Driftwood Bay

Author: Irene Hannon
Genre: Contemporary Romance

After tragedy upends her world, Jeannette Mason retreats to the tiny Oregon seaside town of Hope Harbor to create a new life. Vowing to avoid emotional attachments, she focuses on running her lavender farm and tea-room--until a new neighbor with a destructive dog and a forlorn little girl invades her turf. But she needn't worry. Dr. Logan West is too busy coping with an unexpected family, a radical lifestyle change, and an unruly pup to have any interest in his aloof and disagreeable neighbor.

Yet when both Jeanette and Logan find themselves pulled into the life of a tattered Christian family fleeing persecution in war-torn Syria, might they discover that love sometimes comes calling when it's least expected?

Bestselling and award-winning author Irene Hannon invites readers back to the charming seaside town of Hope Harbor, where they are sure to find peace, healing, and a second chance at happiness.

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Reviewer: Liz Franklin

Driftwood Bay is a charming story with engaging characters.

While the story line was very intriguing and such, there were a few details that annoyed me, but let’s start with the good things! 

The setting of Driftwood Bay... I loved reading about the town of Hope Harbor. Hope Harbor sounds like a beautiful spot with lots of fun people. It is such a great fictional world!

I think my favorite character is  Molly. She is such an adorable little five year old, especially at the end of the book. I actually laughed out loud at a few of the things she did! I honestly could not imagine dealing with all that as a five year old though... such a sad situation!

Logan is a confusing character. I’m still not exactly sure what to think about him... he kind of annoyed me. I guess he was just one of those characters. *shrugs*  He was pretty sweet to his niece, though, and that was good.

Jeanette was pretty interesting too. It took way too long for me to find out her backstory. Though I’m sure that was on purpose!

I also really enjoyed getting to know the Shabo family as they worked through their grief, got adjusted to living in a new country, and went through the trials of learning a new language and not always being able to understand English.

And Toby, haha! How could I not mention Toby? This rambunctious little puppy definitely played a part in the story. 

The book cover illustration is just beautiful, more so in real life, I thought. 

Now, onto the annoying things.

First off, there were a few times where I just stopped reading and thought, “oh my word, who talks like this?!” It wasn’t like that for the entire book, but bigger words seemed to be overused and made everyday conversation between the characters slightly unrealistic. Example: “I had an enlightening conversation with Molly today. I can fill you in if we relocate to the porch once our friend [they were talking about the dog, Toby] here is done digesting his dinner.” Maybe that’s just me, but it felt overly awkward and I don’t think I would talk like that in casual conversation.

Secondly, the continuous noticing and romance between the two main characters grew to be repetitive after awhile, and a few of the comments, I didn’t think were even necessary.

Lastly, I thought this book could be a little more focused on God. There were scenes where people went to church and all that, but two of the main characters seemed to treat God as more of like a last resource. I felt it got more resolved towards the end of the book though.

Book provided courtesy of Baker Publishing.

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Reviewer: Rebecca Maney

"Ignoring an obvious need would be wrong."

Jeannette Mason has been ignoring everything, and everyone around her, since moving to Hope Harbor, Oregon . . . . ..she has convinced herself that there's safety in loneliness . . . or so she thought. Who could have imagined that a precocious puppy from next door, digging up and absconding with her beloved lavender plants, could create such havoc in Jeannette's carefully guarded little corner of the world? 

Dr. Logan West impulsively purchased a pet beagle for his grieving niece, hoping it might provide her with some much needed companionship; Molly had lost so much in her young life, and now their move to Hope Harbor had not gone as smoothly as he had hoped. Only so far, Toby had managed to destroy everything in sight. When Logan's elusive neighbor shows up to complain about his trespassing pup, Logan quickly decides that maybe his dog has led them down the right path after all. . . . if Jeannette ever decides to take him at his word. 

"Driftwood Bay" is beautifully layered; not only does it feature Jeannette and Logan's incremental journey towards freedom, but the author uses her secondary characters; a family inserted into the Hope Harbor community after fleeing war-torn Syria, to breathe life back into Jeannette's shriveled existence. It's the kind of story that becomes better and better with each turning page. 

Book provided courtesy of Baker Publishing.

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Reviewer: Jill Jones

In “Driftwood Bay”, tragedy brings together three families who moved to Hope Harbor for a second chance and a new beginning.  Jeanette retreats to Hope Harbor to create a new life after a personal tragedy leaves her refusing to risk getting close to others. Dr. Logan West and his niece are trying to start over again after the death of his mother and brother. And a persecuted Syrian family of refugees are trying to find peace and make a new life in Hope Harbor.  Jeanette and Logan find themselves pulling together to help this family adapt to their new country and new language and culture while at the same time exploring their own emotional needs.

I love going to Hope Harbor where Irene Hannon’s characters find healing, hope and a fresh start. I especially enjoyed the bigger role Charley played in this story.  I’m hoping that one day Hannon will bless us with Charley’s story of how he found Hope Harbor and why his second chance included fish tacos and two seagulls named Floyd and Gladys.

Book provided courtesy of Baker Publishing.

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