The sixth enchanting novel in the Lucky Harbor series from New York Times bestselling author Jill Shalvis, laced with her trademark gift for humour, warmth and romance. Fans of Susan Andersen, Bella Andre, Rachel Gibson, Carly Phillips, and Susan Mallery will fall head over heels for the Lucky Harbor series.
Love can happen in a heartbeat.
Grace never thought she'd be starting her life over from scratch. Losing everything has landed her in Lucky Harbor, working as a dog walker for overwhelmed ER doctor Josh Scott. But the day his nanny fails to show up, Grace goes from caring for Josh's lovable mutt to caring for his rambunctious son. Soon Grace is playing house with the sexy single dad...
With so many people depending on him, Josh has no time for anything outside of his clinic and family - until Grace arrives in town. Now this brainy blonde is turning his life inside out and giving a whole new meaning to the phrase "good bedside manner". Josh and Grace don't know if what they have can last. But in a town like Lucky Harbor, a lifetime of love starts with just one day...
Want more sexy, fun romance? Return to spellbinding Lucky Harbor or visit Sunshine, Idaho in Jill's captivating Animal Magnetism series.

It’s no secret that I love Shalvis. I think she writes fun contemporary romances with just the right blend of humor and emotion. But this, well, this is probably the best Shalvis I’ve read to date. As I was reading, I was reminded of Susan Elizabeth Phillips, with the dialogue and depth of emotion. Not to mention the humor.

Grace made a stop in Lucky Harbor after her life fell apart. One day she had a cush job at a well-known bank and the next she was jobless, homeless and there didn’t seem to be many prospects on the horizon. While she takes some time to figure out where to go next, she takes odd jobs around town. She also strikes up a friendship with two other women in Lucky Harbor, and they form an unlikely alliance as The Chocoholics. Then she sort of..fibs..her way into another job – dog walker for one  Dr. Josh Scott. Things don’t work out quite as planned, and he lets her go..then calls to hire her back. But this time as babysitter to his young son.

Josh has barely been keeping his head above water since he took over his father’s practice. When his parents died in an accident that crippled his sister, he stepped up and did what he had to do to provide for her and his son. But something’s gotta give..and Grace just might be the answer to his prayers. Too bad her stay in town is just temporary. Not that he wants to keep her for himself, of course, even if they do burn up the sheets. But she certainly has a way with his son, Toby, and Josh’s sister, Anna, and their wild dog, Tank.

Right from the beginning of the book I was sucked into Grace and Josh. They’re both struggling to figure out what to do with their lives. Josh wants to keep his father’s practice going, but not because he loves it. It’s more out of a sad kind of tribute and duty. His heart is in the ER. The hospital has offered to buy the practice, but he doesn’t want to make the wrong decision.

Grace was adopted into a family full of geniuses. She never felt like she fit in, but she’s been trying to tow the line and act like them, even if she isn’t one of them. She needs to find a high-powered job somewhere to make them proud. With the economy being what it is, opportunities are few and far between. While she hunts, she kind of gets labeled as the go-to girl for accounting help in town. Before she knows it she’s doing the books for pretty much all the businesses in town..and she loves it. Too bad that isn’t something her parents will look on as a great achievement, because more than anything she wants to prove herself to them. I thought this was pretty realistic for an adopted kid, especially one who is so different from the family she was brought into.

There’s quite a bit of depth and emotion in the way Josh and Grace deal with each other, but there’s a surprising amount of humor as well. I literally laughed out loud on several occasions. Especially when it came to Grace dealing with Josh’s son and dog.

Grace’s phone rang. A number she didn’t recognize.

“Grace Brooks?” came an unfamiliar voice in her ear.
“Yes.”
“This is Serena, the nurse at Lucky Harbor Elementary. Toby’s not sick or hurt or anything.”
“Okay…”
“But he fell in a mud puddle again…”

Since there was only a half hour left of school, Grace just took Toby home with her. She buckled him into his booster seat and slid him a look in the rearview mirror. “Do I want to know?”
“Camel flaunting,” he said very solemnly. “Me and Tommy needed to camel flaunt.”
This baffled her for a beat; then she had to laugh. “Camouflage?”
“Yes,” he said.
“For a battle.”
“Yes!”

Toby was well-written and Anna, Josh’s wheelchair-bound sister, added a bit of drama to the story. It was great visiting Lucky Harbor again and getting to know Josh and Grace.

This is a sweet, lovely, funny, awesome read. I highly recommend it.

5 out of 5

This book is available from Hatchette Book Group. You can buy it here or here in e-format.