Hidden Falls, New York – Present Day

Julie Unger has arrived in the sleepy town of Hidden Falls, New York with mixed emotions. It’s a shabby little town, well past its heyday but recently, efforts have begun to rebuild it to its former glory. This is where Julie comes in. She was hired by the town council to restore the town’s one hundred year old carousel. It’s a golden opportunity for Julie to indulge her passion for carousels and advance her career as a restorer. She’s also hoping to get over her painful divorce and come to terms with the reasons why her marriage failed, but she didn’t expect to lose her heart to handsome widower Rick Swanson and his young son Josh. Nor did she anticipate that someone would be unhappy by her arrival, as evidenced by acts of vandalism to her workshop. But Julie won’t be frightened away, either by an unknown antagonist or the possibility that her barely mended heart may be broken once again.

Rick is not sure he will ever love a woman other than his late wife, but Julie is quickly becoming an important part in his life. He is grateful for the positive influence she has on Josh, who has not spoken since his mother died. There’s no denying that the more time Josh spends with Julie, the better he appears, as does Rick. He realizes it’s more than a physical attraction he has for Julie, but he’s not sure if he will ever be ready to risk his heart again.

STARGAZER is the latest installment in author Amanda Harte’s Hidden Falls Romances, a series that is connected simply by the common setting in Hidden Falls and characters that are infected with “carousel fever.” In STARGAZER, the heroine, Julie, is the person enamored with carousels and so has made a career of restoring them. Readers new to the series need not have read any of the previous books to become involved in Julie’s emotional tale. It’s a stand-alone story of three wounded souls in need of healing. The main players, Julie, Rick, and Josh, have suffered very tragic losses, and their pain and suffering give them a very realistic quality that readers can relate to and/or sympathize with, especially the totally amicable five-year-old Josh.

There’s more to STARGAZER, however, than just a huge tug on the heartstrings. Julie and Rick share a romance that is charming for its sweetness, and the detailed information about carousels that is woven into the story is fascinating. Indeed, the title of the book refers to a stargazer, or the lead horse on a carousel. Finally, there is a mystery unfolding throughout the tale, for someone does not want Julie to stay in Hidden Falls. Animosity from a few of the townspeople gives readers clues as to who might be trying to run her out of town with small acts of vandalism, but it’s not until the final dramatic ending when all is revealed.

Despite the heavy issues and heartbreaking emotions that the hero and heroine struggle with, in the end, STARGAZER delivers a feel good romance that I certainly recommend.

Sandra Brill