"Strong engaging relationship drama"

In 1997 Borrego Springs, California, lawyer Arthur Litton offers a million dollars to buy baby Christopher for his clients, the child's grandparents. The father of the child, their son Rick recently died. Caroline Graham knows she cannot win a court battle against the wealthy Saunders so she disappears with her child.

Six years later, private investigator Jake Montgomery thinks he has found the vanished son of his deceased buddy Rick. Jake travels to Starlight Cove to meet painter Carly Nolan, single mother of six year old Christopher. Upon seeing her resemblance to a photo that Rick gave him of his fiancée, Jake concludes he has found Caroline. Jake knows reporting this would make his firm, but waits because he wants to do the right thing by Rick.

Jake introduces himself to Carly at the gallery. She finds him attractive, but fears any relationship might expose her and Chris. Jake is surprised by her vulnerability, but believes the guilty run and hide. He wonders if Chris might be better off with his widowed wealthy grandmother. As he begins to fall in love, his actions expose Carly and Chris.

This is a strong engaging relationship drama that hooks the reader from the start through a fully developed secondary cast supplementing the prime plot. Carly is a delightful protagonist living in fear, yet braving everything thrown at her. Jake seems too perfect as he seeks a middle ground between the woman he loves and the mother of his deceased best friend. Readers will appreciate this robust family drama.

Harriet Klausner

Reviewed by Harriet Klausner
Posted May 10, 2003

Summary

Readers everywhere treasure bestselling author Jill Marie Landis for her tender love stories set against the splendid landscapes of the past. Now, Landis has written her first contemporary novel—a deeply emotional tale of acceptance and forgiveness, the bonds between mothers and sons, and the miracle of finding love for the first time.

For six years Carly Nolan has built a life for herself and her son Christopher, never getting too close to anyone. Nobody in the sleepy little beach community suspects she is running—from the mistakes she made in her youth, the memory of her fiancé Rick and his unexpected death, and the rich, powerful people who want to take away her child. She has carefully concealed her troubled past from the folks in the isolated haven of Twilight Cove. Until now.

Private investigator Jake Montgomery has been looking for elusive Caroline Graham since the day she disappeared with Rick's baby. All Jake wants is answers. He finally finds her living under an assumed name, no longer a wild teenager, but a beautiful, devoted single mother who captivates him like no one ever has before. As Carly cautiously allows Jake into her life, she begins to trust another person for the first time in a long while. She never imagines that Jake, caught between his mission and his growing passion, poses a threat to her protected world. For if her secrets are revealed, she might lose the child she holds so dear—and the man who possesses the key to her heart.

Wise and wonderful, Lover's Lane is an unforgettable story about new beginnings and the search for belonging, superbly told by one of the most talented writers in women's fiction today.