Five Days in Skye

Five Days in Skye makes every reader yearn to visit the magical island of Skye themselves, and capture the moments thee characters had at such breathtaking places. Carla Laureano writes with a twist of humor, and displays pure faith, love, and family in one amazing read. It contains an emotional pull for the readers, ending up in Skye, walking beside these characters. Every scene was vivid, and the plot perfectly balanced. Five Days in Skye will pick readers up on an adventure that they will never forget.

It certainly didn't take me five days to read Carla Laureano's first MacDonald Family book, but Five Days in Skye was all it took for Andrea Sullivan to fall in love with Scotland, and with James MacDonald--the famous chef/restauranteur. From looking over Carla's website, I get the idea that Carla usually writes inspirational fantasy, but this contemporary romance certainly has its own charm and inspiration.

Carla has given Andrea strength and talents that endear her to James, but Carla also wove in quite a bit of vulnerability and fragility. With James, he's got a reputation he doesn't really deserve, and his own baggage, but he really wants to help Andrea find hope and healing from the slings and arrows life throws. In the end, both of them find the healing they desperately need.

Andrea is a hospitality consultant for a company that helps make hotels and motels successful. She's good at what she does, she does her research well, and she takes no guff from anyone--evidenced by decking a client who assumed she provided services she just wasn't willing to provide. Instead of allowing her to take her Tahitian vacation, her bosses sent her to Scotland to acquire a contract with James MacDonald for the family hotel he wants to reopen.

After James meets Andrea, he makes it his goal to get her to fall in love with his beloved Scotland. He acts as tour guide and teacher about all things Scottish. A side benefit is that he's making Andrea fall in love with him--because he's falling in love with her. Something that is a bit bothersome is that everywhere he takes Andrea, there is someone there he's known or dated before, and that reinforces Andrea's idea of him as a playboy.

Here's what Carla has done right: The settings are an integral part of the story and Carla has done well in giving the details that make the settings stand out without detracting from the story. The characters are empathetic with honest feelings, easily relatable, and true to life conflicts. She also integrates spiritual ideas and tenets that are honest to the characters and make them more believable. The only criticism I have is that there aren't any recipes for some of the things James cooks for Andrea.

Five Stars, Two Thumbs Up, and a gourmet meal made by a professional chef.

Many thanks to David C Cook for allowing me to read and review this book.

I just had a 5 day vacation in Scotland. This is a wonderful story with love, family, great food, conflict, faith, great views, and castles. Would love to have James in my life. I love how the author portrayed all this and was able to keep the story clean and hold my attention from beginning to the end. Good Job Carla Laureano. Have already recommended.

Top notch, A#1 love story. Gripped me from the very first page. There are places, though, that made me want to shake Andrea because of her thought processes. I get the fact that some people get hurt and that makes them put up walls. Sure, lots of people do that especially when they don't know God very well.

The faith factor in this book is interwoven very well, and because of the lack of faith the characters do some wallowing that is very believable. It makes me wonder how people live without God, and that thought makes me shudder.

The development and flow of the story is very good. Just the right amount of tension, humor, and add a few touches of self-recrimination then pour in some of God's redeeming love, and you've got a great recipe for a very good story.

No story flow barricades, no characters acting unbelievably, and that makes a wonderful story. One thing that made me jump for joy was the lack of head hopping. One or two places of head jumping from Andrea to James as very well done transitions from one scene to another. Mostly, however, the characters stayed in their own heads, not much speculation of what the other was thinking--superior writing. The story was from the two main characters point of view, and no head hopping to various supporting characters. Yea!

Very well done. 5 of 5 stars. Well worth the money. This one is a keeper.

Characters: I really enjoyed getting to know Andrea and James in this story. Both characters had something in their lives that was broken and needed to be fixed--and only in the ways that God can. I found Andrea very relatable in the ways that she tried to protect her heart from the experiences she has had in her past and potential risks in the future. And James was just extremely likeable in this story as well.

Storyline: This was one of those stories that when you start it, you have a pretty good idea of how it will end. You just don't know how the characters will get there--and that part was full of surprises. The story flowed smoothly and naturally and had some entertaining moments along the way.

My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this book. It was a relaxing read and one that I think would be a perfect summer read. The story did not shy away from contemporary issues and how the characters dealt with them, and I appreciated that in this book. I'm looking forward to reading more from this author.

**I received a copy of this book from David C. Cook and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.**

I received this book from Netgalley as an eBook.

To be honest, I didn't have very high hopes for this book even though I had downloaded it to read. For some reason I thought it was going to be filled with the Scotland lit of talking, with a deep brogue. Instead I was delighted and found myself hunkered down to finish this book, being able to read it in "proper" English.

The synopsis is that Andrea is a hospitality consultant who must prove that she has what it takes to be successful. She is so close to a promotion that she agree's to work for a top chef who is opening a restaurant in the wild's of Scotland. But the job that she thought would be an easy in and out, isn't quite so easy. For five days she spends in the Isle of Skye, preparing a proposal that would be outstanding. What she didn't expect, was to fall in love with the countryside and the man itself.
Despite my initial misgivings for the book, I found it utterly wonderful. The cover art is what actually thru me off, thinking it would be more of an old-fashioned tale. But instead, set in modern times, I found myself pretty much transferred from my world into her's with the arrival at the hotel. From then on, I was hooked.

Carla's style of writing had me at the get-go, and had me gasping at places. To be pulled so far deeply into a story, where the world outside my own tends to no longer exist is when I know I've found a good book.

This is definitely a keeper and will definitely reread it again in the future. In addition, it is definitely a book that I would recommend to friends, family and whomever else I may come across.

I am so happy to have discovered this author! It has been a long time since I loved a book so much that I simply forfeited a few hours sleep in order to read as much of it as I could before I couldn't read anymore, because my eyes were protesting. Carla Laureano gets the story going right away and I was smiling on page one.

This beautiful story is set in the Scottish, Isle of Skye and I fell in love with the characters on page two....and the country had me in chapter seven. These complex characters who are both dealing with inner challenges, draw you in and have you rooting for them right up until the end.

James and Andrea's story will grab you and not let you go until you turn the last page....and then you will be sad it has ended. That is how I felt. And I could not wait to read the second book in the series! It has been a long time since a book has captured me as much as this one did.
Not only did I fall in love with James and Andrea, but this book also served as an excellent foundation for the rest of the family members' stories.

A thoroughly enjoyable read....carve out some time to read it, you will not regret it.

I just finished Five Days in Skye and WOW! What an amazing book. I could not put it down. Do not begin this book at bed time; you will not sleep. I received this book in exchange for an honest review.

Andrea is a hospitality consultant. She goes to Scotland to meet celebrity chef James MacDonald about renovating the family hotel. Before her flight to Scotland, she goes into one of James' current establishments and has a drink at the bar. A guy comes in while she is complaining to the bartender about her boss canceling her long-awaited vacation, and bashing Mr. MacDonald and all he supposedly stands for as well as putting Scotland and the island of Skye down. What happens next is absolutely hysterical… Check it out.

Andrea has had a difficult past which was only complicated when a prior client tries to force her to do things she does not want. Her boss and coworkers think that she gets contracts by sleeping with her clients. Everything in her says not to get involved with a known celebrity and a potential client. James puts her to the test and makes her remember how to love after all the heartache she has been through. Even when she tries to run from it, he does not let her go.

This was such a touching story about returning to God to overcome sorrow and how, even after only 5 days, Andrea comes to not only love Scotland, but to love James as well. Carla Laureano makes us believe that all things are possible with God in this great story.

This is a must read book. 5 out of 5 stars. Totally christian approved. I would recommend this book to all. I just found out that the second book is out and I can not wait to read it.