I am a fan of Emily March but have not read the previous books in this series. Now I want to know what I have been missing and will move these books closer to the top of my TBR pile. I predict happy hours spent in my hammock enjoying wonderful romantic stories.

Full of secrets and determination, the love stories in this romantic book play out at a speed which can have some agonizingly slow paths. That is not to say the storyline moves slowly but that love does not always happen at a smooth or continuous pace.

Even if certain main characters have more financial resources than many of us, they still have a great work ethic and human desires to make life count for something, to provide value in their world. This made me appreciate their story even more. The interactions between the characters and those closest to them, or supposed to be close to them, are believable. Even when something a bit magical or coincidental arises, there is enough possibility to make it seem as if it could truly happen to any of us.

An enjoyable romantic escape novel

Eternity Springs #14, Eternity Springs is where the heart goes to heal, and we've seen that in the previous thirteen book from near death experiences to falling in love again. Emily March has covered a wide range of issues and and trauma for these people and it never gets old, I love this series more now then when I first found it. It's the perfect place to fantasize about living there, about soaking in the hot springs and just letting the place heal whatever maybe wrong with your heart, to talk with Celeste, the town's personal angel, and getting some of her sage advice. Reading these books almost makes me homesick for a place that's never existed.

Josh Tarkington thinks he has the worst luck ever, an F5 tornado took the life of his fiancee and her daughter and then twice more a tornado destroyed his home, business, and once again the life of someone he cared about; moving out of Tornado Alley seemed the wisest thing to do. When Brock his foster brother invited him to Eternity Spring Josh thought it sounded like the best place to start over. Caitlin Timberlake didn't like Eternity Springs when her parents decided to leave Denver for the quaint little Mountain town but it grew on her and now no other place feels more like home, except she lives in NYC. Caitlin has some major life changes planned while she enjoys her work in NYC and everything she's experienced living there it's time she does something she actually loves; that means moving to Eternity Springs and starting a much needed daycare.

Josh and Caitlin have chance meeting on a gondola ride (no not the flat bottom boat you find in Italy the electric ones that go up and down mountains). When it gets stuck Josh and Caitlin have plenty of time to talk and get to know each other and not to mention the adorable wheelchair bound Dachshund, Penny. It's not until later when Caitlin's parents suddenly appear does Josh realize Caitlin is one of those Timberlakes. Josh not waiting to upset his new life in Eternity Springs decides it best not to pursue Caitlin. Caitlin has other plans and when she moves to Eternity Spring's she is almost certain she is already in love with Josh and is determined nothing is going to stop her from dating him. Starting first with a "Friend Affair" it isn't long before Josh and Caitlin decide to make a real thing of it and come out publicly as a couple. It isn't long after that then things start to go wrong. Josh has been pretty open about his past except for what came before his time in the foster system and when Josh is hit by a car everything about his childhood and the troubles that come with it are forced to come out. Is Caitlin's love strong enough to understand why Josh lied about it or is this finally going to push Josh over the deep end to the point of no return?

Overall, it is another outstanding novel from Emily March. I love the Journal entries in between the chapters it gives you a real good feel for the character and why that part was kept a secret. The side story with Mac and Ali was just as heartbreaking as the main story. Once again Eternity Springs works it's magic.

Another great story in the series. The writing and the characters are all wonderful and you can't help but image yourself in Eternity Springs. I loved Caitlin and Josh's story and can't wait for the next book in the series.

The First Kiss of Spring by Emily March
Eternity Springs #14

Do you believe in love at first sight? Caitlin Timberlake may or may not have “known” Josh Tarkington was “The One” at first sight but she was definitely sure they were meant to be together very soon after that first meet-cute. I mean, Josh was gorgeous, had a way with words, was fun, adopted a disabled dog, was s*xy and absolutely perfect…well…nearly. He has secrets and no desire for a relationship with strings and is up-front in saying so BUT Caitlin knows what she knows so gave up her job, moved to Eternity Springs, started a business, put her heart on the line and laid siege to Josh’s heart.

What I liked:
* Josh’s journal entries that gave hints at his past and what he had to deal with
* Josh’s character: strength, charm, honesty and openness in not being willing to discuss his past
* Caitlin’s openness, warmth, charm and ability to know what she wanted
* The effort of both Caitlin and Josh with honest communication that eventually allowed their HEA
* The side story of Caitlin’s parents and a medical issue they were dealing with

What I disliked:
* The childhood Josh experienced
* The unwillingness of Josh to be honest with himself, his doctors and Caitlin after his accident
* The streak of bad luck Josh had before meeting Caitlin

I truly enjoyed this book and with a few days between reading and writing this review I realize how well written it is. The issues Josh had to contend with were not easy and though some reviewers felt they were glossed over I don’t agree. I believed in Josh and knowing gradually learning just what he went through made me understand him and his beliefs and needs as well as his unwillingness to share unless he truly trusted someone.

Did I like this book? Definitely
Do I recommend this book? Yes
Will you like this book? My guess is yes but every reader’s tastes aren’t the same – if you don’t like the mention of child abuse and overcoming addiction then perhaps you won’t but the story is solid and very well told so perhaps you will.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC – This is my honest review.

4-5 Stars

ARC for honest review with no compensation received from NetGalley

The First Kiss of Spring is a wonderful addition to the series Eternity Springs by Emily March and you don't want to miss it! We find Caitlin Timberlake grew up in Eternity Springs but left for the bright lights of New York City. Now years later she decides to come back home to build a new life which she hope consists of a family, new business and an everlasting love with the mechanic in town...but Josh Tarkington has lots of secrets and has worked so hard to overcome his past but knows that at some point it will come back so having a fling with Caitlin is all he has to offer..no forever love...

Can Caitlin show Josh how to overcome his past and heal so they can find their forever love together??

3.5 stars rounded low.

This was my first visit to Eternity Springs and I have mixed feelings about it. I liked certain parts, strongly disliked others.

I liked the fact that it can stand alone despite being part of a long series. I liked that the recap of secondary characters' stories was brief and interesting enough for a newbie to want to go back and read them. I liked that even though there were a lot of characters, they were all distinct and nobody overshadowed the hero and heroine. I liked the beginning of Josh and Caitlin's romance. Their meet-cute was light and fun. The rest of it was problematic for me. Somehow they lost the chemistry and it all became Caitlin taking care of Josh.

Keeping a secret almost the entire length of the book annoys me, although the hero had legitimate reasons for it. What didn't work for me were the journal entries after each chapter. At one point, I was not looking forward to reading them. I also find it uncomfortable as a reader to know so much more than the heroine. It made the long explanation at the end redundant for the reader even though it was only the first time Caitlin heard it.

Although I understood Josh's reasons for his reluctance not to commit fully to Caitlin, I wasn't liking him one bit when he was being mean and pushing her away.

It could also have benefited from brevity. Around 15-20% of the novel should have been cut.

I received an advanced copy of of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. This is part of the Eternity Springs series, but you can read it as a stand-alone, like I did, and not be lost. This is the story of Caitlin Timberlake and Josh Tarkington. She is from Eternity Springs, he is a newcomer. They meet while in Telluride, not in her hometown. Sparks fly! They go their separate ways. Weeks later they see each other again in Eternity Springs and start a “friendship”. She wants more, he is scared and won’t give her more than stolen nights together in each other’s homes. Things go okay for a while, until an incident happens and changes everything. There are secrets that Josh is hiding about his life before he landed in Eternity Springs. This was a great read and definitely made me want to read more of the series! Definitely one to pick up!

I really enjoyed this emotion-packed love story. Josh has been so hurt by tragedies in the past that he swears he'll never commit to another relationship, while Caitlyn has made it equally clear that she has set her cap for him and believes that their happily ever after is just around the corner. But then the secrets start to be revealed, and the past comes back to haunt Josh when another calamity derails his plans, again.

This is a beautiful story of patience, redemption, faith, and of course, love. There's lots of humor, heartfelt drama, and excellent character development. Eternity Springs is a wonderful town to visit, and after this book you'll want to move there forever. I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book provided through NetGalley.

This is the first book I have read by this author and I loved it! Caitlin comes back to her hometown after resigning from her very successful job. She has plans of a new career, unbeknownst to her family. Upon arriving in town, she meets Josh who is the local mechanic. While attracted to each other, neither of them is looking for a relationship. As their friendship unfolds, there are sporadic journal entries yhat provide a clue to Josh’s mysterious past. A lovely heartwarming story!!!

This is my first book by Emily March. While I enjoyed Caitlin and Josh’s romance, there are a lot of secondary characters. I did see that this is book fourteen in the series, so that explains so many people in Eternity Springs mentioned in the book. I found that since I was not being able to sit and read this start to finish in one setting, I did get a little lost on the who’s and whys. I did really enjoy the story, the writing, and the town so I did make a note to look into getting the previous books, so that’s a plus for me and the author!
This is definitely a roller coaster ride. So many topics touched upon with Josh’s past, Caitlin’s family, their romance, life decisions, etc. There are so many layers to this book that touch on so many emotions, I was caught up in the story and hated every time I was pulled away from reading. This is a really good book that helps to prove that you can overcome anything.
**I requested and received an advanced copy, provided by NetGalley and the publisher, and I am voluntarily providing an honest review**

"The First Kiss of Spring" (Eternity Springs Book 14) by Emily March is a fantastic read. I absolutely loved Josh and Caitlin's story. This is another wonderful addition to the Eternity Springs Series, packed with romance, passion, entertaining and interesting characters, humor, sadness, close friends and family, new beginnings, and more. I loved catching up with all the residents of Eternity Springs. I can not wait to see what happens next in Eternity Springs. Highly recommend to all fans of romance, small towns, entertaining characters, and series.

This is the very first Emily March book I have ever read, so when I picked up The First Kiss of Spring I was unsure just how I would like it, but I thought that I would give it a good opportunity, and just jump straight in! Big mistake! This book is apart of the Eternal Springs series, and naively I had assumed, that like with many other authors, you could just start anywhere, but I was wrong, I would state that Eternal Springs is a series that you should read from start to finish. And even though the author does give the backstory on the characters, it wasn't enough for me, and it just left me without a good connection.

Now don’t get me wrong, The First Kiss of Spring is a good story that is well written, and if you are familiar with the authors work, I would totally recommend that you read it, or if you are willing to read the series from the beginning, I would totally recommend this book, but for those you, who like me, are jumping in and reading the books out of order, you will struggle to relate to the characters. And for me, the main this was the “diary entries” that were are the beginning of the chapters, I struggled with the harshness and the imagery it spoke about, so I will admit, I skipped over some of those, as they were quite tough to read.

I give The First Kiss of Spring 3 stars.

This is the first book I have read in this series and I enjoyed it. I'll have to go back and read the others. This has a good storyline with, at times, hard subjects. I really enjoyed the characters. Caitlin wasn't afraid to go after what she wanted and she wanted Josh! And I felt so bad for Josh's character. My heart just broke for him! I recommend this book!

I loved the romantic town of Eternity Springs and their resident love guru, Celeste. She was such a sweet and adorable character, she definitely brought some humor to the story. I also liked Caitlin, she wasn’t a shy or fragile heroine, she makes up her mind about something (or in Josh’s case) someone and she goes after it full throttle. I liked that she was confident in her feelings and in her own skin to put herself out there so fearlessly.

Then there’s Josh. The glimpses of his past, his childhood and his family tore at my heart. I was not expecting that turn of events and with each snippet we got, I felt for him, more and more. Life certainly did not pull it’s punches when it came to Josh and I really wanted him to finally catch a break and be happy. With all the KOs he’s lived through, it’s no wonder he was running scared of the big bad l-o-v-e.

The story starts off fun and flirty and just hints at the more serious undercurrents of the characters. The pace picks up when Caitlin and Josh begin to see each other in a more permanent setting. Day to day interactions that start to reveal more and strengthens feelings too potent to deny for long.

Because I wasn’t expecting this to go down the route it took (the cover paints such a happy picture!) the intense emotional issues tackled between the MCs gave me more push/pull than I was looking for. Caitlin and Josh have a lot of obstacles to overcome and it isn’t always pretty. I loved these characters and was happy things worked out and I loved the hopefulness the MCs give off. There was no easy fix for the problems they faced but their positive outlook and love for each other nailed it.

Would I recommend?
Yes, if you like damaged heroes and strong heroines who don’t give up so easily, The First Kiss of Spring might be right up your alley.

A Girl Who Knows What & Who She Wants
Welcome to Eternity Springs! Meet Caitlin who is making a change and coming home to Eternity Springs from a corporate job in New York. Meet Josh who is a stranger to Eternity Springs but is fitting in quite well despite his secretive past. Caitlin and Josh first run into each other at a wedding and the sparks fly. What Caitlin doesn’t know when she first meets him, is that Josh lives in Eternity Springs. As the story continues Josh is trying hard not to fall for Caitlin, but Caitlin is very certain about her feelings for Josh. Will he give in to being pursued by this very persistent young lady? Can she help him face his past and put it behind him once and for all? Will the town of Eternity Spring see another happy ending?
Within a few pages of reading this book I knew that Emily March was quickly becoming a favourite author of mine. I love how she winds the lives of Caitlin and Josh together along with their families and friends. I also loved how she made Caitlin a strong willed female who was the pursuer in the relationship. I also felt as I read on that their story was not the first romance to happen in Eternity Springs and found out I was reading the 14th book in the series. The book was excellent as a standalone novel, but it didn’t take me long to go find book number one and order it. A beautiful story written by an amazing author. I was so graciously gifted this book from St. Martin’s Press for my unbiased review.

I just love the title of the new Eternity Springs Novel by Emily Marsh, The First Kiss of Spring. The subject matter of the book certainly goes along with this title since Josh’s life has been one of surviving the cold harsh realities of life for some children. No wonder he reaches adulthood with so much baggage.

Josh is likable in spite of his childhood along with now his pessimistic bad luck attitude. So is Caitlin Timberlake who is much more optimistic if impulsive and immature. I found their story to be one of hope when faced with aversity. Family relationships add to the drama galore going on in this story, but Eternity Springs has Celeste to help the weary, confused and wayward people of the town.

Even though the couple find their place together the dark issues that it covers are more in the women’s fiction genre. Having not read all the books in the long running series all the many town people was overwhelming but not overly so. It did not stop me from enjoying reading the book.

If I could rate this higher I would. I loved their story, the struggles that happened were so real. The dad's disease is what I have so that blew my mind when I read that. Very good book.

Reading an Emily March novel is like finally coming home after a long absence, returning to people and places that have carved out a place in my heart and will always be a part of me. This time we get Caitlin Timberlake's story, a character we've seen grow from a teenager to a self-assured, competent woman who will always be Ali and Mac's little girl, much to Caitlin's frustration. After living in New York she returns home to Eternity Springs to open a much needed daycare. She longs for a family of her own one day in the not too distant future, and she’s set her sights on Josh, much to her father's frustration.

Josh Tarkington has left his home and tragic past in Oklahoma and made his new home in Eternity Springs where his foster brother resides. He’s doing his best to put his difficult childhood and unfortunate genetics behind him, but the wounds linger and the damage is deep, overshadowing every aspect of his life, especially romantic relationships. There’s no one more in need of the healing and redemption that Celeste Blessing and Eternity Springs can bring about, if he'll only open himself to it. But that also means opening his heart to Caitlin, and he swore he would never love or be responsible for another person ever again.

I was fortunate to read an early copy of this book but of course I purchased it because it’s Emily March. She’s an author who is an absolute must read for me, and I get her new releases as soon as I can get my hands on them. Her books are everything that is wonderful about a small-town romance, and more. Each character is so carefully crafted, full of complexity and so realistic I feel as if I’m living along side them. The setting of Eternity Springs is so detailed, vivid and colorful, I feel like a part of the town. The storyline is always heartfelt, compelling, and emotional, with touching truths and wisdom and the perfect amount of humor sprinkled throughout. If you haven’t read Emily March, you’re really missing out, because nobody does small-town romance better! Eternity Springs is a magical place where miracles happen and hearts heal, and you’ll experience the peace and contentment it brings when you visit.

*I reviewed this book freely and voluntarily, having made no commitment to provide a review and receiving no compensation of any kind from any source for this review.

I have read every book in Ms. March’s Eternity Springs series. These books are auto-buy for me.

This book is about Caitlin, a fabric designer from New York, and Josh, a mechanic with a mysterious and very troubling past which was slowly revealed through journal entries. Caitlin is going home for a friend’s wedding. Josh operates a one-man garage from his home. They meet on a ride up the mountain and are attracted to each other. She asks him to attend the wedding as her date and he agrees. Josh figures this will be a pleasant weekend interlude. However, they run into Caitlin’s parents and Josh immediately backs away. He isn’t looking for a serious relationship and realizes Caitlin’s family is very protective of her. He lives in the same town as Caitlin’s family and doesn’t want his perfect but low key life to be damaged if he hurt Caitlin.

Caitlin actually is planning a move back home. She really likes Josh and would like to explore a serious relationship with him. She is purchasing a house next door to Josh and is planning to open a day care center. They have an explosive “meeting” and after much discussion, decide to just be friends with sex. No one needs to know they are even seeing each other. I love how Caitlin was absolutely positive that Josh was her HEA. Josh took some convincing, even though he knew he cared about Caitlin.

We do get to meet past characters which is part of the small town romance that I love. This was a fun and sweet romance. It had everything I look for in a romance. I highly recommend this book, and in fact the whole series.

**I did receive an early copy of this book from NetGalley; but gave my honest review of this book.**

"The First Kiss of Spring"
By Emily March
St. Martin's Paperbooks


Contemporary Romance -- Release Date: February 27, 2018


ReaderToReader.com review for NetGalley download


Though Caitlin Timberlake has an awesome job and life in New York City, she is lonely. When she attends a friend's wedding in Telluride, Colorado, she meets Josh Tarkington while they get stuck in a ski-lift gondola along with Josh's handicapped dog. Immediately, Caitlin falls for this handsome man whose empathy for his pooch touches her heart. She decides he is the man she will marry.

Josh and Caitlin have dinner together and she invites him to attend the wedding as her guest. Surprisingly, they bump into Caitlin's parents unknowing either would be there. Caitlin, though a grown woman, is embarrassed to think they may suspect she and Josh are having an affair. Then to make matters worse, she finds out Josh is a well-known and well-liked mechanic in her home town of Eternity Springs.

Life changes when Caitlin returns home to open a nursery school. Her folks believe she is chasing Josh, but now that she back, to her this turns out to be a bonus. Though known to be flighty with jobs and unable to settle down, Caitlin is determined to make her new business and life work.

Josh does not commit to anyone, but nothing will deter Caitlin. The sins of his past keep him from relationships, but after an accident leaves him battered, Caitlin takes over his care. He treats her horribly and when he sends her away, her heart is broken.

Yet, somehow Caitlin gets under Josh's skin, and when she learns about his secret life, she doesn't know whether to be angry or amazed. Book #5 of the Eternity Springs series presents secrets and heartbreak but shows when a woman is steadfast in her goals, she can attain her heart's desires.