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Life's a Beach #2
One Good Turn
When Luke met Jenny, he was lost and struggling. Her optimism, trust and love gave him the courage to face his demons and slay them. Then she vanished from his life. Seven years later, she reappears - only she's not the same cheerful idealist he'd fallen in love with. Can he rescue her the way she'd rescued him? Can he give her the strength to slay her own demons?
256 pages, Paperback
First published December 25, 1990
5 people are currently reading
48 people want to read
About the author
Judith Arnold
183 books172 followersBarbara Keiler
aka Ariel Berk, Thea Frederick, Judith Arnold
Barbara Keiler was born on April 7th. She started telling stories before shecould write. She was four when her sister, Carolyn, stuffed a crayon intoher hand and taught her the alphabet, and she's been writing ever since.
Barbara is a graduate of Smith College, where she learned to aim for thestars, and she received a master's degree in creative writing from BrownUniversity, where she took aim at a good-looking graduate student in thechemistry department and wound up marrying him. She says: "Before myhusband and I were married, I had a job in California and he was working onhis Ph.D. in Rhode Island. I became ill, and he hopped on a plane and flewacross the country to be with me. Neither of us had any money, but he saidhe simply couldn't concentrate on his research, knowing I was three thousandmiles away and facing a serious health problem all by myself. He stayed fortwo weeks, until I was pretty well recovered. That he would just drop whathe was doing, put his life on hold and race to my side told me how much heloved me. After that, I knew this was the man I wanted to marry."
Barbara has received writing fellowships from the Shubert Foundation and theNational Endowment for the Arts, and has taught at colleges and universitiesaround the country. She has also written several plays that have beenprofessionally staged at regional theaters in San Francisco, Washington, D.C.,Connecticut and off-off-Broadway.
Since her first romance novel's publication in 1983 as Ariel Berk. Shewrote one novel as Thea Frederick, and since 1985 she writes asJudith Arnold. Barbara has sold more than 70 novels, with eight millioncopies in print worldwide. She has recently signed a contract with MIRABooks. Her first MIRA novel will appear in 2001. She has received severalawards from Romantic Times Magazine, including awards for the Best HarlequinAmerican Romance of the Year, Best Harlequin Superromance of the Year, BestSeries Romantic Novel of the Year and a Lifetime Achievement Certificate ofMerit for Innovative Series Romance. She has also been a finalist for theGolden Medallion Award and the RITA Award for Romance Writer of America. Hernovel Barefoot in the Grass has appeared on the recommended reading listsdistributed by cancer support services at several hospitals.
Barbara lives in a small town not far from Boston, Massachusetts, New England with her husband, two teenage sons, and a guinea pig named Wilbur. Her sister Carolyn died of breast cancer in 1998.
aka Ariel Berk, Thea Frederick, Judith Arnold
Barbara Keiler was born on April 7th. She started telling stories before shecould write. She was four when her sister, Carolyn, stuffed a crayon intoher hand and taught her the alphabet, and she's been writing ever since.
Barbara is a graduate of Smith College, where she learned to aim for thestars, and she received a master's degree in creative writing from BrownUniversity, where she took aim at a good-looking graduate student in thechemistry department and wound up marrying him. She says: "Before myhusband and I were married, I had a job in California and he was working onhis Ph.D. in Rhode Island. I became ill, and he hopped on a plane and flewacross the country to be with me. Neither of us had any money, but he saidhe simply couldn't concentrate on his research, knowing I was three thousandmiles away and facing a serious health problem all by myself. He stayed fortwo weeks, until I was pretty well recovered. That he would just drop whathe was doing, put his life on hold and race to my side told me how much heloved me. After that, I knew this was the man I wanted to marry."
Barbara has received writing fellowships from the Shubert Foundation and theNational Endowment for the Arts, and has taught at colleges and universitiesaround the country. She has also written several plays that have beenprofessionally staged at regional theaters in San Francisco, Washington, D.C.,Connecticut and off-off-Broadway.
Since her first romance novel's publication in 1983 as Ariel Berk. Shewrote one novel as Thea Frederick, and since 1985 she writes asJudith Arnold. Barbara has sold more than 70 novels, with eight millioncopies in print worldwide. She has recently signed a contract with MIRABooks. Her first MIRA novel will appear in 2001. She has received severalawards from Romantic Times Magazine, including awards for the Best HarlequinAmerican Romance of the Year, Best Harlequin Superromance of the Year, BestSeries Romantic Novel of the Year and a Lifetime Achievement Certificate ofMerit for Innovative Series Romance. She has also been a finalist for theGolden Medallion Award and the RITA Award for Romance Writer of America. Hernovel Barefoot in the Grass has appeared on the recommended reading listsdistributed by cancer support services at several hospitals.
Barbara lives in a small town not far from Boston, Massachusetts, New England with her husband, two teenage sons, and a guinea pig named Wilbur. Her sister Carolyn died of breast cancer in 1998.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
November 24, 2015
The story itself wasn't too bad, but I didn't like the execution. The book consists of two parts, the first and biggest part taking place in the past and IMO that part should have been a lot less important. I would have liked the book better had the second part been more important.
The second problem I had with the book was the writing itself. The protagonists did so much thinking all the time - page after page without action or interaction - that I became bored and started skipping.
The second problem I had with the book was the writing itself. The protagonists did so much thinking all the time - page after page without action or interaction - that I became bored and started skipping.
August 2, 2020
Pleasant, contemporary, reunion romance, originally published in 1990 by Harlequin American
When Luke and Jenny first met seven years before, he was in a very difficult place, and Jenny’s emotional support was invaluable to him. Unfortunately, soon after he regained his footing, Jenny broke his heart when she disappeared. In the intervening years, Luke has not once seen or heard from Jenny, until the day she suddenly reappears in his life. He is shocked at the major changes in her. She is no longer the sunny optimist he used to know. In fact, she seems to be struggling emotionally as much he was in the past, and he is determined to offer her the same helping hand she extended to him. He very much hopes that if the two of them spend a weekend together at a friend’s beach house, it will provide Jenny with a chance to heal her wounds and, most of all, for the two of them to rediscover the love that they lost.
Ms. Arnold is an excellent, award-winning writer, who is very skilled in general at writing a classic, dual-point-of-view, HEA romance.
This story is told in two parts, the past relationship of the romantic protagonists, and their reunion in the present. This format is a bit cumbersome, and the story is inevitably a bit dated, given the fact that this novel is 30 years old. But it is quite refreshing that there is no foul language, and there are no crude sex scenes to wade through.
Overall, this is an enjoyable, non-melodramatic, comfort read.
I rate this story as follows:
Heroine: 4 stars
Hero: 3 stars
Romance Plot: 4 stars
Beach Setting: 4 stars
Writing: 4 stars
Overall: 4 stars
When Luke and Jenny first met seven years before, he was in a very difficult place, and Jenny’s emotional support was invaluable to him. Unfortunately, soon after he regained his footing, Jenny broke his heart when she disappeared. In the intervening years, Luke has not once seen or heard from Jenny, until the day she suddenly reappears in his life. He is shocked at the major changes in her. She is no longer the sunny optimist he used to know. In fact, she seems to be struggling emotionally as much he was in the past, and he is determined to offer her the same helping hand she extended to him. He very much hopes that if the two of them spend a weekend together at a friend’s beach house, it will provide Jenny with a chance to heal her wounds and, most of all, for the two of them to rediscover the love that they lost.
Ms. Arnold is an excellent, award-winning writer, who is very skilled in general at writing a classic, dual-point-of-view, HEA romance.
This story is told in two parts, the past relationship of the romantic protagonists, and their reunion in the present. This format is a bit cumbersome, and the story is inevitably a bit dated, given the fact that this novel is 30 years old. But it is quite refreshing that there is no foul language, and there are no crude sex scenes to wade through.
Overall, this is an enjoyable, non-melodramatic, comfort read.
I rate this story as follows:
Heroine: 4 stars
Hero: 3 stars
Romance Plot: 4 stars
Beach Setting: 4 stars
Writing: 4 stars
Overall: 4 stars
August 23, 2023
This was a good one, but I can't give it another star because so much of it was so sad! Something terrible happens to the h, Jenny and because of it the H, Luke goes through as much pain and unhappiness as she does, though in a different way.
The book starts when their relationship does, in their college years, with Jenny having an optimistic outlook and a planned career path, whereas Luke's life was being planned for him by his overbearing father, and he was feeling trapped, not knowing what direction to take. Jenny helps him through this, they fall in love and plan a future together, then she suddenly disappears from his life without a reason.
When they meet again, seven years later, they're both two very different people, each trying to deny their longing for what they once had.
There are other characters in the story, as well as a relevant court case, enough to hold the reader's interest, but take warning: if you're looking for a lighthearted romance, this is not it!
The book starts when their relationship does, in their college years, with Jenny having an optimistic outlook and a planned career path, whereas Luke's life was being planned for him by his overbearing father, and he was feeling trapped, not knowing what direction to take. Jenny helps him through this, they fall in love and plan a future together, then she suddenly disappears from his life without a reason.
When they meet again, seven years later, they're both two very different people, each trying to deny their longing for what they once had.
There are other characters in the story, as well as a relevant court case, enough to hold the reader's interest, but take warning: if you're looking for a lighthearted romance, this is not it!
December 29, 2021
very good development of long term relationship, family drama and personal trauma.
October 17, 2013
I just happened on this in a boxed set. I read Arnold years ago when I first started reading women's fiction. This book was a pleasant surprise. The story isn't all sweetness and light and everything doesn't turn out quite the way the reader might prefer but love prevails. A difficult topic, dealt with sensitively and with grace. Life isn't always easy but together, Luke and Jenny make it. A really good story.
November 11, 2012
This is a well-written story exploring how the relationship first develops between the protagonists, and how they eventually are reunited several years later. Both characters are interesting and believable, and their relationship is quite touching.
Want to read
October 5, 2013Reunion boxed set
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews