I really liked this one! It was super binge-able, and the perfect book for the mini reading slump I'm in. Recently, I've been bingeing a ton of Victorian-era historical romances, so reading one set in San Fransisco was super fun. Especially because I've spent a significant amount of time there, so I could picture it well.

My favorite bit about Love on the Coast wouldn't even be the romance, despite liking it. Instead, my favorite bit would be the way this tackled real-world issues. Sure, it didn't delve super deep into the homeless crisis, but it was nice to see that bit of realism in a novel.

It's a minor complaint, but really my only one with the book - I wish we'd gotten to see the ball Cora spent so much time planning. It was such a large plot point and we barely saw any of it. I wish we had at least one scene describing the way it turned out.

I also wish that we would've had an epilogue. I would've loved to see where the people Cora helped ended up, and also see where Cora and Edward's relationship took them.

Although I do have those minor complaints, don't let them deter you. The only thing this book did wrong was not having more of itself.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

Ed Neal has sworn off love and all things Irish, except that he needs to marry into money and reputation. So he orders a mail-order bride. His good-for-nothing business partner does as well, right before he runs off and leaves his ordered bride high and dry. Cora is willing to head West to marry someone she’s never met, not realizing that her groom has skipped town. When Ed’s mail-order bride also gets cold feet, Ed and Cora find themselves in a mismatched mail-order situation. Cora doesn’t have the reputation Ed was looking for (and she’s Irish descent), but at least she can host parties. Will they fall in love instead of a marriage of convenience?

This one sounded so good, but was not my favorite. The characters were difficult to like (save for Cora) and the setting was two-dimensional. I never succeeded in immersing myself in the story. Not my cup of tea, but perhaps it is for someone else! Definitely a light read!

Rated PG for mild peril
—clean romance
—mild peril
—mild language

I received this ebook free from NetGalley. My opinions are my own and offered voluntarily.

Love on the Coast unfolds beautifully and will hold your attention from the moment you begin the journey with Cora and Ed until the very end! This is the seventh in McKinnie Mail Order Bride series which brings the McKinnie sisters saga. Ciara Knight has written a story that's filled with characters with individual personalities that become more than just part of the tale they come off the pages and pull you into their story, sweet passion and with a heartfelt plot.

Another fun book by Ciara Knight. I've always loved the mail-order bride trope and I enjoyed the unique way this began. I look forward to reading more by Ciara Knight in the future.

I really enjoyed this enemy to lovers romance, It’s a series which I did not realize, but can easily be read as a stand alone, I will now look for the other books in this series. Fun read. Thank you netgalley and publisher for this arc in exchange of an honest review.

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher and all opinions expressed are entirely my own.

The book is a mail order bride book and a favorite of mine that follows Eddie who is sworn off love because he refuses to be hurt and the strong and beautiful Cora. It was heartwarming watching two people find their way to each other and find healing along the way, The author did a great job roping us into this wonderful story about two people meant for each other. Loved it! recommend it !

I really enjoyed reading "Love on the Coast". It was a sweet, clean historical romance that takes place in San Francisco.

Edward Neal had spent that last 20 years trying to separate himself from his heritage and his real surname of O'Neal. He didn't want anyone to know of his Irish heritage. He remembered how the Irish had been treated and how he had to watch his loved ones die from lack of funds and food. He was determined to never live like that again. He would only marriage for convenience and not for love and he would never have children that might suffer what his siblings and parents had to before. He had walked away from that life at 13 and he would never let that happen again. He had forged an agreement with a wealthy family to marry their daughter, Mary, and with her dowry, he would have the money he needed to bring his company back from the brink of disaster.

When his bride was set to arrive, he found that she had never made it but the bride he had arranged for his partner, William, had arrived. With her flaming red hair and her Irish name, Cora McKinnie, her heritage was obvious and he didn't want to associate himself with her. He would protect her, find her a husband and be done with her. Would it be that easy to get her out of his head and heart, though?

This story had so much depth and well developed characters and plot. I was sad when the story ended, except the happy ending brought a smile.

I was given an arc copy of this book and I willingly offer my honest review.

I've read many of Ms Knight's other books, but this is the first of her Mckinnie Mail Order Brides for me. I've enjoyed all the others and this one also did not disappoint. The cast of characters are wonderfully well-developed and realistic and relatable which give them an authentic quality. Strong, endearing characters you just can't help but love. I was pulled into the story right from the start and it held my attention till the very end. Cora is determined to make a better life for herself and comes to California as a mail order bride. Ed is a man who has been hurt and has guards up around his heart. He has been betrayed by his business partner and is in financial stress. In hopes of saving his business, he has sent for a mail order bride whose dowry and status just might help save him. But Cora arrives instead of the bride he was expecting. She was actually intended for his partner, who ran off. Cora has lost everything in the war and is not in any place to help him financially, but she is kind-hearted, honorable, and smart and is determined to make the best of the situation. As they spend time together, their attraction is undeniable. Will Ed let his guard down and let Cora into his heart? This was a beautiful and heartwarming story that I really enjoyed. If you have enjoyed other books in the series, then this one is definitely one not to be missed!

I received a complimentary copy from Netgalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.

Thank you Netgalley & publishers for a e arc copy of Love on the Coast (McKinnie Mail Order Brides Book 7) by Ciara Knight.

Fake marriage, mail order brides, enemies to lovers; YES please.

One of my favorite tropes is arranged marriages, this one has a bit of a twist hence the fake marriage per the book summary.

Summary: "A fake marriage for these enemies turned lovers will be tested and only trust can save them. Irish immigrant Edward O’Neal landed in America as a little boy with the promise of a better life but found prejudice and poverty. Poverty that took his entire large family from him. Cora McKinnie managed to live through the Civil War long enough to see her parents, brothers, and fiancé die and to send her six sisters away to wed. Alone, she makes the arduous journey to San Francisco to marry and start her own loving family. Dreams sour when she discovers her betrothed is dead and his jilted, angry partner despises her for being Irish and the only woman available to marry. To recover his fortune, Edward must pull off the event of the year with little funds. A nearly impossible task without the help of the distracting, beautiful, thrifty Irish woman with a huge heart."

I loved the character of Cora; also the name of one my daughters.

This is a clean read and there is nothing inappropriate in it. Sweet Historical Second Chance Romance!

Although this says book 7, it can be read as a standalone. I did not read 1-6 or realize that this was in a series. 4+* quick enjoyable read, highly recommend.

Loved this sweet historical fiction read about Irish immigrants and love. It was a fairly quick read.

NOT WORTH THE EFFORT

This was definitely not my cup of tea.

👎So much telling, absolutely no showing!
👎None of the characters felt real in any way, I couldn't connect with them
👎There were hardly any descriptions of anything, not scenery, fashion or anything.... If it weren't for the repeated references to Union soldiers, this could have been anyplace at anytime
👎Ed in particular frustrated me. He was so hot and cold all the time, but not in a believable way, it felt more like a split personality than a man at war with himself and his emotions.

I so enjoyed Love on the Coast by Ciara Knight. Cora McKinnie is a mail order bride who has come to California as a mail order bride. I liked her spunk and her determination to make a better life for herself. Ed Neal had a guard on his heart for much of the book. He wanted to do the right thing but also didn’t want to allow himself to care for another. Neither of them had the person that they expected show up. What might seem like bad luck turns into more like God’s grace in their lives by the end of the book.

I suspect this kind of thing happened often in sending for a mail order bride. I really enjoyed how Cora broke the news to Ed after he had made his little speech to her. The push and pull by Ed struggling with his heritage, his work and with who Cora was or rather who she was not made me want to shake some sense into him a time or two. Then there are several twists, a villain and something that is known to happen around San Francisco making this an exciting read. Recommend this book to one and all.

The publisher through Net Galley provided a digital ARC. I have voluntarily decided to read and review, giving my personal opinions and thoughts.

Ed Neal did not appeal to me. He doesn’t like Cora McKinnie, but wants her to fall at his feet and beg him to marry her. He didn’t want a “no-name Irish girl” tarnishing his reputation, but he’s a closet Irishman. Cora is great, determined to make something of herself in a life reduced by the Civil War. The San Francisco earthquake adds interest to the tale. Obviously, Ed mends his ways in this enemy-to-lovers story.

Want or need, which will determine your life and the lives of those you love?

Edward send for a bride who is NOT Irish but she's too weak to make the trip. Cora's intended flees work Edwards money and another woman. Cora's not who Edward wants, she's Irish, poor, and not the perfect picture Edward painted for his life.

But Cora is loving, honorable, smart, and capable of turning Edwards life inside out, upside down, and all around lopsided.

Will Edward choose the one person he truly needs, or will he allow his fear and wants to allow him to lose the love of his life? Want or Need, a choice that will determine the remainder of not only Edward's life but Cora's life as well.

Fantastic story that concludes the McKinnie. Mail-Order Brides series. I not only recommend this book but the other books in the series. They are extremely well written, humorous, emotional, and will leave your completely satisfied while still craving more.

I just reviewed Love on the Coast by Ciara Knight. #LoveontheCoast #NetGalley

A lovely book in this series which can be read as a stand-alone, Cora arrives as a mail order bride for Ed’s partner who has runoff with his money, and their story begins. A great small town romance, and even the bad guy gets his comeuppance. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

This was a great story to get lost in, and glad I chose to read it.
Now I have not read the previous books in this series, but the author brought me up to date, and I was not lost.
This is Cora's story, and I loved this red headed, sweet and full of compassion, but smart and with some great ideas! I would have loved to have gone to the party!
Then we have Ed, a hurting man, afraid to get close to others, he has lost so much, but there is a good heart beating within the tough exterior.
We are gifted with a mail-order bride story, the wrong one arrives for Ed, we also have a chance of bankruptcy, threats, and then throw in an earthquake.
Page turner for sure!

I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Author Collective 20, and was not required to give a positive review.

Ed Neal, a San Francisco shipping owner has just been betrayed by business partner while awaiting his mail order bride from back East. He’s going that her family name—not Irish like his—and dowry will be the solution to all of his problems. With his expected bride is another, less marriageable woman who was supposed to marry his former partner who has since skipped town, but she’s a problem easily sorted out.

Cora McKinnie is eager for a fresh start after her beloved Georgia was ravaged by war and is eager to have a family of her own. She traveled to California with another woman who bailed at the isthmus of Panama and sent Cora with a letter explaining to Mr Neal:

Of course Cora sees the solution but as far as Ed is concerned she’s not wealthy or well connected enough for him. But when the alternative is that the town brute who’s jealous of Ed offers for Cora, Ed steps in to stop him and in the confusion others think he’ll marry her. Cora makes the most of her chance and impresses a would-be investor in the hopes of saving Ed’s business. A deal is struck to find her a husband if she helps with his event to
find more investors

The characters are one-dimensional , and Ed was sometimes inconsistent, in one sentence wanting to care for Cora and also talking about sending her away. The dialogue and inner reflections are all flat. I was skimming pretty early on. The setting and the time period didn’t come alive for me either.

Great enemy to lovers romance. I loved that the main female is a red haired Southern Irish American, not enough books showcase red heads. She fierce, fiery, and stubborn, which drives the male lead crazy. However, once he learns to listen and work with her everything falls into place.

I really enjoyed this romance. It was well written with an interesting story. I have read a few modern romances from this author, but this was the first historical one I’ve read by her. I would totally recommend. Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for giving me access to an early copy of this novel.