Sweet closed door romance. I thoroughly enjoyed Loyally, Luke. This book was sweet and easy to read. Sometimes you just want a simple romance with a strong male lead and this is that book. Luke is a good man, a family man, close with his sisters and loyal to helping his parents and family back home. He is only the European country of Skymar for a job, little does he know his life is about to change. His sisters dream of “Hallmark” movie romance for their brother., but he’s having none of it until he meets a real life Grace Kelly Princess and falls in love. There are plenty of obstacles, but love conquers all, right?

Title: Loyally Luke

Author: Pepper Basham


Ch: 23


Pg: 384


Series: Skymar book 3


Genre: Christian romance Christian rom com


Rating: 5 stars


Publisher: Thomas Nelson


All I can say with Loyally Luke by Pepper Basham is finally. Not because I wanted the series to end, but because we finally get Luke’s story. And as someone who fell for Luke in the first book, I spent the second book falling deeper. But in Loyally Luke I fell head over heels, what can I say I’m a sucker for a country boy in flannel with a heart of gold. I have to say I love seeing more of Luke in this one.


I have to admit Ellie wasn’t who I pictured Luke falling for he who dislikes the rom com. It was hilarious to see him end up in one. His and Ellie’s meet cute was perfect for him. And there was more than meets the eye to Ellie.


This one gave me a bit of The Princess Diaries vibes and all the movie references. Whoever thought a country boy could charm a princess. But for me it was Luke dropping The Princess Bride quotes into normal conversation. And then accidentally creating what I thought was the perfect country song.


And like all of Peppers books faith is threaded throughout the story and plays out in the characters’ lives. And love that Luke is a man of faith that makes him the perfect hero in my book. That alone would do it but a country boy in flannel makes Luke even more realistic. And a perfect end to the series.



I received a copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine alone.

For whatever reason this started off slow for me but once I got invested in the characters I ended up really enjoying the book. At first I started to just think maybe it was the entire royal premise that had me not into it but then I ended up loving everything about it. Okay, maybe I ended up loving everything about Luke. Luke gives you all the feels!

"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage."

Loyally, Luke is one of my most anticipated books of 2024 and it did not disappoint! It gave me ALL the feels!!! This series (comprised of Authentically, Izzy, Positively, Penelope, and Loyally,Luke) is truly something special. It's the literary equivalent of curling up by a warm fire on a rainy day with your softest blanket and favorite warm beverage. It literally warms your soul.

While I would love to see this series continue...Luke's book was the absolute perfect way to end it. I will be re-reading this series for years to come.

*While you could read this book as a stand alone, I would highly recommend reading the books in order.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the arc of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

So I went into this book with no idea what to expect. While this is a stand alone novel, I hadn't read the two other books that go with it, but that wasn't a big deal at all! I was able to enjoy Luke's story and now I definitely want to go back and read Izzy and Penelope's stories as well!

With all of that being said, I loved this book! As someone who loves Hallmark movies, I loved all of the Hallmark references, and the slight teasing of Hallmark plots. Its not often that I love the two main characters from start to finish of a book, but I did with Luke and Ellie. From the meet cute right off the bat, to how they have their happy ever after.

If you are looking for a light read, with lots of fun banter and Hallmark references this book is for you. But beware...once you start you won't be able to put it down!

Thank you to the publisher, author, & NetGalley for sending me this e-ARC. All thoughts are my own, and I’m leaving this review voluntarily.

Loyally Luke is the third book in the Skymar series, and we finally get the love story of Luke, brother and cousin of the heroines of first two books. It's a fun read and those who love the first two will enjoy the third. I recommend reading previous stories first!
Luke is in the small country of Skymar where his relatives found their happy endings, but that's not his goal. He is there to do construction and ends up working on an orphanage. He has a bad run in with a "Grace Kelly" look alike at the airport and she ends up also working at the orphanage. The struggle starts when he sees that he loves her, but her loyalty has to be to Skymar and his to America.
I had trouble getting into Luke's story more than the earlier ones. It's written in less epistolary style and that is what I loved about previous stories. I listened to it on audio and loved it with the different voices for the sections. It's been a fun series, and I am sad to see it end.
I received a complimentary copy of Loyally, Luke, but all opinions are my own.

I just finish my advanced copy of Loyally Luke by Pepper Basham and sent to me through NetGalley for a promising review.
I have loved all three of these book so much and each one just gets better and better and that includes Loyally Luke and I’m so happy that he got his own book because he deserves it after all he has to put up with three sisters.
Pepper writes such vivid word pictures that you can’t help but get swept away with each page that you turn. And yes there are many laugh out loud moments as well as some classic kissing scenes that only Pepper can write.
If you didn’t fall in love with Luke in the first two book then your going to be hit by a two by four when you read this book because he truly is a wonderful guy, even if he is a fictional character.
Thank you NetGalley for giving me a copy of this amazing book and thank you Pepper Basham for using you God give talent to bless me with hours of enjoyable entertainment. Keep up the good work.

Loyally, Luke is the third book by Pepper Basham centered around the Edgewood siblings. This story is about their brother Luke and his adventures in the island country of Skymar, somewhere near Scotland. Luke is a master carpenter and stone mason who has been brought in by wealthy Lewis Gray to restore and renovate an old castle which now houses an orphanage and school. Unbeknownst to Luke, the person overseeing the project, Ms. St. Clare, is actually the youngest royal, Princess Eliana.

Having first encountered each other in an airport coffee shop mix up, first impressions were not so good. Eliana needs a big win on this restoration project. Having been a very reckless and naive youth that set the tabloids on fire, Eliana has spent three years on the down low working on her issues and trying to prove herself through her good works in the North Country. If Luke is the best person to lead this reno, then Ellie will do her best to assist and support him. As they work together and Eliana sees many sides to Luke’s personality from his leadership working with young teens to teach them some of his skills to the two young girls he interacts with so kindly and the way Luke works with community members to get the job completed on schedule, that initial impression is flipped and now there is a story of Hallmark proportions.

This is a well told tale addressing first impressions, second chances, and how sometimes when the will is strong enough then the way will be revealed. I did enjoy this book and I do recommend it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of “Loyally Luke.” All opinions are my own.

This was a cute romance. I loved the dynamic between Luke and the princess before he realized she was royalty. That trope never gets old!! <3

I hadn’t previously read the other books in this series so definitely felt like I was missing some context for the side characters but I might have to go back and read those other books next.

Overall, 3.5

This is the third book in the series, and you get an update on the characters from the first two books. Unlike the first two books, this is more narrative instead of the back and forth with emails and text. I actually missed the emails and text, and this book didn't feel as connected as the other two books. It was still a great story about overcoming your past and finding love in the least expected places.

I absolutely adored this book! Luke and Ellie were absolutely adorable with off-the-charts chemistry while still keeping the story clean. There was a lot more kissing than I'm used to, but I'm not complaining! Luke really came out of his shell in this one and showed his secretly romantic heart in all things involving Ellie. Their meet-cute was so fun and I loved how her identity was kept a mystery and that the aftermath of finding out didn't drag on forever. There was just enough drama to keep me turning pages without rolling my eyes at the absurdity of it. Both characters were incredibly likable and complimented each other well.

This isn't what I'd consider "Christian fiction" since there wasn't any sort of Fatih arc, but I did appreciate the moments where we saw glimpses into their faith and see how God did fit into their lives. Luke's encouragement for Ellie also brought a tear to my eye and was a great reminder to every Christian.

My ratings:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
💋💋
✝️

Pepper Basham's books are always engaging, funny, and unique! Loved this book :) I still have yet to read the other two books in the series, but I plan on it very soon!!!

What a sweet sweet romance. My biggest sadness was not reading the other books in the series first, just so I could spend more time in Skymar. That being said, I loved getting little tidbits into the family dynamics, and seeing the way Luke's sisters loved him. I know he's a fictional man, but there's something so special about sisters loving their brother this much. And it did a beautiful job at intertwining faith, and romance, which is not always an easy thing to do. Beautiful, sweet, and now got me interested in the first two books of the series!

I've been waiting for this third book in the Skymar series written by Pepper Basham. I received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley. This is my own unsolicited opinion. I loved Luke and Ellie's story.
Luke has been hired for a secret project along with the cabin restoration he has flown to Skymar to undertake. The 'macho man' who grew up with girls has some incredibly comical thoughts which add great humor to the story. His need to go watch Rambo because 'sweet' things had come to mind is giggle worthy. His sister, Penelope is all about romance movies and Hallmark moments while he is Rocky, Star Wars and World War II movies. Sentences in the book are gems. It's such a pleasure to read. For example, "Luke... took a giant bite of his sandwich to keep his words from offending his own ears."
Stop using time to read my opinion, grab this book. If you love romance, a masculine guy with a teddy bear-soft heart, a gorgeous princess with her sad back story and great humor, this is your summer read. It works as a stand-alone but you will want to read the previous books too.

This one just wasnt quite my cup of tea. There were just too many cliches and what I felt like not trusting the reader to make the obviously obvious conclusions. Just felt rather disappointing to read, I feel like this book and story plot could have had so much more potential. I decided not to post about it on Instagram etc as I don't want the author to get a setback from negative reviews so close to publication date.

This is a really cute romance! I haven't read any of the other books in the series, but I still thoroughly enjoyed this one. To me it made sense as a stand alone novel. The running joke of the novel is that the love story shennanigans are better than a hallmark movie, and I couldn't agree more. From the meet cute to the first kiss, it definetly followed the Hallmark movie vibe. My absolute favorite part of the novel was the texting between the characters. It was such a fun addition that helped me feel like I knew their friends and family even more, especially as Luke and Ellie processed their friendship to relationship journey.

What you can expect to find:
- Text messages
- Surprise royal visits
- Family forgiveness
- Construction work

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy of this book. A review was not required.

This was such a cute read. It's a modern day royal romance and was so fun to read. I enjoyed the storyline and characters. Definitely recommend this book so go give it a look

“Sometimes love means embracing the good, the bad. . . and even the impossible.”

Be still my hallmark loving heart! 😍 The Hallmark Chime! 🫠 This book! Gah! I don’t have words, and what I have to say has probably been said and better too! But my friends if you want to laugh, and swoon, and feel a sugary rush of sweetness then pick up this book by Pepper Basham, in any format because it’s all wonderful! I have read it, I have listened to it! I love love love the audiobook!!! Grab your favorite socks to knit on and just sit back and enjoy this delightful narration. It’s read by multiple narrators give the main characters Luke and Ellie fantastic voices, but we also get to hear Luke’s sisters voice come in when text and emails are read. It’s a lot of fun!

Here is the gist. Luke is a no nonsense, honest guy, who doesn’t need much. Give him rich strong black coffee, quiet cabin in the woods, and flannel and he is happy. Till he isn’t. And he is happy with his bachelorhood. Till he isn’t. And he can do without an uppity high class Grace Kelly princess in the flesh in his life. Till he can’t. And he most definitely is not living a Hallmark Movie life. Till he is! ✨ Chime ✨ Luke is a knight in shining flannel and he will make you melt like hot butter in a skillet!

Ellie may be a princess in real life but that hasn’t kept her from some real world consequences of poor choices in her youth. She’s been working hard to repair her reputation but it’s hard to build back up than to tear something down. Ellie is very relatable despite her royal status and I love her for that. I love her and Luke and the whole Edgewood family.

If you are looking for a good arm chair travel itinerary then definitely add the whole Edgewood family books to your TBR list.

Read this if you love:
💕 Handsome men in flannels
💕 Scottish flare
💕 Hallmark movies (or don’t then you can sympathize with Luke 😉)
💕 Off limits or forbidden love
💕 Fun movie and pop culture references
💕 Sibling banter
💕 Royal Romance
💕 Kissing book

Thank you to the author and publisher for sending me a copy of the book and audiobook to read and review. All thoughts are mine.

Their first meeting was less than auspicious.

Luke Edgewood sees himself as a simple carpenter. At a friend's request, he's left his small town in the Blue Ridge mountains to oversee the upgrading and remodeling of an orphanage in the small country of Skymar. Imagine his surprise when he finds the disagreeable woman with whom he had a run in at the airport when he first landed. Only she's not as disagreeable as their first meeting would have had him believe. Elliana volunteers to help as she can on a project that's near to her heart. What begins as a working relationship becomes a close friendship - and maybe something more. But Ellie has kept an important part of her life a secret from Luke. How will Luke react when he finds out she's a princess.

Like the previous books in the Skymar series, the story is told through a combination of prose as well as a series of texts and emails. Though the prose is more predominant in this book than the previous ones, the texts provide deeper insight into the personality of the characters. Luke now has the benefit of turning to his sisters and his cousin for advice and assistance as his relationship with Ellie progresses.

I also like the growth we see in Luke in this story. In the previous stories, Luke was the dutiful big brother, providing a shoulder to cry on when needed, and teasing his sister and cousin like a good big brother does the rest of the time. In this story we see a more mature Luke. He loves what he does, which is apparent in the confidence he exudes. He's a simple person and his simple words of wisdom are what Ellie comes to rely on.

Ellie is aware she is being judged on past actions, despite the time that has passed. Luke seems to be the only one she can just be herself with. And he's happy to support her. His belief in her gives her strength. Even after he learns who she is, he can't help being just who he is, And Ellie comes to rely on that as she slowly gains confidence and steps out of her past and into her duty as a royal.

This is the third book in the Skymar series. While you can read this book as a stand alone, I highly recommend reading the first two books in the series, but at the very least, the first book Authentically, Izzy. You'll have a much better understanding of who some of the secondary characters are and how Skymar comes to be the setting for this story. Reading the previous books will also give you a greater appreciation of how much we didn't know or didn't understand about Luke. I really enjoyed reading Authentically, Izzy, I think this in now my favorite book in the series. It's earned a spot on my keeper shelf.

Loyally, Luke is my third book I have read written by Pepper Basham. I must say I throughly enjoyed the whole Skymar series. Loyally, Luke was easy to read, rich in dialogue and wit. It captured me in from the start, and I could not put the book down. Though I am a little sad to put this series to rest, I look forward to reading some of Pepper Basham's other works.

The character development was great. I loved getting to know each of the characters on a deeper level. It was fun watching Ellie find herself and begin to rebuild herself as a more 'respectable' royal. I enjoyed the aspect of the orphanage, having done a few mission trips working with orphans it touched me. I loved how Luke interacted with the kids. It gave us, and Ellie, a glimpse into his heart.

The relationship between Luke and Ellie was cute. It was 100% hallmark, but better. I loved that in true hallmark fashion, Luke did not realize that Ellie was a princess and really got to know Ellie on a different level because of it. Luke is a very caring person and because of that he helps Ellie come out of her guarded self. She gets to be herself on a whole other level. Though their friendship turns physical-just kissing-the whole idea of them trying to remain friends but wanting to kiss, kind of was weird to me. I understand that some people actually think this way, though it was a little weird to me. I do know that Pepper Basham likes to write very passionate kiss scenes- and Loyally, Luke definitely contained that.

The storyline was great. It caught my attention and held me throughout the whole story. Pepper Basham did a great job creating this world of Skymar and having it intertwined throughout the series. I loved the text and email threads. It gave a different dynamic that really helped show the family bond and the feelings of Ellie and Luke to their friends.

The faith aspect was a little light. I would have liked to see a little bit more. But that is just my personal preference. All in all it was a wonderful book; light hearted, hallmark-like, romance comedy. It was very entertaining and I look forward to reading more from Pepper Basham.

*I received a complimentary copy from the author and voluntarily chose to review it. All opinions are my own.