Skip to main content

Member Reviews

First, I loved Sugar Pine Trail. I always enjoy a visit to Haven Point and every time I read a new one by RaeAnne Thayne, it becomes my favorite. Sugar Pine Trail is no different. As with all the other Haven Point books, this is a standalone novel but we get to visit with past characters – and some of them ARE characters! – and I always love reading about them, too. This time we get to read Julia Winston’s and Jamie Caine’s story. Both of them have backstories, of course, but they have much to work through, by themselves and of course, together. It’s their journeys that make this book so special. Both Julia and Jamie are wonderful characters and I found myself rooting for them individually and as a couple. And the two young boys that stay with Julia for the holidays? OMG, they will melt your heart! Julia is so vulnerable, typically quiet and shy. Jamie, for all his “sexy” bravado and man-about-town attitude, is just as vulnerable, in his own way. Julia’s list is hilarious, as is Jamie helping her fulfill everything on it, even if she doesn’t know he’s seen it. I really enjoyed this story and it will warm your heart, make you sniffle, and smile, all the way through. Highly recommend! I received a copy of this book thru NetGalley and have freely reviewed this work.

Was this review helpful?

What a wonderful, sweet romantic whirl RaeAnne creates! Loved the way an ordinary life can become extraordinary when you take advantage of opportunities as they come along. We become part of the story as love grows between Julia and Jamie. Loved the way the author correctly portrays the librarian since I worked in one and many think we do nothing but stamp books all day.

Was this review helpful?

We all know that your past shapes you into who you are today. For Jamie Caine, his past left him feeling guilty (so he left his hometown) and fearful of relationships. He has the good-time-Charley routine down pat. For Julia Winston, the only time she defied her staid, elderly parents, things ended sadly. So, Julia is left alone to care for her late mom’s three cats. Two little boys, a wish list, and a short term rental bring joy and laughter into Julia’s life. Let the fun begin!

I enjoyed reading this story by RaeAnne Thayne. The characters are multi-dimensional and so very real. Jamie is part of a very influential and wealthy family, yet he voluntarily is involved with an introverted librarian and her crazy life. I do believe Jamie is one of my favorite characters! Enjoy this story and if you’ve been to Haven Point before, catch up with some old friends, too.

Was this review helpful?

Another great addition to the Haven Point series. This is book 7 and gives Jamie Caine his own story with librarian Julia Winston. Julia is facing the holidays alone since her parents have passed away but when she discovers 2 young boys living alone and their mother missing she has her hands full. Davy and Caine are at the library everyday and one night she takes them home to a cold house with no food. With the help of Jamie who is renting her upstairs apartment she makes sure the boys have a happy Thanksgiving and looking forward to Christmas. Great story that brings light to PTSD in soldiers and the cracks in the foster care system. A very sweet story in a wonderful town.

Was this review helpful?

A wonderful Christmas time story of second chances and love of all kinds.
Jaime and Julia could not be more different on the surface but beneath it they have much in common. The two abandoned children round out this tale and give it a heart of it's own.

Was this review helpful?

Julia and Jamie are the most charming characters I've seen created in a long time. I loved them and how they put others first- the kind of people one hopes to meet in real life.

Julia is very alone in the world. At book club, she makes a list of things she wants to achieve this year.

Jamie is staying in the apartment above Julia. He's a kind-hearted man and helps make those dreams come true.

This is a sweet Christmas story that is sure to be a hit.

Was this review helpful?

I loved this book from the first couple of pages on. Julia is a great character, especially if you are a rather introverted sort that likes your romance heroines to be a normal person that could be any one of us.

Jamie is a sweet and charming hero with a lot going for him but isn't just good looks and loads of cash. The author made sure he had a background worthy of reading about and that he came to the table with his own bundle of insecurities. This book made me laugh on more than one occasion but also made me tear up a few times. Reading this long into the evening was a great experience that took me out of everyday life and allowed me to focus on something else.

If you are worried about reading this book if you haven't read the rest of the series, don't be. It still makes perfect sense even if you haven't read all the other books. I've missed a couple but it wasn't a problem.

This is a sweet and yet sexy, fun book to read any time of year. I loved the cats and the two little boys at the heart of the story and recommend it to all romance readers. Perfect.

This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher, provided through Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Was this review helpful?

Librarian Julia Winston is finally to spice up her life. When her mother passes away after a long illness, she fixes up the home she inherited. A friend asks her to do her a favor and rent her old apartment to Jaime, a relative who needs a temporary place while his condo is being finished...and hoo-boy, he draws her like a magnet. She is determined not to get involved with the notorious heart breaker.
She plans to get a life, but is sidetracked when she realizes that the two young boys she has seen several times in the library are in trouble. She call CPS but jumps in when they plan to separate the brothers.
Julia falls in love with the pair as she takes care of them with Jaime's aid, only to be heartbroken when the relatives are found. Jaime's secrets are revealed as they are thrown together more and more and both fall deeply in love. They work through misunderstandings and find their HEA.
This is a very enjoyable sweet romance.
I requested and received an ARC copy from NetGalley to my delight.

Was this review helpful?

I am turning into a RaeAnne Thayne fan! RaeAnne Thayne creates characters that come to life on each page. They are flawed but they are human and I love them... quirks and all.

This story involves an unlikely match. First there is Julia Winston, a librarian who fills her evenings alone in a large historic Victorian house with her deceased mother's cats. She has friends, but her life over the past ten years have been focused on caring for her elderly parents, both of whom are now gone. Then there is Jamie Caine, the sexy and handsome lead pilot for Caine Tech Company jet fleet. Rich, handsome and the focus of every woman's fantasy. Jamie ends up renting the upstairs rooms in Julia's home temporarily while waiting for construction and... yes, you can pretty much predict what ends up happening but the adventure getting there is quite eventful. It also includes two adorable little boys that Julia finds living on their own when their mother disappears. No more spoilers!

This book had me smiling at the sweet budding romance and it had me grabbing the box of tissues near the end. I think I had tears streaming down my face non-stop through the last two chapters.

Sugar Pine Trail is the perfect book to get the reader ready for the holidays. I loved it!

Was this review helpful?

Sweet girl next door librarian meets hunky pilot hero. It was nice but lacked the depth Raeanne Thayne's books usually have. I was happy for the characters and enjoyed the hours reading it. It was just a little unsatisying in the end.

Was this review helpful?

What a treat of a book. Take one lonely, quiet librarian , throw in a couple of homeless kids, and one really good-looking upstairs neighbor and you have a heck of a good story. Julia says she is happy with her life, but when push comes to shove she wold like to make changes. In this case she should have been careful what she wished for, but you can't help but smile when it all turns out just fine. Ms Thayne has never let me down, and she still hasn't. Read t his one!

Was this review helpful?

Christmas romances can be so much fun, especially if you are looking for a quick easy heartwarming read and don't expect much realism.

Julia is a sweet small town librarian who has lots of friends, but whose life has been spent meeting the expectations of others. Not long before Christmas her book club makes wish lists--things they wish they could do, but haven't yet. Julia's list includes having an orgasm with someone else.

Julia lives in a large home she inherited from her parents, and which she has divided into two apartments. A handsome pilot moves in upstairs. She knows his family and knows that he doesn't do serious relationships, so of course she isn't willing to get close to him.

Right before Thanksgiving Julia notices that two young boys are spending too much time in the library and are walking home by themselves in a serious snowstorm. She calls child welfare and ends up as their foster mother, and ends up getting a lot of help from the guy upstairs (the pilot). He ends up seeing her bucket list and helps her achieve most of those goals--and then lets it slip that he has seen the list.

All in all, the book is predictable almost to a fault but they get their happily ever after and that's what Christmas romances are about, right.

Like Thayne's other novels, this one includes a passionate interlude, however, the characters remain dressed.

Fans of the Haven Point and Hope's Crossing books will enjoy catching up with many of the regular cast.

I'd like to thank Little Bird Publicity for inviting me to join this tour. Grade: B-

Was this review helpful?