I absolutely adored Hotel Laguna. Historical fiction that steps away from the war zone. The war is mentioned, but the action that we see is with Hazel and her struggles with life and what she wants to do.
I love the art world of the late 40s and this novel captures such vivid imagery.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

I’ve read every Nicola Harrison novel, and they just get better. I really enjoyed this historical novel of a young woman, Hazel Francis finds herself at loose ends, when she loses her job building airplanes, as WWII comes to an end. Out of work and with no family to return to, she makes her way to Laguna Beach and finds a job with an elderly broken artist. She has to learn to deal with his eccentric personality, but finds comfort in the people she meets in the small beach town.
As she slowly learns his story, she tries to help this broken man and finds it very difficult not to feel affection with him. She’s young a naive and gets herself into more than one mess, but slowly adapts to the lifestyle and involves herself in the community, falling for a local young man, Jimmy.
Nicola Harrison develops interesting , likable characters and these were no different. A warm hearted story that I enjoyed to the final page.
My thanks to NetGalley, St Martins Press and the author for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

I was unable to finish this book and thus will not be posting a full review. I found the language bordering on caricature and not historically accurate. Thank you for the opportunity.

From the very beginning, this book is lush with descriptions that engrossed the reader and puts them in the locations.

I think Harrison is off to a good start here, but it’s nowhere near being a finished product. The idea is great, the characters are great. It all just needs to be fleshed out. The book also can’t decide whether it’s character-driven or plot-driven, and that makes it a bit jumbled. Hazel’s character arc is super weak, too.

This book gave me the same vibes as Beatriz Williams and Dirty Dancing. Super nostalgic historical fiction, a second round purchase for most libraries.

Hotel Laguna was a perfect historical beach read. Its unique storyline should not be missed by historical fiction lovers. I had not read any novels that put a spotlight on women taking over the men’s work after deployment. I felt it was an honest portrayal of after the war ending; Hazel Francis was feeling lost. And most novels don’t shine this issue regarding the women. The men came back for their original jobs and Hazel being an independent woman had to start anew. She took a leap of faith moving to Laguna Beach as she lost her job, and did not want to return home to avoid past guilt and shame she had endured.
This novel is perfect for:
-summer reading
-fresh take on historical fiction
-immersive backdrop
-coming of age story

My critique would be the fast ending.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for providing me with an advanced copy for an honest review.

First and foremost I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this ARC.

Hazel has always marched to the beat of her own drum, but when WWII rocks the country; she dives straight into the work force.

Pained with grief over the loss of her fiancé whom she never loved to begin with, she run away to California to join thousands of women working to build planes for US troops.

Once the war is over, Hazel struggles to figure out what she should do with her life. She can’t return home nor can she return to the workforce; as the men who fought would be coming back to their jobs. Hazel settles for an assistant job in Laguna Beach working for a very famous and scandalous artist.

Though their friendship takes weeks to form, Hazel easily sees that she cares deeply for the older artist and wants to not only show she can do the job but get the tabloids off his case about a very scandalous relationship that happened decades ago.

I love the plot line of this novel, it showed how Hazel was so hard driven during the recovering time after the war, how determined she was to succeed for not only herself but the people around her.

This was enjoyable and the setting was so convinving. I think the issue here...is me. I am just not one who loved Historical Fiction. I found myself ready for this to be over and again nothing wrong with the book, just not what I prefer to read.

Hazel Francis moves to California to help the WWII effort by working on airplanes. When the war ends and the men return, the women are sent "home". Hazel doesn't have a home, and needs work, so she goes to Laguna Beach in hopes of getting a job working as an assistant to a well-known but reclusive artist with a mysterious past.

This is a very good read with wonderfully rich and memorable characters. You've just got to love Hazel who won't take no for an answer and never gives up!

My thanks to St. Martin's Press for allowing me access to a digital review copy via NetGalley. Publication is set for 6/20/23. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and are freely given.

Such a good read - I really enjoyed this book. I feel like Nicola always gets me to feel all the emotions and transports me to different places so easily. I'm so glad that I got the chance to read it early and will definitely be recommending it to multiple people who enjoy these types of novels. I enjoyed the characters and especially enjoyed the writing by this author. I'm excited to see what the author comes out with next as I'll definitely be reading it! Thank you to the publisher for my early copy of this book!

This is a historical fiction book set at the tail-end of WWII and follows Hazel Francis as she dreams of bigger things than marriage and motherhood. She moves to California to aid in the war effort and ends up in Laguna Beach. The story follows her as she attempts to start a life in this small, artist rich community.

This story, while heartwarming at times, fell flat for me. The characters were not well flushed out and the storyline itself felt very choppy and predictable. I had a hard time believing the relationships between several of the characters. Also, the sexism that was portrayed in this book grated on my nerves. While I realize that it was a reflection of the times, the MC’s inner dialogue had me rolling my eyes often. In the end, I was just ready for the book to be over and I was not invested in the characters or the story.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was one of the first historical novels I've ever read and I really enjoyed it!

Hazel Francis leaves her hometown of Witchita, Kansas after her fiancee enliststs in WWII. Her parents have both died and she doesnit have any reason to stay in Witchita and she doesn’t really want to be engaged. When she hears that they are hiring women in the airplane factory to replace the men who have gone off to war, Hazel heads to sunny California to help with the war effort. She gets hired and loves her job as a riveter working on airplanes. However, when the men return from war, the women are out of work because their jobs are given back to the men. She is told to go home, get married and have babies but Hazel isn’t interested in that right now.

With her meager savings she heads to Laguna Beach to look for work. She is befriended by Jimmy, a bartende at the Laguna Beach Hotel, who lets her sleep in the bar until she can find a place to stay. She is hired by Hanson Radcliff, a famous Laguna Beach artist to be his model and assistant. Hanson has deep roots in the artist’s community in Laguna Beach but he is difficult, moody and crabby. He gives Hazel a small place to stay while she works for him as long as she also helps out in the art gallery. Hazel is determined to make the best of his cantankerou nature and keep her job because she loves the ocean and the town and is welcomed into this artistic community. She begins to feel like she has found a permanent home at last. However, she begins to hear rumors about Hanson being involved in a famous movie star’s death. No one wants to talk about it because he is such a benefactor to the community. Hanson apparently painted a portrait of her that has disappeared and would be worth a fortune if it can be found. Hazel is determined to uncover the mystery of the painting and Hanson’s involvement with the movie star. He surely isn’t a killer, is he?

I really enjoyed Hotel Laguna, the setting and the artistic community. Hazel is a strong independent, feisty young woman and the other characters are well defined, too. If you like historical fiction with a touch of romance, a bit of a mystery and a beautiful artistic beach setting , you will like Hotel Laguna. This was the first book I have read by Nicola H.arrison and I look forward to reading some of her earlier works. Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the advanced reading copy. Look for it on June 20th!

Hotel Laguna is a historical fiction novel set in the 1940’s during the war, and beyond. Hazel, a young woman from Wichita, KS, finds herself in need of a place to go, and ends up working in an airplane factory, helping to put planes together, for the war effort. When the war ends, she is once again without a job or a plan. Remembering talk of Laguna Beach, on a whim, she lands there and is offered a job working for Hanson Radcliffe - a famous artist with a possibly shady past. She is also helped out by a handsome bartender as she tries to get on her feet. As Hazel digs into the mystery surrounding him, she may learn a little more than she has bargained for.

As with her other two novels, Nicola Harrison does a fantastic job setting the scene for a novel that brings to life both the realities and the spirit of a war torn country in the 1940’s. The reader is pulled into characters and a backdrop that comes alive for the reader. The story is both interesting and inspiring as the characters of Hazel, Hanson, Jimmy and the townsfolk of Laguna Beach come alive.

This reader was a tad confused in the beginning of the novel, as the story wove back and forth over a number of years, to show the reader how Hazel had gotten to her present moment storyline. It took a few chapters for this reader to catch on that Harrison was not introducing more than one character. A few chapters in, I had an ah-ha moment when it all clicked into place and I felt a little silly about it not coming into focus sooner.

Well written, engaging and heartfelt, Laguna Beach is not to be missed.

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read this e-galley in exchange for my honest review.

Hotel Laguna was another historical fiction read by Nicola Harrison that I was so excited to read! Showgirl was one of my favorite books of 2022 so I couldn’t wait to dive into this one. I’ll admit, I was a little disappointed. I liked the story for the most part I just wanted more. More character development and more of the back stories.
I think it’s a definite read, I just wish there was a little more to it.

Though I’m not really a fan of WWIi historicals , this story of Hazel, one of the women who built airplanes for the war effort was decent.

It’s w@ a light read.

As soon as I saw the author of this book, a jumped right in… Having loved her previous two books, I dove headfirst into Hotel Laguna! This book is set with the backdrop of World War II and I was completely in love with it
Hazel volunteers during World War II when the world is over she’s expected to return to the role of Wife, and mother, as ladies were expected at that time.… But this is not the case for Hazel!

I really enjoyed this book. During the War, Hazel Francis works at Douglas Aircraft in California. She really likes it, but when the War is over she loses her job to the returning men. She decides to head to Laguna Beach. She finds a job as an assistant to artist Hanson Radcliff. This brings so many changes to her life. I like the way the relationship developed between her and Hanson. I liked the artistic setting and Hazel. She was such a strong character who never gave up. The romance was also well done. I highly recommend this book. It's a really good story!

“Hotel Laguna” is a historical fiction book by Nicola Harrison. This book takes place in one of my favorite places to visit - Laguna Beach, California. It starts off with our main character, Hazel, working for Douglas Aircraft during WWII. At the end of the war, she wants to continue to work, but is let go. She ends up in Laguna Beach and finds work as an assistant for an artist. Long story short - there’s a bit of a mystery (where is a painting), a bit of a slow romance, and Hazel’s overwhelming love for the town. I would have loved to have had an Author’s Note about how she came up with the story - and what was factual and what the author made up (for instance, was the artist based upon someone). This book is a bit predictable, but it was an enjoyable read (I read it in about 24 hours), but I didn’t mind as it was also a fun read. Additionally, I spent a bit of time online looking up paintings (Lady Hamilton at the Spinning Wheel is a real painting) and recalling the lovely coastline of Laguna Beach.