Meant to Be (An Anchor Island Novel)
Beth Chandler is deathly afraid of the water, so ferrying over to Anchor Island off the coast of North Carolina to meet her fiancé’s family is a big deal until a huge dog and his very attractive owner distract her. When she realizes the guy is her fiancé’s brother, Beth is too embarrassed to introduce herself. Of course, all is revealed when Joe Dempsey arrives at this parents’ home to greet Lucas and Elizabeth. A difficult case drags Lucas back to Richmond, but he insists that Beth continue their "vacation," with Joe as her guide. Charter boat captain Joe isn’t thrilled with the idea, but he doesn’t want to "rock the boat." Beth discovers that she loves this wonderful enclave of small businesses and its quirky neighbors, so helping the residents fight overtures from a developer to sell gives her purpose. Meanwhile, Beth and Joe seem have found common ground.Verdict An introspective man falls for a woman who has made a career out of fulfilling everyone's needs but her own. The combination of beautiful island locale and offbeat characters will have readers setting sail for love in debut author Osburn's series opener. —Bette-Lee Fox