Barefoot in the Rain

Barefoot in the Rain is book 2 in the Barefoot Bay series from NYT bestselling author Roxanne St. Claire. The publisher is Grand Central Publishing Forever. From the back cover.~

A Barefoot Bay Novel

They say you can never go home again . . .

When "Life Coach to the Stars" Jocelyn Bloom is embroiled in scandal, the only place she can hide is the one place she wishes she could forget. She left Barefoot Bay-and the boy next door who knew all her secrets-years ago. Now nothing about the tiny island off the coast of Florida is quite how she remembers it, especially Will Palmer. He's even more gorgeous and tempting . . . and still capable of turning her world inside out.

But what if someone is waiting for you?

To Will Palmer, Guy Bloom is more than the elderly, senile neighbor he looks after-he's the last connection to Jocelyn, the woman Will loved and lost. But the reunion with Jocelyn doesn't go smoothly. Shocked by the change in her father's personality, Jocelyn struggles to reconcile her dark childhood with the sweet, confused man who has grown close to Will. Jocelyn has guided countless clients to happiness-but can she escape the rainy days of her past for a new sunny future with Will?

I was lucky enough to get a review copy of Barefoot in the Rain from NetGalley. I’m a huge fan of Roxanne St. Claire and couldn’t wait to read her newest Barefoot Bay book.

I knew there was some sort of past for Jocelyn when reading the first book in this series and thought I was prepared for her book. However, I wasn’t prepared for all that had happened to her in the past. Will Palmer was the boy next door when they were growing up. Will know pretty much all of Jocelyn’s secrets from when they were kids, and he still lives in the house next to her dad. While Jocelyn has so many horrible memories of her childhood, her dad is suffering from Alzheimer’s and seems to have no memories of anything from their past. While Will knows most of what happened with Jocelyn while she was growing up, he doesn’t know her biggest secret, since she has stayed away from him for so many years.

I have to say this was a really rough read for me. I really enjoyed reading this book and loved the chemistry between Will and Jocelyn so much. However, seeing Jocelyn’s dad struggle with his memory loss and she with her know memories had me in tears more than once. Luckily for Jocelyn, she has her best friends Zoe, Tessa, and Lacey there to support her. I still have to say the friendship between the four women is one of my favorite parts of this series. Jocelyn also still has Will there to lean on not only as a friend, but as a lover. The chemistry between Will and Jocelyn is stronger now than it was when they were teens. I could feel how much they loved one another the more time they were together. Jocelyn is one of the strongest characters I’ve read about in a long time. She will do anything to protect those she loves and it only made me like her more.

Barefoot in the Rain was another winner in this series, and I've already bought a copy for my keeper shelf. I warn you now, you will need tissues while reading this book. While I love Roxanne St. Claire’s romantic suspense books, I love her contemporary romances just as much. The official release date for Barefoot in the Rain was October 30, 2012. For more information about this series or any other books from Roxanne St. Claire, check out her website.