Someone to Love: Darling, Vt., Book 2

Alward’s charming and down-to-earth second Kissing Bridge contemporary will have readers wishing they could book a weekend getaway to picturesque and romantic Darling, Vt. Willow Dunaway, a devotee of yoga and Zen, returned to her hometown after a few years away to open the Purple Pig Café, which specializes in home-cooked all-natural foods. Now that her best friend, Laurel, has married Aiden Gallagher (in Somebody like You), she finds herself spending more time with the entire Gallagher family, including firefighter Ethan, a widower. Ethan is weighed down by responsibilities to his two young sons and feels immense guilt for relying on family help to care for them during his shifts. He thinks hippie Willow is too flighty, but he’s drawn to her free spirit, her generosity to their community, and her delightful manner with his boys. Soon Ethan begins to realize that he can find happiness again. Alward introduces themes of reproductive choice and handles them thoughtfully and without judgment. Readers will root for her convincing characters, whose internal and external problems feel real. Agent: Karen Solem, Spencerhill Associates. (Mar.)