Strawberry Lane

Thomas’s touching first Someday Valley romance, a spin-off of her Honey Creek series, highlights the endearing residents of a close-knit Texas community. When loner Rusty O’Sullivan crashes his car in Someday Valley, he’s saved from the wreckage by Starri Knight and her aunt, Ona-May. Though he has a long rehab ahead of him, he’s drawn in by alluring Dr. Amber Adams and finds a friend in Starri and a home in Sudden Valley. Then lawyer Jackson Landry, who was hired by wealthy Jamie Ray Morell to track down his long-lost children, identifies Rusty as one of the heirs. Rusty isn’t interested in the inheritance, but he does decide to look for his half siblings, the youngest of whom, teen Zach Holmes, turns up in a local jail after allegedly stealing food. Rusty agrees to take Zach in even as he hopes for a relationship with Amber, whom he believes is way out of his league. Meanwhile, Starri grows closer to Jackson and, in the bustling hospital, nurse Emma Sumers dotes on a coma patient. By interweaving multiple romantic story lines, Thomas easily draws readers into the cozy world she’s created, while rich emotions and authentic characters keep the pages flying. This is small town romance done right. Agent: Gail Fortune, Talbot Fortune Agency. (May)