Moose Be Love: Finding Love in Alaska, Book 1

Sunset Ridge #1

by Jacqueline Winters, Taylor Harvey (Narrator)

When I travel to the small town of Sunset Ridge for the reading of my great aunt’s will, I have no idea that my sisters and I are about to inherit a lodge. Or that my rugged Alaskan neighbor is the caretaker I’ll be spending all my time with.

Falling for Ford Harris would be unwise. I’m supposed to get the lodge listed for sale and leave. Not to mention that he hasn’t dated anyone since his wife died four years ago. The little sister he’s super protective over let it slip that he swore off ever falling in love again.

But he’s cooking me dinner, showing me around town, and saving me from getting trampled by the town’s favorite moose. Don’t even get me started on the way my brain short circuits when I catch him shirtless and towel-drying his hair.

The truth is? I’m falling hard, and I wish I didn’t have to leave.

If you love fun small-town romance, Moose Be Love is packed full of that charm—a fun cast of characters, a quirky small-town Alaskan setting, and a swoony-romance with all the feels. All inspired by the decade the author lived in Alaska.

Heat Sweet/Mild

Genres: Romance, Contemporary, Contemporary Romance, Ebooks, Clean Romance, Fiction, Chick Lit

Audible Audio

First published February 25, 2020

About the author

Jacqueline Winters has been writing since she was nine when she'd sneak stacks of paper from her grandma’s closet and fill them with adventure. She grew up in Small-Town Nebraska, and spent a decade living in beautiful Alaska. She writes contemporary sweet romances and contemporary romantic suspense.

She’s a sucker for happily ever after’s, has a sweet tooth that can be sated with cupcakes, and firmly believes sangria was possibly the best invention ever. On a relaxing evening, you can find her at her computer writing her next novel with her dog poking his adorable head out from beneath the desk.

Reviews

[theliterateleprechaun · Rating 4 out of 5]

New to me author: Jacqueline Winters
Book 1: Sunset Ridge
Contemporary Romance/Suspense
Available: NOW

What a sweet Hallmark-style romance!

It has everything:
✔️Ford Harris, Mr. Alaska, hunky caretaker
✔️Riggs, cute German Shepherd
✔️Ed, resident bull moose
✔️spotlight on family
✔️theme of second chances
✔️Sunset Ridge, small town Alaska
✔️great sense of community
✔️well-developed characters I cared about
✔️an inheritance

Life has kept the three Whitmore sisters busy and spread over the United States; Sophia is married and living in Hawaii, Tessa is a chef and living in New York and Cadence is in real estate in New England. When their great aunt Patty passes away and leaves them an inheritance, it not only presents the Whitmore girls with an opportunity to strengthen their sibling bonds but also provides them the opportunity for second chances.

I loved the focus on family and on remembering what’s important in life.

Ed and Riggs made me smile and I loved how they were a big part of the romance.

I’ll be watching out for a place like Willamina’s Big Dipper to get a bowl of caribou chili!

This is book one of a series and I’d consider reading the remainder of the series.

[Maven_Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

Moose Be Love by Jacqueline Winters is a cozy, small town contemporary romance about Cadence Whitmore, one of three sisters who unexpectedly inherit their great aunt’s lodge in Sunset Ridge, Alaska, and finds herself drawn into more than just the decision of whether to sell the property when she meets Ford Harris, the rugged local handyman, who may be the one person who could convince her to stay and build a life there instead. This sweet story blends second chances, community warmth, and that quirky charm only a friendly Alaskan town (and one unforgettable moose) can bring to life.

From the very first chapter I was wrapped in the gentle rhythm of small town life and the honest charm of Cadence’s journey back to the place she once loved as a girl. Her connection with Ford blossomed quietly and genuinely, not rushed but nurtured by shared laughter, late night talks, and moments that felt like watching two old friends rediscover each other in a world that refuses to rush them. I adored how the author lets the setting breathe, from snowy trails and cozy lodge corners to the delightful oddness of Ed the moose and Riggs the loyal German Shepherd, both of whom gave the story that extra layer of warmth and memorable personality. The community of Sunset Ridge felt like a comforting hug at every turn, and I found myself smiling at the way neighbors rallied, memories resurfaced, and hearts opened to new possibilities.

Rating: 3 out of 5

I loved how this book made me feel content and hopeful, like curling up with a warm drink on a chilly evening. The heartfelt romance and friendly faces made it easy to care about every moment, and while a few plot beats were familiar in small town romance land, the sincerity, quirky characters, and enchanting Alaska backdrop kept my heart fully engaged from beginning to end.

[Kathy Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Confession. Normally when I read a book it's because the synopsis grabbed my attention. But, that did not happen today. The whole reason I grabbed this book was because of the title. When I first saw it, it made me giggle. Before I even got to the synopsis, I took a screen shot of the cover and sent it to one of my bookish friends. I told her to keep her fingers crossed that I had found a winner. I don't know why, but I really wanted to love this book.

From the moment I started reading, I was transported to the small town of Sunset Ridge where I spent the day. I ignored anything and everything that had to do with adulting. I couldn't even be bothered with making food. The only reason I ate breakfast was because it was popcorn and I could eat it and read at the same time. That seems to be my go to food when a book sucks me in and my body is screaming for sustenance.

I quickly fell in love with Cadence and Ford. They were fantastic characters and I found myself rooting for them from the very beginning. When they first met, they both thought they knew what they wanted. But little did they know that fate had something else in store for them. I loved watching their relationship grow from friends into something more. Neither one of them realized at first that they were what was missing in each others lives. They complimented each other and pushed each other to find what and who made them happy. They loved fiercely and would sacrifice their own happiness if it would help out another family member. These two were perfect for each other.

And I have to give a shout out to Ed and Riggs. Y'all, those two almost stole the show. Between Ed's window licking fetish and Riggs' ninja moves, they had me guessing what in the world they would do next. I'm sure they'll keep the residents of Sunset Ridge on their toes. Haha.

This is a great start to a fun series I'm sure I'm going to love. I have the other two books already downloaded to my kindle, waiting for me to dive right in. I see sleepless nights and all day read-a-thons in my very near future.

Ms. Winters has been on my radar for a little while now and after reading this book, I'm wondering why in the world it took me so long to give her a try. I'm definitely looking forward to reading her other books and seeing what else she has in store for us.

And y'all. Can we take a minute to admire these two? I think they are perfect! What do you think?

[Aimee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very Sweet

This story is very cute and very sweet. The Alaskan summer setting was perfect and the addition of Ed the moose was fun. The romance is gentle, the conflict is easily resolved which I liked because it didn't take over the whole story. This is a new to me author and I'm excited to see there are more books in this series that include Cadence's sisters.

[Rochelle Saldaña · Rating 3 out of 5]

I live in Alaska and I am slightly obsessed with moose. This book amused me thoroughly! It screams Hallmark movie…choose a season and run with it!

[Nikki · Rating 5 out of 5]

A super sweet Alaskan romance. I was super thrilled to find book 1 of a new series by this author. She's done it again with her Hallmark moments, super cute four legged side characters, and quirky town folk that make it feel like home. I'm looking forward to reading the continuing tales of three sisters getting 2nd chances at love and happiness in the inherited home of a beloved aunt.

[Saar The Book owl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think I need to read more cozy romance or just the books written by Jacqueline Winters. I'm not a romantic person and I rarely read romance books. I was just in search for a book with a moose on the cover that I needed for a reading challenge.
This book made me cheer, laugh and feel sad with the characters and I didn't want it to finish. It's not cheesy, not dripping with romance, but 'normal'. Cadence, Ford, Rilee...every character felt warm, real and normal. Cadence and Ford were made for each other, but as life is, it can get in the way with some twists and turns and, oh yes,... a moose. I think Ed, the moose, had the most important role in the book.
It's a love story of 'real' people in a small Alaskan town, ideal if you want to escape and steal some hours for yourself.

[Carolyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute!

[Laurie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun cozy romance in small town Alaska. One of the best parts is the local moose named Ed.

[Susan Peterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

fun story!

This was a fun story, filled with heart and laughter. I loved Cadence and Ford, and look forward to reading the other stories in this series.

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was super cute - Robin, you’ll love this one

[Becca · Rating 5 out of 5]

My rating is 100% influenced by my love of moose but it was a cute story!

[JEDKEN · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bokomslaget -5
Så mycket gulligare på nextstory


small town, handyman, friends to lovers.
Hon jobbar och lever ett hektiskt liv. Men när hennes faster dör och hon behöver åka upp till Alaska för att sälja hennes B&B typ. Förändras allt, hon fallet för huset och hennes granne "The handyman". Som bara tänker på hans pengar problem om att hans syster ska kunna åka till college(men han håller det hemligt(iriterande).

[Helen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute story with a cute moose, cute kid, cute young adult, and cute dog. No swearing or sex. I struggle with romances centered around inherited property. There are a lot of them! I'd have preferred the story if Cadence had come across the property and bought it with a big mortgage and the burden of financial stress like 99% of the population. It was somewhat predictable, but well-written and a solid ending.

[Sally Stackhouse · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sweet, romantic story.
Three sisters, separated by distance and careers have been left a guest house by their deceased aunt with some stipulations.
Set in small town Alaska, Cadence is the only sister able to visit the property to get it ready for resale.
She meets the caretaker and the resident, wandering moose and the friendly inhabitants of the town.

[LUAYNE · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars

Nice sweet romance. Love the moose and Riggs. Relatable characters. Need more scenery description. No surprises and a happy ending.

[Sn8wflake · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alaska

There are actually quite a few compliments for the book although I would have liked a recipe. The community feel is apparent and the characters cute, especially Ed.

[Elisabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Long car rides lead to me being bored and borrowing a kindle that was right next to me. I chose this book with no idea what I was getting into and it was pretty good. I loved Ed and his obsession to have no care in the world other than to eat blueberries or car soap. Riggs was also amazing, not only for him being part of every single walk or scenario.

Summary of the book: Cadence takes a vacation to Sunset Ridge with the intent on staying for 3 days to help with the selling of her Great Aunt Patty's lodge. She had spent the summer here when she was a teenager with an intent on coming back after highschool but never fulfilling that dream. Her neighbor, Ford, was promised by Patty that if instead of Cadence selling the lodge, kept it, he would be able to pay for his sister to go to college. If Cadence kept it, she would have to convince her sisters as well and give up her life in Kansas to run it. If she sold it, she would still have her job and her siblings would have money. The lodge would be a mere memory. What is she going to do?

Favorite Quotes:
"Truly I couldn't ask for a better agent to learn from. But I don't think vacation is in her vocabulary," (102 Winters).

"Caroline insisted, "Mom I can't eat him!" "It's a pancake, honey. You like pancakes.""(221 Winters).

[Annette · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cadence is one of three sisters. Tessa is a high powered chef in New York City. Sophie is married to a wealthy surgeon and lives in Hawaii. Cadence is working on a plan to become a successful realtor in Wichita.

Their Great-Aunt Patty died and left them a successful lodge in Sunset Ridge, Alaska.

Aunt Patty hoped that the girls would stay and run the lodge and live happily ever after.

This is a formulaic story. It is a sweet story and all the characters are lovely people. That is not a bad thing. But, it is just too much of following a pattern.

Cadence meets, Ford, the man who is the caretaker for the lodge. There is immediate attraction between the two.

Ford has a secret. Cadence has secrets.

The story moves forward.

Oh yes, there is a moose named Ed. He was one of the most interesting parts of the story for me.

I did not dislike this book. Character development is well done. There is a lot of fluff, but the plot does move forward. Everything seemed to me to be moving along as I expected. Exactly as expected. But, this will not be a reread for me.

[Paula P. · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/3.5. I just realized that I never read a romance book with adults going towards their 30s, which was refreshing to be honest! The romance felt mature with a nice banter. It's a typical small town romance where a girl goes to a small town after her auntie passed away, to decide with her two sisters if they would like to sell or keep the lodge their auntie left behind. She meets this handsome caretaker of the place and they fall in love immediately.

I'm usually more into an enemy to lover trope or something that isn't insta love. But I have to say that the story had many cute moments and the love interest, Ford, is amazing. The couple was really cute to read about! I also liked the small details and traditions in this book, like Ed, the moose that made several appearances.

I feel like this book is fun to read at night. It's a quick and easy read and not a story you have to think too much about! It was hard to get into but at some point I couldn't stop reading. I might consider reading the second book soon!

[Theresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

With this cover and this title I just had to read this book.

Cadence goes to Alaska to because her favorite aunt has died and left her and her sisters an inn. She goes to look at the property to get it ready to be sold.

When she gets there she meets Ford who is the handyman. He also needs to get Cadence to not want to sell the inn. So he starts showing her all the great parts around town and all of the great people. He helps her remember all the things she loved when she came here as a child.

And of course it works, there are just two problems the first being Cadence's two sisters that she is supposed to spilt the money with when it is sold, and there is a secret that Ford is keeping.

This story is the beginning of a series about the sisters and it does a great job getting you curious. What will happen with Sophie? Does Tessa move to Aiaska after she wins/ loses?
I have to guess Tessa's story comes next, but I'll bet Sophie has the best story.


Oh and of course there is a moose! Ed the moose who loves to be hand fed cabbage. I forsee a story with Ed and Sophie's little girl.

[Kendyll Leifheit · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty cute romance book. Pretty typical story line though small town: the love interest knows everyone in town and helps around but is hiding a secret. New girl: comes into town unlike everyone else. Her life is messed up. He loves the town never wants to leave and he must convince her to stay in order to get their fairytale ending. Of course the details were original but overall the story has already been used several times before and will continue to be used on. Did that lower my standard of this book? Not at all because I love all things romance and will continue to be a sucker for this kind of stuff. The reason for 4 stars? The story felt dragged on in the beginning with no solving then towards the end new people come in and don’t stay long. It felt rushed. The ending was short. I wish it was expanded on a bit. Like how are the love interests doing are they happy. How was the move? How is the lodge doing? Just some lingering questions I have.. would recommend overall!

[Tiffany McNair · Rating 4 out of 5]

A-moose-ingly Cute Story

A clean romance with an earnest plot. Cadence and Ford's story takes place after tragedy strikes and sends Cadence back to Sunset Ridge, Alaska. While she's there sorting out her Great Aunt Patty's will, she meets Ford, the town's local handyman and caretaker of Patty's lodge. Ford needs to convince Cadence to keep the lodge and stay in Sunset Ridge. It will take more than convincing her though. If he wants what Patty bequeathed to him, it will take not only Cadence's signature but her two sister's as well. A unanimous decision. But how is he supposed to do that when all Cadence wants to do is list the property for sale and get back to her life in Kansas? And what happens when they both start catching feelings for each other? A sweet story set in beautiful Alaska, with side characters to set up the rest of the interconnected series, a German Shepherd, and one domesticated moose. A great read for those looking for a clean, wholesome romance.

[Trudi Jorda · Rating 5 out of 5]

The death of a beloved great aunt in a small town in Alaska brings one of the three sisters each living in a different state, Cadence to discover that the girls have inherited a lodge that they may sell or keep but it must be signed off on by all three. One is married and lives in HI, another is a chef in NY and the third is in real estate in NE. The three sisters have many issues but one takes the time to go up to take a look at the property but finds herself falling in love with the grounds keeper. More importantly she finds that while her sisters want to sell it she finds it reminding her of her love of the lodge and wanting to run it. More complications arise as the resident moose keeps on showing up! A very pleasurable story with an interesting cast of characters and how the death of a special woman can bring these three women back together as a family!

[Ronald · Rating 5 out of 5]

Moose Be Love was an enjoyable and cute story to read. It was fun, clean, and filled with descriptions of the area of Alaska where the story took place. It also was a story of new starts, of taking charge of one's life and exploring "what could be." It also showed that romance, while not sought, could still be found in the most unexpected places and times. It is a good wholesome story, and an easy read, well-written.
Two things I would comment on: one, the ending of the story, while good, could have been expanded a bit, as the ending was sort of abrupt and left one wondering "what happened next?".
The other thing was there was an Epilogue at the end, which could have been left off as it had no direct input on the story which was just completed. It was more of a lead-in to the next book in the series.
Overall, I recommend Moose Be Love to the reader for a good, fun story.

[Candice Waite · Rating 5 out of 5]

Moose be love, so fun

I'm so excited to have found this new author. I appreciate good writing that keeps you entertained without foul language or focusing on sex. This was a clean, wonderful and sweet story. I enjoyed the characters, and the interaction between them. You could place yourself right into this town and feel at home because of the excellent description of the scenery. I enjoyed the story being told by the perspective alternating between Cadence and Ford. I loved the addition of the animals, Ed the moose and Riggs the German shepherd, they played an integral part in the main characters falling in love. Can't wait to read more about these sisters and their adventures in Alaska.

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a surprise! I thought the premise sounded good but the book may be cheesy but it lived up to my expectations. What a sweat and clean story. These three sisters inherit an inn from the great aunt in Alaska and have to decide whether to sell it or run it themselves. The authors description of Alaska and the small town life made me yearn to go visit or move to this small town. Great character development and world building! Wonderful chemistry between the main characters and interaction between everyone. You can see why Ford is a lovable guy and how sweet, hardworking and caring Cadence is. I love it when characters connections make sense! lol forward to reading more books in this series!

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cadence's great aunt passed away, and left a gorgeous Alaskan lodge to Cadence and her sisters. At first, Cadence is willing to get the lodge ready for sale, working with the hunky caretaker, Ford, to get it ready. But she stayed to realize two things: she wants to keep the lodge and run it herself, and she was falling for Ford.

I love Ed the Moose. He's a fun foil to the characters, added the story simply because. He makes you smile every time he gets involved.

The love story is a little contrived, because it's just shy of love at first sight, but I like the characters. The Sophie twist was not unexpected, but it was a decent one to make the Happily Ever After happen.

This is definitely fun and engaging, and I'm actually looking forward to reading more in the series.

[Find Me Behind a Book · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely Lifetime movie vibes going on here. I would love to see this book turn into a movie. I love the characters and the storyline. I thought the story was a pretty quick and easy read.

Ford, nit only won Cadence's heart but mine as well. Growing up, Ford had lost a lot. His parents passed away as well as his wife. The last thing he wants is to grow close to someone else for them to only leave him in the end, too. Ford is an awesome big brother taking care of his sister and doing whatever he can to make sure she gets the education she deserves. Even if it means trying to convince Cadence to keep her Aunt Patty's bed and breakfast. Cadence always dreamed of living in Alaska, and now she's being tasked with selling her aunt's lodge. While preparing to sell the lodge, Cadence starts to understand why everyone loves it so much that she can start to see a future here working the bed and breakfast and falling in love with a certain caretaker.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderfully written Alaskan love story. Three sisters inherit a lodge in Alaska from their Aunt. They plan on selling it as fast as they can. But when Cadence is sent to evaluate the lodge and get it up for sale, she falls in love with it and the town and wants to stay and run it. Ford is the "caretaker" of the lodge. Their Aunt gave him one job before she died. Make the girls stay and run the lodge. Little did he know he would fall in love with the first sister that showed up! This is a cute love story and I can't wait to read the next book, because of course all three sisters need to stay!!