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Review: Seven Summers Ago (Golden Coast #1) by Starla DeKruyf


Seven Summers Ago (Golden Coast #1) by Starla DeKruyf is live NOW!

Amazon: https://a.co/d/0fsrd9Uz

Tropes inside:

Small town
Second chance romance
“My wife”
Slow burn
Secret child
Dual 1st person POV
Endo rep
Anxiety + panic rep


Blurb They promised each other forever...until a crisis had them parting ways seven summers ago...

After facing overwhelming grief, Rosie Hendrix ran away from Golden Harbor and everyone she loves. Seven years later, she’s navigating a recent endometriosis diagnosis and raising a child on her own. But when her grandma passes away, forcing her back to the small coastal town, she returns with a plan.

Though things never go according to plan. She suddenly finds herself back in the orbit of her high school sweetheart. Beck Stone is every small-town girl’s dream. He’s tall, rugged, ambitious, loyal—and he looks gorgeous in a backwards hat. As memories resurface and long-buried emotions rise, his tenderness for her chronic illness has her questioning: is it so terrible to be attracted to her husband?

A combination of anger, pride, and crippling anxiety stopped Beck from chasing after his wife who abandoned him and left him alone in his grief. It’s because of her, he’s built a wall around himself and sworn off women.

But his wall is demolished when Rosie returns to Golden Harbor with a ring on her hand, and demanding he sign the divorce papers he continues sending back unsigned. And then there’s the bigger secret she’s been hiding—her child who looks a heck of a lot like him. Accusations soar, sparks fly, and old flames are rekindled. Yet, forgiving each other may be easier than forgiving themselves.

Rosie’s words say she’s engaged to someone else, but her body language tells him something different. As old wounds heal that only time and distance can heal, one night being stuck together has them questioning everything. Is this goodbye or their second chance at the life they were always meant to have.

Seven Summers Ago is book #1 in Golden Coast: A coastal small town romance series of interconnected stories.

MY REVIEW

Rosie's back in her hometown, and she's about to face her past head on. The husband who won't sign the divorce papers, all the pain they suffered, and their child, the one she never told him about. Yikes!


This one is...a lot. A lot of pain, anger, grief, but love, too. I think my favorite part is Beck. That man is honestly a saint for putting up with what Rosie did to him. 7 years is a long time to not tell your ex that he's a father. But, at the same time, I felt for her too, because what she went through, was tough. I guess the reason this story, while heartfelt, isn't successful as a second chance romance is because I didn't think that their connection felt solid, and what Rosie did was not forgivable. That said, it's well written, most of the characters are great, and Beck is awesome.

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