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Retreat to Love
When the seams of her past unravel, a stitch in time saves … love.
Quilter Ashlyn May has her hands full. When she accepts a spot at the FireWind Artist Retreat, she's prepared to defend her craft against the skepticism of her fellow artists, even as she struggles to rediscover her creative drive. She doesn’t expect to learn a devastating family secret, or to find comfort in the arms of photographer Caleb Kendall.
As spring blooms in the rolling hills of Central Texas, the pillars of her life crumble, leaving her to choose between breaking her grandmother’s heart and honoring the values of honesty and openness her grandparents instilled in her. Meanwhile, the dramas of her new friends and artistic debates range around her, leaving Caleb her only safe harbor. But can their relationship possibly survive once they’re outside the insular world of FireWind?
Filled with Melanie Greene’s trademark humor and intelligence, this contemporary romance asks timeless questions about love and how to build a future over the rubble of the past.
Quilter Ashlyn May has her hands full. When she accepts a spot at the FireWind Artist Retreat, she's prepared to defend her craft against the skepticism of her fellow artists, even as she struggles to rediscover her creative drive. She doesn’t expect to learn a devastating family secret, or to find comfort in the arms of photographer Caleb Kendall.
As spring blooms in the rolling hills of Central Texas, the pillars of her life crumble, leaving her to choose between breaking her grandmother’s heart and honoring the values of honesty and openness her grandparents instilled in her. Meanwhile, the dramas of her new friends and artistic debates range around her, leaving Caleb her only safe harbor. But can their relationship possibly survive once they’re outside the insular world of FireWind?
Filled with Melanie Greene’s trademark humor and intelligence, this contemporary romance asks timeless questions about love and how to build a future over the rubble of the past.
300 pages, Paperback
First published March 30, 2015
1 person is currently reading
279 people want to read
About the author
Melanie Greene
25 books145 followersMelanie Greene lives in a tiny woodland cottage in a big skyscraper city. She shares her life with her hunk of a husband and children so amazing they defy superlatives.
She writes smart, sizzling contemporary romance.
She writes smart, sizzling contemporary romance.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
April 30, 2016
3.5 stars.
This book was set at a retreat for artists who wanted to be reinvigorated and breathe new life into their work. Ashlyn joined 7 other artists for a couple of months of organic leaving. Ashlyn immediately finds herself drawn to her brother Zach's college friend Caleb, but another artist has her eyes on Caleb too. So began the group interaction and ensuing drama.
I thought the author did a good job showing the main characters personal and romantic growth. It didn't feel like insta-love though it developed quickly. This story featured smaller side plots with the other artists and Ashlyn's relationship within her own family. I'm not that interested in art, and the creative process so I wasn't was engaged in that aspect, but I liked the different characters and their individual drama. It was well written and the ending was satisfying. The narrator did a great job bringing the story to life.
*This audiobook was received in exchange for an honest review.
This book was set at a retreat for artists who wanted to be reinvigorated and breathe new life into their work. Ashlyn joined 7 other artists for a couple of months of organic leaving. Ashlyn immediately finds herself drawn to her brother Zach's college friend Caleb, but another artist has her eyes on Caleb too. So began the group interaction and ensuing drama.
I thought the author did a good job showing the main characters personal and romantic growth. It didn't feel like insta-love though it developed quickly. This story featured smaller side plots with the other artists and Ashlyn's relationship within her own family. I'm not that interested in art, and the creative process so I wasn't was engaged in that aspect, but I liked the different characters and their individual drama. It was well written and the ending was satisfying. The narrator did a great job bringing the story to life.
*This audiobook was received in exchange for an honest review.
July 17, 2015
My novel Retreat to Love is such a book of my heart. It's love and creativity and community and family ties. I hope y'all enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!
June 5, 2016
Retreat to Love begins with Ashlyn May attending a FireWind Artist Retreat. She knew that by attending the FireWind Artist Retreat, she would be able to develop her skills as a quilter and that she would be taken seriously as an artist.
Ashlyn didn't expect to run into her brother's friend, Caleb Kendall who is photographer. She and Caleb started on a bad foot of invading each other artistic space. Ashlyn wasn't planning on having a romantic tryst during the retreat since her retreat friend was interest in Caleb.
As she and Caleb are paired to prepare meals for the group, they became friends and avoided the dramas that were going on at the retreat. During retreat Ashlyn discovered a family secret that could either rip her family apart. Ashlyn now have to decide whether to share the secret with her family or to keep it to herself.
Ashlyn also have to make a choice about her relationship with Caleb. She has to decide whether she should take a chance on her future with Caleb or to go her separate way.
Retreat to Love is a friends to lovers story. Each character is described so detailed that the readers/listeners would feel that they know the characters themselves. The readers/listeners could identify themselves with Ashlyn's ordeal to reveal her family past and know that secret could tear her family apart especially when Ashlyn's family are so close to each other.
The narrator, Amy Rubinate does a wonderful job with all the voices for the characters in the story. It would have been easier if there were a handful of characters. Her performance to provide a different voice for several characters is quite good.
I was given this audiobook by the author/narrator/publisher via Audiobook Blast in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated or influenced in any way for writing this review.
Ashlyn didn't expect to run into her brother's friend, Caleb Kendall who is photographer. She and Caleb started on a bad foot of invading each other artistic space. Ashlyn wasn't planning on having a romantic tryst during the retreat since her retreat friend was interest in Caleb.
As she and Caleb are paired to prepare meals for the group, they became friends and avoided the dramas that were going on at the retreat. During retreat Ashlyn discovered a family secret that could either rip her family apart. Ashlyn now have to decide whether to share the secret with her family or to keep it to herself.
Ashlyn also have to make a choice about her relationship with Caleb. She has to decide whether she should take a chance on her future with Caleb or to go her separate way.
Retreat to Love is a friends to lovers story. Each character is described so detailed that the readers/listeners would feel that they know the characters themselves. The readers/listeners could identify themselves with Ashlyn's ordeal to reveal her family past and know that secret could tear her family apart especially when Ashlyn's family are so close to each other.
The narrator, Amy Rubinate does a wonderful job with all the voices for the characters in the story. It would have been easier if there were a handful of characters. Her performance to provide a different voice for several characters is quite good.
I was given this audiobook by the author/narrator/publisher via Audiobook Blast in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated or influenced in any way for writing this review.
February 16, 2017
*received for free through Goodreads first reads
I wanted to like this book more than I did. I usually enjoy romances and am a fan of art of multiple mediums, but I just couldn't get into this one. I found the characters a bit annoying and their interactions unrealistic.
I wanted to like this book more than I did. I usually enjoy romances and am a fan of art of multiple mediums, but I just couldn't get into this one. I found the characters a bit annoying and their interactions unrealistic.
October 15, 2019
How wonderful to have a story that has love and some content to the story! I loved this book. 8 people going to an art retreat to find their new project or passion, continue on their project or just try to find their new direction have all come to FireWind. Ashlyn and Caleb are wonderful together. It is amazing how with the information that Ashlyn finds out from her art friend Lizzie can cause an upheaval in her own family. I loved the situation, and loved seeing the relationship between Ashlyn and her Grandmother. This closeness is something I had with my own grandmother and could fully relate to issues that cause family problems. Caleb was a rock throughout, and is an amazing man. I also loved the interactions with Ashlyn and her mom and brother. It made the story feel real, not one where everything is wonderful, but with real conversations and real problems being worked through.
The characters inside the retreat were a bonus for me. Margie proved to be quite the character from Sargent to caring about and taking care of the artists. I especially love Rafael...a man of few words, but always had something meaningful to say.
Amy Rubinate as the narrator provides a flawless performance as she always does. She is able to catch the essence of the story, give us the voices and accents for different people and keeps the story flowing.
The characters inside the retreat were a bonus for me. Margie proved to be quite the character from Sargent to caring about and taking care of the artists. I especially love Rafael...a man of few words, but always had something meaningful to say.
Amy Rubinate as the narrator provides a flawless performance as she always does. She is able to catch the essence of the story, give us the voices and accents for different people and keeps the story flowing.
November 12, 2015
I was given this audio book in exchange for an honest review. This was my second book by this duo. This one was a little harder for me to follow, simply due to the number of characters. I wished more than once that I had the actual book in my hands so that I could go back and review (hard to do on your phone while walking two dogs).
Having said that, I absolutely loved the characters and the complexity of their relationships, even though they had just met. They were all artists of some kind (all very different mediums) who have gone to an artist's retreat for various reasons. I thought Ms. Greene had a wonderful grasp on the different art forms, the other artists views on the works, etc. Definitely some research done there. I also enjoyed the quirks of the different artists.
The two main characters are Ashlyn and Caleb. The attraction is there from the start, but they have several obstacles to overcome within the group before they feel comfortable with their relationship. Then there is the obstacle of distance once the retreat is over. That's at the core of the book, but there are many other side issues going on in this book. It definitely kept me going back for more!
Having said that, I absolutely loved the characters and the complexity of their relationships, even though they had just met. They were all artists of some kind (all very different mediums) who have gone to an artist's retreat for various reasons. I thought Ms. Greene had a wonderful grasp on the different art forms, the other artists views on the works, etc. Definitely some research done there. I also enjoyed the quirks of the different artists.
The two main characters are Ashlyn and Caleb. The attraction is there from the start, but they have several obstacles to overcome within the group before they feel comfortable with their relationship. Then there is the obstacle of distance once the retreat is over. That's at the core of the book, but there are many other side issues going on in this book. It definitely kept me going back for more!
August 5, 2015
Enjoyable, fun, and sweet romance with crafting and family being central themes. Ashlyn has gone to a retreat in hopes of kick-starting her mojo, which hasn't been very creative since she moved out of Gran's house. She is with seven other crafters communing together for the next two months. One of her fellow crafters happens to be an old college buddy of her brother, Zach. Another girl likes Caleb and asks for her assistance in getting them together. Needless to say, that doesn't work out because of the interest Ashlyn and Caleb havr toward one another. Through meeting yet another crafter's family, she learns of a secret from her family's past. She shares this secret with two people, but is unsure what it means for her future and all she knows of her heritage. Things happen to turn her world upside down and when she comes through it...
ARC provided in exchange for honest review.
ARC provided in exchange for honest review.
January 18, 2016
I've always had a preference for longer, meatier novels (including Greene's "Rocket Man" from her Roll of the Dice series -- very much looking forward to those followups), but while Retreat to Love is a relatively short, easy read, it still had complications and some heartfelt moments that felt earned, but for me, those moments came more profoundly in the latter half of the book in relation to family matters, rather than the romance itself. In comparison to those larger, more longstanding conflicts and heartaches (which are REALLY well-developed and addressed), the romance itself was pretty easy breezy. And that's how I felt about the book as a whole: an easy, breezy, fun read that will leave you feeling at peace.
June 3, 2015
Another delightful read by Melanie Greene! The greatest strength of this author is her ability to create colorful, 3-dimensional characters, including those who are not necessarily central to the storyline. This one did not disappoint- the cast is comprised of a multitude of different personalities that add interest (and often amusement) to the story. I also really loved the rich descriptions of the crafting- I am not a quilter, but am a crafter, and can appreciate the level of detail, and the research that must have gone into weaving those details into the story line. I'd love to see a series based on these characters!
Currently reading
August 5, 2022Got about 20% into this book without ever getting a real sense that anything romantically was going to happen between the heroine Ashley (through whose point of view the story is told) and any of the other 7 artists attending the artist retreat with her in Texas. The fellow the blurb suggests is her potential love interest insulted her several times, but not in a sexual-tension kind of way, which did not make me interested in seeing their relationship develop. Even though she's a quilter like me, I just couldn't get into Ashley's story.
April 27, 2015
Like the kind of gorgeous, intricate quilts protagonist Ashlyn May creates, this book is a collection of splendid elements--romance, atmosphere, snazzy dialogue, deep feeling, family history--expertly stitched together by author Melanie Greene. You'll want to retreat to the soulful FireWind artists' retreat with Ashlyn and beau Caleb, and go forward with their special story to the emotional ending. This is contemporary romance with an artistic twist. Go, Greene!
April 10, 2015
I read the Amazon kindle version of this book. Plot was good, lots of unexpected events and the characters were interesting. The book was hard to read however due to the number of run-on paragraphs and grammatical errors. A light, easy to pick up romance that made me want to work on some art projects.
November 23, 2015
"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast." I enjoyed the concept of artist retreat, but it was a bit cliched to pair up couples and race one set into an instant romance.I Liked the family dynamics and family secrets. The narration was enjoyable.
June 8, 2015
This is Greene's third outing and, in my opinion, her best. The point of view suits her style and the text is full of rich images. The pace never lags and her characters are, as usual, on point. It is clear this author is here to stay.
January 3, 2016
I really liked this story about love and friendship. It was very well written and kept me wanting to listen. Of course Amy Rubinate did a wonderful job narrating this book as she always does.
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December 21, 2018Lovely cover! I can't wait to read this book from Goodreads Giveaways :)
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews