Review: Almost Summer: A Fool’s Gold Novella by Susan Mallery

Title: Almost Summer: A Fool’s Gold Novella

Author: Susan Mallery 

Series: Fool’s Gold, #6.2 

Published: May 2012, HQN Books

Format: E-book, 45 pages  

Source: Personal copy  

Ever since she was
young, Paige McLean has longed to see the world. Still, she never
imagined the world would land on her doorstep in the form of a charming
British surgeon who needs a place to stay when his plans fall through.

After
a devastating loss, Alistair Woodbury has vowed to live his life alone.
But in all his travels, he hasn’t encountered a town as welcoming as
Fool’s Gold, nor a woman as caring – or as beautiful – as Paige. Her
compassion warms him almost as much as their stolen kisses.

When it’s Alistair’s time to leave, will his brief visit turn into a lifetime stay?

My thoughts: As I try to catch up on the Fool’s Gold series, I have to say I love these novellas – they are quick reads that can be devoured in a hour or so. They still follow the same format as the regular-length novels – girl and boy meet, sparks fly, there’s some conflict between the two that get ends up getting resolved so boy and girl can have their happily-ever-after. What’s great about the novellas is that all this happens much quicker than a regular novel, but in defense of the novella, the story is still rich and the characters are still well-developed.

Paige is a new character to the Fool’s Gold series, but Alistair has been mentioned before when we got Simon’s story in Only Yours. Now he has come to visit, but due to having contracted the measles, he cannot stay at Simon’s house, since Simon’s wife, Montana is pregnant. That’s where Paige comes in – offering her spare room for Alistair to use during his recovery. It’s during this time that they get to know each other. Both have had losses in their lives they haven’t completely recovered from and realize that they each share similar dreams for the future. 

I really do enjoy this series and look forward to continuing with it. I like how Susan Mallery gives us both regular-length novels as well as these novellas – there are just some characters that need their stories told, but their stories just don’t warrant a full-length book. Do you agree?

 Books in this series:

      1.  Chasing Perfect                     8.  Summer Nights

      2.  Almost Perfect                      9.  All Summer Long

      2.5  Sister of the Bride             9.5  A Fool’s Gold Christmas

      3.  Finding Perfect                     9.75   Halfway There

      4.  Only Mine                               10.  Just One Kiss

      5.  Only Yours                             11.  Two of a Kind

      6.  Only His                                  12. Three Little Words                     

      6.1  Only Us                                 12.5  Christmas on 4th Street

      6.2  Almost Summer

      7.  Summer Days