Format: ebook
Source: provided through NetGalley
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Date read: August 8, 2025
Harlot's Bay
1. At First Spite
2. Second Chance Romance - Paperback | Kindle
Olivia Dade
| Website | Amazon |
Synopsis (Goodreads):
Karl and Molly were never together. There was a time, right after high school, where it seemed like they might finally cross the line from friends to lovers…but instead, a foolish misunderstanding meant they never spoke again. Molly went to LA and got married. Karl stayed in Harlot’s Bay and bought a bakery.Thoughts on Second Chance Romance: Oh MAN. Karl and Molly. Karl who doesn't know how to speak quietly and listens to monster-lovin' audiobooks at top volume in the bakery (before they're open, thankyouverymuch) and who might grump and growl about interacting with others, but who's a big softy under his profanity spewing exterior. And Molly who was guarded and careful with those she trusted even before her terrible ex chipped away at her. Karl thinks actions speak louder than words (which is not incorrect), but Molly needs things spelled out for her so there's no miscommunication (thanks to events from her past that shaped her into the woman she is today).
The only connection the pair has shared over the years is painfully one-sided: Now divorced, Molly narrates monster romance audiobooks, and Karl is an ever-diligent listener, clinging to his only piece of the one that got away.
Still, Molly hasn’t totally left Harlot’s Bay behind. When she hears that Karl’s obituary has run in the local paper, unexpected grief prompts her to hop on the next flight to Maryland…where she finds Karl very much alive, the victim of nothing but an accidental obituary.
As the pair reunite, they finally hash out their missed connection. True, Molly isn’t quite ready to trust again, but Karl is determined to prove himself worthy of her faith and devotion. And as her remaining time in Harlot’s Bay ticks down, Molly, the habitual cynic, just might find that Karl, the cranky town curmudgeon, is impossible to leave behind a second time.
So. Karl has been silently (with the volume turned up!) following Molly's career as an audiobook narrator ever since he realized what she did for a living. He might not have set out to devour all things monster erotica, but it was his one link to Molly and he ran with it. When Molly shows up in Harlot's Bay thanks to his (accidental and slightly unhinged) obituary, he sees his chance to show her he could be the one for her. Only he's TERRIBLE at expressing himself. He's a good guy with a huge heart and he takes everything on his shoulders so he doesn't burden others, but he's just SO BAD at articulating his feelings. (Trying to explain himself to Athena and Matthew was hard enough, even the thought of telling Molly all the things he feels for her is akin to torture.)
As for Molly, she's...drifting? Maybe? Her ex is terrible and put her in a bad situation. Now he's hounding her about selling her house and it's taking its toll on her. Karl is incredibly thoughtful and is doing his level best to show her how she could fit in to Harlot's Bay, but she needs more than that if she's going to upend her life and relocate. She also has to work through some of the things that she dealt with (or didn't emotionally deal with, I guess) when she was a kid because it is coloring her present and potential future.
Trust, friends, found family, Sadie Brazen's identity revealed, monster romance in all it glorious detail, a man who has to figure out how to express himself, and a lady who has to remember how to trust herself again. GOOD STUFF ALL AROUND!
No comments:
Post a Comment