Review: Love on the Lake (Lakeside #2) by Helena Hunting

I received this book for free from the author, the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Love on the Lake by Helena Hunting
Series: Lakeside #2
Published by Montlake on March 15, 2022
Genres: Adult Contemporary Romance
Pages: 317
Source: the author, the publisher
Format: E-galley
My Rating:
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Blurb:

Teagan Firestone has always been the dutiful daughter, especially since her mom died. But as her father finally begins to move on, it’s her turn to do the same. Her destination: Pearl Lake, a close-knit community with an entrepreneurial spirit and secrets of its own.

One of them is Aaron Saunders, who dropped out of college to work construction for Pearl Lake’s upper class. He’s a mystery and has a playboy reputation—that is, until he meets Teagan. Neither of them is looking for love, but in a town this small, it’s hard not to let your heart get involved. 

As their romance heats up, Aaron’s elusive past comes to light and Teagan is there for him, bringing them even closer together. But when Teagan is forced to face her own demons, her inability to accept the support of friends and family threatens the life she’s worked so hard to build. 

Can Aaron love her, even when she can’t love herself?

My Review

I loved the first book in this series of standalones, Love Next Door, so I was of course excited for this one. This one was just as good as the first. Teagan is Van’s sister. Van was our hero from book one. We already know that she’s gone through a lot from her part in that story, and so it makes sense when she would want to move to Pearl Lake for a fresh start, especially after her brother seemed to really grow and be happy when he moved there. Her taking one small part time job after another, till she ended up with basically about 5 separate jobs though, that was crazy! And then she was adding in all these other things like organizing a whole farmers’ market for the town! It was obvious something was going to have to give for her. There were also little signs and details along the way that other issues were at work in her stress and stability.

Then there was Aaron. At first I had trouble really liking him. He was rude to Teagan, while he was nice to everyone else. Even flirty with most women. Not getting his viewpoint right away either made a difference too. But once he finally was able to open up a little, he grew on me. He had his one weekend a month that he went away and no one knew exactly what he did or where he went. We got a small glimpse from his viewpoint at one point early on, and it made it seem like something. But what it really ended up being was definitely unpredictable! I liked the way Hunting took that aspect.

I love how both characters had their flaws and things they needed to work on before they could become a healthy couple. This is something that this author does so well with. Another perfect story from Helena Hunting!