Evening Stars (Blackberry Island #3) by Susan Mallery

Series: Blackberry Island #3
368p.
Publisher: Harlequin MIRA
Available Now
Source: ARC from publisher for review

Small-town nurse Nina Wentworth has made a career out of being a caretaker. More "Mom" than their mother ever was, she sacrificed medical school—and her first love—so her sister could break free. Which is why she isn't exactly thrilled to see Averil back on Blackberry Island, especially when Nina's life has suddenly become…complicated.

Nina unexpectedly finds herself juggling two men—her high school sweetheart and a younger maverick pilot who also wants to claim her heart. But as fun as all this romance is, Nina has real life to deal with. Averil doesn't seem to want the great guy she's married to, and doesn't seem to be making headway writing her first book; their mom is living life just as recklessly as she always has; and Nina's starting to realize that the control she once had is slipping out of her fingers. Her hopes of getting off the island seem to be stretching further away…until her mother makes a discovery that could change everything forever.

But before Nina and Averil can reach for the stars, they have to decide what they want. Will Averil stay? Will Nina leave? And what about the men who claim to love them? Does love heal, or will finding their happy ending mean giving up all they've ever wanted?

My thoughts:
 I had not read the other books in the series, but there was no problem as it can be read as a standalone. Each book is about different characters on the island. In this book we follow 2 sisters and a mother with a Peter Pan complex. Each sister has her own issues stemming from the way they grew up. All in all this is a story about finding what you truly want in your life and then taking the steps to achieve the new goal.

In this story we do get a love triangle, but in the story it is used more as a way to break one kind of habit and really putting a magnifying glass to the life Nina was living. So, in this book it works because it has a purpose. I did enjoy the characters in this book and did root for them, but I didn't feel as connected as I really wanted. I had a better connection to Nina who took on more than her fair share of the responsibility despite the life lessons it costed those around her. Her sister seemed more bratty to me, but toward the end of the story, when she really started to find herself, is where I started connecting to her. I never really connected to the mother, but she was more of a side character so it worked out fine.

I give this book 3 stars. It is a nice chick lit kind of read where epiphanies reign and romance is found. I recommend it to those who enjoy small town stories.