From New York Times bestselling author Mariah Stewart comes the first novel in her all-new series, The Hudson Sisters, following a trio of reluctant sisters as they set out to fulfill their father’s dying wish. In the process, they find not only themselves, but the father they only thought they knew. When celebrated and respected agent Fritz Hudson passes away, he leaves a trail of Hollywood … trail of Hollywood glory in his wake–and two separate families who never knew the other existed. Allie and Des Hudson are products of Fritz’s first marriage to Honora, a beautiful but troubled starlet whose life ended in a tragic overdose. Meanwhile, Fritz was falling in love on the Delaware Bay with New Age hippie Susa Pratt–they had a daughter together, Cara, and while Fritz loved Susa with everything he had, he never quite managed to tell her or Cara about his West Coast family.
Now Fritz is gone, and the three sisters are brought together under strange circumstances: there’s a large inheritance to be had that could save Allie from her ever-deepening debt following a disastrous divorce, allow Des to open a rescue shelter for abused and wounded animals, and give Cara a fresh start after her husband left her for her best friend–but only if the sisters upend their lives and work together to restore an old, decrepit theater that was Fritz’s obsession growing up in his small hometown in Pennsylvania’s Pocono Mountains. Guided by Fritz’s closest friend and longtime attorney, Pete Wheeler, the sisters come together–whether they like it or not–to turn their father’s dream into a reality, and might just come away with far more than they bargained for.more
A glorious read which left me wanting more at the end. Thank goodness this is the first book in the series which will be released this March. I absolutely want to read the next ones. I fell in love with all the characters, even with snarky Allie! Cara, Des and Allie are new found sisters, Cara and Des from one family with their father and Cara with the other. Neither knew that their father had two wives. Their father, Fritz who was extremely wealthy, died and in his will none of his children would inherit unless they worked together to renovate his hometown’s theatre. So, they all gather, and discover they also have an aunt they knew nothing about. A delightful story and I cannot wait to see how it develops further!
Imagine finding out that you have a half sister or sisters when you go to hear the reading of your father’s will. Then you find out that the hefty inheritance you expected is dependent on the three of you renovating an old theater in his home town. When the sisters arrive in Hidden Falls, the surprises keep coming as they meet an aunt none of them knew existed. Each of the sisters has issues and with the year deadline to renovate the theater, they can distance themselves and try to resolve those old issues so they can move forward with their lives.
A thoroughly enjoyable read that had me wanting to read more about these characters.
I love this series about the Hudson Sisters. It has drama, forgiveness and romance. You can’t help but want to know what will happen next in book #2 and #3.
After a friend said she read book three and wished she had read one and two first, I had to read it. I really enjoyed this first book that I have read by Mariah Stewart and went to the library to get the second one. A story of three women who find out they are sisters during the reading of their father’s will. Two sisters grew up together but they had no idea that they had a half-sister. Their father kept the secret of living two different lives at the same time. When their father’s will asks them to restore a theater but they have to all do it or no one gets a dime from the estate. The first book is told through the eyes of Cara, the half-sister from the east coast and how they begin the task of restoring the theater. Cannot wait to dive into the second book.
Favorite Quotes:
What could he have said?” Cara lowered her voice. “‘Oh, Susa, by the way, did I mention that I was married to someone else when I married you? But she passed away, so we don’t have to worry about those pesky bigamy laws.’
“I don’t know a whole lot about men, but I do know that none of them come with guarantees.” “Well, they should. They should come with grades or little caution cards. ‘Lies without conscience.’ ‘Will cheat every chance he gets.’ ‘Really does think that dress makes your ass look fat.’ ‘Only pretends to like puppies.’”
Cara watched Joe take a bite of his burger and was tempted to whisper, ‘Moo,’ but thought maybe she’d pulled that chain enough for one day.
I bought champagne to celebrate you. He doesn’t matter. You matter… We matter. We deserve a chance, and this is where we begin. You in?
I had the best time. Joe is… The one I thought I’d never find.
My Review:
I enjoyed this engaging story from beginning to end. The writing was entertaining, amusing, and lushly detailed. While the storyline initially seemed a bit complicated, it was easy to follow and pleasurable to read. Upon their father’s death, three women discover they have more family members than they realized – as Papa was a Rollin’ Stone. According to the “ironclad” will, the three women were required to work together on an extensive and challenging restoration project with firm conditions and stipulations before they would earn their father’s large estate. Their project required the sisters to relocate to a quaint little town in Pennsylvania, which sparked outrage for Allie – the snide LA diva sister, although she was most hard edges and always on the verge of outrage. There was a large cast of interesting and vibrantly detailed characters, with each being delightfully unique, easily differentiated, and memorable. My favorites being Joe – for his clever wit and patience, and Des for her thoughtful insights and gentleness. All the characters intrigued me, although I would not want to spend one second of my time with the bitter drama llama Allie.
Entertaining. I’d rate it high except that the story is only half finished at the end of the book. You have to get another book, or maybe more, to find out the conclusion. As it is, I’d rate it low.
The death of a parent is always hard. When Fritz Hudson died, his daughters not only had to mourn his death, they had to deal with the fact he lead a double life. Fritz married Honora, who was a famous actress, and had Allegra (Allie) and Desdemona (Des). Fritz also married Susa, without bothering to divorce wife number one, and had Cara. They find this out from Fritz’s lawyer and best friend, uncle Pete at the reading of the will. In order to get their inheritance, they must live together in Fritz’s childhood home and restore the family theater. This book is mostly Cara’s book, but you get the back story of all the sisters. Cara is dealing with having been cheated on and dumped by her husband. To make matters worse, he cheated with one of her good friends and they are getting married and having a baby. She lives in a small town, so everyone knows and she is pretty tired of the whispers and pity. This project comes at a good time for her. She wants to get to know her sisters and to learn more about the father she realizes she never truly knew. Great characters and plot development. I cannot wait to read the next installment.