Recently widowed Sara Ness moves to Cliffside Bay to hide from her painful past and the scandal that cost her far too much. With a baby daughter to raise alone, the peaceful privacy of small town life, and the comfort of the local grief support group, are just what the heiress needs. But when her inheritance is jeopardized by her new marital status, Sara is forced to make a deal with the only … suitable candidate available. And for the next year she’s paying for the pleasure of pretending to be married to the one man in town she simply cannot stand.
In the wake of his wife’s death, architect David Perry accepts a job at Wolf Enterprises and promptly moves his children to be near what’s left of their family. Though work and the kids are more than enough to fill David’s days, his quiet, lonely nights force him to seek the help of the local grief support group. And when the spoiled Sara Ness proposes a partnership that promises to be lucrative for them both, David agrees to her terms and discovers that his fake bride just might hold the key to his future happiness.
The final installment of the wildly popular Cliffside Bay Series weaves a heartwarming enemies-to-lovers meets marriage-of-convenience tale in the style readers have grown to expect from USA Today bestselling author Tess Thompson, with richly developed characters, a setting to marvel at, and the ultimate life lesson about true love’s never-ending ability to bridge the gaps that we frequently allow to divide us.
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Of all the Cliffside Bay books, “Departed: David and Sara”, is my ultimate favorite. To begin, the characters from all nine previous books are resurrected throughout this book which allowed me to discover what they have been up to and also provided me the opportunity fall in love with them all over again. Additionally, the friendship and love that blossoms between David, Sara and their children is a unique and special one that will never be forgotten. Throughout the story, new bonds between friends are formed and existing ones are strengthened. Life’s prior difficulties are acknowledged, and lessons are learned to conquer them, in order for many characters to move on with their lives. This book is very special. In order to appreciate it as much as I did, I highly recommend that the other books in the series be read first so that you will be as captivated as I was.
Thank you to the author and publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC. All opinions and thoughts are my own.
In author Tess Thompson’s latest book in the Cliffside Bay series Departed, we learn the story of Sara, heiress to a brewery fortune and recent widow due to her husband’s murder at the hands of his lover’s husband and David, architect for Wolf Enterprises and recent widower due to his wife’s murder at the hands of a drug gang. Each comes with baggage both literally and figuratively. Sara has a baby Harper while David has two children, Oliver the older one and Laine, the younger one. Both adults have issues with trust. Neither likes the other despite the fact that David designed Sara’s new house in Cliffside Bay.
Sara’s life is turned upside when she receives a phone call from her grandfather’s lawyer. It seems there is no way she can meet the requirements of her inheritance. She devises a plan that includes David and then the fun begins. During the execution of their plan, both of them have second thoughts. They both manage to alienate briefly their best friends. The children, however, being young and innocent, have a wonderful time. One of my favorite scenes is Oliver’s first day at school. As a parent, I totally understood David’s (and Sara’s) reaction.
This saw supposed to be the last book in this series, but I understand there will be another mini-series of another five books. The author has introduced some new characters as well as hinted at further developments for characters introduced in earlier books. I can think of six characters right now and cannot wait to start this new series by Tess Thompson.
I thank the publisher and author for graciously providing me an ARC. All comments in this review are my own.
This book, the last in the Cliffside Bay series has left me in tears. What a beautiful story Tess Thompson tells of Sara and David. But the way every single couple I have met and loved throughout this series came together brought me to tears. Tears of joy because I loved the story and tears of sadness that the series has ended. It’s true that “every good thing must come to an end” and so we say goodbye to Cliffside Bay and thank you to Tess Thompson for taking us on a beautiful journey with awesome characters and lessons to learn through each and every book!
Amazing story of 2 people who never thought they would make it back from the despair and depression of their past. David and Sara’s character are easy to fall in love with and you can’t help but cheer for their relationship to flourish, As always it was wonderful to continue reading about our past Cliffside Bay characters in the heartwarming tale.
Book # 10 in my most favorite series ever. Finally, David and Sara’s story. Both Sara and David lost their spouses to murder. David has 2 kids and Sara has 1. Neither have been able to move on. Friends suggest a grief counselling group. Their relationship changes from antagonistic to friendship to love. This is David and Sara’s story but we get the pleasure of all the other characters as well. Tess Thompson has a way of writing a story / series so that you are completely invested in these characters. You feel like they are your friends, your family. If they hurt, you hurt. If they are happy, you are happy. Cliffside Bay feels like coming home. I am truly grateful for these books as they help me escape reality which isn’t always so wonderful, especially now. If you are a fan of this series, you will love this book. If you haven’t started yet, what are you waiting for ? Get the book !
This book was a happy ending to an amazing series. Sara and David have both experienced loss and the story of overcoming it with a little help from each other and from their family and friends makes this book and easy read that will put a smile on your face.
I am a huge Tess Thompson fan and I loved this Book, the 10th in a series set in the magical town of Cliffside Bay. Although each book is a standalone, this is really the first one I’m going to suggest you don’t read unless you’ve read most of the previous books – because all 10 of the couples featured have at least a bit part in this final chapter of all these people we’ve come to love. I think you’d probably still enjoy the book, you’ll just get so much more out of it if you know all the previous players! Departed is David & Sara’s story, two damaged people who have watched all their friends fall in love but never assumed it would be in the cards for them. A new community grief support group helps them to deal with their anger at their ex’s and also to come to the realization that maybe they have a lot in common & can help each other out. Can a marriage of convenience turn into a love match? I think we all know the answer to that, but in Tess’s hands the story becomes a magical one that will have you shedding a few tears. I’m sad for this series to end, but happy I was along for the ride!
This was Tess Thompson’s final book in her “Cliffside Bay” series. She did an amazing job with the last couple, and finding a way to wrap the whole series up with previous characters reappearing. I am happy to know that the author is hoping to add a second part to the series, because reading any book in the entire “Cliffside Bay” series is like spending time with friends. Ms. Thompson creates realistic, funny, flawed characters to whom I can always relate. Sara and David’s love story is based on sharing common, tragic life experiences, yet finding a way through them to focus on the positive in life. I appreciate the romance in Ms. Thompson’s novels: romance that is not over-the-top, not overly sexual, and based in faith in others and in God (again, not over-the-top, yet present.) I find her writing and character-building similar to Nora Roberts’. Her novels are a nice break from the challenging world we are currently experiencing. Thank you to the author and publisher for the opportunity to read an ARC. All opinions and thoughts are my own.
Sweet. Awesome. Series. This little town, Cliffside Bay, has been such a joy to visit. Ms. Thompson found the perfect little town nestled on the cliff overlooking the Pacific – and placed character after character in its surrounding community, and in her pages. If you’re following the series, we’ve met David and Sara before – living their separate lives, finding solace and peace in Cliffside Bay. If you’ve not read the other Cliffside Bay books – you really should before visiting this “final” book of the series. David, the single father of two, is the town architect. Sara, a single mother of one little girl, moved to Cliffside after her husband betrayed her. David was instrumental in designing the home Sara and her baby girl will occupy and start their new life.
Tess Thompson has a wonderful talent of creating characters, establishing the surrounding scenes and building a story. She does not disappoint in this “final” book of the series. This reader is hoping she’s not leaving Cliffside Bay behind. There are so many characters roaming the streets we’ve not met. And this reader is hoping her pen itches to write their stories. Love this journey
The Cliffside series cannot stop yet! I am too invested in their lives and stories and cheering for their happily ever after’s (yes, I know they are fictional )
Sara & David are broken beyond repair. Betrayal, trauma, grief and anger rule their lives and then they find each other. I was rooting for them from the beginning… even from several books ago when I saw their stories. I loved Laine and the development of her attachment to Sara! I laughed, I cried and I sighed in awe. Can you point me in the direction of Hugh’s cafe in Cliffside?
What a wonderful book for the last of The Cliffside Bay series! This is my favorite of all, even though every one of the other books were awesome!
In this book we learn about the story of David and Sara, who each had a difficult life before meeting each other. I enjoyed their story and especially liked the fact that all of the other couples from this series gathered together for different occasions and helped tie them all together.
Thank you to Tess Thompson and the publisher for granting me an arc at my request. All thoughts in this review are my own and are voluntary. This book deserves a big 5 stars!
It saddens me that this is the last book for the series, as I’ve been with these characters for years. But i know they will show up in Tess’ upcoming books. She’s done the best job explaining everything about these characters to that you feel like you are in the town with them. Can’t recommend Tess’ book enough!!