REVIEW: Barefoot at Sunset by Roxanne St. Claire

In Barefoot at Sunset (Barefoot Bay Timeless #1) by Roxanne St. Claire, Forty-eight-year-old widower Mark Solomon isn’t sure that coming back for his 30th high school reunion was such a good idea once he realizes that being in Mimosa Key will only remind him of the loss of his wife sixteen years earlier. Since then he’s traveled the world, looking for thrilling adventures that make his heart beat faster. But the thought of having to explain his current unmarried status, and fight off the unwanted advances it will bring, has him ready to bolt. That’s when Mark meets a woman who may be down on her luck, but she is the answer to his prayers.

‘Being with a woman had never made him feel guilty before. Or at least it hadn’t made him feel like something inside him had changed. But Emma did. She made him feel like he was breaking the bond with his soul mate…the one whose voice he couldn’t even remember.’

Emma DeWitt has definitely had better weeks. She was dumped right before her wedding and then had to quit her job in ad copywriting. She thought she could take a well-earned week away from it all in what would have been her honeymoon villa at Casa Blanca Resorts, but someone else is already staying there. And that person turns out to be a handsome man who offers to let her stay there, too. But there’s a catch: she has to pretend to be his fiancée for the week. Emma admits that being seen at the reunion with Mark will be no hardship as long as things remain platonic. Although that might be a promise between them that neither one will be able to keep.

She let out an exasperated breath. “I just wanted a place to stay and lick my wounds, not a man.”
He laughed softly.
“I just need to figure out the rest of my life, Mark, and you seemed so nice and like you were in a bind, and I wanted to stay here more than anything, and it all made some sense until…”
Until that kiss.

Barefoot at Sunset took us back to gorgeous Barefoot Bay for a class reunion on the sand where bittersweet memories prevailed for one long-time widower. But, lucky for him, he had the opportunity to make new memories when he met a lovely woman who changed his life forever.

This novel kicks off the new Timeless trilogy in the Barefoot Bay series that features a decidedly more mature cast of characters to follow. And boy has it started in spectacular fashion! The all-years class reunion was the perfect catalyst to let us meet silver foxes Mark, Law, and Ken and to set them up with what will become some unforgettable romances. This first story had Roxanne St. Claire pulling out all the stops and showing us that some people are lucky enough–and worthy enough–to find their soul mate not once, but twice in a lifetime. Cue the happy sighs…

I fell hook, line and sinker for Mark Solomon. You couldn’t ask for a better hero. He was strong, kind, capable and highly intelligent. And still very much holding on to his grief after losing the love of his life sixteen years ago. That dedication and love he obviously felt for his Julia was completely endearing to me. So it seemed very realistic the way Mark tried to keep things casual with Emma and fought against his feelings for her so desperately. But I loved that once he figured out he was in love with her, he was all in. He was someone who did everything in life with passion. Whether it was one of his many extreme hobbies like skydiving, or with his kindness, Mark gave nothing less than one-hundred-percent.

My sympathy went out right away to Emma. As we found out more about her broken engagement it became clear that she got a pretty raw deal. And I thought it showed her compassionate nature that she agreed to stay with Mark at the villa for the week and be his human shield to ward off all the inquiries (and advances) from the ladies. I really loved the two of them together. They were both super smart, but were opposites in terms of personalities and what they feared. Mark was relatively fearless and would do anything except face his grief. Emma, on the other hand, was an admitted ‘fraidycat’ about everything but her emotions. There were a bunch of fun scenes where he helped her face some of her phobias which not only helped lighten the tone of the story, but that had me full-out laughing.

Love certainly proved to be sweet the second time around for Mark Solomon, just as it should have been for this deserving guy. I highly recommend Barefoot at Sunset to any romance reader, whether you’re already a fan of the Barefoot Bay world or not.

Book Info:

Publication: June 14th 2016 | by South Street Publishing | Barefoot Bay Timeless #1

When widower Mark Solomon arrives in Barefoot Bay for his 30th high school reunion, he’s not quite prepared for the onslaught of memories or the attention from interested single women who’ve gathered for the annual event on the beach. He’s ready to ditch the whole thing and resume his life as an adventure-seeking world traveler until he discovers a woman sobbing on his doorstep…and has an idea.

By her own admission, advertising copywriter Emma DeWitt is jaded, jilted, and jobless, but she goes over the edge when she learns that the resort villa that was supposed to be the site of her romantic honeymoon is occupied by a single man. But when the sexy silver fox whose staying in the villa surprises her with an irresistible offer to pose as his fake fiancée, Emma sees a way to have her week in paradise and begin healing her broken heart.