Book Review (and a Giveaway!): Sweet Melody by Heidi McCahan

Sweet Melody On Tour with Prism Book Tours

SWEET MELODY
SERIES: Seabrook Romance #1
GENRE: Inspirational Contemporary Romance
PUBLISHER: Snug Corner Cove Press
RELEASE DATE: August 1, 2019
PAGES: 242

When a struggling bakery owner is rescued by a wannabe songwriter with hidden culinary talents, they discover they can make sweet harmony … if they can only learn to work together.

Rhett Foster longs to change the world with his music, yet he can’t even finish writing one song. Battered by a string of failures and disillusioned, he returns home to Portland, Oregon. While he desperately wants to create a chart-topping hit, his dad mandates a new mission: move to coastal vacation hotspot Seabrook, Washington and expand the family’s successful restaurant chain.

In danger of destroying her late parents’ legacy if she doesn’t diversify her menu, Lindsay Carmichael will try anything to save her bakery. But with a tiny budget and an injured employee who can’t work, she has no choice but to sink the last of her savings into buying a dilapidated food truck and hiring Rhett as a part-time barista. What she doesn’t know is that the handsome songwriter has a secret … one that could destroy her business and her heart.

“It was worse than she thought.”

That first line may be the case for poor Lindsay but it was definitely not true of Sweet Melody. Heidi McCahan is an author whose backlist I now need to devour as soon as I have time (pardon my slightly-stressed crazed laughter at the thought of free time) and whose future releases will be must-reads for my TBR pile.

Sweet Melody was, in fact, everything I wanted it to be.

Rhett is swoonilicious as an aspiring country music singer/songwriter with the brooding good looks to go with it. Plus he’s sweet and considerate and falling head over heels for Lindsay, husky voice and meaningful eye contact and yearning and all. His issues with his dad and the bombshell secret he’s harboring between the proverbial rock and a hard place add a little edge to his personality, too. Lindsay is exactly the kind of person you’d want as a BFF – she laughs easily, cares deeply, and wants to make her bakery a success to honor her parents’ legacy.  She’s super talented at making various yummy baked goodies so you’d have a steady supply of cake pops and cupcakes and macarons.

Their romance starts with an instant attraction that builds to a really sweet & fun friendship as well as some serious chemistry and breathless, heart-achingly lovely kisses throughout the story. The outcome is fairly Hallmark-predictable from the beginning (there’s a reason we love those movies though – it works!), but that’s totally fine because a) see parenthetical statement I just made and b) Sweet Melody is so much more than “just” a romance. At the soul of the story is a tender theme of chasing your dreams despite the roadblocks that you encounter along the way – and supporting those you love in the same journey. It’s an ode to friendship and community, and even family – the one you’re born into and the one you, often unexpectedly, build as life goes on.

Bottom Line: Sweet Melody will have you booking a trip to the cozy coastal town of Seabrook, the real-life town coming alive under the author’s talented scene-setting. Layered and engaging characters become instant friends, and I’m looking forward to the stories still to come from this delightful mix of people. Faith, family, friendship, and chasing dreams combine with a sweet and swoony romance to give readers a compelling and thoroughly enjoyable story from start to finish. If you’re a fan of Hallmark movies or Irene Hannon’s Hope Harbor series, you’ll want to grab a copy of Sweet Melody for yourself!

(I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from Prism Book Tours. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.)

My Rating: 4 stars / Love it!

KissingBook Level: 3 / May forget to breathe on occasion

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Heidi secretly dreamed of writing a book for most of her childhood, but a particularly painful rejection letter in middle school convinced her to tuck that dream away. Instead, she earned a Bachelor’s degree in Sports Medicine from Whitworth University in Spokane, Washington and a Master’s Degree in Athletic Training from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. After a brief career as a Certified Athletic Trainer, Heidi married her husband Steve, then she dusted off her big dream of becoming a published author and launched her first contemporary romance into the world in 2014. A huge fan of coffee, dark chocolate, and happily ever after, Heidi currently lives in North Carolina with Steve, three active boys and one amazing Goldendoodle.

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Other Books by Heidi McCahan

One winner will receive a signed paperback with bookmark, $10 Amazon gift card, Sticky Fingers Strawberry Scone mix and a Seabrook Sea, Salt and Surf 100% soy wax candle from Hometown candle company.

US only

Ends September 18, 2019

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This giveaway is hosted by Prism Book Tours, not RimSP
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What about you? What interests you most about Sweet Melody?