Susan Goodman

Braxton Emmerson was born and bred in the heartland. He loves his farm and his family, but he was willing to give it all up for the woman who stole his heart. But, she didn’t want to give up her career and insisted on keeping their romance a secret. But then, her business partner double-crossed her, and she ended up with a prison sentence for tax evasion. Now, she’s out and she’s much wiser. Family is more important than her career. Unfortunately, she’d hurt Braxton deeply, and the only reason he’s coming to see her is to give their daughter a Christmas with her mom.

Shawn Barclay didn’t plan to stay in Iowa long. He’d only left his family and the close-knit community of Mistletoe, Arkansas as a favor to his parents. They’d asked him to help the daughter of a friend who was in an accident. After arriving in Iowa, it doesn’t take long before Shawn invests in saving more than the woman’s farm. When he sees how the town avoids her, he decides to save her reputation as well.

Tiffany Grant wanted to return to her hometown of Blueberry Beach in style - but a bunch of bad choices mean that she’s crawling back with barely a penny to her name. At least her debts are paid off, even if she had to sell everything she owned to make that happen. She has a lot of regrets and a lot of sins and secrets to make up for. So, the first thing she does when she arrives at Blueberry Beach is to stop at the church and volunteer for every program they have.

As they agreed on the night of their high school graduation, Leiklyn and her two friends Tiffany and Willen meet on the porch of the Manor at Blueberry Beach on April Fool’s day, 18 years after being given their diplomas. Life hadn’t turned out as expected for any of them. A single mother for 15 years, Leiklyn recently lost her job in HR for an oil company, and her unemployment is running out.

Laura Wilson is back in Blueberry Beach, dealing with a mysterious illness that has depleted her energy and left her listless and unable to enjoy life. She's working part time in her grandfather's shop when a mysterious stranger rents the small apartment above theirs. He's strong and athletic and handsome and full of life and energy. They couldn't be farther apart physically, but they bond as they each take on more responsibility as her grandfather's health declines. Will they decide providing precious memories to the customers in the little old shop is enough to build a future on?

Gage has been happy in Blueberry Beach, living above the store on the Main Street, working from home and raising his two girls. Alone. The tightknit community supports each other, and his daughters enjoy working in the ice cream shop and playing in the beach band. When Zariah and her teenage niece, Macie, move in across the street, opening a clothing boutique, Gage's attraction to her is immediate. Their relationship seems too good to be true. Or maybe it’s Macie that’s too good to be true.

Anitra Pollard has lived in Blueberry Beach all her life, an idyllic small, lakeside town where regular people go to escape real life. Unfortunately Anitra’s real life couldn’t get much worse, despite the idyllic setting. Her husband left not long before her oldest son was diagnosed with leukemia. Worse, the head doctor on the team assigned to her son looks very much like the man she had a short, but very sweet, summer fling with...and the father of the child she carries.

People are so serious about life. I feel it was made to be enjoyed. I’m not interested in having a great career or climbing a corporate ladder or being inside much at all, actually. I don’t like to stay with things too long, either. I’ve worked as a short line cook, a firefighter, and a dolphin trainer among other things. So when the ladies at the Good Grief senior living center offer me a short term job as the photographer for the risqué nature calendar they want to pose for - to cross it off of Miss Agnes’s bucket list - I am all in.

I’m a city girl and proud of it. Chicago is my hometown and I’m in my element surrounded by people and buildings and busyness. Actually, my business - my vlog - depends on my interactions with people. You can’t go viral talking about your pet turtle. Well, maybe some people can, but that’s not how I became a highly paid influencer. I was happy to use my influence to help my grandmother, Agnes, save her assisted care facility. I thought I was going to hate being out in the wilderness for days on end...bugs and bears and no internet or sushi bars.

It took me a while - most of my life, in fact - to decide that my hometown of Good Grief, Idaho, is the best place in the world to live. But, I have and I love it...except for one thing. My boss. Okay, so the man is good at his job, we just have a tendency to disagree on how much activity the seniors at our assisted living center want to have. I, personally, think they’d love to go on a whitewater rafting trip.