From New York Times bestselling author Heidi McLaughlin comes a heartfelt story about overcoming great loss and forgiving past sins to find happiness again.
Brooklyn Hewett hasn’t set foot in Cape Harbor for fifteen years—not since an accident claimed the love of her life, Austin Woods. Desperate to move forward, Brooklyn has focused on raising her daughter for the past fourteen years. But when … fourteen years. But when the opportunity comes along to renovate the old Driftwood Inn, Brooklyn knows it’s time to go home.
But it won’t be easy. For one, Austin’s best friend, Bowie Holmes, still lives in Cape Harbor. Brooklyn hasn’t quite been able to forget him: not since the night they spent together—the same night they both lost Austin. Separated by tragedy and guilt, they’re brought together by the Driftwood project. And as they rebuild the inn, they discover they’re also rebuilding something else.
Brooklyn’s always been desperate to move on, not knowing that she first needs to reconcile past transgressions. She can’t forget, but she can forgive—Austin, Bowie, and herself—on her way toward long-awaited happiness.
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After all I read I want more Cape Harbor.
After all I felt, I am invested in the town.
After all I cried I felt bliss and joy.
After all the loss, love was found.
After all the sadness, there is happiness.
After all the emptiness, my heart are full.
After all the loneliness there are friendships renewed.
After all the guilt there is resolution.
After all the secrets there are truths.
After reading After All I want to read it again and again.
After All is a small town romance taking place on the coast of the Pacific Northwest. The location alone you will have you wanting to pick up After All. This small town romance has busy bodies, romances, close knit families and so much more that you expect in a small town romance.
After All is a second chance romance that will bring a family together, bring a young lady stability and bring truths out of the dark. After All will have you swooning, cheering, and at times screaming for certain characters to open their eyes to what is in front of them.
After All is the book you keep on your bedside table for those moments you want or need to feel good. After All is my new book addiction that I can see reading a fourth, fifth and maybe a sixth time before the year ends.
3.75 Stars. This second chance at love storyline is a slow burn read. It is an enjoyable story with a bit of angst to keep you hooked until the end.
After All by Heidi McLaughlin is set in the town of Cape Harbor and is the second chance romance story of Brooklyn Hewett and Bowie Holmes. Brooklyn left fifteen years ago when the love of her life, Austin Woods, was killed. Now it’s time to go home except in doing so she has to face her best friend, Bowie.
Bowie has loved Brooklyn from afar yet never revealed his feelings due to her being Austin’s girlfriend. With Austin gone and Brooklyn back in Cape Harbor, Bowie is determined not to let her slip through his fingers. That’s not to say there aren’t unresolved feelings due to her leaving without telling anyone she was going.
After All symbolizes forgiveness. Bowie has to forgive Brooklyn for leaving and Brooklyn has to forgive herself for Austin’s death. All in all it’s a beautiful journey you’re going to need tissues for. It was so beautiful seeing Brooklyn and Bowie finding their way back to each other, even fifteen years later.
I give After All 5 stars and highly recommend it to anyone who loves small town second chance romance.
This book will grab you by the heart and take you on an emotional journey of love and forgiveness. The cover is stunning and suits the book beautifully. I love the characters personalities. They were stubborn, emotional, brooding, sassy and some had humor tossed in. I hope we see more books for the secondary characters they really added another level to the story. I loved the plot a second chance to make your future right. It was a beautiful journey and I couldn’t put this book down I had to finish it in one sitting. The writing was perfection and the pace was done just right. I never felt like the story was rushed or too filled with fluff. I recommend you grab a copy you won’t be disappointed.
Heidi McLaughlin has proven that she can write a great small town romance (made into a movie even). Even better, she has a way with words that really create the scenery for you. I could picture the beauty of everything she described, from the ships leaving port, to the beautiful sunrise, the the quaint stores and hangouts of the gangs youth. While you feel like you know what will happen early on, Heidi takes on a journey of discovery for Brooklyn and Bowie and Carly. Brooklyn must learn to forgive herself for what was clearly not her fault. Bowie must learn to forgive Brooklyn for leaving the way she did. Carly must learn to LIVE. A wonderful second chance romance with a twist or two as we go along. Did I get true closure? Maybe not right now but I’m sure other Cape Harbor stories may shed some light into what I thought was missing or unclear.
This 5 star story gave me all the feels. I was consumed and addicted to these amazing characters.
Brooklyn is back in the town she had made connections as a teenager. She has been gone for many years. She will come face to face with her past.
I was addicted to this amazing story about a small town full of secrets. Beautifully written with an amazing storyline. The characters were perfectly created and developed. Bottomline this is a must read.
Standalone told in the third person with an HEA. I strongly recommend this story.
Be ready to be transported to the seaside town of Cape Harbor, where all the community is in the known of everyone’s business. A town that is filled with gossipers. Brooklyn Hewitt ran away in hopes to escape all of that and then some. And who could blame her, after the twist that fate brought to her life things could not be the same. However, she never realized that in her grief, she wasn’t the only one who lost everything.
There are many highs and lows within the story. Readers will feel a spectrum of emotions. Heidi McLaughlin does an extraordinary job of well describing the scenery, so much that readers can feel the saltry air on their face.
Definitely a must read book of 2020!
*** I voluntarily read and review an Advance Reader Copy of this book provided by Social Butterfly PR and Kandi Steiner. ***
Hold onto your hats – it is going to be a bumpy ride……Fifteen years ago after the death of the love of her life Brooklyn left Cape Harbor and never looked back. But now she has returned with her daughter to renovate the Driftwood Inn and the tragedy of Austin’s death has never been forgotten especially by his best friend Bowie. When Bowie and Brooklyn work together on the Inn secrets and guilt surround them. Will the Inn be the only thing that is rebuilt? Can their heart wrenching past lead to a heart warming future? With beautifully written characters and a storyline that had me laughing out loud as well as wiping tears from my cheeks this is another masterpiece from Heidi McLaughlin. True romance and characters the reader cannot help but fall in love with. 5 Stars are not enough!!
Imagine living in a community where everyone knew all of the comings and goings in your life. Living in Cape Harbor for fifteen years, Brooklyn knew all too well how your past followed you into the present. While growing up, Brooklyn was the girlfriend of Austin Woods. Then tragedy struck and life would never be the same for this small town.
Determined to leave the stigma of her past behind, Brooklyn left Cape Harbor as soon as they said their ‘goodbyes’ to Austin. There were so many secrets about the reasons behind Austin’s choice to take his boat out in a storm. Keeping her own secrets about that night, Brooklyn chose to raise her daughter far away from the place that she once called home.
Over the years, the inn that Austin’s family once kept open to travelers was now a bit run down by age. Austin’s mother has convinced Brooklyn to come back to town and restore the inn to its former glory. In order to do that, old friends will come back into the picture to pull off this huge project. The largest construction company in Cape Harbor answers the summons to work on this project, a job that will keep Bowie’s business out of the red for another season.
Brooklyn knows that she needs Bowie to help her finish the project, but wasn’t prepared for the lingering feelings from their past. Fifteen years may have passed, but the duo certainly felt the same effects of their attraction that existed long ago. With so many secrets swirling about the past, Brooklyn knows she has to make peace with the gravity of the life she left behind.
What an amazing palate cleanse I found when turning the pages of After All by Heidi McLaughlin. There are times as a reader that I find myself wanting to delve into a romance that pulls at your heartstrings. Brooklyn and Bowie provided a backdrop to a romance that definitely left me smiling when I turned the last page. There are secrets the residents of Cape Harbor are keeping that will unfold as the story progresses. Some will lead you to solving a little mystery that wasn’t really hidden that well, but definitely doesn’t spoil the end result.
After All is a wonderful and sweet romance that gives you faith in overcoming the hardest days in your life. Life in Cape Harbor is definitely worth the ‘drive’.
After All is solid and well written from start to finish. Heidi McLaughlin takes her storytelling craft to a whole new level as she immerses readers in the sea side town of Cape Harbor and leads us on a journey that lasts well beyond the last page. After All is screenplay worthy and a must read.
After All by Heidi McLaughlin a five-star read that is all in. This is a story that will stay with me for a long, long time, I do not know how I missed this author, as what amazing writing. Cape Harbour and the views from the Driftwood Inn windows are some that I would love to see, they are described so well you can feel the salty air on your face. Brooklyn Hewitt ran away and who could blame her, her life as she knew it was over and would never be the same again, but what she didn’t realise in her grief was that she wasn’t the only one who had lost everything. But almost fifteen years later an opportunity comes a knocking and that knocking unleashes more than she can ever imagine. Austin Woods has cast a very large shadow, but his loss was only a tiny part of this monumental story. There are so many highs and lows with this one, you will be sobbing into the pages in one breath and then have a secret smile in the next. Heidi McLaughlin is without a doubt going to become a must read author for me.
Wow, what a beautiful story that will give you all the feels! You’ll laugh, cry and fall in love! Heidi blew this out of the water, I love these characters! 5 shining stars for this one!
Brooklyn has to head back home, to a place she swore she’d never return to. Along with her 14 yr old daughter Brystol, they head back to Cape Harbor to help her daughter’s grandmother with renovating the Inn. While there she runs into her old best friend Bowie, who will have you swooning along with his dog Lucky!
Follow along as Bowie tries to break down the walls Brooklyn has put up after losing what she thought was the love of her life Austin. I feel you need to read along and experience all the feels yourself, so that’s all I’m giving you!!
This is one of the best stories I’ve read! If you love Heidi’s books you’re going to love this one! Grab it asap!
Loved it! Great story love so many emotions this is a bookie start and cannot put down
After All had me captured from the very first page. Heidi’s writing is flawless and breathtaking. After All is a heartfelt story that defines the true meaning of a second-chance romance. The settings and characters were full of so much detail that I felt every ounce of heartbreak and happiness, and could imagine each scene playing out like a movie. This is by far my top read of 2019! Heidi McLaughlin After All
Enjoyable read. I highly recommend to fans of the small town/second chance romance genre.
Fifteen years ago, Brooklyn’s boyfriend Austin disappeared in a sea accident at Cape Harbor. Brooklyn left after his funeral service and never came back. But now his mother has asked her to come back and help renovate her old Driftwood Inn. Brooklyn agrees to come back even though she has to face Austin’s old friends and hers. This story was full of so many emotional layers! I enjoyed the characters and how they were portrayed.
A small town story, set against the background of a personal tragedy that turns into a Township Memorial, the story carries a lot of weight. The burdens of guilt on every character are a ton each and that slows down the pace of their lives, and bringing to a complete standstill in some people’s cases.
It’s a town where hope has died with Ashton, the local hero. A popular guy followed by the townspeople like a Pied Piper. With him gone, it’s like someone switched off the light and now the whole seaside fishing town is shrouded in a blanket of dismal darkness
Driftwood Inn owner Carly , mother of Ashton has suffered the most and she calls back the Prodigal Daughter back to start the change reaction.
Brooklyn comes back after 15 years, with a teen daughter in tow- Bristol
She has to face the wrath and disappointment of her childhood friends and sympathy of older folks
And then Bowie. She broke his heart when she ran away and he’s been slowly agonizing to extract his pound of flesh from this heartbreaking crush.
Very sentimental story, told with lots of tears and agony.
The narrator was EXCELLENT, very modulating and brought all the characters to life.
4 stars for My Bees
This sweet, wistful romance will both make you swoon and frustrate you a little.
Bowie and Brooklyn were never really together, but perhaps they could have been. Brooklyn’s long-time boyfriend Austin, who was also Bowie’s best friend, died tragically, however, and guilt (and other issues, to be sure) over their close friendship drove Brooklyn to leave town.
Now, 15 years later, she returns with her teenage daughter Brystol, beckoned back by Austin’s mother Carly. It won’t surprise you that Carly has reasons for wanting her granddaughter and would-be daughter-in-law close, although that particular plot point is milked far too long. Brooklyn’s acclimation back into the world where she lived for quite a few years proves awkward and, occasionally, painful.
Bowie is the star of this show and the heart of the book. He loved Brooklyn from a distance, grasping at their friendship because it was all that was offered to him. He wanted more, and when he thought he had a chance at it, Brooklyn left him and never returned. Now, having her in his orbit, he realizes that fighting against those feelings is futile. He loves her.
You will enjoy the building of the romance, and you will enjoy getting to know Bowie and Brooklyn better, as well as Carly. Unfortunately, you do not get to know Brystol very well. She is almost too good to be true. You don’t find out how she feels about her life with Brooklyn prior to returning to Cape Harbor, and you don’t find out much about what she wants and needs. The same with Simone, Carly’s best friend and caretaker of the inn Carly owned. Simone is a pretty important character, yet we know nothing about her.
You do get some glimpses at Rennie and Grady, the characters who will drive the second book in this series. I’m excited for that one because Grady intrigues me a great deal.
The last quarter of this book drags, dear reader. I kept thinking that the space Heidi McLaughlin devotes to what happens in those chapters could have been better served by focusing on Brystol and Simone. I thought there were several stopping points that would have worked better than where the book actually does end.
Let me know what you think of this book. Do I need to revisit it? Did you think that Brystol and Simone got their due?
As I set down to write this review, I realize there is NOTHING that I can say to do this book justice. It’s a 5 star and more book, the stuff movies are made from. There were so many sweet tender moments mixed among the angst that makes a person want to speed read, but also to slow down and savor the words. There were the core characters and focus of the book, but so many other amazing characters too. But not to the point of overwhelming, to keep straight in your head. I love the author’s descriptions of the quaint town, the inn and the water front. I could almost feel the ocean breeze as I took in the smell of the water and the sand along the beach!
I was sharing with my daughter, a key reason that I just loved about this story and she asked, “you mean this story has meat?”. I said it has meat, potatoes, bread and butter! I’d give it more stars if I could!
I couldn’t connect with this heroine at all, she came off as mean most of the time. The roots of the story and other characters kept me wanting to see how it played out.