It’s okay that this book doesn’t give you all of the answers. Not everything is wrapped up in a neat little bow at the end. That’s what makes it more real. The story emotionally messy and relatable. It’s love and hope and sadness and tragedy. It is everything you need to invest yourself in these characters. I can’t wait for more.

✨ BOOK REVIEW ✨
I fell deeply in love with @heidimclaughlinauthor when I read the #beaumontseries last year - haven’t read it? PLEASE DO!! I was so excited to get the @netgalley #arc of After All. It was a binge read - full of love and hurt. it kept my attention and had me falling in love with every single character. I felt invested in the outcome of their relationships and in true Heidi McLaughlin fashion left me praying for a sequel! 💖 releases 3/24 🎉

This is my first book by Heidi McLaughlin, which I received through NetGalley, and overall, I enjoyed this book. It had a really sweeping feel, a bit of a saga and it was well written and nicely descriptive. There was a bit of angst, a bit of a twist and strong characters that draw you into the story. However, I did find a couple of things were a bit off.

This story focused on Brooklyn and Bowie. They initially met when Brooklyn first came to Cape Harbor in her teens and she was enclosed into Bowie's group through her meeting with Bowie's best friend, Austin. Austin and Brooklyn had a great love, as perceived by everyone around them although Bowie loved Brooklyn from afar. Then Austin died and everything fell apart. Brooklyn left, never to come back until Austin's mother finally asked her and her daughter to come to help her reopen the family inn. Can they overcome the past to find their HEA?

A couple of things. The way it was written, Austin ascended to deity status. I mean, after his death, they had annual celebrations/mourning parties for Austin. He seemed like a good guy but the level of this was crazy. Then again, I never lived in a small town so perhaps it is realistic? The other thing is that Bowie was a bit obsessed/stalker-ish, not to mention had a "woe is me" attitude for much of the book. There were also a lot of odd decisions being made by many of the characters.

Overall, though, it was a good read that kept my attention.

After All is solid and well written from start to finish. Heidi McLaughlin takes her storytelling craft to a whole new level as she immerses readers in the sea side town of Cape Harbor and leads us on a journey that lasts well beyond the last page. After All is screenplay worthy and a must read.

There was something about this story. Something that wouldn't let me put it down. I connected to the story and I found the characters (well, most of the characters) to be so wonderfully lovable. I ADORED Bowie. Honestly, Bowie had my heart from the moment I met Luke and it only grew from there. He was my favorite kind of fierce, loyal, utterly adoring hero.

I loved Brooklyn too, though it wasn't quite as enthusiastic. She frustrated me sometimes. I wanted her - as an adult - to confront her issues and deal with the past. She was likable enough, but I didn't always connect with her. On top of that, the emotional punches were subdued. There was so much build-up and then they sort of fizzled out on me. Everything resolved so quickly and neatly and with very little drama. I was completely on the hook wanting to know how the story played out, but more than once I was left unsatisfied by the emotional depth of the story. The strongest emotional connection I felt was between Bowie and Brooklyn's daughter - and while I adored that storyline - it left me feeling a little underwhelmed with the love story between Bowie and Brooklyn.

In all, this was well written and compelling. Once I was in, there was no way I was going to walk away from the story - I HAD to know what happened. It's an interesting story, and I enjoyed the time I spent with the characters. It just lacked the emotional depth I needed to take it to the next level for me.

After All by Heidi McLaughlin a five-star read that is all in. This is a story that will stay with me for a long, long time, I do not know how I missed this author, as what amazing writing. Cape Harbour and the views from the Driftwood Inn windows are some that I would love to see, they are described so well you can feel the salty air on your face. Brooklyn Hewitt ran away and who could blame her, her life as she knew it was over and would never be the same again, but what she didn’t realise in her grief was that she wasn’t the only one who had lost everything. But almost fifteen years later an opportunity comes a knocking and that knocking unleashes more than she can ever imagine. Austin Woods has cast a very large shadow, but his loss was only a tiny part of this monumental story. There are so many highs and lows with this one, you will be sobbing into the pages in one breath and then have a secret smile in the next. Heidi McLaughlin is without a doubt going to become a must read author for me.

After All is a second chance, small town romance set in Cape Harbor. I can tell you 3 things right now....1.) I love this story. 2.) I love these characters. 3.) I want more. Brooklyn Hewitt is back after leaving 15 years ago after a tragic incident that left her packing her bags and never looking back. Bowie Holmes was her best friend and is deeply hurt she took off without an explanation. He struggles because he also has love for her. We are introduced to some amazing side characters (whom I hope get their own book) that make things easier or harder for Bowie and Brooklyn. This book definitely tugs on your heart strings and will have you feeling so much. It will make you sad, angry, happy, resentful, forgiving and full of hope. See lots of emotions packed in this story. You get pieces from the past and when you do you get a better understanding of why these characters end up the way they have today. Actions have consequences....some pay the ultimate price while others are better equipped to handle them. I enjoyed the journey and loved the twists I didn’t see coming.....makes for a better story and I’d love more!

Well-written story, but there was just something about it that I couldn’t connect to. It felt like there was so much internalization and many things felt unresolved. I was rooting for Bowie and Brooklyn so hard, but just didn’t feel their connection. They went from hate to love so fast, but there was no romance. This story has a lot of potential, but feel like we only scratched the surface.

This was ana amazing 2nd chance love story with all the feels. Heidi truly did an amazing job. I cannot wait for her fans to read it

This small town, second chance romance is absolutely phenomenal!! Left me speechless with a hangover. It is also one heck of an emotional rollercoaster that will suck every emotion out of you. I loved, laughed and cried. Everything about this story - the plot, characters, surrounding - is fantastic and a must read!!!

Five Stars for ‘After All’ (Cape Harbor) by Heidi McLaughlin

Many thanks to NetGalley, Montlake Romance, and Heidi McLaughlin for an ARC in exchange for an honest book review of ‘After All’ (Cape Harbor). My thoughts and opinions are 100% my own and independent of receiving an advance copy.

Synopsis: “From New York Times bestselling author Heidi McLaughlin comes a heartfelt story about overcoming great loss and forgiving past sins to find happiness again.

Brooklyn Hewett hasn’t set foot in Cape Harbor for fifteen years—not since an accident claimed the love of her life, Austin Woods. Desperate to move forward, Brooklyn has focused on raising her daughter for the past fourteen years. But when the opportunity comes along to renovate the old Driftwood Inn, Brooklyn knows it’s time to go home.

But it won’t be easy. For one, Austin’s best friend, Bowie Holmes, still lives in Cape Harbor. Brooklyn hasn’t quite been able to forget him: not since the night they spent together—the same night they both lost Austin. Separated by tragedy and guilt, they’re brought together by the Driftwood project. And as they rebuild the inn, they discover they’re also rebuilding something else.

Brooklyn’s always been desperate to move on, not knowing that she first needs to reconcile past transgressions. She can’t forget, but she can forgive—Austin, Bowie, and herself—on her way toward long-awaited happiness”

Author Heidi McLaughlin sends the readers and the characters on a journey to finally deal with what exactly happened on a stormy night fifteen years ago that sets the story in motion in ‘After All’. We’re given bits and pieces and it draws you in to the circumstances of one fateful night that changes the futures of everyone in Cape Harbor and beyond.

This captivating book is a beautifully written story of overcoming grief in a myriad of ways, some good and others bad; of the lengths people will go to for love and to overcome guilt and obtain forgiveness; of a small fishing town in the Pacific Northwest that is so finely wrought that you can practically smell the sea and feel the grit of the sand under your feet. All of the characters are compelling and I was completely drawn into their lives. I read 'After All' in one sitting.

'After All' leaves you with some questions that may make you ready to go to your book club and discuss this book until you run out of wine. Mainly, you might have opinions on what motivated certain characters to do things. I would like to attend all of those book club meetings! I look forward to more of the Cape Harbor series from Heidi McLaughlin!

#AfterAll #NetGalley

Wow, what a beautiful story that will give you all the feels! You'll laugh, cry and fall in love! Heidi blew this out of the water, I love these characters! 5 shining stars for this one!
Brooklyn has to head back home, to a place she swore she'd never return to. Along with her 14 yr old daughter Brystol, they head back to Cape Harbor to help her daughter's grandmother with renovating the Inn. While there she runs into her old best friend Bowie, who will have you swooning along with his dog Lucky!
Follow along as Bowie tries to break down the walls Brooklyn has put up after losing what she thought was the love of her life Austin. I feel you need to read along and experience all the feels yourself, so that's all I'm giving you!!
This is one of the best stories I've read! If you love Heidi's books you're going to love this one! Grab it asap!

Some books should come with a warning label!
Heidi McLaughlin has a wonderful talent for crafting small town second chance romances. Her Beaumont series is a huge hit with lovers of this sub-genre of romance and McLaughlin knows how to give readers what they want. The Cape Harbor series gets off to a great start with After All and has the potential to be popular with readers.
Between the beautiful cover of After All is a captivating read sure to have readers laughing out loud or sobbing into their tissues.
Carly is a woman who has lost her will to live. Losing both her husband and son to the waters beyond Cape Harbor has seen her withdraw into herself. Owning the once filled to bursting local inn and closing its doors to the public, Carly has become a recluse with only her faithful friend to keep her company and much-anticipated summers with her beloved granddaughter.
Brooklyn is a woman haunted by her past and the ghost of Austin, the man she loved so much she gave up her dreams to be with him. She is tormented by their last conversation, falling into the arms of his best friend and losing Austin to the water - all in the same night. She gets a call from Carly to come and renovate the inn she spent so many hours in and returns with her daughter in tow, hoping to avoid her former friend and the one man who could undo her.
Bowie is a man tormented by the same past, ghost and loss. The night he took his best friend's girl to bed, he lost him and following the funeral, lost the only girl he'd ever loved. But now she is back. Carly has thrust Brooklyn and Bowie together to renovate her inn, Austin's childhood home.
Bowie harbors a lot of resentment toward Brooklyn for leaving.
Brooklyn is furious with Bowie and their friends for ignoring or forgetting Carly in the fifteen years since Austin's death and terrified they will blame her for it.
Brystol, Brooklyn's daughter wants to settle in Cape Harbor and go to a real school, the school her parents went to and make real friends after years of homeschooling.
Carly wants Brooklyn back to stay. She has secrets she needs to share and she knows now is the time to do it.
These individual paths merge in an emotional rollercoaster revealing long-held secrets and hidden emotions that keep you turning the pages to find out what happens.
I am really looking forward to the next book in this series.

Loved this story. Connected with the characters quicky and it's a story that's hard to put down. The story is full of a lot of emotions. Great read

This book was hard to put down. I devoured it in two sittings. The story was so captivating it made you not want it to end. I love it!

This book broke my heart and then put it back together. Brooklyn and bowie's story was heartbreaking and hard but worth it.