Lost and Found Sisters: A Novel (The Wildstone Series, 1)

Loved this. There is humour, sadness, love. I laughed, I shed a tear. I was happy at the end of this fast paced book that was hard to put down. Totally enjoyed it. Note, some mild heat and mild bad language.

This book was a refreshing read. I found it differed from Jill Shalvis other works. While the relationship between a man and a woman develops , this book also addresses other family connections new and old. I found myself drawing comparisons to my own grief and that of Quinns. Beautifully written and draws the reader in from the very first chapter. I am looking forward to more of this series.

​This was a wonderful start to a new series, and now I can't wait for the next book! The story wasn't centred as much on the romance side of things (although there definitely are a couple of romances) as is usual in a Jill Shalvis book, but instead reminded me a bit of Robyn Carr's books, so a mixture of Robyn Carr's small town story-telling and Jill Shalvis's usual great, funny, romantic characters, with lots of humour and snarkiness - absolutely perfect! It's hard to write a review without letting all the secrets out of the bag, but the story is mainly about Quinn and an inheritance she's left in Wildstone, California. She moves to Wildstone for a while to sort out this inheritance, and while she's there falls in love with so many of its residents, especially Mick, who she initially mistakes for the maintenance man at the B&B she's staying in, and even Lena the very snarky hairdresser in town and Mick's ex - I really hope there's a full book for her as I can see Quinn and Lena becoming best friends, in quite an odd way! The whole story is really about Quinn thinking she's found her place in life, even if it's not exactly what she wants, and then something coming along to turn everything on its head and make her re-evaluate her whole life and start off on a completely new, and better, track. She has just been coasting and closing herself off emotionally since her sister, Beth, died in a car accident a couple of years ago, and the inheritance and its various revelations just completely change everything and force her to start feeling again. It was just such a lovely story that I really can't wait to return to Wildstone, hopefully very soon, as there's so many characters I want to know more about - Lena, Boomer and Dylan, to name but a few, I'd even love Brock to move there and see how his story evolves. Very excited for the next book!

Sous-chef Quinn Weller is just living day to day after losing her sister in a devastating car accident. She has a good if demanding job in the hottest restaurants in Los Angeles, a somewhat of a boyfriend determined to get her to his thinking of being married and she seems to be on the fast track to having the perfect life. Except Quinn is lost and feels empty, not knowing why. Until a lawyer finds her and delivers a bombshell: she is the heir to an inheritance in a place called Wildstone, California. Shocked and feeling like her life has been a lie, Quinn picks up and goes to Wildstone, expecting to take over a house or something. What she finds is a small town where gossip is the norm, people are friendly and the simple pleasures start to grow on her. But when she finds out the second portion of her inheritance, a sister she never knew she had. Can two wildly different people get through the loss of a life, of a person to see that they need one another? Can Quinn find it in her heart to let herself be loved by not just her new-found sister but also by the town of Wildstone? Wow is all I can say after reading Jill Shalvis’s new book, LOST AND FOUND SISTERS. It’s a wonderful tale of a woman floundering after a major loss, just going through the motions and not moving forward. Quinn is stuck in life so to speak. I loved this book so much because it delivers wonderful characters that are quirky, intriguing and downright enjoyable. You got Quinn, who is struggling with all the bombshells going off around her and then there is Tilly, a teenager who lost her only parent, finds herself with a sister she didn’t know she had and uncertainty in where her place is in life. These two stole my heart right off the bat and kept it even after the last page is read. I loved Quinn and Tilly so much. They are delightful, entertaining even as Tilly tries to one-up Quinn and their unconventional relationship gets stronger even as these two try to forge a bond, a bond that happens even as both try to avoid it. I loved the scenes with Quinn trying to parent Tilly, of finding her place in the town of Wildstone and starting to move forward in life with cutie, Mick, a man determined to have nothing to do with Wildstone, yet finds himself there a lot. These three are just the tip of the delightful cast of characters that make up LOST AND FOUND SISTERS and I truly loved each of them. They had me laughing over their quips and comments, sighing as they delivered some of the best snarky comments I have read lately and kept me glued to the book till the very end. LOST AND FOUND SISTERS is more about one woman finding her place in this world, moving forward after a major loss in her life but also about forgiveness, desire to be loved and cherished and above all, finding their place where they belong, be it in a small town like Wildstone or big city like Los Angeles....

When one of your very favourite authors announces she’s going to write something a little different, do you: A) Bounce up and down and do a fist bump in the air because she is releasing something new? B) Cry and scream - Why…why…why…would you do this to me? I don’t like change. Why change a good thing? Please tell me the hero doesn’t die/the heroine doesn’t die? It’s not an apocalyptic/time travel/alien invasion story, is it? -OR- C) Well, OK. I’ll give it a go. Well, to be honest, I kind of did all three when I found out that Jill Shalvis was writing her first Women’s Fiction. Now, here is where I admit that I’m a bit of a dag. I should have done the smart thing and looked up the definition of women’s fiction. For some silly reason, I thought it was going to be all…women rule the world, work is my focus and if I’m happy in my career – I’m happy in my life. Now, THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING WRONG WITH ANY OF THESE THINGS!! I hope I’ve made that loud and clear enough. I, myself, read romance for a reason. I love LOVE. My greatest accomplishment in my life is loving my husband and having two wonderful sons. Yeah, I work, I’ve had careers and opportunities, but for me, they are nothing compared to my family. So, when I read contemporary, I want something I can relate to. To me, romance stories are that little space in time when love becomes the focus and life/duties take a backseat. Anyways…after finishing Lost and Found Sisters I looked up the definition of Women’s Fiction. This article says it in a way I completely understood and could relate to. If like me, you’re a little unclear of the differences between Romance and Women’s Fiction, I suggest you check out this article. http://www.writersdigest.com/editor-b... So, I started reading Lost and Found Sisters looking for the differences. At first, I thought a major difference was that it was a lot more serious. As I went further through the book, I got an AHHA moment when we got to the sexy times. So, women’s fiction means we cut back on the rubbing and grinding and just show the connection in the intimate scenes. Then at 6:30 am I had an epiphany. *Oh, women’s fiction is about life and relationships.* It wasn’t just about him and her getting it on (or what leads up to that), it was about a woman leading her life and managing her relationships with everyone. I GET IT!! I REALLY, REALLY GET IT!! I honestly thought this would be a get in and get it done read and admit to a little hesitancy in starting. I had a *Sure, Jill Shalvis, give it your best shot trying to convert me from romance to women’s fiction…* mentality. Well, I’m converted. I can now proudly say that I read romance -AND- women’s fiction…maybe I should stipulate that at this particular time, I read Jill Shalvis’s women’s fiction. So, I loved Lost and Found ...