This novel is the perfect warm, scenic, summer escape.
The title of this book immediately captured my attention - I love stories that feature a lighthouse (I also have a lighthouse tattoo!). Lighthouses have played such a significant role in history and they are seen as a beacon of hope, guidance and safety.

The cover of the book is beautiful - a lovely reflection of the story contained within the pages. And what an enjoyable and engaging story it is - with mystery and hidden secrets, but underpinning this is the strength of family, love and restoration.

The setting is glorious. Through the author’s descriptive writing I could really visualise the inn, the beach, the lighthouse and surrounding landscape - and actually capture the essence of what Misty Point represents as a place of peace, healing and unspoilt beauty. The story makes me want to follow in Meg’s footsteps and walk along the beach at Misty Point…..I think I’ll have to settle for reading the rest of the Dune Island series instead!

I received a complimentary advance copy of this book from the publisher, Bookouture. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The 7th in the Dune Island series. This is a fantastic series, and the books are easily stand alone, too. Wonderful setting and great characters.

Ruby owns a small inn on Dune Island and in her later years is slowing down. Her great-niece, Meg, is spending the summer helping her out. But there is a big surprise that summer - the grandson, Simon, of the past owners decides to sell his adjoining land to developers that will put in a luxery resort and ruin Ruby's magnificent view of the lighthouse.

Ruby decides to share her secret, but has a stroke before she can tell Meg. She left a couple clues to lead Meg to the story, and hopes she shares it with Simon. In the meantime, Meg is trying to run the inn, keep sane and is falling in love with Simon and his children. Ruby's secret will change everything.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for a temporary, digital ARC in return for my review.

some books come along. you read them and you want to cherish them. you want to read more and more and yet dont, because that means they will end. this book had all that and more. and had me wishing i had a special book fund so that i could buy books to keep forever on a shelf( in a beauty and the beast library would be perfect,please?)
these books are about love,family and a little sprinkle of mystery in there too. they are about so much more than a book of words. they are lessons, they are healing for the reader too, they are reflective and they are perfect. i know im going on but i just loved this book. and it and others of the same ilk and authors are my favorite. top top top tier books and genre that have my heart every time.
they also have those little things we all adore from these books. the romance of course, the great character both central and side. and most will have those special character usually elderly that steal your heart.
i want to live amongst this community. i smelt the air, i saw the colors i felt the homes warmth. some book are almost too good at making you wish you could live amongst them!
This book feature Meg. who has come to the island to help her Aunt ruby to run her inn for the summer. but a shock comes to them both when the man who owns the land next door is going to sell. and this will put her Aunt out of business and possibly then her home for good. Meg is hurt. hurt more that Simon could be the one doing this to them. to her.
when her aunt is suddenly taken ill she leaves Meg the running of the ill and also the whisper of a secret. one Ruby aims to solve in order to save the lighthouse. could this secret be the key. but could it also hurt the building feeling and relationship between Ruby and Simon.

This was a really fun, uplifting and sweet romance. I really liked the way. The characters lives intertwined, and how they author shared the past and how it affected the current times. I thought the addition of the kids in the book added for a very sweet detail.

Lovely characters….
Lovely setting….
Lovely romance….
Lovely story….
This story takes you on an emotional journey. A loving story about family, loyalty and unexpected surprises.
I loved how the love of reading books played a prominent part in the story.
All in all, a enjoyable story that kept me engaged.

Thank you NetGalley, Bookouture and the author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Feel good story set on Dune island. Good characters Abigail is a Horowitz her mothering of her brother and her uncensored comments.

A really sweet story which I enjoyed reading and I loved the escapism of Dune Island with it's gorgeous beaches and lighthouse.

Meg arrives on the island to help her great aunt Ruby run her quaint inn for the summer, but neither Meg nor Ruby are ready for the shock they get when they find out that Simon, the owner of the land next door, plans to sell to a developer. When Ruby is taken ill, she alludes to a secret and it's left to Meg to run the inn, try to convince Simon not to sell and to solve the mystery of her aunt's secret.

This is a feel good read that transported me to the island's beach, with it's salty air and pretty lighthouse and I could feel the warmth of the sun on my skin as I let myself become absorbed in Meg's world. I loved Aunt Ruby's sayings, they made me chuckle and the connection between Meg and Simon, regardless of how much they tried to pretend it wasn't there, was undeniable, despite his seemingly selfish behaviour when he first arrived on the island. As his story unravelled, my heart went out to him and I was very happy with how the story wrapped up in the end.

4 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, Kristin Harper and Bookouture, for an ARC in return for an honest review.

The Secret of Ruby's Lighthouse is book 7 of the Dune Island series. I have read several of Kristin Harper's novels and found that they are a terrific escape from the worry and pain of the world. Harper creates novels about love and loss, about quiet, peaceful moments that heal the people and communities in which they are set. The Secret of Ruby's Lighthouse is about more than romance. It is about the importance of family and the need for family to help heal pain. I enjoyed the descriptions of the land and the story about the Misty Point Lighthouse and the purpose of the colors.

Harper's books are to be devoured and enjoyed. These are novels that transport readers to lovely places of peace and happiness. I enjoyed the characters and the plot, and while happiness and joy are the goal, there is a bit of mystery to be solved, as well. It is nice to take a break from murders and conflict and just read a gentle novel of love and happiness. As is true of most romance and family oriented novels, the ending is predictable, but there is nothing wrong with a happy ending. There are times when readers need that happy ending.

The Secret of Ruby's Lighthouse is a wonderful beach read, and I do recommend it, whether readers are on vacation or just want an escape from the world. Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for providing me with this ARC. I enjoyed The Secret of Ruby's Lighthouse very much.
5 stars

This is my first Kristin Harper read and I absolutely loved it! She not only tells a great story but there is also a bit of a mystery and a lesson. Harper does a great job of showing the basic principal of not judging a book by its cover not only literally but figuratively as well. When I picked up this book I thought it would be like other beach reads that I have loved but I found it was so much more than a summer romance story. Its a story of family and the history of our families and how a misperception of one family member leads to years of anger and resentment. It also prevents future family members from learning the real truth. This book surprised me on so many levels and I am happy to say one of my new favorites! I cant wait to read more of Kristin Harper´s books. Do not miss out on this story of Meg and her love for her Aunt Ruby and Misty Point.

A lovely lighthearted story of a failing inn, a helpful niece, the threatened building of a new resort all centred around a lighthouse and the quest to find a secret.

I really loved this story. Meg goes to help her great Aunt Ruby run her inn near the Misty Point Lighthouse for the Summer. Gordon's grandson Simon comes to the island with his 2 children and stays in the small cottage. He and Meg get sort of close even though he has said he is selling the property to a resort developer. Ruby has a stroke and goes to a rehab center in Pennsylvania because she has a cousin there. Before Meg goes she said the secret is in the Lighthouse.Ruby comes back to the Inn with her cousin, Linda , who is going to stay with her as Meg has to go home to her job. Does Simon sell the property after knowing the secret and does he and Meg get together. A GREAT READ.

I enjoyed this novel, though I suspect I might have enjoyed it even more had I read it in the right season. This book begs to be read sitting on a porch drinking a mint iced tea with an ocean breeze touching your face.
The cover got me right away. More and more these days I need to read novels where people have good intentions and where you know that the ending is going to be heartwarming. This is one of those books. I knew it would be a good antidote for what is wrong with the world.
Meg, an adult with some life problems, goes to spend the summer with her aunt Ruby to restore Ruby's house, which is an inn by the ocean. Ruby suffers a stroke and needs rehabilitation and Meg is left to manage the house. Simon, the grandson of previous owners, plans to sell his house next door to a big developer, and this is where the conflict it. This is also where the romance is. Everything, of course, works out.
I think the plot is good and, of course, so is the setting. This is a solid four star read. What might have made it five stars? Perhaps a touch more character development of the protagonist. I feel like I learn more about Simon and Ruby than Meg. However, all in all, this was an enjoyable read that was exactly what I was looking for.
Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for providing me with an advance copy of this novel in exchange for my honest opinion.

Meg's great aunt Ruby is struggling with her health and so Meg comes to assist her at her inn by the sea. Simon, a widower, arrives with his children at the same time and then drops a bombshell- he plans to sell his land and build a resort which will block Ruby's view of the lighthouse. But there's a key secret yet to be found! This is a little predictable and trope-y but you'll likely find yourself turning the pages because Harper knows to pull at the heart strings. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good read.

I found this a little too sweet and sickly and the characters were so good to be true. It was very predictable and I knew what was going to happen in the end very quickly. It seemed to read like a Mills and Boon book which I try to avoid at all costs. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

I don't wanna be dramatic, but this book was brilliant. Could not recommend it more! Have never read a book so fast! Top marks from me!

I love how Kristin Harper weaves her stories. I really feel like I’m part of it. The multi generational aspect adds extra depth that really draws you in.

Ruby is a great character, she has so much to tell, so much to be proud of, yet she kept most of it secret, almost until it was too late. Such loyalty, friendship and love. Meg was really great at trying to help her great aunt run the guest house, and then trying to hold everything together after her aunt has a stroke. All whilst trying to sort her own life out and navigate her budding feelings for Simon, who is threatening to sell his land and build a holiday resort. Simon also has his own demons and motives for doing what he’s doing and I love how the story slowly unfurls, yet family, loyalty and love still remain the fundamental motives.

Every book in this series has been amazing and emotionally moving at times.

This was such a lovely and heart warming read. Everything about it is just lovely. I loved the story line and the characters and the setting was just perfect. I loved it

I am obsessed with lighthouses, and this darling book just become one of my favorites! I cherished each page of the characters and all they had to bring to the story. I loved it!

What a lovely family focused novel! The Secret of Ruby’s Lighthouse is another feel-good gem from Kristen Harper. And just look at that gorgeous cover which holds lots of hints for the plot within. Solving a mystery and uncovering an important life changing secret could help Ruby’s Inn and the land near Misty Point Lighthouse on Dune Island.

Ruby is the owner of an Inn she inherited. During a break from work, Meg comes back to help her great aunt for the summer. Meg loves to organise and she has some great ideas to help Ruby with tidying up her business and making the accommodation more streamline. Her great aunt has too many items crammed into the facility: like an over-abundance of kitchen utensils and too many books on the shelves. But Ruby is a little difficult when it comes to trimming down her library. I can relate! But it is true, if the bookcases get too over packed then items get missed. Meg also is worried about some information that has arrived that may affect her great-aunt’s business. Her livelihood could be in danger.

The Inn and its surrounds (including the beaches and lighthouse) represent a haven for Meg. Before her parents got divorced, there was lots of bickering between them and Meg found solace in the seascape and in Ruby’s place. It was also a great retreat during winter and spring high school breaks and summer vacation. She spent a lot of wonderful hours with her great aunt learning: including developing a passion for books and verbal stories.

Reading this novel was like taking a lovely stroll on the beach. You feel the warmth of the sun, the quickening of the salt air, hear the invigorating ocean sounds and voices of nature.

Simon, another key character, comes to visit and stay in his inherited cottage next door to the Inn with his two children. It is meant to be a ‘simple, very quiet summer in the cottage.’ It is rustic but he has brought camping cots and ‘essential furniture’. His wife was killed in a car accident two years previously. But he is there for other reasons, too, and drops a bombshell on Ruby and Meg at dinner. Meg is fuming as his news will affect the future of Misty Point. As Ruby reveals, it is not what Gordon and Sarah would have wanted for their family.

There are many lovely elements in this novel. Ruby communicates to Meg in metaphors that are book related when things get tough. These sayings often keep Meg in check as she has always wanted to control the outcome. ‘Hang in there for another chapter. There might be a plot twist up ahead that you never saw coming…You’re not the author of this story, so you don’t get to decide how it ends.’ But words are not enough at the moment. And Meg has mixed reactions. Empathy and anger coincide as she feels sorry for Simon in his family losses but also angry at the decision he has made about the cottage. Yet we learn that Ruby has a secret she must share with Meg and Simon that may just change the course of events. Before that, Ruby’s health takes a turn before sharing her secret. This leaves Meg hanging but also worried about her aunt’s future. The suspense builds as Meg attempts to solve the mystery on her own while her aunt recovers at offshore facilities.

The rest of the novel is about discovery, growth and surprises. There are some unexpected twists that kept me engaged with the characters and their dilemmas. My heart ached at times at their troubles but I also cheered at their victories. I loved the fact that books play an important role in this story. They provide comfort, joy and revelation for this family and friends who need a fresh start and a chance to fulfil their dreams. The lighthouse plays a part, too, along with the setting of Dune Island: an unspoilt place that offers healing to those who set foot on its shores. I highly recommend this novel and without question give it 5 Stars. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thanks to Bookouture and Netgalley for the review copy.

Another feel good romantic story perfect for a Valentine Days read. Helping out her aunt with a small inn during her summer off, a woman is caught up in her aunt's past history and her relationship to the widower and his children who have moved in next door. A quick read, will be perfect for a beach read this summer.