I had no words when I finished Sugar Pine Trail by RaeAnne Thayne; however, I had a big dopey smile plastered to my face. Sugar Pine Trail is everything that contemporary romance Christmas themed books should be! It’s a small town setting that hits all the right buttons for me. It was also completely relatable.

Julia Winston is a librarian so I really connected with that. I wanted to be a librarian so badly when I grew up. She also doesn’t have an over abundance of self-esteem, is a bit of an introvert, things of others, and protects herself with a surface of no nonsense.

Jamie Caine was the bachelor who didn’t want to settle down. Of course he had some emotional baggage to work through as did Julia. I loved this book so much! Julia’s facing down her first holiday season alone and with the help of a list meant for Julia’s eyes only and a rather desperate situation, all of her plans are upended. This one hurt my heart on so, so many levels! I had tears in my eyes more than once.

Sugar Pine Trail deeply involves children so it may not work for some readers. Personally the children added a lot of Christmastime lessons to the story and it added depth to the story. It was wonderful to watch Jamie and Julia fall for each other and try to fight it for self-preservation. I will never get tired of quiet reserved women winning over the hottest guy in the room. I read this through Netgalley but I’ll definitely be buying my own copy.

If there is one thing I know about RaeAnne Thayne is that she can create a wonderful Christmas story and she has done it again. Sugar Pine Trail is a holiday hit that combines a small town setting with all their holiday community traditions, two adorable children that are in need of fostering, a swoon worthy hero, and an ordinary heroine that really isn’t quite ordinary. Jamie Caine and Julia Winston may appear to not belong together but looks can be deceiving, and only love can see how very right these two need each other.

Jamie is going to rent the upstairs apartment at Julia Winston’s Victorian home and comes to her rescue more than once over a short period of time. Julia quite unexpectedly starts to foster two young brothers during the holidays and is totally out of her element. When Jamie saves the day she sees a different side of Jamie and realizes there is more to this handsome man, and more desirable in her eyes. When Jamie began to help her with the boys and accidentally saw her bucket list, he thought it would be fun to help her with it. It might have started out innocently but the more he is with her, the more he begins to care for the passionate woman underneath the librarian shell she shows to the world. A sweet romance develops and makes it a holiday miracle when she finally realizes that Jamie is the man she loves and wants.

RaeAnne Thayne set the mood for the holidays with cookies baking, holiday shopping and tree trimming. A romance between two unlikely characters that was delightful and very entertaining. A special bonus was seeing his family again and the other couples from Hope’s Crossing. She also highlights what the holidays can be when you give back in small ways to make someone else’s a little brighter for someone in need. I absolutely loved this story and with each new one I fall more in love with RaeAnne Thayne and the small town of Haven Point.

What a wonderful and heart warming story. I have gotten back into reading this author and I am so glad I have. Learning strength and love comes in many forms and this book nailed it

If you are looking for some holiday reading this Christmas season, look no further. RaeAnne Thayne is an amazing author to pick up when you are looking for a cozy, heartwarming romances. Yes, they are predictable as far as romance goes, but her books are very character driven.

Julia Winston was a lovely librarian character with a big heart that took in two boys in need and gave them a temporary home, even if she knew it would eventually break her heart.

Jamie had quite a lot of heartbreak in his life when it came to women and family, but watching his affection grow for Julia was so heartwarming.

Wonderful characters, sweet romance, and heartwarming writing that just keeps me coming back for more.

Unlikely hearts connect and make for an endearingly emotional read! They say opposites attract and anyone looking at them from the outside would definitely say this was Julia & Jamie, but beneath the surface they are more alike than anyone knows. They both have injured hearts that they have hidden away because they now doubt their own worth in the game of love. As two little boys tear into their lives, they find themselves connecting with the innocence of these children and the fact that they need them. The plot is well contrived, and an enjoyable read. We see many familiar faces and build on the magic that Haven Point is all about. Loved it!

Librarian Julia Winston might have played along with a recent self-help book she read and made up a list of how she was going to change her life this year, but she never expects the changes to start happening so fast! She finds herself suddenly entrusted to care for two little boys who could use her nurturing heart to protect them in their time of need. They just so happen to bond with her new upstairs tenant as well ... sexy pilot Jamie Caine!

Jamie might have the reputation as a player, but he's got a deeper soul than that. He has a past that makes him keep himself casual with everything around him. He focuses on the job that he loves and his boisterous family, and he's content with that. When he finds himself entrenched into a little make-believe family with his landlord and her adorable little charges, he finds he quite likes it and might want to keep her in his life for real!

Librarian Julia Winston lives a very sedate and quiet life in the big old house her parents left her. Until that is the man she has been crushing on moves in as her lodger over the Christmas season. Her tactic of avoiding him until he moves out so he doesn’t figure our her embarrassing crush comes to a halt though when she fosters two young brothers who have no where else to go. Now her old house is full of life and laughter…and maybe even love, but will Julia be willing to step outside her quiet life to claim it?

It felt very strange reading this Christmassy book in my swimsuit under the hot Mexican sun…somehow I managed though, cocktail in hand. But, despite (or maybe because of) the strange juxtaposition in weather and atmosphere between where I was and what was happening in the book, I really enjoyed the cozy seasonal read. Yes, it was predictable and yes it was almost nauseatingly sweet, but at the same time it managed to get me in the Christmas spirit whilst on a summer holiday, so kudos!

If you’re looking for a hot romance to read over the season than this probably isn’t for you, it’s more of a steady build. As they begin to get know one another their feelings build as Jamie starts to notice Julia and Julia sees Jamie as more than just the womanising charmer and begin to know the real him. I thought it was a really sweet romance, it’s nice to read something that isn’t over saturated with sex and lust without anything deeper mixed in. I also liked the addition of Julia fostering the two young boys, is there anything more likely to tug on your heart strings than orphans at Christmas?

I haven’t RaeAnne Thayne before but I would definitely give her books a go when I am in the mood for something sweet to chow down on. If you want to snuggle up with something cute that makes you feel all fuzzy inside this Christmas season than I recommend that you give Sugar Pine Trail a try.

I don't claim that there is such thing as a perfect story since we all filter the things we read through our own history and experience but I have to say, to me, Sugar Pine Trail is just about the perfect Christmas romance Novel and if there is only one holiday story you are going to read this year, I highly recommend this one. Seriously, it has it all, wrapped up in a heartfelt love story, smoothly embedded into the tale, there are mistletoe, snow, skiing, decorating, baking, gift wrapping, family mess, miracles, helping the needy and troubled, and a bundle of romance, falling in love, steamy kisses, and a puppy!
I loved how the story has a great balance of joyful and stressful family life, the bliss of a kiss and the agony of falling without guarantees. It had me all wrapped up in the warmth of the love and cherished moments smiling until a plot twist ripped my heart wide open and the tears were there.
Julia Winston is a librarian, preparing herself for the first Christmas alone after her parents have passed away. She is a loyal, kind-hearted, steadfast, trustworthy, introvert who feels like she is letting the life pass her by. Be careful what you wish for because next thing you know, Julia is the temporary foster mom for two young brothers, landlady for her major crush, and experiencing life to the fullest maybe for the first time in her life.
Jamie Caine is known as the charismatic serial-dater who can charm any woman to do as he wishes. But under all the jokes and flirting there is a man with a good heart, who loves kids, is great with them, doesn't mind helping Julia with the boys, takes care of them and opens his heart to this little untraditional family unit.
Both Julia and Jamie are lovable characters who show remarkable growth, or development, as the story progress. With a fun list of goals Julia wrote down in a book club, they experience life together, and with each new thing accomplished they learn new things about themselves and about each other.
I loved the adorable interactions between Julia and Jamie, there was something so tender, sweet, and steamy about them at the same time. The boys won my heart over from the first moment and their destiny both broke my heart and then mended it together again. The way those four formed a unit, held together and supported each other was like they all needed each other but for very different reasons.
A touching and delightful tale that captivated my complete attention while hanging on to each word, reading it till early morning hours because I could not put it down. The perfect Christmas romance story in my opinion
~ Five Spoons!

SUGAR PINE TRAIL by RaeAnne Thayne made me smile and made me shed a tear, but most of all it gave me that wonderfully warm and happy feeling that only a Christmas romance can give you!

Julia Winston has always lived her life for other people - caring for her parents before they passed, and helping out anyone that may need her. Wrapped up in her job at the library and her old family home, she keeps love and romance at a distance ever since that one time when she was younger. But when her best friend convinces her to rent out part of her home to playboy Jamie Caine, Julie knows that she will have to be on her guard around her secret crush even though she knows he would never look at plain old her.

Jamie Caine lives an interesting life as a successful pilot and knows he has a reputation as a bit of a womaniser. But underneath it all, Jamie carries scars from the past that haunts him to this day, and he will do whatever it takes to keep people at a distance.
But when Julia discovers two little boys who need her more than anyone else, it will place her and Jamie in closer quarters than either expected, and they begin to discover that maybe love is the best gift of all this Christmas...

SUGAR PINE TRAIL by RaeAnne Thayne is such a beautiful and heartwarming story of finding the courage to reach for your dreams and allowing yourself to open up to the possibility of love. I laughed and cried, especially towards the end (No, you will just have to read it to find out what I'm talking about 😉), and I couldn't put this book down as it made me feel so cosy and warm. SUGAR PINE TRAIL by RaeAnne Thayne is the perfect Christmas read this winter and I highly recommend it!!!!!

I discovered this author earlier this year when I read Serenity Harbor and I am so glad I did because I am enjoying reading her books. Sugar Pine Trail is the seventh installment in the Haven Point series but it can be read as a standalone. We meet Jamie and Julia in the previous books briefly and I called this couple as soon as I met the characters, so I was happy to read their story.

Julia was very nice, she was just a sweetheart! I loved her character, despite being painfully shy, seeing her make an effort to get out of the shell was amazing. She gets brownie points for being a librarian and hosting amazing book club meets. She takes two kids in who are in desperate need of help and that just made her one of my favourite heroines. She has a bucket list. Everyone in the book club makes one in the beginning after reading an inspiring book. Her list is raw and all that she has missed out on, like learning how to ski. And Jamie helps her cross off those things on her list.

Jamie is renting Julia's apartment upstairs in her Victorian house. He initially thinks that Julia is stiff, every bit of stereotypical librarian but slowly he sees that she is so much more than that. Jamie is an ex-military pilot. Who is also a town charmer and Julia finds him irresistible. He is also very good with the Kids. Speaking of the kids, Clint and Davy couldn't get any cuter!

Jamie and Julia take care of the kids as their mother is missing. This scenario was different and shed a light onto foster care system and on the important and difficult problems of people around the world. It was refreshing. I liked meeting everyone from this series in the town, especially around the holidays. I loved reading about Wyn and I might go back and read the previous books because they all seem very lovely. It was a nice cozy read. I only wish there was a little more romance between Jamie and Julia. While I loved them as individuals, I didn't quite get the chance to like them together more. Apart from that I thoroughly enjoyed this read with some festive magic. I love visiting Haven Point. I can't wait to read more.

*A copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.*

https://www.amazon.com/review/R1J7FICQBDY54Z/ref=cm_cr_srp_d_rdp_perm?ie=UTF8

I loved this new addition to this Haven Point, Idaho series which is about librarian, Julia Winston, and lead pilot for Caine Tech, Jamie Caine. With flights back and forth to Hope’s Crossing, Colorado, the Caine characters from both series mesh! It does hold its own and can be read as a standalone. Abandoned, Clinton, age 8 and Davy, age 6 grabbed my heart from the beginning. I shed many a tear, both in heartbreak and in joy. Love, strength, courage, and hope make this another wonderful book to read. As one that takes place during the Christmas season, it is another warm and caring story with top notch writing by this author.

RaeAnne Thayne's Christmas stories are usually the equivalent of a warm blanket, a cozy fire, and a nice steaming mug of hot chocolate. Sugar Pine Trail did not let me down. I loved Julia. She's smart, she's interested, and she's feeling terribly alone this holiday season. But she still doesn't want to get involved with her new lodger Jamie and doesn't really believe he'd be interested in anyway.

Julia's been a side character for awhile and it was really good to see her have her own story. She can be a little standoffish at times but I found it impossible not to like and sympathize with her. My heart broke right along with hers as she begins to get involved with 2 boys who have taken refuge in the library.

Jamie's a little easier to like but not quite as easy to connect to - especially at first. He's a nice guy who at first glance has gotten through life on his looks and charm. But there is more than meets the eye with him as well.

I loved the family they created and I loved the growing bond between Julia and Jamie. These are 4 characters that need it each other very much even if they don't always realize it and I found it impossible not to root for them.

This was a wonderful heartwarming book with characters I loved which is really what I expect from an RaeAnne Thayne Christmas story and she has yet to let me down! While this is part of a series you can jump in here without any problems as the story focuses almost entirely on Julia and Jamie. There was a thread or two that didn't get quite as resolved as I would have liked but it in now way impacted my reading experience. If you're looking for the perfect Christmas-y romance look no further!

Another great story in the Haven Point series. There was so much emotion and depth in this book. A perfect couple and two young boys make a great Christmas read

This is the seventh book in the Haven Point series, I jumped in at book six with Serenity Harbor and have been bummed that I didn’t get in on the ground floor of this one. These books are SO sweet, I love how each one focuses on a new developing romance but there are appearances from previous characters in the subsequent books, that’s always so fun. I know I’ll never have time to go back and read the first five books, but I’ll definitely be following it from here on out.

Julia is the town librarian and lives a fairly quiet life. She has plenty of close friends but her parents have both passed away and she’s an only child so she doesn’t have any real family left. Jamie needs a rental for a few weeks so his sister sets him up in Julia’s apartment that is attached to her own house. It’s a total opposites attract saturation, he’s a bit of a ladies man with a huge family, (he has six siblings) and she’s more reserved but besides the obvious cliche there isn’t anything cheesy here. I loved both of them and watching them fall in love was adorable. Jamie was quite the charmer and Julia was beyond cute but they both had wounds that needed to heal and darkness in their pasts. As much as I enjoyed their storyline two little boys stole the show and my heart. Clint and Davy end up staying with Julia while they wait for a spot with a foster family and they were the cutest kids and such a sweet addition to this already endearing story. Hot guys and darling kids, what more could a girl want?!

This was a cozy little read, tons of Christmas magic set in an idyllic, charming town. There’s a strong message of hope in Thayne’s novels that’s truly heartwarming, I’m in love with her writing style, there’s a natural ease and fluidity that just makes reading her books so much fun. If you need a book to add to your holiday reading list that would be perfect to read fireside make sure you add this one!

Sugar Pine Trail is the newest book in the Haven Point series. I really enjoyed Julia and Jamie's story. This was a wonderful Christmas story, the true meaning of Christmas shines through. I definitely recommend it.

Sugar Pine Trail is RaeAnne Thayne’s latest installment in her Haven Point series. It is a stand-alone book, but it revisits many of the people from her earlier books. RaeAnne is a master at creating stories with charm and depth, set around small towns and friendly people. Her characters are authentic and engaging. The settings are so vividly drawn that I can see them clearly in my mind. I loved Jamie and Julia’s story. They seemed to be polar opposites, but their chemistry worked well together. It was delightful to see them work together to give some Christmas joy to two little boys. This is a great story to get you in the mood for the Christmas season.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy from the author/publisher/NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

This book is perfect to get you into the mood for giving this holiday season. The main characters, Julia and Jamie, are giving of themselves to make the lives of others better. The selflessness and the desire to help others is something we could all take away from this story. It adds another level to the normal warmth and love usually found in RaeAnne Thayne's books.
Add in the romance of a guy who basically has it all, to a woman who doesn't even think of herself as attractive and who can't even get her cats (they were her mother's) to come to her and you have a great story. I loved that Jamie was the kind of guy that you think of as being able to get any woman, but he falls for his lonely librarian land lady. Even before he knows he's fallen for her, he goes about trying to make her wishlist of things to do come true (even the sexy ones!). I loved seeing Julia's confidence grown page by page. Loved this book!

Earlier this year I read Serenity Harbor, the sixth book in the Haven Point series. Instantly, I found myself madly in love with RaeAnne Thayne’s storytelling and I wanted more. I wanted to go back and read the prior Haven Point books, I wanted to read the next Haven Point book, and I wanted to dive into the other books the author has written. Fortunately, I didn’t have to wait long before I was able to dive into Sugar Pine Trail, the seventh book in the Haven Point series.

If the truth is to be known, I enjoyed Sugar Pine Trail even more than I enjoyed Serenity Harbor. I feared such would not be the case – I’m not the biggest fan of seasonal romance stories, plus Serenity Harbor had set the bar extremely high – and yet I was quickly shown a wonderful story through Sugar Pine Trail.

From the first page I was pulled into the story, into the lives of our characters. It starts on a high and the book only gets better. There are so many experiences throughout, so many emotions to work through, leaving you unable to put the book down for any extended period of time. I tried to blame my night of no sleep on my injured back, but that was just an excuse I used to spend the night reading Sugar Pine Trails. It was impossible to put down, and I’m positive my neighbours heard my sounds of distress when my Kindle ran out of batter at the sixty-eight percent mark.

Honestly, I was addicted.

It’s hard to pinpoint what part of the story I loved the most. One minute I will claim it was the emotion, the next I will claim it was the characters, and a few moments later I will change my mind to reference sweet scenes. It really is a combination of these things – and others – that make the book so good, one of those stories where the individual elements are great but the collective makes for an even stronger read.

As I’ve said, this book is deeply emotional. I was laughing out loud. I was on the edge of my seat with worry. I was crying ugly tears at the events. I felt everything. We really do go through such a wide range of emotions in this one, each emotion hitting you hard at the most perfect of moments. It was wonderful, making for a very real read.

A large part of why things felt so real, for why the story hits you so hard, is due to the characters. The cast is wonderful. I fell head over heels for our main characters, as they worked so well together. I also fell madly in love with our other characters. In Serenity Harbor I found RaeAnne Thayne writes a wonderful child character, and the same is true here. The realness of the children characters adds so much to the story, gripping you so deeply. Honestly, I loved this.

As for the events that played out – well, damn. There were so many wonderful scenes. I could list them out, but to do so would ruin the events. Just know you’ll be on a rollercoaster of events, and that you’ll love all that plays out. It really does pull you through so much.

Overall, this was a wonderful second RaeAnne Thayne read; a solid four-point-five star read that works perfectly fine as a standalone should anyone want to pick it up without first reading the prior books. I cannot wait to go and read even more of the author’s work, something I know will certainly be happening in the future. I’m a fan now, and I’ll be need another fix soon.

The 7th in the Haven Point series and I was getting to a point where they were feeling a little repetitive, every other was a holiday themed and the other was during the summer and they were just feeling one after the other. BUT this one broke out of the mold for me, I loved the "potential" couple, I loved their story and just love.

Julia Winston is the small town library and she loves her job. Jamie Caine needs a place to stay while the finishing touches happen on his condo, so Julia's house is the perfect place for a few weeks. Jamie is the pilot for the company Caine Tech and helps his brothers and families get all over the country/world to make deals and help the company grow.

First, it was fun to follow the lives of two very different professionals - a librarian and a pilot probably don't have much in common if you think about it at first, so it was fun to see them interact and see his and her pre conceived notions of the other person completely break down. There was an interesting twist with a set of brothers that made this story go up a complete step.

This book revived my love for the series and I can't wait for the next one!

It may only be September, but welcome to the first holiday book review of the year!

And we’re back in cozy Haven Point in this follow up to Serenity Harbor and my personal favorite in the series, Riverbend Road.

Sugar Pine Trail even ties up a bit of the story in Riverbend Road, right along with the series’ ongoing efforts to get all the Caine brothers of Caine Tech matched up with the women they’ve been waiting their whole lives for – even if they haven’t known it.

The hero this time around is Jamie Caine, the pilot. Jamie spends his days flying his brothers and the other executives of Caine Tech wherever and whenever they need to go. And his nights with a seemingly endless succession of beautiful but ultimately forgettable women who go in knowing that all they’ll get is a few good rides.

Jamie is a flirt and a charmer, and not in the least shy of using those charms to get whatever, or whoever he wants. While he’s not quite a player – he’s the closest thing that tiny Haven Point has ever seen.

Julia Winston, on that other hand, is the town librarian. And she seems to have bought into the stereotype just a bit too much, even though she’s only in her early 30s. Renting Jamie the upstairs apartment in her huge Victorian house is way outside her comfort zone – if only because Julia, along with more than a few women in town – has an unrequited crush on Jamie.

But Julia has also discovered within herself a desire to finally take charge of her own life, and to stop letting her fears hold her back from all the experiences that she once upon a time believed she wanted. Including an orgasm not brought about entirely by her own efforts.

Jamie’s not the only new male to enter her life. In an act of concern and charity, Julia follows home two little boys who seem to be living in the library – and who don’t seem to have an adult around. Once she discovers their true situation and brings social worker Wyn Emmett (the heroine of Riverbend Road) into the case, she learns that the only way that these two brothers can stay together for Christmas is if someone steps up and can foster them together while officials hunt for their missing.

To everyone’s surprise, including her own, Julia volunteers to step so far out of her comfort zone that there’s no looking back. She fosters them herself, knowing nothing about fostering and even less about take care of children.

Lucky for her, her new upstairs tenant comes to her rescue when she finds herself way, way over her head. Jamie not only takes the two boys under his wing, but manages to even charm her supercilious cats into purring under his hand.

And finds himself, in turn, charmed by the woman that Julia reveals as she opens her heart to the boys and lets her hair down, both metaphorically and physically with him. Once the starch is worn out of Julia, he discovers that the sweet, lovely and slightly flustered woman she is underneath is someone he can’t resist.

No matter how much he tells himself that he should.

Escape Rating B: I like Haven Point a lot. It’s a great place to visit, filled with lovely people that it is a joy to get to know.

On the one hand, the problem that pulls the lives of Julia and the two boys together is one that every library faces in some way, in both large and small places. At the end of the evening, it is not uncommon to discover one or two (or more) children who are too young to be left on their own but who don’t seem to have a responsible adult picking them up. Leaving them feels unsafe, but when it happens night after night, the staff who feel forced to stay overtime end up both worried and resentful. While calling the police seems heartless, it is often the only way to deal with the problem so that everyone, including the library staff, feel safe and protected.

Julia’s solution to this dilemma is unique, but the problem happens more often than people think, although usually not in such dire circumstances. As much as I applauded her in the book, at the same time, that she fostered the children herself made her feel like “not one of us” as did her continual harping on how she both fit and embraced the stereotype of librarian. As a group, we pretty much deride the stereotype whenever and wherever possible. It’s almost a game we play of complaining just how terrible and just plain wrong the old stereotype is.

Of course, readers who are not themselves librarians will not be bothered by this aspect. But I did want to shake her and drag her to a big library conference to see for herself.

The fears that held Julia back in so many ways, while they had nothing to do with being a librarian, felt all too real. She had created a shell around herself, for reasons that often made sense at the time. But her desire to break out of that shell and find out who she really wanted to be was well portrayed.

As a character, I liked Jamie and loved the way that he stepped in, stepped up and helped Julia figure out her sudden immersion in parenting. Not that he had any more experience as a parent, but he did have experience both as a sibling in a large family and in wrangling his nieces and nephews. As the only child of two only children, Julia’s life just hadn’t included much of those kinds of interactions. She needed his help, and as difficult as it was for her, accepting that help was necessary for her to grow up and to break out of that shell.

However, I’m not sure I really bought their romance. The relationship that Julia forged with the boys, and her heartbreak at the end, was sweet and crazy and just right. But I didn’t quite feel the chemistry between Julia and Jamie.

But I still had a great time visiting Haven Point for the holidays, and will be happy to make a return trip sometime soon. Maybe in the spring, when I won’t have to read about SNOW!