Heart Break Hotel [Large Print] [Hardcover]

Jill Marie Landis (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 2, 2005

A USA Today Bestselling Author

Along California's sparkling blue coastline and amid its mist-shrouded nights, Heartbreak Hotel unfolds a suspenseful yet tender story of second chances against all odds, of families lost and regained . . . and of the ways love can make even the most disillusioned hearts believe.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

*Starred Review* Landis returns to Twilight Cove, the setting of Lover's Lane (2003) and Heat Wave (2004), with the compelling story of widowed Tracy Potter and novelist Wade MacAllister. When Tracy's wheeler-dealer, real-estate-developer husband dies suddenly, Tracy is shocked to learn that their wealthy lifestyle was mortgaged to the hilt. The only way to provide for her college-age stepdaughter and young son is to make a go of the dilapidated historical hotel her late husband's father left in his name. Before the Heartbreak Hotel is even open for business, Wade rides in on his Harley, planning to end his life. But after drinking himself into oblivion, Wade has a strangely realistic dream and wakes up refreshed after the first decent night's sleep he's had in ages. The longer Wade stays, the more sense his eerie dreams begin to make. A resilient heroine, a guilt-ridden hero, and a touch of the paranormal are all appealing; but the warmth and generosity of spirit Landis' characters possess are what make this a wonderful feel-good read. Diana Tixier Herald
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

Praise for Heat Wave

“Riveting–a gripping novel that will pull at your heartstrings.”
–JOAN JOHNSTON, author of Colter’s Wife

“Jill Marie Landis is a master. Her Heat Wave caught me on a swell, gripped me from the very first page, and sent me hurtling into adventure. I highly recommend it!”
–LINDA LAEL MILLER, author of The Last Chance Café


From the Hardcover edition. --This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 655 pages
• Publisher: Thorndike Press; 1 edition (August 2, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 078627672X
• ISBN-13: 978-0786276721
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.5 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,088,184 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

JILL MARIE LANDIS'S twenty+ novels have earned distinguished awards and slots on such national bestseller lists as the USA TODAY Top 50 and the New York Times Best Sellers Plus. She is a seven-time finalist for Romance Writers of America's RITA Award in both Single Title and Contemporary Romance as well as a Golden Heart and RITA Award winner.

Her works include historical romances, contemporary single title romance with a hint of suspense, inspirational historical romances, and most recently the new Tiki Goddess Mystery series that launched with the successful Mai Tai One On.

Jill Marie resides in Hawaii with her husband. When she's not writing or sitting on the beach reading, she enjoys visiting with family and friends, raising orchids, working in her garden, plunking on the ukulele, dancing the hula and quilting, but not all at once.

She enjoys hearing from readers at www.jillmarielandis.com
facebook, and at www.thetikigoddess.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully written tale, May 16, 2005

By 

Judy "book reader" (Cincinnati, ohio United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Heartbreak Hotel: A Novel (Twilight Cove Trilogy) (Hardcover)

Heartbreak Hotel By Jill Marie Landis is a deeply moving tale of heartbreak and second chances.

Wade MacAllister is running from his past. It's something so terrible that he can't outrun the pain. He comes across the hotel. It seems like the perfect place for him to come to terms with his life. He signs in under a fake name not planning to stay long. But he is slowly drawn to the quiet strength of the owner Tracy Potter.

Tracy wasn't planning to be a widow at 33 nor a hotel owner. With the sudden death of her husband over 6 months ago, her world fell apart. She is untangling the huge financial mess her husband left. She decides to ready the hotel she inherited for sale.

Her first guest is a mysterious man named Wade Johnson. She doesn't know much about him but is compelled by the sadness she sees in his eyes. Both Wade and Tracy fill a void in each other's life. Their journey through past hurts to a second chance is something to treasure.

Heartbreak Hotel is a wonderful conclusion to the trilogy. Jill Marie Landis an auto buy for me.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good ending to trilogy of books, April 30, 2005

By 

Ratmammy "The Ratmammy" (Ratmammy's Town, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Heartbreak Hotel: A Novel (Twilight Cove Trilogy) (Hardcover)

HEARTBREAK HOTEL by Jill Marie Landis

April 2, 2005

HEARTBREAK HOTEL by Jill Marie Landis is the third novel in this trilogy that takes place in the fictional beach town of Twilight Cove, California, located along the coast near the city of San Luis Obispo. Tracy is a widow at age 33, raising a 9-year old son, with a stepdaughter in college. While Tracy is still in shock over the death of her husband, she is also aware that their marriage had not been very good the past few years, and now she was dealing with a lot of debt that she had not known about until now. In order to make ends meet she is renovating an old hotel called the Heartbreak Hotel, and hopes to make a living in the hotel business.

One evening, a stranger named Wade "Johnson", comes to her hotel despite the fact that they have not yet opened for business, and asks if he can spend the night. She tries to refuse him but he offers her a lot of cash, and she cannot say "no". What was to be a one-night stay turns out to be longer than that, and while at first Tracy is very nervous around Wade, as he seems to be very introverted and mysterious, she soon learns that he's someone she can talk to, and they eventually come friends.

Wade is hiding something from Tracy and the world, but in order to preserve their growing friendship, Wade chooses not to confide in her. Tracy, in the meantime, finds that she can talk to Wade and she goes to him for emotional support when she finds out about her deceased husband's secret life. What she finds out is devastating to her, and while she has only known Wade for a few days, she finds that she can go to him for comfort.

Other characters in this novel include Chelsea, the stepdaughter who visits them during the summer and Tracy's son with Glenn, Matthew, a 9-year old who misses his father very much. Chelsea has a lot of anger toward Tracy, while at the same time tries to accept Tracy as her stepmother, but the addition of Wade in Tracy's life puts a strain on their relationship. Matthew on the other hand is happy to have met Wade, and sees him as a possible new role model in his life.

While HEARTBREAK HOTEL is a romance, it also has elements of suspense and intrigue with the subplot surrounding Wade's past life. The reader will find that this is the story line that keeps one interested in the book, especially when Tracy's life is put in danger due to Wade's involvement in a series of murders.

I enjoyed reading HEARTBREAK HOTEL as much as I enjoyed reading the previous book, HEAT WAVE. I didn't enjoy all elements of the plot, however, that which pertained to the ghost story of Captain Ezra Poole, but I really enjoy Landis' writing style. I hope to read the first book in this series, LOVERS LANE.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great swan song for the Twilight Trilogy, September 6, 2005

By 

Tracy Vest (Northern California) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Heartbreak Hotel: A Novel (Twilight Cove Trilogy) (Hardcover)

Young widow Tracy Potter is dumbstruck when she finds out that the opulent lifestyle that her late husband Glenn insisted they live has left them broke. The only thing left of his estate is a modest turn of the century hotel atop a mountain outside of the fictional town of Twilight Cove (near San Luis Obispo).

With her modest family inheritance, she fixes the hotel up with the intention of making it more marketable. While in the midst of renovation, she receives her first guest. He is a mysterious man on a Harley, and his intention is to end his life, but something about the Heartbreak Hotel keeps him from doing the deed. Tracy is fearful of ad-man Wade Johnson, unaware that he is a novelist with a past he would rather forget. But cash is cash, and she lets him stay.

Soon, a day turns into two, then a week, then a month, then the entire summer, and he eventually assists with the renovations. Her son Matthew seems to blossom with a man around the place, but her college-aged step-daughter is fearful that Wade will replace her father in Tracy's heart. As Tracy starts to gain financial ground and ready for an open house, a family friend offers to take a look at her husband's books, and makes a startling discovery of a secret that Glenn kept from his wife.

Wade has wanted to keep his identity a secret, and when he sees a chance to help Tracy make a go of her business, he grabs at it, not knowing what it will cost either of them.

"Heartbreak Hotel" was a welcome gem to end the Twilight Cove series, managing to capture the magic of and proving that the first book in the series, "Lover's Lane" was no fluke.