ABOUT THE BOOK

Maybe I’m scared to be happy…

Meet Hannah – she’s been her mum’s sole carer since she was eighteen. Now alone after Martha’s sudden death, Hannah feels lost in the only place she’s known as home, Hope Street. Coming up to a milestone birthday, she’s wondering what her purpose in life is.

Meet Doug – a workaholic, he’s in the office from dusk ’til dawn, and when he has a heart attack. Now on the mend, he needs to de-stress his life and focus on living it, to make sure it doesn’t happen again.

Doug moves to Hope Street, number 35. Hannah lives at number 34, directly opposite. From the moment they meet, there’s a spark.

But there are secrets too. Hannah’s mum has been keeping something from her, her sister left over twenty years ago, and there can’t be such a simple reason why Doug has moved to Somerley. Can there?

The Man Across the Street is the first of a new series by bestselling author, Marcie Steele. It features a host of characters living on Hope Street in the market town of Somerley, also featured in The Somerley Series. Each character will have their own standalone story in books to follow.

MY REVIEW

A delightful romance between two people who want to heal their hearts, but can they handle the secrets of their pasts?

When Doug Peterson had a heart attack in his office, at his brother’s insistence, he moves to the quaint town of Somerley to recover, rest up and reflect on his bad life choices. What he finds is a friendly setting and a kind and beautiful woman named Hannah who starts to make a profound difference in his life, but will his secrets be the end of their relationship?

Hannah lives on Hope Street in Somerley. A lovely community where everyone knows everyone else and they are accepting of strangers. Hannah gave up her life (more than 20 years) to care for her mother after a tragic car accident that left her in need of twenty-four-hour help and the loss of Hannah’s father. In addition, Hannah’s ungrateful little sister Olivia disappears from Somerley right after high school and never returns to offer help to take care of her mother. Now Hannah’s mother is gone and Hannah is facing a milestone birthday with no family and little money to live on. When an attractive and sweet man moves in across the street, her world starts to look brighter, but then shocking surprises from her mother’s past come to light, and her insecurities of not being good enough surface leaving her vulnerable and alone all over again. 

Ms. Steele’s characters are well-rounded though I would have liked to have learned more about Doug’s past. People may think Hannah and Doug’s relationship was moving a bit too fast, but speaking from experience, when you are in your 40s and 50s you don’t want to waste precious time. The supporting characters were a great addition including Hannah’s friends, the funny and feisty Phoebe, and sweet Thelma, and Doug’s caring brother Alex.

Overall, this was a quick read with a sweet romance, fun characters, and laugh-out-loud moments.  

Thank you to Ms. Steele for giving me the opportunity to read this book with no expectation of a positive review.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been a meddler of words. Born and raised in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire. I’m a romantic at heart and have always enjoyed writing about characters that fall in and out of love, have good friends to hang around with, and live in communities with great spirit. 

I have written three books in The Somerley Series and the first in The Hope Street Series, The Man Across The Street.

I can often be found sitting in my favourite coffee shop, sipping a cappuccino and eating a chocolate chip cookie, either catching up with friends or writing on my laptop.

Follow Marcie on her website and Twitter.

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