This is an absolutely wonderful book with all the feelings you can handle in one book. The character building and world building from past to present and in between is stupendous. I laughed and did a lot of crying through this because there is so much to not only grieve but to rejoice as Emma and Jake find their way back to each other. I highly recommend this one and hope this leads to more books on this fabulous family and small town.

**Received an ARC copy for review from the publisher via NetGalley**

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Mary Jo – ☆☆☆☆
Lots of emotional baggage in this book, but I think the writer does an excellent job of describing the horror that is the past and the people who have to learn how to live life afterwards.

Emma feels unending guilt about the fact that her little brother died after her home caught on fire while she was home babysitting. The adult Emma constantly second guesses her teenage self and has nightmares about what she did or didn't do that night. Her sister, Megan, was also home that night and while she was able to save her life, Megan was severely burned.

Also feeling the guilt of the past is Jake. Jake lived next door to Emma and she was his first true love. Nothing ever came of it because of the fire that took the life of Emma's little brother. A fire that he took responsibility for. A crime that his father coerced him to admit to in order that his older brother and his dreams would be saved. Compounding that crime is that his father had his name changed before the sentencing hearing (as well as Jake's other siblings last names) so that his name and that of his smarter, older son would not be tarnished by this crime.

Jake has lots of regrets about the past, yet does not outwardly show how much his family has hurt him by the betrayal by his father and subsequent betrayals by this mother. His younger siblings as well as his older brother have rallied around him and encourage him to fight for his life, rather than just take what it hands him.

Emma has a hard letting go of the past, of the boy she knew, to get the know the man Jake has become. She comes to love Jake, but can't forgive him or herself for failing to save her brother.

This book has it all and it’s written with empathy and compassion along with hope for a better future.

Emma Stevens owns and runs a bakery in the small town she lives in with her younger sister, Megan. She is beloved by all. Megan bears scars from a home fire in her younger years. That same fire killed their stepbrother.

Jake Rowan served time for causing the fire Megan was burned in. He also saved Emma and Megan from their burning home. His family and Emma’s lived next door to each other and these two had been flirting back and forth up until the fire. After the fire, both families split up and her family left town. He is now a carpenter.

14 years later, Carter, Jake’s brother, sends him to do a library refurbish in a town 3 hours away. While there, he’s sent to the local bakery to give an estimate for repairing water damage from broken pipes. Imagine his surprise when he finds Emma.

Jake and Emma are both still carrying around emotional scars and guilt from their shared past. As we watch them fall in love again, deal with their pasts and work things out, there is humor thrown in to keep things from getting too heavy.

This is a slow moving, second chance, low heat romance and dig drag a little for me. However, this author has the ability to make you feel the emotions of her characters. It’s what I love best about her books. I am interested in seeing where this series goes.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC provided by the publisher and NetGalley.

All There Is by Violet Duke was my first read by this author and it held quite the punch. This was an emotional and sweet story about a second chance at love.

Two kids who were friends and neighbors and maybe something more, but whose lives were torn apart after one tragic night. When their family house burned down, Emma Stevens and her sister were pulled out by Jake Rowan. But her stepbrother did not make it out. And the cause for all the destruction and heartache? Jake.

Years later Jake is back and helping Emma, but even so, she can never forgive. Both struggle with guilt of that night and find it hard to move on. Though the base of the story is sad and difficult, we also get a touch of humor that helps lighten the story when needed. But can two broken people find forgiveness and a second chance?

All There Is will pull you in from the beginning and warm your heart. There is heartache, but as Emma and Jake reconnect, there is also hope and forgiveness. This was such a sweet story about a second chance at love.

A story full of emotions and a sweet romance. Emma and Jake have a past that they will need to let go to have a future. They both need to accept what happened, but emotional scars can be hard to let go.

Loved the characters of Emma and Jake, both so down to earth. Loved the small town atmosphere of Juniper Hills, I live in Kansas, Violet did a well job! This book had me laughing, crying and swooning over Jake and Emma. I can't wait to see who is in the next Juniper Hills book. I highly recommend this book!!

Emma and Jake share a tragic, complicated past. When they are thrown together again, a lot of old feelings are reignited. The strong puppy love they felt for each other in high school as well as the deep pain and guilt they carry around. Break out the tissues for this one! Beautifully written!

Emma Stevens moved to Juniper Hills with her sister to escape the memories and constant reminders of the fire that destroyed her home and caused her to make a choice that would forever haunt her, saving her sister but leaving her step brother behind.

Jake Rowan has not been able to escape the haunting memories if the blame he took for his brother who started the tragic fire. Jake has not been able to forget the girl he loved next door but the events of the fire destroyed them. Years later they are reunited when Jake is hired as a carpenter to repair Emma's bakery due to a flood.

They are reminded of everything they lost and the dreams of what could have been. As they grow closer and closer will they be able to help each other heal? Will Jake be able to tell Emma the truth about the fire?

*** Advanced copy provided in exchange for an honest review. ***

You will laugh, you will cry, you will swoon while reading this latest book by Violet Duke! All There Is was wonderfully written, with sweet characters with just a hint of spice. Emma and Jake get their chance for an HEA if only they can work through the past. That's all there is to it!

Having been a fan of Violet Duke's book for year, I knew I was in for a great read with All There Is. But I'm not sure I was prepared for such an emotional, tearful read! While we all cheer on our heroes/heroines to find their HEA in our romances, what I wanted more than anything for Jake and Emma was peace. Peace and forgiveness, for themselves and each other. I cried my way through this book and that's a departure for me. But as much as there is sadness in this story, it is ultimately about love...the love of family, of friends. To me, this is Ms. Duke's best book yet, and that's saying something! I can't wait to come back to visit Juniper Hills again, not just in book 2, but when I re-read Emma and Jake's love story. It's that great!

This is the first book in the Juniper Hills series.  I can not wait to read book #2.  I hope it will be about Megan and Carter.  This was also my first book I read by Ms Duke.

Jake Rowan has lived his life with a big secret and it cost him the girl of his dreams.  Now 14 years later, he walks in Emma's bakery to put in a bid for the remodel.  Jake has no idea who the owner is.  Emma came to Juniper Hills to start over.  To make a fresh start with no one who knows her and her sister, Megan, story.

When I finished this book, all I could say was wow!  So many emotions were going through me by the end of this book.  Raw emotions.  Well written believable characters.

☆☆☆☆☆
I give this book 5 out of 5 stars.
Recommend this book? Yes! Author? Yes!
Read more from this author? Yes!

Happy Reading!
Melissa

Violet has done it again-- another excellent story and beginning of a new series! As a veteran reader of Ms. Duke's books, I wasn't certain what to expect of this book going in since it's a bit different than the others. I must say that I was pleasantly surprised by this story, though. There are aspects that are signature Violet Duke style yet this storyline stands on its own in uniqueness. It's truly an endearing tale of love, loss and forgiveness that makes you root for a happy ending for Emma and Jake. Add a bit of angst, chemistry and quirkiness to this engaging story and you have yet another excellent book from Ms. Duke. As always, her characters are down-to-earth relatable, making for a book you just can't put down. This is a perfect book to take to the beach or on your summer getaway-- a true summer must-read!

This was such a sweet story! Emma and her sister, Megan, moved to Juniper Hills to start over. No one there knew them as fire victims and they could lead a normal life. They were making a way in their community and enjoyed their small town. However, Emma took the effects of the fire the hardest. Jake has struggled with what happened all those years ago and has struggled with his family as well. Neither one of them have forgotten the other and when they run into each other again, the past is standing right in front of them. They have to figure out how to overcome many things and it's a sad and sweet story!
I enjoyed the adult versions of themselves getting to know one another, even though Emma's way of looking at things is a little skewed, it's the only way she can cope. Their chemistry is palpable through the pages and that sexual tension is thick through most of this book, as they take the time to get to know each other first. I was easily and quickly lost in their story and I highly recommend it!

Fourteen years ago Emma’s life was forever changed when an accidental fire resulted in a scarred sister, the death of her stepbrother and the demise of her parent’s marriage. She has moved forward with her life and owns her own bakery however she has never really made peace with that night especially as the boy she had a crush on, Jake, accepted responsibility for the tragedy.

Jake has never made peace with that night either. He was able to save Emma and her sister but her brother’s death is something that he has never gotten over. He accepted responsibility however the secrets of that night haunt him to this day. He has started a construction company however it is hard to move past the stigma that is attached because of it.

Jake is back in town for a job for the library however it has been delayed however in the interim the bakery needs some repairs. What he didn’t know was who the bakery owner was and how now that they had met again neither of their lives would ever be the same. Will this finally be their opportunity to gain closure on that night and their feelings for each other?

I loved this story of two people feeling guilt and responsibility for something beyond their control who finally have their chance at happiness. I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book.

I am a fan of Violet Duke’s writing and when I was given a chance to read an advance copy of this new book, I was thrilled. And I must say, I was not disappointed.

The story is set in a small town named Juniper Hills where Emma Stevens has moved to get a fresh start for herself and her sister Megan. They leave behind a horrible event that shattered their lives over 14 years prior. Emma just wants to be where no one knows about the fire that destroyed their home and their family and left Megan with physical and Emma with emotional scars.

Jake Rowan paid a high price for that fire and is also trying to move on with his life. An opportunity to for him to take a job in Juniper Hills which will allow him to use his wood-crafting skills has him excited. It is all he could ask for… until he realizes that Emma and Megan are living there. He is ready to turn around and go back home and leave the dream job behind when Emma convinces him to stay.

They are forced to work together and consequently, face the elephant in the room,…the fire. And the obvious feelings they have for each other.

This is a story that will make you laugh, make you cry and make you cheer. It is full of real emotion and forgiveness that will warm your heart. I hope there are more books to come in this series!

I am starting the review by saying that I hope Violet Duke gets tons better after all her treatments because we, the romance audience, need her books. This was almost the “ugly cry” story. I loved it and then loved it some more. When the books started, I thought it would be a sweet romance. I should have remembered that Violet Duke does so much more with her stories than just be sweet. She touches all the emotions and there is so much heart in this book. Emma and Jack have both lived through a shared tragedy that has haunted them for 14 years. They each have carried a lot of guilt and as a second chance romance, the odds seem insurmountable but love has a way! I felt so much as I was reading this book and that is the testament of a great writer in my opinion. I so hope Ms. Duke will be able to write again soon. Thanks as always to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this book for an honest review. It was a pleasure!

Once again, Violet Duke has given her readers a beautiful second chance love story. With all the sweetness, sass, and feels anyone could ask for, this book is every bit as good as any of her other books I've read.

Once upon a time, Jake and Emma were budding high school sweethearts. Then tragedy stuck and their lives went very different directions. When they meet again, fourteen years later, they find that their attraction is still alive. But can they get past all the pain of their past, find a way to forgive not only themselves but each other? Can Emma forgive the things she thinks happened all those years ago and love Jake the way he needs and deserves to be loved. Can Jake find a way to win the heart of the only girl who has ever meant anything to him?

As the first book in her Juniper Hills series, I think Ms Duke has found the perfect mix of sweet and sexy. She proves that sometimes less is better.

Can we ever really escape our past? We try to forget it, or hide it deep within ourselves, and yet, in the end, we are unable to move forward with our lives until we willingly face it. This is Emma's dilemma. At sixteen, she lost all her teenage dreams when her stepbrother dies in a fire. She still carries the memories and the only way for her to live each day is to block the past and just live her new life.

Jake was her first teenage crush. Maybe even more than a crush, since he occupied her mind all the time when she was sixteen. Now, all these years later, to find him standing in her bakery offering his contracting services to repair her flooded business, is more than she can handle. Guilt, grief, and unresolved questions all spring up to separate them once again. Only looking in his eyes and realizing he is not the same man she thought he was makes her reconsider. Is it possible she has mistakenly judged him?

If you ever read a story about second chances and loved it, this book will make you a believer second chances come in all different guises. We judge people all the time by what we see. How often do we make the effort to find out the real truth? Are we strong enough to face the truth and not to blame others? Emotions flare, love abounds, the magic of friendship changes hearts, and a marvelous story is born. Not to be missed!

I am voluntarily reviewing this book. I thank the publisher for sharing a copy of this book with me.

This might be a case of "its not you it is me" because I am against the popular vote here. I could not get into this book. I thought it kind of dragged.

The cutest little town, Juniper Hills, I feel like I went for a visit and have many new friends. I am so happy that Violet Duke was able to transfer her amazing storytelling talent to paper and share it with all of us. Jake and Emma's story is an emotional journey that made me laugh, cry, and sigh. Emma's days are filled with wacky humor and practical jokes aplenty. Jake, as well as Megan get their digs in often. The emotional gut wrenching guilt and loss felt by so many of the people in this story. So many sexy little romantic escapades that show how well Emma and Jake know each other. Family and life are messy, but they are doable, even when they are not simple. Thank you Violet Duke for an wonderfully realistic happily ever after story.