Marie Cunningham’s life falls into disarray when she is suddenly thrust into caring for her teenage niece. After operating The Bean Sprout Café with her former partner, becoming a single parent is not a life she ever imagined.
Drew Hamilton has arrived in Granite Springs to take up the position of principal at the local high school. Recently divorced, he is struggling with the unfamiliar role of … unfamiliar role of single father to his unsettled teenage daughter.
When an unexpected incident brings the two together, the chemistry between them is not immediately apparent. Forced to associate as their teenage charges become best friends, they gradually lower their defences to discover they have a lot in common.
But when a ghost from the past threatens to derail her new life, who should Marie turn to for support – the new man in her life, or the ex-partner who’s always been there for her?
Can Marie and Drew find their happy ending, or will the past threaten to pull them apart?
The Life She Imagines is the fifth book in the Granite Springs series set in a small Australian country town.
If you enjoy heartwarming second chance tales of love in later life, you’ll love this book. Download The Life She Imagines today,
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I do love my visits to Granite Springs, the people are so friendly and very easy to become friends with and Maggie Christensen writes older heroes and heroines so well, you are never too old to find love and happiness. This time we get to see Marie find her love, and Marie has become a friend and it was so good to see her find it, I do hope that you pick this one up and enjoy a few hours of pleasure and smiles.
Marie has been in Granite Springs her whole life, she works in the local café with her former partner Frank who really is now one of her best friends. Life changes for Marie when her sister and niece come to visit and she is now parenting for her fifteen year old niece Lucy, this is not what she imagined her life would be. Lucy is taking it hard as is Marie and grieving can be very hard, but life must go on and getting Lucy settled into her new school when all she wants is to be back in Canberra is not easy.
Drew Hamilton is recently divorced and has now become a single parent to his fifteen year old daughter Jess, who is not happy about moving from Melbourne to this quiet town, but Drew has taken up the role of school principal at Granite Springs High. Drew is getting settled and coping with Jess and finding his way around the town and making some new friends as well, finding love was not what he had in mind, but when it happens he looks to the future.
Marie and Drew meet after an incident the girls become involved in and although tempers flare there is also a huge spark between them, it is not long before they are becoming friends and that spark is getting bigger, neither of them were looking for love but it found them, and of course love doesn’t always run smoothly and Marie is soon left with making choices about her future and that involves Lucy as well. Can they become a family of four and live happily ever after?
Another fabulous story, thank you so much Maggie Christensen for my copy to read, I thoroughly enjoyed it from start to finish, it is filled emotions and a story that I would highly recommend.
Having read several of Maggie Christensen’s books, I knew that I would be in for a heart-tugging story about families with realistic and relatable struggles. Sure enough! In The Life She Imagines, the fifth book in the Granite Springs series, I enjoyed reading about Marie and Drew as they journey their way to a loving relationship despite the life issues they have to deal with. Past and ongoing relationships, sudden death, unexpected raising of teenagers whose moods change by the day, all work together to bring a story of love the second time around. Young Marie imagined she’d have a life of being a wife and mother but it never happened. Now that life has brought some twists and turns, how will Marie handle the challenges? The author gives readers older, more mature characters who find that a second chance does come around and the importance of being willing to take a another chance on love.
I received a complimentary copy of the book and was not required to write a review. The opinions are my own.
Meet Marie and her ex Frank, working in his cafe “Bean Sprout.” They’ve been separated for years but remained friendly, and have enjoyed working together. Marie’s sister and niece come to Granite Springs for a visit, and
life changes for them all. A lovely story with joy, sorrow, and new beginnings.
The author never fails to gift you with characters worthy of your own family and friendships. A great read, and you are left with many new feelings to explore.
Life Has a Way of Changing Your Plans
This book of women’s fiction has more romance than other books in the series. Our heroine is dealing with major life drama as she tries to choose which path of life to take. The story is spot-on in characterizing the two fifteen-year-old girls. Because this book is part of a series, it features characters we have met in other books. This book stands alone with no effort. I received this ARC book for free from the author and this is my honest review.
Families ruined and reconfigured: real
I enjoyed this book immensely and powered through it in one day. The characters are people you’d like as neighbors, their problems very real. Author Maggie Christensen knows how to weave a good yarn out of events that all too frequently occur in average lives like death, divorce, desertion and teen boundary testing. This series features strong mature women and the men and children they nurture in a provincial hub town in New South Wales with an emphasis on second chances at love later in life.
Marie, the lead in the story, is childless after a long-term relationship peters out until a tragedy brings her niece into her care. Both are stricken with grief and find a strong connection with recently-divorced father Drew and his teen daughter who haven’t quite found their niche in Granite Springs social life. Their story features lots of bumps and worries as both adults ease their way into handling the whims and moods of their emotional teens.
It’s a strong plot filled with hard-working, likable characters and sweet, unanticipated new opportunities for romance. What a nice addition to the series!