Review: Cherry Blossom Capers (Four Novellas)

Cherry Blossom Capers is one of Barbour Publishing’s romance novella collections, with stories centred around four Christian women – Tara, Ciara, Samantha and Susan - who live in the Cherry Blossom Estate townhouses in Washington, D.C. The four novellas are:

State Secrets by Lynette Sowell features Tara Whitley, assistant Chef at the White House. Tara is surprised to find FBI agent Jack Courtland in the White House, investigating a potential threat. She first met Jack when they were both working in Paris, but the pressures of his job meant their relationship did not survive. Will they get their second chance?

Dying for Love by Cara C. Putman introduces attorney Ciara Turner, who is horrified to find the body of a judge in his court offices, even more so because she once was his law clerk. Daniel Evans was her fellow law clerk then, and now is her opponent in many of her cases. Can they put their differences aside to find the judge’s killer – and find whether they have a future together?

Buried Deception by Gina Conroy features widowed mother-of-two Samantha Steele, who is undertaking an archaeology internship at George Washington’s Mt. Vernon estate. When she finds that a broken artefact is in fact a fake, she is drawn into the hunt for the forger, along with security guard and ex-cop Nick Porter. Will they find the criminals – and love?

Coffee, Tea and Danger by Frances Devine is the story of Susan Holland, the forty-year-old proprietor of a coffee shop who inherits her uncle’s mansion. She plans to renovate it with the help of contractor Vince Martini, but has a series of ‘accidents’ that make them both suspect that something more is going on. Will they find out what before Susan has one last ‘acccident’?

Cherry Blossom Caperswas a fun collection even though I felt some of the relationships were a little too fast-moving for real life – but that is the nature of the novella, with its short length (less than half that of a ‘regular’ novel) leaving me with the feeling that I would have liked it to go on for longer. I personally prefered the first two stories and found the third to be weaker.  Barbour novella collections are never going to be classic literature, but they are feel-good Christian reading, perfect for a weekend or holiday.

Thanks to Barbour Publishing and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.