It’s another week and yet another hurricane has rolled through and wreaked havoc in communities and the people residing in them. If you’ve been impacted by Hurricane Milton or you’d like to update me on how you and your family have fared through Hurricane Helene, please drop me a line here.
Earlier this week marked the release day of The Soulmate Project—the final book in my Holly Grove Island series. If you haven’t picked up your copy of the book yet, here are three reasons not to miss Nick and Emerie’s friends-to-love journey.
#1 Em’s Journey is an Empowering One
When Emerie makes the brave decision to finally tell her best friend that she’s in love with him and he doesn’t feel the same, she resolves not to spend another day pining for someone who doesn’t want her. Instead, she puts her energy into becoming her best self. The kind of person who will attract her ultimate soulmate. It’s a lesson that can be applied to relationships, friendships, or jobs. When faced with rejection, don’t wallow; invest in yourself. It’s a lesson I personally identified with and am applying to my own life regarding my writing career.
#2 Fun with Friends and Family
If you’ve read any of my other books, you know how much I adore having fun with my secondary characters. Straight-talking friends; well-meaning parents; annoying siblings; meddling, matchmaking grannies; colorful, local shop owners; and more. My philosophy when it comes to writing is that—as in real life—none of us exist in a vacuum. A variety of elements culminated to make us who we are. Our family, friends, and circumstances are a huge part of that. The secondary characters in a story help me bring the main characters’ story to life. And just as readers enjoy revisiting past characters from a series, so do I. So I loved that Dexter, Dakota, Garrett, Sinclair, Izzy, and Mama Mae all had a role to play in Nick and Emerie’s love story.
#3 Friends Really Do Make the Best Lovers
I’m not saying that friends-to-lovers is the best romance trope, but it’s definitely in my Top Five Romance Tropes. (Second chance, enemies-to-lovers, friends-to-lovers, best friend’s younger sibling, forced proximity, in case you were wondering.) But I’m not talking about romantic fiction right now; I’m talking real life. And no, I’m not saying that you need to fall in love with your supposedly platonic best friend in order to have a long-lasting relationship. But developing a true friendship with the person you love makes for a more fun relationship filled with laughter. Gives you someone’s shoulder to cry on through rough times. Someone to share secrets with. Someone who will cheer you on through disappointments. Someone who gets you and loves you despite your flaws or maybe even sees the flip side of those flaws and thinks of them as your superpower. So whether you were childhood friends, high school sweethearts, or complete strangers whose marriage was arranged, building and nurturing a true, deep friendship makes for the best relationships.
If you’ve already read Nick & Em’s story, The Soulmate Project, let me know here if you agree with my assessment. And if you missed the excerpts I shared earlier this week, you’ll find them at the links below:
Get your copy of The Soulmate Project at your favorite retailer or at the link below. And if you see the book on the shelf at your local retailer, be sure to tag me @ReeseRyanWrites on your favorite social media platform and include the hashtag #TheSoulmateProject.
In this delightful small‑town romance, can the search for a soulmate before the next New Year’s Eve bonfire make these childhood best friends realize the perfect person was right there all along?
Emerie Roberts is tired of waiting for her best friend Nick to finally notice her. When she confesses her feelings at the town’s annual New Year’s Eve bonfire, Nick doesn’t feel the same. Em is devastated. She’s ready to settle down and start the next phase of her life. If Nick isn’t her soulmate, she resolves to stop pining for him and find the man who is. Em hatches a seven-step plan to meet her love match and enlists the support of her family and friends. So why does Nick seem hellbent on sabotaging her efforts?
Em is the most important person in Nicholas Washington’s life. She’s funny, compassionate, generous, athletic—and beautiful. Of course, he’s attracted to her. But he learned the hard way that getting involved romantically is the quickest way to destroy a friendship. Nick promised to help Em find her soulmate. But he might’ve made the biggest mistake of his life. Because helping Em find the man who will steal her heart is breaking his.
Will he realize that love is worth the risk before she ends up with Mr. Wrong?
Are you new to my Holly Grove Island Series? No worries! Each book is a standalone, so you can jump in anywhere and read the series. And for those of you who only like to read completed series (I see you out there. LOL.) The Holly Grove Island series is currently complete. Here’s the reading order and a brief summary of each story:
Second Chance on Cypress Lane
An ambitious reporter returns to her seaside hometown to start over after a scandal tanks her career. But it isn’t that easy when she’s surrounded by her past, including her first love who wants a second chance: https://books2read.com/
Return to Hummingbird Way
Can three months, two planning projects, and a meddling grandmother make these high school hate crushes see how right they are for each other? Pre-order Garrett & Sinclair’s sexy small-town romance: https://books2read.com/
The Soulmate Project
She wants to be more than friends. He’s terrified of screwing up their lifelong friendship. But when she goes on a quest to find her soulmate by next New Year’s Eve, will he finally realize that love is worth the risk? https://books2read.com/
