Title:  Sand Dollar Cove
Series:
Author:  Nancy Naigle
Genre:  Contemporary Romance
Published:  July 8, 2015
Publisher:  Crossroads Publishing House
My Rating:  4 stars
Source:  NetGalley
Cover Description:

Growing up, Elli Eversol spent nearly every summer in Sand Dollar Cove at her grandparents’ beach house, working at their shops on the old fishing pier. After a hurricane and a Nor’easter damage the pier and the shops nearly beyond repair, Elli returns to town to help rebuild. She even launches the Buy-A-Board campaign to raise funds for the plight. Holden Moore is back in Sand Dollar Cove, too. He broke Elli’s heart years ago, but he’s pulling every Romeo trick in the book to win her back now. Yet there’s more to Holden’s agenda, and it doesn’t include saving the pier.

Brody Rankin is eager to scout the location for his company’s new mega-warehouse near a quaint North Carolina beach town. The online request for handyman assistance for the Buy-A-Board campaign in Sand Dollar Cove gives him the perfect reason to head to the east coast, check out the area, and contribute to a good cause. He’d only have to leave half of his playboy-surfer lifestyle behind for a little while—there are plenty of waves in the Atlantic. But when he meets Elli Eversol, she really gets the surf up, and he’s tempted to toss his playboy ways out with the tide.

Read on for my thoughts on Sand Dollar Cove.  No true spoilers, promise.

Sand Dollar Cove is such a lighthearted, fun romance.  Elli had been busy with an online renovation project where people donated funds to help rehabilitate the pier at Sand Dollar Cove.  In exchange for their support, they would have their names memorialized forever on the boards that recreate the pier.  It was a successful plan with help coming in from unexpected people.  One of those people was Brody, he would be creating the boards on this project.

Every fairytale has a villain, and this story was no different in the form of a former boyfriend who was a weasel back when and never changed.  With old memories of the good old times together, he tried to slip some very important information past Elli – thankfully she found out before it was too late.

This story is a combination of so many things.  The devastation that Mother Nature can toss at our beachfront communities in the form of hurricanes and simply salt, wind and time.  How family is forever, but time marches on for those we love and we need to gather up the memories while we still can.  The single mindedness of a group of friends, family, neighbors and businesses can come together and save a piece of their community and make it so much more in the process.  And perhaps most importantly, the fact that simply because we don’t know every detail about a person does not mean that they are not truthful, honest and well worth our affection and trust.

A beautiful story, well told with enough feel goods to last you a while.  I would highly recommend this one for any reader who enjoys a story about the community as well as the couple.  A sweet, simple love story – you can’t ask for much more enjoyment than that on a summer’s day (or any day).

*I received an e-ARC of Sand Dollar Cove from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. That does not change what I think of this novel.*

Available in paperback and for the Kindle