Haunting Olivia

The second novel in Taylor's trilogy about three half-sisters' inheritance begins when New York fashion magazine editor Olivia Sedgwick learns she's been willed her wealthy, deceased father's cottage in Blueberry, Maine, the hometown she fled 13 years before following a teenage pregnancy that ended in stillbirth. Once back home, she runs into her first love, Zachary Archer, and their child, 13-year-old Kayla—very much alive. As Olivia unravels the familial conspiracy to keep her from her daughter, she struggles to find a place in the lives of Kayla and Zach, who believe she abandoned them. Complications arise when someone begins a terror campaign against Olivia, sending threatening notes and trashing her cottage. When Kayla's entry into the Blueberry Inner-Beauty Pageant puts her in harm's way, too, Olivia and Zach must race to discover who's behind the threat. Taylor tells a compelling suspense story with vivid characters, plenty of heartfelt human drama and winning romance, but the conclusion leaves too many questions unanswered, and Olivia's past and present don't ever line up convincingly. (Oct.)