Beach Reads (Book #4)

Summer by the Sea
by Susan Wiggs

Blurbs from Debbie Macomber and Jodi Picoult – plus the flip-flops-on-the-dock cover art – AND the fact that I actually found this one at the beach . . . well, who could resist?

Rosa Capoletti runs the finest little Italian restaurant in her native Winslow, Rhode Island; Celesta’s-by-the-Sea has been named "Best Place to Propose" by the New York Times three years in a row. And Rosa is thrilled: "She loved weddings and had been a bridesmaid six times. She knew it was six because, deep in the farthest reaches of her closet, she had six of the ugliest dresses ever designed, in colors no one had ever seen before." But Rosa, too wounded by the betrayal of the privileged "prep" who left her 12 years earlier, is still single. Reunited at the beach where they first fell in love, Rosa and Alex uncover and confront the deception at the heart of their parting. With a "Love Story" social dynamic, but without the maudlin McGraw/O’Neal overtone, this one is quite tasty. Recipes for Celesta’s specials, including caponata, cimabellone, pasta fazool, and torta crema are included.

-Sandy Page