Paradise Girls, by Sandy Gingras, is the story of how a dismal Christmas holiday may just be the beginning of a brand new life. Mary Valley had been very excited to be spending the holidays with her fiancé boss Ron, until he informs her that he will be spending the time with his ex-wife and daughter instead. Mary is fed up with coming in second, let’s him know in no uncertain terms, breaks the engagement and quits her job.

At the urging of her best friend Joelle, Mary books a holiday trip to an out of the way inn on the edge of the Everglades. But at the last minute CC, her daughter, begs off the trip to accompany her boyfriend on a singles cruise while sending her daughter Larkin along with Mary so the two can be reacquainted. Of course CC expects Mary to adhere to her rigid child rearing rules which soon go by the wayside.

Their first day of vacation Mary takes Larkin on a fishing trip where they meet Daniel Dayes and his dog Tripod. When the trip ends with a hooked skipper and an urgent care trip it seems a disaster. But the finding and returning of Mary’s wallet opens up a different dialog.

This is a lovely story of disillusioned people crossing paths at the right time. While Mary and Daniel are the main focus, there are also well plotted sub stories of the inn’s owner Ollie and Mary’s daughter as they each also find new pathways. I completely enjoyed this book and I do wholeheartedly recommend it!

Paradise Girls was the perfect read this afternoon during my unexpected holiday weekend with my parents, walking on the beach on Hilton Head Island this morning before returning home to read by the pool at their complex. Mary breaks off her long-standing engagement and leaves town with her granddaughter, Larkin, for Christmas break in south Florida near the Everglades. Mary and Larkin stay in a unique inn, meeting interesting characters and finding out more about themselves. Their boating adventure had me laughing aloud, while some of the deeper conversations Mary has with Ollie and with Daniel had me close to tears. Self-discovery, family, loss, and starting over are some of the main themes explored, and I was swept along by the story, wanting to see how it would culminate.
Thank you to @smpromance @stmartinspress and @netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion. Paradise Girls will publish Tuesday 7/5 - I definitely recommend it for an enjoyable, heartwarming beach read!

A heartwarming story! The characters are all a little quirky and carrying a lot of emotional baggage (just like everyone I know in real life). I appreciated Mary's outlook on life and how she rolled with everything in life. I enjoyed the pace and the story being told from the different characters point of view. I loved how the characters who were all lost found each other and a new direction for their lives. I received an advance copy from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.

You know when you’re in the mood to not read or watch anything heavy but you want to have a nice, comforting story that has some conflict and creative characters with a setting that is almost like a character in the story? This novel fits that niche. It’s like a Hallmark movie book - and don’t judge! Sometimes we all want that for an afternoon of escape. Thanks to St Martin’s Griffin for the advanced copy!

Paradise Girls is a story of loss and healing set in a cute little beach town with characters you'll enjoy. The pacing of this book took a while to grab my attention.

Paradise Girls
author: Sandy Gingras
St. Martin's Press, St. Martin's Griffin
Pub Date: July 05, 2022
General Fiction (Adult), Women's Fiction

Paradise Girls is a redeeming story of reconciliation and fresh starts amid the breezes and waters of the south Florida Everglades. Author Gringas shines with the creation of a setting that evokes images of the ocean and a seventies beach motel. Each facing change and turning points in their lives, three main characters, Mary, Daniel, and Ollie are drawn together in paradise to discover what matters most in life.

Heartaches and pain can bring people together. Mary vacations to the Everglades with her granddaughter after the loss of love and her home magazine writing career. The hurt of losing his son has sent Daniel into a solitary life on his houseboat. The endearing Ollie owns the dated Low-Key Inn and needs help.

This book slowly built up for me as it progressed, until it had me happily absorbed into the lives of Mary, Daniel, and Ollie. Meeting Mary's granddaughter Larkin and Daniel's dog Tripod was a joy. I thought a lot about home and possessions with the book's theme of what we need to be happy and what we can let go of. The importance of finding our place and our people amid life's turmoil is prominent in Gringas's writing. I loved the inclusion of nature's components such as sand, plants, water, and sky in the overall atmosphere of the plot. Enjoy this appealing book in any season. It is especially good for those who enjoy Christmas in July reading like I do.

Thank you to Net Galley and St. Martin's Press, St. Martin's Griffin for the advance reader's copy and opportunity to provide my unbiased review.

The main characters are at a crossroad in their lives. Mary has had enough. She is tired of coming in last in her love life. Ollie, the owner of the Low-Key Inn, needs an infusion of cash to update the place or she would lose it all. Daniel is just as lost. He doesn't know how to move on from the death of his son. He died while being deployed but at one point he saved this dog, now called Tripod. In a Christmas vacation, Mary, daughter CC and granddaughter Larkin were to mend bridges. Plans went awry. Larkin comes out of her shell and brings out the best in Daniel and Ollie. In the end, you have to fight for the life you want. That means figuring out where you belong and who you want in your life and in what capacity.

Paradise felt a little more like drama and sad paradise. I ended up enjoying this book in the end, but it was real slow to start.

I know it was partly to build drama and drive the plot, but the characters were kind of depressing. Mary with her relationship gone wrong and a strain with her daughter and Daniel grieving his son and the threat of losing his dog made it hard to find the bright spots.

This book is written well, but I was hoping for more of a beach read instead of a drama/redemption type of book. At least the hotel was kind of quirky and the little girl Larkin lightened it up a little bit.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for providing me a copy of this ARC for my honest review.

This book is such a sweet summer vacation read. I love a good romance about starting over, lonely but strong characters, they are older as well, so it was a very mature take on forgiveness, and moving on, the main characters are older. Mary’s granddaughter Larkin is the cutest little girl and Tripod the dog, even cuter. There were laughs and tears and I mentioned it before but the “starting over” part in this book coming from both the main characters and Ollie was inspirational. Its never too late to start again, and to even find love and happiness.

Thanks netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

“‘Ugh. He was my whole future, my whole life!’ ‘No, he wasn’t.’ ‘He was my heart, then.’ ‘Your heart has lots of rooms in it. It’s like an apartment building. He was just squatting in one of the rooms.’ ‘My heart is an apartment building?’ ‘Yes. So, it’s time to open another door and see what’s inside. It’s high time you slept with someone else.’”

Mary Valley is in a funk. She is stuck in a dead end relationship with her boss, is finding no enjoyment or meaning in her job as a writer for home magazines, and is estranged from her daughter CC and granddaughter Larkin. Daniel is adrift since his son Timmy was killed in Afghanistan. When their paths cross over the Christmas holiday, Mary manages to cast a hook into Daniels head and wreck his boat. This is the story of how lost people can help each other find their way home.

Write a beach read but center it around Christmas? Oh YES! What a fresh take on the summer read!

This was the sweetest story about finding yourself, striving for what makes your heart happy, and realizing that there is happiness after heartbreak. And there is a three legged dog named Tripod that bonds with a little girl. Oh my heart. I just loved this story and (most of) these characters. Love heals all wounds man. It just does.

Thank you to Netgalley, Macmillan Audio, St. Martin’s Press, and the author for the ARC and ALC in exchange for an honest review.

Paradise Girls was a fairly quick and enjoyable read!

Mary, Ollie and Daniel are all navigating big things in their lives. They are all at a crossroads where they know they need to make some major changes, but they aren't quite sure exactly how to make that happen. All three of them happen to be in the same area, on the outskirts of the Everglades, for a week where they come into one another's lives.

When they all come together, they help one another find peace, love, healing, friendship and forgiveness. While I felt like it was a big predictable, I did enjoy that it was a light story, which is different from some of the heavier ones I've read lately.

**I voluntarily read an early copy of this title courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review**

A beautifully written story about the human experience. We meet people who are all stuck and wondering how their lives have led them to where they are. Disappointing relationships, careers, grief, loss etc. Mary is yet again disappointed by the man she is dating when he ditches her during the holiday to spend it with his ex. She’s estranged from her daughter and her beloved granddaughter, is sick of her work and feels lost and alone. Things may be looking up when her daughter agrees to a vacation together until she bails leaving her alone with her granddaughter, who is not too happy. The hotel isn’t what she anticipated and she is yet again disappointed, but them meets Daniel. He is mourning the loss of this beloved son and is thinking about ending it all for what is the point. Their first meeting doesn’t go well and yet they slowly begin to trust each other and develop a real friendship and slowly learn that life has more to offer than they ever knew. Its a beautiful story of resiliance and how important connections are when you open your heart, let go of old hurts and let love in.

What's it about (in a nutshell):
Paradise Girls by Sandy Gringas was a lovely story that brought a tear to my eye more than once and pulled at my heartstrings the whole way through.

Initial Expectations (before beginning the book):
The cover is my favorite kind of cover – a beach scene. This one has a woman and child walking to the beach, which tells me this story is about family. The blurb tells of different states of transition ending with the word "healing," which says emotional and heartwarming. This isn't the kind of story I'm usually drawn to, and I admit the cover was what called to me.

Actual Reading Experience:
At its core, Paradise Girls reflects the many life-defining ways that grief impacts us – a teen daughter loses her father, a father loses his young adult son, wives lose their husbands, and a husband/father loses his whole family. The different relationships can change the way grief looks in each of us. I loved those reflections and how they took shape as the story progressed. It's touching, heartwarming, and ultimately authentic, drawing a tear or two from me. The characters can be hard to get to know, but that's because each is protecting that part of themselves that still feels the pain of loss. Once I realized why I didn't like the characters, I grew to accept them for who they had become. I loved the growth shown in each of them as the story progresses. I particularly enjoyed that it is not a story with a neat and tidy ending where everyone finds their happily ever after. It is a happy and satisfying ending but in a more realistic manner rather than the storybook ending.

To Read or Not to Read:
If you enjoy heartfelt stories that make you reflect and love the joy pets and children bring to life, Paradise Girls is a read you will be glad you picked up.

Christmas at the Low-Key in in the Florida Everglades is not at all what Mary anticipated but it turns out to be the best vacation ever. She's got her granddaughter Larkin with her after her daughter CC took off on a cruise and she's determined to loosen CC's reins (candy!) Ollie, the owner of the inn seems like a witch but she's not and she's struggling to keep the place. And then there's Daniel and his dog Tripod. These four people (and one dog) build a bond quickly, overcoming their collective reticence with others. And there's a romance..... Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. It's an easy read that's (let's face it) a little trope-y but the characters are great and I liked the atmospherics of the setting.

"Paradise Girls" by Sandy Gingras is a story about finding your way home into new friendships!

Mary Valley has quit her job and broken her engagement all in one day and yes, her now ex-fiance also happens to be her ex-boss! With no plans for a romantic holiday spent at home, this 42 year-old grandmother is off to spend Christmas in Florida with her five-year-old granddaughter, Larkin.

Daniel Dayes owns a charter fishing business in Florida and lives on a houseboat with his son Timmy's three-legged dog, Tripod. Timmy was killed in Afghanistan and Daniel has been living on the edge ever since. His days are mostly dark with the exception of Tripod.

Ollie is the elderly but active owner of the Low Key Inn where Mary is staying on vacation. It's on the outskirts of the Everglades with wildlife, sea-life and plant-life galore. Ollie's counting on the interested investor, Mr. Emerson to help bail her out of her financial woes in the hospitality business that she loves. It's also her home.

Why have these three lonely, mixed up, and brokenhearted people been brought together during the same week in the same place in Florida?

I thought this was going to be an easy, restful beach read but this is not set in paradise. It's a run-down seventies era hotel and the story is full of family conflict and characters who are disenchanted with life and their circumstances.

Although it got off to a rocky start this did grow on me as the characters began to evolve into better, happier, humans. I love how this story provides great examples of when you're looking for what's missing in your life, what you may find is your truest self and friends who care.

An enjoyable read but a little too reminiscent of the 'Hallmark Channel' for me. If that's your preference, I do recommend it as one for you.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Sandy Gingras for a free ARC of this book. It has been an honor to give my honest and voluntary review.

I didn't quite know to expect from Paradise Girls. Little girls raised on a beach? Twenty-somethings on spring break? This was a good surprise.

Mary, Ollie and Daniel are at a crossroad in their lives. Mary has just broken an engagement to Ron, Ollie is trying to keep her motel, the Low-Key Inn, going and Daniel is grieving the loss of his son in the war.

After Mary breaks off her engagement to Ron, a colossal jerk by the way, she decides to book a trip to Florida and on a whim picks the Low-Key Inn because she likes the dolphin fountain. She brings along her granddaughter, Larkin, and books a charter fishing trip with Daniel as the captain. I loved all of these characters and the dog, Tripod, so named because he has only three legs. I want to spend some time at the Low-Key Inn and one of their rainbow decorated igloos, hear the ocean, collect shells and feed the birds.

I found Mary's daughter, CC, very unlikeable and wish I knew more about how they got to the point that they did. Granddaughter, Larkin, was adorable. I felt like parts of the ending were wrapped up too neatly and didn't realistic but ultimately this is a story of dealing with the past, healing and moving on.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with a digital copy of this book.

Thank you NetGalley, Sandy Gingras and St Martin’s Press for the ARC of Paradise Girls. This is my personal review.
The story is one about three people who are at a place in their lives none of them imagined they would be at. Mary, Daniel, and Ollie each have decisions to make about where they have been and where they are going in their lives. They have found each other just when they needed someone in their lives who can help them find the happiness and peace each of them is needing. They story is written so well that I felt like I was with the characters each step of the way.

This is a story of grief and loneliness. It's told from multiple perspectives. Mary is a young grandmother, somewhat estranged from her daughter CC and granddaughter, Larkin. Daniel's son recently died in Afghanistan, and he and his wife divorced. And Ollie's husband died, leaving her with a heavily mortgaged motel.

All three end up together near Ollie's motel in Florida for Christmas. At first, I was a bit disappointed to be reading a Christmas story outside of the season. But this is definitely not your typical Christmas story. Parts were so hard to read. But I also found it tough to put down, and almost cathartic.

There's a very sweet dog and a lovely little girl. They add a lot of character to the book. This is a quiet, thoughtful read. The pacing is slow, portions are heart-wrenching, and it focuses on characters.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for the advanced reader copy. These opinions are my own.

TW: grief, suicidal ideation

Paradise Girls is a ok story. I didn’t connect to it like I thought I would. The first pages had me thinking this is going to be a great book. After a bit, my feelings changed.
The characters were interesting in their own way.
The setting was fun….a down on its luck beach hotel with a quirky owner.
Overall, a ok read but not a favorite for me.
Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

You think you are where you belong, great job, fiancee...but deep down you know you are in a funk. Mary Valley is a wonderful loving character who has to come to terms with her relationship status, career and most of all estranged daughter and granddaughter.
She takes off on a vacation in paradise with her granddaughter to clear her head. The people she meets and experiences she has help her to heal her wounded self and make the changes she needs.

Heartfelt story, funny, cheeky and very realistic. A real joy to read!

I received a complimentary copy of this book, all opinions in my review are my own. Thank you St Martins Press and Netgalley.
#ParadiseGirls #SandyGingras #StMartinsPress