This is a good book. The two main characters are Emma and Luke. Emma is a wedding/event planner. Luke is a home renovation builder. They meet at a retreat. Then they meet at three more retreats. The last one they get married. The next morning Emma gets scared and runs back home. She starts an annulment process immediately. Luke gets a job building houses in her hometown. They each have issues but together they work them out and fall in love.

I tried reading this twice and could not get through it. DNF.


****************************************I received an ARC for my honest opinion from NetGalley***************************

this is a good story about sisters, it is book 2 in a series, but can easily be read as a standalone. Really enjoyed the book.

The Forever Family by Shirley Jump is a sweet story about sisters, falling in love and realizing that you don't need to travel the world to have great adventures.

This is book two in the Harbor Cove series but can be read as a standalone. This book is about the youngest of the three Monroe sisters and is a sweet romance with a side of finding yourself. It was a quick read and I'm looking forward to reading the third book.

Thanks to @readforeverpub for my copy of The Forever Family.

I really enjoyed this story of the Monroe sisters Gabi,Margaret and Emma. Emma was the free spirit. She arrived at a retreat and found out it was married couples only. Luke was there also and they ended up getting married. Emma decided to have the marriage annulled . She went back to Harbor Cove and who was there but Luke along with his daughter Scout, who were staying with his Uncle Ray, while he was working on a housing development.
Emma was working at the hotel working events and events for children. See how he and Emma ran into each other and did they get their marriage annulled. A VERY GOOD READ.

All through her life, Emma has always been the little sister who is constantly making mistakes. She might have made the biggest of her life when she wakes up one morning at a yoga retreat in Vegas and realizes she married handsome and single dad, Luke Carter. Emma is determined to have the married annulled, but Luke finds himself living in Harbor Cove and is now determined to make it work with his wife. Now she has to decide what is for the best and what does her new life look like, with or without Luke.

I adored the second book in this Harbor Cove series. This book focused on Emma, but the entire family is so important throughout the entire book. This one had the perfect amount of romance and family drama. I can't wait for the next one in the series.

Emma has always been flighty. She jumps first and looks later. She’s biding time until she jets off for new adventures. Except, she marries on the fly to Luke, who also comes with an adorable energetic 4 year old named Scout.
Luke has had to rearrange his life and become the responsible parent.
I liked this second Monroe sisters book. I actually liked Emma better than Gabby, although she dithered until the very end.
I loved reading about the bidding romance between Harry and Eleanor. Second chance romances are a thing with this reader.
I look,forward to Margaret, AKA the “grumpy goat” (love than moniker), book to sort out just what is going on with her.

I really liked this book from Shirley, it was a beautiful small town read set in the fictional town of harbor cove, I really felt the closeness that these sisters felt and loved watching them go on many adventures,I can’t wait to read more books from this author.

I really enjoyed this book even though I have trouble buying into someone "accidentally" getting married. Emma and Luke know each other, but then run into each other again at a yoga retreat where the head guy is performing marriages and renewals. Emma has had enough to drink that she agrees to it when Luke suggests they jump on the band wagon. Emma walks away the next morning planning their annulment.

The rest of the book is more to my liking. Emma and Luke find themselves in the same town weeks before the annulment is to go through. Luke is dealing with an epic tantrum throwing daughter and Emma is working with a bridezilla that has won medals in the category. The support they offer each other along with the attraction that won't go away seems like they would come together. There's a catch--Emma is leaving the country. She's leaving the country, that is, unless her once again impulsive behavior leaves her in trouble again and the butt of more family jokes.

Can Luke get her to take a chance on them and come to see her own value or will she go through with the annulment?

Thanks to Forever Pub and NetGalley for the gifted copy. All thoughts are my own.

Emma is a woman struggling with finding her path in life. She leaps without looking and that is how she ends up married to Luke. I enjoyed their story. Luke is also struggling to find his path in life as the primary caregiver to his daughter. The scenes with his daughter are funny and heartwarming. The overall story is sweet and I enjoyed the story. The sisters relationships is difficult and felt it was authentic. This is the second story in the series and it can be read on it's own. I was happy with how Emma's character grew through out the story. I received an advance copy from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.

The Forever Family is a nice continuation of the Harbor Cove series but can easily be a stand alone. It was nice to be reunited with the Monroe sisters and see what they are up to now. This is youngest sister Emma's story and was a roller coaster ride! She's always running away from something, but is the grass always greener where she hopes to end up?

Emma is working at a job she hates being an event planner at a local hotel. The bridezillas get to her every time and her last one is a doozy! When she's planning children's events she seems to be in her element but she's got one foot out the door as she hopes to work with children overseas with a local charity.

The story has multiple stories being told with Emma and Luke front and center. They accidentally got married but she doesn't plan for it to last long even if they do have chemistry. I liked Luke's relationship with his young daughter and his uncle and Emma's with her sisters, grandmother who raised them and their dad. Emma and Luke's daughter, Scout seem to share a special bond. There are twists and turns to the story as we understand some of what drives Emma. She and Luke seem to get each other and Emma's scared any time there are emotions involved. But Luke seems to get her and understand some of what motivates her as does her dad. There is some closure and some happily ever afters but there are more stories to tell since there are a few loose ends.

Ms. Jump is an author whose contemporary books I enjoy. I have added a few more of her books to my TBR pile.

RATING: ⭐⭐⭐⭐.5
SPICE: 🔥.5

Emma Monroe has made a mistake. The commitment-phobic wild child has married someone she barely knew to get into an exclusive yoga retreat, and regret has made her run away to her family home in Harbor Cove. When her husband and single father Luke Carter follows her in an attempt to convince her that their marriage might not be a careless decision, could she be able to set her wild-child ways to settle down with a family of her own?

Talk about an angsty and emotional read. Shirley Jump eases us into the read with the morning-after of Emma and Luke's fake wedding. From there, she navigates us cleverly through the main characters' arc in dealing with their personal problems and why they each have their own reservations about their fake marriage.

I love how family-centric this read is with Emma's sister and grandmother and Luke's daughter and uncle's stories woven nicely into Emma and Luke's romance.

I would have loved a little more spice as Emma and Luke's chemistry is just absolutely sizzling.

This is the second book in the Harbor Cove series, but it can be a read as a standalone. The other Monroe sisters are at the heart of this read, but Jump does a great job of providing context into who's who.

** I am voluntarily reviewing an advance copy of this book. Thank you to Shirley Jump, Forever Publishing, and NetGalley for providing an ARC. **

This was such a lovely story. It’s the second book in the author’s “Harbor Cove” series and revolves around Emma, the youngest of the three Monroe Sisters. This book can easily be read as a standalone.

Emma is the Monroe sister that enjoys travelling and living in the moment. She’s not interested in a long-term relationship and can’t wait to leave her small town. Her heart’s desire is rather in enriching the lives of children who are facing challenges. Having lost her mother at the age of five, she can relate.

The book opens with Emma waking up at a Las Vegas retreat – married. Her new husband Luke, while not a stranger, is someone she’s only met in yoga classes around the U.S. She flees the retreat and returns home to begin the process of annulment in hopes she never sees Luke again.

Luke is a single parent and estranged from his daughter’s mother who is currently in rehab. He’s not been a big part of his child’s life up to the time her mother dropped her off. He knows he needs to provide roots for his daughter, and moves to live with his uncle in Harbor Cove.

Now living in the same small town, Emma and Luke run into each other and begin a friendship and much to Emma’s chagrin a budding romance. But with the annulment finalized in a few weeks, and Emma heading out of town for several months, is this relationship something she should pursue?

The Forever Family is an emotional read with some very funny moments. Luke’s four-year-old daughter Scout was a highlight of this book. I loved how her manner changed as Luke began parenting her more effectively and she felt more secure. I appreciated the discussion of Luke’s Uncle’s depression as well as Scout’s mother’s alcoholism which helps to normalize mental health and addiction issues.

The book also brought the readers up to date on what was happening with Emma’s sisters and Grandmother. I love reading about a romance between older characters and I enjoyed this part of the story. It appears to me that it’s time for Emma’s oldest sister Margaret to be the focus of the third book in the series. I look forward to reading it.

I recommend this book to readers that enjoy Romance and Women’s Fiction. I received an ARC of this book from the publisher, but the thoughts and opinions expressed here are my own.

The Forever Family by Shirley Jump, book two in her Harbor Cover series, is about family, friendship, and love in Harbor Cove. Emma Monroe, the youngest of three close sisters, is a free spirit who seldom stayed with anything for very long; job, apartment, or boyfriend. She does a lot of things without thinking, which sometimes has major consequences. She decides to attend a yoga retreat in Las Vegas, without reading the paperwork, which leads to discovering that the retreat is for couples who will be married or renew their vows. Meeting Luke Carter, a man she’s met exactly three times prior, at the retreat seems serendipitous, so they pretend to be a couple; only to be legally married by the retreat leader in a group ceremony. Emma might be spontaneous, but even this is too much for her. The next morning, instead of facing Luke, Emma sneaks out, back home to Harbor Cove, where she should have nama-stayed in the first place. It shouldn’t be difficult to annul their hours-long marriage. Except Emma’s brand-new husband arrives in town to convince her to give their marriage a chance.

Luke arrives in Harbor Cove with his young daughter, Scout, who he needs to take care of while her mom is in rehab. He doesn't have time for work, raising a daughter and trying to navigate the divorce Emma wants. When he moves to Emma's town to be closer to his uncle, he doesn't realize it is the same town she lives in. With Luke nearby, he and Emma are bound to cross paths and interact. Being a long-distant father to Scout, Luke is way over his head in the parental department. Fortunately for him, Emma knows a few tricks to help him out and teach him how to be a father. During this time, Scout bonds with Emma, enjoying the time they spend together. Emma plans to leave town soon, after investing in, and getting a job with a non-profit that will help kids in another country. Except, nothing with this organization seems to be ready making Emma wonder if she made another mistake, in her long string of them. With the support of her family and Luke, Emma can finally envision a future where her biggest adventures come from within.

Ms. Jump wrote a sweet and endearing love story that should not be missed. She provided a tale rich with emotions, attraction, chemistry, clever banter, good intentions, and a cast of secondary characters assisting Emma and Luke together find the real place where they belong. I highly recommend The Forever Family to other readers and I look forward to Margaret’s story.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.

This was a good book. Emma was a free spirit whose sisters did not always agree with her choices. She marries Luke Carter in the spur of the moment. She was very sorry once she realizes it was a real marriage ceremony. He doesn't want a divorce and takes a job in her town. She says she leaving town in a month to help kids in another country. It was interesting to see the interaction between Emma and her sisters. I loved how she bonded with Scout (Luke's daughter) It was obvious Luke didn't know how to be a full time parent and he was frustrated. Emma helped him learn. This is well worth the read.

I got this book from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review

Four and a Half Stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭒
The Forever Family by Shirley Jump is an accidental marriage story with some family drama that I just loved.

Story Recap:
Emma Monroe is the youngest of three sisters, and the most impulsive. She proves that when she suddenly marries Luke Carter at a yoga retreat in Nevada. She freaks out and runs home to Harbor Cove instead of facing Luke after the marriage.

Emma is surprised when Luke moves to Harbor Cove for a job, and also, he doesn’t want to annul the marriage without at least trying to see if they are compatible. Emma is determined to end the marriage so she can prove to her sisters that she’s not a flake and is growing more responsible. But, with Luke now living in the same town, can she resist his charms before they can agree on an annulment?

My Thoughts:
I enjoyed this cute story. Emma is a bit of a mess but has a huge heart. I liked that Luke didn’t want to give up on the marriage until they tried to make it work. It’s very clear that Emma and Luke have some great chemistry, but once they spend more time together a real friendship happens, and from that comes deeper feelings.

Although this book focused on Emma, I enjoyed the two other sisters as well. It was fun to catch up with Gabriella from the previous book, The Marvelous Monroe Girls and I’m looking forward to Margaret’s story. The sister's relationships are growing stronger and I enjoy their interactions.

Recommendation:
I highly recommend The Forever Family to anyone who enjoys women’s fiction.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I chose this book because I am a sucker for accidentally married books and while this one wasn't in Vegas, it still was a cute story. Emma and Luke are at a yoga retreat only to discover that it is for couples renewing their vows or getting married. In order to not get kicked out, Emma and Luke pretend to be a couple, but one night they have a ceremony in which the leader marries them.. and it's for real. Emma is always spontanious, but even this is too far for her.
Luke has a young daughter that he needs to take care of while his ex is in rehab. He doesn't have time for work, raising a daughter and trying to navigate this divorce. When he moves to Emma's town to be closer to his uncle, he doesn't realize it is the same town she lives in. When Emma meets his daughter Scout, he knows he's done for. Emma is navagating relationships with her sisters and her grandmother, but doesn't plan on staying in town much longer. She's a free spirit and her older sister is tired of cleaning up her messes, this impromtu marriage just being another one in a long string of bad choices.
As Luke and Emma come together, they realize they can help each other more than they thought, just until the divorce is final. I really enjoyed the love that built between Emma and Luke and the fact that it took time to get there. If you want a low angst, low steam read, this is absolutely for you.
Thank you to Forever, Shirley Jump and Netgalley for an early copy.