I received this book as an ARC and this is my review. This story is one of loss and grief and hope and new beginnings. The characters are flawed and most are struggling. The time is just before Christmas. I recommend this book for readers who are seeking answers and trying to get their lives back on track.

Mary is a writer for a design magazine and has been engaged to the owner for quite a while. After he cancels their plans for Christmas, Mary decides enough is enough. She quits and decides to take her daughter and granddaughter to Florida for Christmas. She and her daughter have a rocky relationship and doesn’t get any better when her daughter cancels to go on a couples cruise with her boyfriend and leaves Mary with her granddaughter. The two develop a relationship. Mary and Larkin meet Daniel, a charter boat captain, who has a dog named Tripod. They become friends. Mary’s daughter comes back from her cruise and realizes that things need to change. I liked the book, it was disappointed with the ending.

Mary and her granddaughter end up at the low key hotel for the holidays, they meet some interesting people along the way. enjoyed the story

A holiday story about love and forgiveness. Quick read. Larkin makes the story. The setting of a 70s motel in Florida makes a great setting. Fun holiday without too much in your face holiday.

Thank you for Netgalley for an ARC

This book was slow through the first few chapters, but it turned out to be an enjoyable read. This is a book about family, new friends, and starting over. Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I never had any idea what the people of the Philippines went through during WWII. This story was told from two different perspectives: medical people and native Philippinos. At times, the brutality was intense, but I found the book well written and very interesting.

"Paradise Girls" by Sandy Gingras
Heartbreak & Healing, Finding Tomorrow
For me, this was a difficult heavy read. Hearts can be broken in so very many ways. I shed plenty of tears while within this story. Yet, I am ever so glad I got to spend my time with Mary, Daniel, and Ollie on this adventure to find their tomorrows. Yes, I say this is a worthy read, sweet and clean, and definitely not a fluff piece. Happy Reading ! !
NOTE: I received an ARC of this story from the publisher via NetGalley.
This review expresses my honest opinion.

Paradise Girls was a sweet story about family relationships, finding yourself after a loss, and helping others. This is definitely the type of book I needed to read right now. With all the dissension in the world today, it was refreshing and heartwarming to read about people who actually cared about one another.

There were amusing parts, heart tugging parts, and above all, lots of love and caring. If you need a pick me up, do yourself a favor and pick up Paradise Girls. I'd love to see a sequel to this novel.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and publisher for providing an ARC at my request. All thoughts are my own.

The Paradise Girls is a sweet story about love and second chances. There were quite a few characters to keep track of but it all came together in the end! Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this early release in exchange for my honest review.

Mary Valley isn’t having the best week. Right before Christmas her boss and boyfriend, Ron, lets her know he has to spend Christmas with his daughter and ex-wife. Not a good thing. Tired of waiting for a commitment, she breaks up with the cad and quits her job. Her condo is already sold since they were supposed to move in together, so she is really at loose ends. Her relationship with her daughter is icy and she rarely sees her granddaughter. She is lonely.

A trip to Florida at the last minute can get you a good deal or an old rundown hotel. Mary gets the latter. But she also gets a surprise. Her granddaughter gets to come with her. Of course, she comes with a list of rules and inappropriate clothes, but Mary will take what she can get.

Daniel is at loose ends as well. His son was killed in the war and all he has left is his boy’s three-legged dog, Tripod. His life has been pared down to his small houseboat and a few possessions. He is a landscaper turned fisherman and he is going downhill fast.

Ollie owns the hotel. It’s going under and she needs an influx of capital or a buyer. She loves her home and doesn’t want to sell it, but she may not have a choice.

Hmm…an interior designer, a landscaper, and a hotel in need of both. This isn’t just a nice love story, it’s much more. The pain of loss, getting older with dreams unfulfilled, plans you make and they just don’t happen. Can a bunch of wounded people come together and help heal each other?

What a lovely story this is!

NetGalley/ July 5, 2022, St. Martin’s Press

Paradise Girls by Sandy Gingras. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

From the colorful, beachy cover and general description, I anticipated a light, feel-good read – with lots of beach fun. Unfortunately, it didn’t go in that direction. The novel is told from three points of view, and two of the people weren’t very likable or gripping. Only the hotel owner, Ollie, who even though she is about to lose her livelihood if a miracle doesn’t happen, is upbeat, enthusiastic and active.

The main character, Mary, 42, acts much older than her age, and is stuck in the past, stuck in a frustrating relationship, stuck in a job she doesn’t like. Daniel does tourist boat tours since the loss of his soldier son, and has isolated himself on this island in Florida where Mary has come for a Christmas vacation with her daughter and 5 year old granddaughter. At the last minute the daughter decides to go on a cruise with her boyfriend instead, leaving her child for Mary to care for on her own.

The novel has little action but a great deal of back history on each character, and most of it regards sad issues about being abandoned by parents, feeling alone, bad marriages, and on and on in extensive detail. While this is supposedly about a weeks’ vacation in the Florida Keys, it just felt draggy. Even Daniel’s dog is sadly missing one leg. It seemed like things meant to be funny were weirdly off instead.

While there are some upbeat moments at the end, and these characters begin to take more initiative, it felt just a little too therapy-ish.

This book was such a fun read. I laughed and I cried…I enjoyed how the character’s lives entwined and how they found what is important.
Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

I enjoyed the story line of Paradise girls & the characters. It’s my first book by this author & I like her writing style. I liked that the main characters were older in age & how well they were developed. I could relate to the grandmother relationships with her family. I love stories that take place at the beach & was a relaxing read. I’m going to lol up more books by Sandy Gingras. It would be a great beach read

Mary finally (for real this time) leaves her wishy-washy fiancé/employer, impulsively quitting her job and decides to spend Christmas in Florida. Her granddaughter (note: Mary is a YOUNG grandma and I loved that she’s my age -early 40s) joins her and they have some marvelous adventures on a boat with a lovable three-legged dog and a brooding man. Mary is such a blast with the zany accidents she causes, her fierce love and caring, and her slowly unfolding ability to do what feels good and put her own needs first. Daniel, our brooding boat owner, has some reservations about it but finds himself drawn to Mary as she helps him learn to live again (this sounds SO cheesy but it SO wasn’t! It was beautiful to watch Daniel slowly peek out if his shell and find joy coming back into his life). There’s also the super cool hotel owner, Mary’s uptight daughter, and a lot of really fun Christmas celebration.
In the spirit of my beloved Barbara O’Neal (an auto read author for me), this was a sweet romance that tackled some difficult topics while still remaining magical and beautiful. I loved all the characters and how they connected, and the beautiful Florida setting. There is lightness as well as darkness in the story, which adds so much depth and makes the relationships much richer, and there are so many fun, quirky scenes. I really enjoyed this book!!

This one has it all! Loss, forgiveness, perseverance, friendship and the ability to find humour even in the dregs. Three perspectives, three different ways of travelling in and through. This is a lovely, wholesome, sweet read and I would highly recommend. I truly enjoyed the writing style of this author and looked for other books by her. I was really surprised to find this was her first novel. I will most definitely be watching for more. As always, many thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Such a sweet story about Mary's breakup with her boyfriend and her subsequent Florida Christmas vacay with her granddaughter, Larkin. Low Key, the beach motel, serves as the backdrop to Mary's rediscovery of herself and her priorities. She gets to be chummy with Ollie, the motel owner, Daniel, the boat owner and guide, and Tripod, Daniels adorable dog. This story lets us into the lives of the characters, the incredible, lifelong pain that they experience, and their joys, especially during this Christmas holiday, and we learn to love them. This book is well written - I might have edited it down a tad, though, and I did find myself skimming the last few chapters a little. The ending is lovely, and very satisfying though slightly predictable. This could be a light beach read!

Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read and review Paradise Girls.

really enjoyed this book about family and finding love and figuring out life. Really enjoyed the motel and what all happened during the time of Christmas.

This was an easy read and a sweet story! All of the characters were likable and I was rooting for a happy ending for everybody.

Heartwarming and endearing.

After Mary breaks up with her fiancé, her best friend suggests a vacation. Mary and her granddaughter head to the Florida where she stays at a quaint resort called the Low-Key Inn, where it seems amazing things happen to the guests. Some find love, some find adventure and some discover a whole new life. Mary takes her life in a whole new direction; new friends a new fun-loving attitude, and most importantly, Daniel, the captain of the boat who took Mary and her granddaughter out fishing.

The Low-key Inn is also a place where life-long friendships are made. And in the center of it all is Ollie, the resort owner. But Ollie is struggling to keep the place afloat and doesn’t know what her future will look like until she meets Al. Al just might be who Ollie needed in her life at the time.

I had a hard time putting this book down. The characters grew on me and I couldn’t wait to see how their stories would turn out. I thoroughly enjoyed everything about this book.

Such a sad, heart wrenching book. I found myself in tears several times while reading. This is a deeply depressing story in places, yet the promise of better times and light shines in and out in slivers and steady by the end. The hope and possibilities of an HEA for these endearing and emotionally damaged characters is the best of this story.