Lakeside Cottage (Mass Market Paperback)

by Susan Wiggs (Author) "The ambulance backing into the bay of Building One looked like any other rig..." (more)
Key Phrases: lakeside cottage, Mable Claire, Port Angeles, Walter Reed (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
In Wiggs's appealing summer romance, single mom (and newly unemployed journalist) Kate Livingston and her edgy son, Aaron, arrive at her family's lakeside cottage in Lake Crescent, Wash., to discover unexpected company in the form of a troubled teenage girl and a handsome but mysterious neighbor. Callie Evans has run away from an abusive, unloved childhood; former military medic JD Harris is hiding from the relentless media scrutiny he's received following a sudden heroic action. Each is warily drawn to Kate's good-heartedness, and Kate responds with characteristic warmth and commitment. But their growing bonds are threatened when Callie becomes ill and Kate discovers the famous identity JD has tried to conceal. Wiggs (The Ocean Between Us) strains when her characters interact with the world at large: Kate's overnight success in top-level freelance writing is unrealistic, while both JD's fame and his phobia about it are exaggerated. In contrast, the characters' intimate personal interactions are pure gold. Especially appealing are Wiggs's evocations of timeless summer pleasures and her sweet yet complex depictions of Aaron's healing at the hands of his new father figure and foster sister.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
Kate Livingston is planning on spending the summer at her family's cottage as she always does, but her brother and mother have moved away, so she and her son will be there alone. And she has lost her job as a columnist. J.D. Harris is using his best friend's cottage to lay low. A military medic and Green Beret, he was in the right place at the right time to save the life of the president. A national hero, his face is plastered all over the TV, newspapers, and entertainment rags, and his life is no longer his own. J.D and Kate are attracted to each other, but nothing is simple. Kate's son is difficult. In retreat, she has no idea who J.D. really is, and when he realizes that Kate is a journalist, he is angry and disappointed. Wiggs' thoroughly captivating tale draws readers into her characters' lives and minds in a way that makes them real and true and unforgettable. Maria Hatton
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Mira (August 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0778321908
• ISBN-13: 978-0778321903
• Product Dimensions: 6.2 x 4.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #37,643 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Lakeside Cottage, August 24, 2005

By	Amanda Killgore (USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Single mother and writer Kate Livingston and her little boy, Aaron, make their annual trek to the lakeside house that her family has owned for generations. This is supposed to be the first year they will spend alone in it, but that's not quite how it things go for them. An enigmatic stranger is their neighbor, and while J.D. is very attractive to Kate, she knows he is hiding something. They also take in an orphaned, teen-aged girl trying to reshape her life. If this little group can work through all their secrets and issues, they will have a patchwork family filled with love. Failure can only lead to heartache.

*** This leisurely paced novel is filled with sweetness, ambling across the summer as the characters grow. Overcoming heartache and painfilled pasts really supercedes the romantic plot. How the press can completely disrupt lives is also a focus of the story. Somehow, like the family portrayed, all the elements mesh into a cohesive whole. ***

Reviewed by Amanda Killgore, Freelance Reviewer.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Feel Good Story!, August 24, 2005

By	M. Nix "Joyfully Reviewed" - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Jordan Donovan Harris was a Special Forces medic who saved the President from an assassination, putting him in the public spotlight. Now he wants to get away from the people hounding him. People who don't care who he is, only that he stopped a homicide bomber in the presence of the President. Hoping for anonymity, isolation, solitude, and a chance to get his life back, he goes to his friend's cabin at the lake. Jordan doesn't expect to meet Kate or the feelings she provokes in him.

Kate Livingston, fashion writer for the weekly Seattle News, is a single mother raising a son who has behavior problems, desperately in need of a father figure. When her brother moves, Aaron's behavior worsens. Missing one too many deadlines from attending one too many parent-teacher conferences, her boss at the paper fires her. Kate goes to the family cottage at the lake, deciding to stay the whole summer in order to figure out what to do with her future.

She meets the attractive JD as he is rescuing a hurt racoon. Later, she finds out he's her neighbor. JD has no intention of getting involved with his neighbor, but finds himself being drawn to her and her son, enjoying hiking and bike riding with Aaron.

Callie enters Kate's life when she's found staying in the house. A foster care runaway, Callie earns money by cleaning houses. She discovers JD's secret and promises not to tell anyone, although she feels he should tell Kate.

Lakeside Cottage can best be described as "feel-good". I was touched when JD took Aaron under his wing. I loved how Kate and Aaron accepted Callie into their lives. I enjoyed the building romance of JD and Kate, especially how hard he fought not to be romatically or sexually involved with her, while she wanted a summer fling. This is a great book that will keep you interested from beginning to end.

Terez
Reviewed for Enchanted in Romance

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not crazy about this one., January 19, 2007

By	mahikahn (Columbus, Ohio USA) - See all my reviews

Jordan Donovan Harris is a Special Forces Medic. On Xmas Eve he sees a threat to the President and saves his life. To J.D. he was just doing his job but to the country he's an American hero. The fame that results from this is overwhelming and painful. An unauthorized movie, an ex-girlfriend's tell-all TV interviews, his estranged mother surfacing, stalkers and a woman who fakes a suicide attempt to get J.D. to rescue her. Reeling from the complete invasion of his privacy he borrows a friend's lake cottage, changes his appearance (he didn't have a mullet) and uses his nickname so he can have some peace.

Kate Livingston is a single mother to a nine year old son. Having been fired from her job she also has come to her family vacation home to regroup.

The first problem I had with this book is that it was at least 100 pages too long. It was filled with repetitive information on the nature aspects, details of making dinner, Kate's obsessive thoughts, etc.

Second is with her son Aaron. Aaron has behavioral problems, misses having a father figure and is terrified of water. Kate does not have a TV. I can appreciate a parent not wanting a child to spend all their time watching mindless TV. However, there are a lot of educational programs on the Discovery, Learning and History channels, not to mention watching a particular show is sometimes part of a homework assignment. Aaron has difficulty already fitting in and his not being able to discuss a show or even an occasional tasteful cartoon with his friends just makes him that much more different. Kids can be cruel and they think he's strange.

Which brings me to third, Kate is pushy. She goes to J.D.'s house, grills him, and asks him intrusive questions, snoops into a private file, then proceeds to tell him exactly what he should do with his life, even though he tells her it's none of her business. At this point she's spent a total of about ten minutes with the guy. Then she gets miffed with him & thinks, "He'd been rude to her just because she'd been nosy." Ya think? The first time they have sex she waits until they're almost naked and then starts grilling him again!

On the other hand, I enjoyed the characters of Callie, Aaron and J.D. & enjoy Susan Wigg's writing. One of my all time favorite books, of any author, is "The Ocean Between Us" which I highly recommend.