FIRST IN THE STUNNING TRILOGYEclipse Bay has grown and flourished amongst the sharp cliffs and hidden coves of the rugged Oregon coast. But this small town is also filled with secrets as treacherous as the landscape and rivalries as fierce as an ocean storm.Their grandfathers hated each other. Their fathers hated each other. But they don’t hate each other. Not at all….Hannah Harte remembers the … at all….
Hannah Harte remembers the long-ago night on the beach that revealed Rafe as more than just “that disreputable Madison boy.” And Rafe remembers the heroic gesture that proved Hannah’s fierce spirit was stronger than any feud—and saved him from near-certain imprisonment.
Now—reunited by a surprising inheritance after years of living their separate lives—Rafe and Hannah return to Eclipse Bay, and the hostilities that still divide, and bind, their families. And they are discovering something that is at once delightful and deeply disturbing….
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A fun, witty romantic suspense novel from the year 2000
Eclipse Bay is Book 1 in a trilogy of three, contemporary, romantic-suspense novels. The second book is Dawn in Eclipse Bay. The third book is Summer in Eclipse Bay.
Eclipse Bay is a small, seaside town in Oregon where all the inhabitants know each other–and gossip is a communal sport. The most popular source of ongoing speculation for the past 40 years has been the Hartes and the Madisons. Mitchell Madison and Sinclair Harte were war buddies (presumably from WWII, as Mitchell is around 80 at the time of this story, which was originally published in 2000, making him born around 1920). After the war, they went into business together and were very successful until they brawled over a woman, whom they had both trusted and who stole all their assets and bankrupted their business. Both had been in love with her, and both blamed each other for this devastating loss. They have been enemies ever since.
Sinclair Harte recovered well, coming out of financial ashes into great wealth with his own business. He also made a very successful marriage with one son, who has followed in Sinclair’s footsteps in his business, made his own successful marriage, and produced three children. The oldest is Nick, who writes thrillers and is the hero of Book 3 of this trilogy. The middle child is Lillian, who runs a matchmaking service and is the heroine of Book 2 of this trilogy. The youngest is Hannah, who has been a successful wedding consultant for some years and is the heroine of this book.
Mitchell Madison’s life has run along a much rougher track than Sinclair Harte’s. He has had four failed marriages, many different girlfriends, and his only child, an emotionally unstable sculptor, had a long-term affair with his equally emotionally immature model. Out of that stormy alliance came two sons, Rafe, the hero of this story, who is currently 32, and his older brother Gabe, who is currently 35. Their parents died in an accident when they were children, and they were raised by Mitchell.
The story begins with a prologue, in which Hannah is 20 and Rafe is 24. By coincidence, he and Hannah have each been dumped by their dates on the side of the road at the same local beach. They spend hours talking to each other, there at the beach, and while Rafe walks her home. The locals have labeled Hannah a “good girl,” who will soon complete a college degree, and who has a bright, successful, Harte type of future ahead of her. In contrast, Rafe has not gone to college, and he has been labeled the local “bad boy,” even though he doesn’t seem to have ever gotten into any particular trouble. Rafe states rather flippantly to Hannah that his main career goal is to stay out of jail, a fate frequently predicted for him by the upright citizens of Eclipse Bay. Hannah adamantly declares that she doesn’t believe whatsoever in the local legend that Madisons are doomed to failure and states that it is entirely up to Rafe to make something of his life. Later that same night, the woman who had been Rafe’s date is found dead at the bottom of a cliff. And only because of the lucky chance that Hannah can provide him with a valid alibi does Rafe actually avoid prison.
Eight years later, Hannah and Rafe have jointly inherited a huge house in Eclipse Bay left to them by Hannah’s eccentric great aunt. Both want to buy the other out, but neither will agree to sell. Complicating the issue is the fact that they are both extremely attracted to each other, and the whole town is watching as they work out their business and highly personal concerns with each other.
My favorite JAK books are the ones with lots of witty repartee between the hero and heroine, and this book is great in that regard. I also enjoy it when she provides quirky subcharacters–whether people or animals. In this case, Hannah’s dog Winston is an adorable scene stealer, and the conspiracy theorist Arizona Snow is wonderfully wacky.
The setting is very vividly drawn, which makes sense, because the Pacific Northwest is JAK’s own stomping ground and quite familiar to her.
For those who like suspense novels that are gripping and scary, this is not that kind of book—which is fine by me, because I don’t particularly enjoy that kind of novel. There are definitely some mildly scary scenes caused by the villain who killed Rafe’s date eight years ago, after Hannah and Rafe begin working together to solve that particular murder mystery. But I am happy to report that the main plot in this novel is definitely the romance, and a really enjoyable one it is.
I have read this novel many times over the years, initially as a mass market paperback, later in Kindle format and, most recently, in audiobook format. The audiobook is narrated by the talented voice artist, Joyce Bean, who does an excellent job.
I rate this book as follows:
Heroine: 4 stars
Hero: 4 stars
Subcharacters 4 stars
Romance Plot: 4 stars
Writing: 4 stars
Audiobook Narration: 4 stars
Overall: 4 stars
Wonderful book. Great story,would love to read more of this authors books
I loved the whole series. They can each be read alone, but are more fun together.
Always love her characters!