Book Recommendation - Loyally, Luke

 


Though I would never claim contemporary romance as my genre of choice, there are a few authors who make it an enjoyable genre to delve into. Pepper Basham is quickly becoming one of my favorites in this genre and I have absolutely adored her Skymar series. This series follows a set of siblings (with 1 cousin thrown in for good measure) from the Blue Ridge Mountains in North Carolina and pairs them with someone in the fictional island world of Skymar - a country that is ruled by a King, has Scottish roots and has lovely mountain scenery. If Skymar was a real place, I would totally want to go visit! This is book 3 in the Skymar series, and though the other 2 books are not essential reading to appreciate this book, they do help to get the fuller picture of the Edgewood family. And in reading the other 2 first, you get a better enjoyment of the ending of all of the stories at the end of this one. Here's a bit about the book:

Luke Edgewood isn’t a romantic.

Or, at least, he’s always felt certain Hallmark movies and romcoms were invented more as punishment for average guys than adding any real value to cinema. He’s a behind-the-scenes, flannel-wearing guy who lives a quiet life of obscurity and places value on working hard and being a good friend, neighbor, and brother. So when he travels to the island of Skymar to work on a few building projects, he never expects to find himself directly in the middle of a romantic trope-filled story of Hallmark proportions. From a Meet Cute that was anything but cute and an aging orphanage in need of as much tender care as the children it houses, Luke begins to wonder if he and his heart may be victims of some sort of hidden camera movie moment.

Elianna St. Claire, youngest daughter of King Aleksander and Queen Gabriella of the Skymarian Islands, is trying to earn her way back into the status of working royal after botching her public and private life with some ill-timed choices which ruined her reputation and damaged the family. Now, older and wiser, she’s determined to prove worthy of her title. Taking on a renovation of her beloved orphanage, Cambric Hall, (of which she is patron) shouldn’t be such a difficult job. Happy to escape her mother’s strong encouragement of matrimony, she finds pseudo-anonymity in the secluded mountains to oversee the orphanages renovations until her parents announce her official return as a working royal at the Wild Hyacinth Ball.

When Ellie learns the man she’d literally ran into at the coffee shop is the one who has been hired to help with the orphanage’s repairs, she’s determined to keep her royal status as secret as possible. From fundraisers to fake dates to sleigh rides and snowball fights, Ellie and Luke begin to discover that the wrong first impressions may lead to a romantic possibility with romcom flavored magic included.

But when Ellie’s true identity is revealed and royal expectations bring Luke out of his preferred anonymity into the spotlight of the royal life, will their budding relationship fall prey to a very unhappily-ever-after ending?

So. Much. Fun!! 

Luke Edgewood reminds me a great deal of my husband, which is maybe why he's the only book hero to have the title of "book boyfriend" in my world. Though my man is not handy in a carpentry sense, he has the same introverted stoicism, with the same soft heart beneath the gruff demeanor. And the same appreciation for all of the boy movies - Star Wars, Indiana Jones and the like. I'm aware the author has based Luke's character loosely on her dad, who recently passed away, and that endears me to him all the more! This book releases May 14, 2024 wherever books are sold. For additional information, check out the following links:

Pepper Basham's website: https://pepperdbasham.com/

Pepper Basham's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pepperdbasham

My full 5-star review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6343605634

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