12/28/2017

Sweet Tomorrows by Debbie Macomber

The last novel from the author´s Rose Harbor Inn series. And a book, I didn´t read within a couple of hours. In the end, I was not sure about it, and it took me some days to write this review. You want to know why I feel mixed about this last Rose Harbor Inn book, then keep reading. When I remember that I´ve read the first books of this series within hours because they were so wonderfully entertaining and gave me the chance to go back to Cedar Cove and see how things were going there. Then this last book was the sheer opposite.

Sweet Tomorrows*

by Debbie Macomber
Rose Harbor Series #5
Publisher Ballantine Books on December 27, 2016
Genre Novel
Pages 416
Format Softcover
Source Library

Goodreads

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Nine months ago, Mark Taylor abruptly left Cedar Cove on a perilous mission to right a wrong from his past. Though Mark finally confessed his love for her, innkeeper Jo Marie Rose is unsure if he´s ever coming back. The Rose Harbor Inn barely seems the same without Mark, but Jo Marie can´t bear to lose herself in grief once more. Determined to move forward, she begins dating again, and finds companionship when she takes on a boarder who is starting a new chapter herself. Recovering from a twice-broken heart, Emily Gaffney, a young teacher, is staying at the inn while she looks for a home of her own. Having given up on marriage, Emily dreams of adopting children someday. She has her eye on one house in particular – with room for kids. Although Emily´s inquiries about the house are rudely rebuffed, her rocky start with the owner eventually blossoms into a friendship. But when the relationship verges on something more, Emily will have to rethink what she truly wants and the chances she´s willing to take. The inn seems to be working its magic again – Emily opening herself up to love, Jo Marie moving on – until Jo Marie receives shocking news.

Story

Jo Marie starts her life all over again. After Mark left, she is determined to go on without him, without waiting for him to come back. For her there is no need to go through the same hell again, she did when her husband Paul went missing while on a mission. But now, when she gets a postcard Mark has sent her, she is in an awkward position. Now, between two men, she has no idea how to cope with everything and needs more time than ever to deal with a strange situation.

Style

For me, the tone was way too dark, though it was very fitting for the story itself. But somehow, I couldn´t get really into it. Couldn´t get in touch with Jo Marie or all the other characters as I had while reading the other books of this series. No doubt, Debbie Macomber hasn´t changed her soft style, the way how she uses words, and creates her figures. That was again, well done. But there were scenes I thought that wasn´t necessary. Like the author needed to stretch her novel for whatever reason before she set the final end to it. That was, at least for me, sad. I believe that if you write a good novel, you don´t need to use stretching material to get a certain length in pages.

Characters

There were some scenes where I kind of felt thrown back into another century. I mean, sorry, but we are living in the 21st century and a woman can make her own decisions and doesn´t need a providing husband to be able to live her life. And then again, I think that some women grew up in a completely different environment, were raised a different way and for them, it´s clear that a woman can´t be without a husband. That a woman stays at home and the man takes care of everything else. Well, not my way to see the world. 

Conclusion

An average novel in my eyes. Sad to say it, but this isn´t the best book written by the author and for sure not a good end to this series. Sure, the author tied all open ends neatly and left no unanswered questions. But I missed something I found in her other Rose Harbor Inn books. 

Happy reading

*I read the German edition new release by Blanvalet on July 17, 2017  

Debbie Macomber

Debbie Macomber is the owner of the Victorian Tea Room and the yarn shop A Good Yarn, which was named after the store in her successful book Blossom Street. She is the author of Sweet Tomorrows, among many other books, and a leading voice in women´s fiction. Ten of her novels have reached #1 on the New York Times bestseller lists, and five of her beloved Christmas novels have been hit movies on the Hallmark Channel, including Mrs. Miracle and Mr. Miracle. Hallmark Channel also produced the original series Debbie Macomber´s Cedar Cove, based on Macomber´s Cedar Cove books. She has more than 200 million copies of her books in print worldwide. Debbie Macomber, who likes to be a grandmother, lives with her husband Wayne in Port Orchard, Washington, where her novels play, and spends the winter in Florida. 

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