of cozy cottages, each with a story to tell and a happy ending to deliver ...
After her husband unexpectedly dies, Ava moves to Willoughby Close, trying to keep her chin up and herself to herself as she's always done-not answering questions, not making friends, and not seeing much of a future. Her marriage was far from perfect, but it offered her a much-needed security that has now been ripped away. She's not sure what to do now that she's thirty-five, widowed, penniless ... and unexpectedly pregnant with her late husband's child.
Jace Tucker is the over-the-top sexy caretaker of Willoughby Manor, and he can see beneath Ava's glamour girl act to the hurt she's been hiding for so long. She has secrets for a reason-and so does he. The last thing she needs right now is a fling with a man who hides a past as regrettable as her own.
But with a baby to think about, and neighbors determined to be her friends, Ava finds herself starting to change and even more alarmingly, beginning to hope. Can Willoughby Close work its everyday magic on a woman like her? And when the past comes calling for both her and Jace, will they have to answer for their previous mistakes?
Welcome to Willoughby Close ... a charming cluster of cozy cottages, each with a story to tell and a happy ending to deliver ...
Alice James has been a drifter her whole life, working her way through several foster homes before ending up in Wychwood-on-Lea, feeling anchorless and invisible. When a chance encounter leads to Alice accepting a position as a caretaker and companion to Lady Stokeley, she starts to feel as if she might finally be able to put down some roots and live the way other people do.
Then, Lady Stokeley's nephew, city banker Henry Trent, storms into Willoughby Manor, seeming to find fault with everything, including Alice. As the next in line to the manor and title, he threatens to upturn everything she's started to build. But Henry is hiding his own secret fears and weaknesses, ones he's desperate for no one to discover.
A surprising and inconvenient attraction that simmers between them leaves Alice feeling more confused than ever, and Henry torn between duty and desire, fear and love. When circumstances become even more difficult, both Alice and Henry must decide who they really are, and what they are willing to fight for. Could Alice possibly be the next Lady of Willoughby Manor?
He didn't want complications. She was looking for a miracle.
Quinn Freeman has spent his life avoiding the dangers of commitment, but his reluctant return to his home town that's in tragedy for his family stirs up memories and emotions he'd intended to leave buried. His arrival lights hope in many hearts including one long dormant.
Meghan O'Reilly, the town's only plumber and solo caretaker of her dependent sister, is weighted down with responsibility. She only sees in Quinn a careless charmer who isn't used to hard work-but she still can't keep from imagining his kiss ... and longing for his touch.
Surely some things, like a fling between them, can be simple ... Or is it possible for a fling to become forever?
Welcome back to Willoughby Close, with four new residents and happy endings to deliver ...
Belinda "Lindy" Jamison has moved to the Cotswolds for a fresh start and to open a dancing school-her lifelong dream. Pushing forty and still looking for Mr. Right, Lindy is determined to no longer wait for happiness but to reach for it with both hands. So she packs up her life and heads south to Wychwood-on-Lea to start up her school.
Soon Lindy has a motley crew of would-be dancers. But her most intriguing pupil is Roger Wentworth, a fortysomething bachelor with a shy and awkward manner, but a heart of blazing gold. When Lindy decides to showcase her pupils in a Christmas show, Roger is deeply reluctant but finally agrees. Lindy longs to bring Roger out of his shell-but she didn't expect to fall in love with him in the process.
Soon it is Roger teaching her how two lonely hearts might be able to embrace a second chance this Christmas ... if they can just believe they're both worthy of love.
