Thank you to NetGalley, Alys Murray and Bookouture for the ARC of Home At Summer’s End. This is my personal review for the ARC.
Home at Summer’s End is the fourth book in the Full Bloom Farm series.
It is about  Rose the only sister in the Anderson family to not have found true love yet. She has her own thoughts on love and she knows when the right one comes along; she will be all in for life!
I loved this entire series and was so happy to get the copy to fulfill my dreams of knowing what happens with Rose.  
Cole comes to town to star in a movie being filmed in Hillsboro.
The chemistry between Rose and Cole jumps off the pages as I read the book.
Thank you Alys Murray for giving me this series about the Anderson sisters.

Rose owns a flower shop in Hillsboro.  Cole is an actor, who is shooting a movie in the town.  Cole meets Rose on a blind date, set up by Annie, Rose’s best friend.  Cole and Rose decide to have a fake relationship. Cole wants to do it, to win back his ex-girlfriend. Rose does it to stop her friend and sister from meddling in her personal life. Can this fake relationship become a real one, as they get to know each other?  I enjoyed this book.  This book is part of a series but can be read as a stand alone.  You will want to go back and read her sisters and Annie’s story.  Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the E-ARC.  This is my own opinion.

I love this series and have been hooked since Harper’s story in The Magnolia Sisters. My affection for the Anderson family and the town of Hillsboro grew through Sweet Pea Summer and The Perfect Hideaway. 
But I want to be clear that I have been avidly waiting for Rose’s story. Even though I can relate to May, I identify with Rose the most out of the main characters we’ve met. I especially had to laugh when Harper called her “Shakespeare” because that was my nickname (for a while) when I was growing up. 
But I digress.
If you’ve read the rest of the series, you know what to expect – realistic characters in a bucolic setting with incidents, interactions, and events that all feel perfectly normal. The author has a talent for making the reader feel like they’re a townsperson of Hillsboro. Something is comforting in the familiarity of all of it. 
Aside from sharing a nickname, I really dig Rose’s character. I like how she’s prickly on the outside but is also whip-smart and has a sharp sense of humor. The scheme she cooks up with Cole is something I would absolutely think of. 
And Cole? Well, what can I say about him? He’s an actor without a lot of pretenses, who is much deeper than his good looks. We all hope that our movie crushes have that simpler nature on the inside, no?
I was a little bit unsure of his original reasoning for wanting to enter into the “romance” with Rose, because it seemed a little underhanded – and frankly naïve. But it was soon apparent that even his best-laid plans were going to be all screwed up. 
As with other books, you know what’s inevitable, but the fun is getting there with the characters. I’m sad that this was the last sister (including Annie), but I’m really hoping that the author sees fit to give us another visit to Hillsboro. 
I’m not ready to leave.

Adored this so much, the fake relationship becoming real, watching them warm to one another, it’s just so sweet, great writing, lovely and relatable characters, just a great romantic read.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

Home at Summer's End by Alys Murray is the 4th book in the Full Bloom Farm romantic series, and my first book by this author.  This book made me relax visualizing sitting on the beach, listening to the water sounds.  I found this book to be a quick and fun read, and look forward to reading more books by this author. I love the quirky people and situations in this book, and watching the characters grow.  I recommend this book for people who enjoy pretend romances that become real.  
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

A great read, the story of Rose and Cole.

They are set up by a mutual friend, and start on a fake relationship, both for their own reasons. It soon becomes anything but fake, but Cole is keeping a secret which could change everything, so what will happen when Rose finds out?

I hadn't read any of the other books in the series but don't think it mattered

As I’ve read all the three books about the Anderson sisters and their friend Annie before this, I’ve grown to love the small town Hillsboro and all its characters. Through all the other books, Rose comes across as being the nice one who doesn’t get into scrapes, except in The Perfect Hideaway where she challenges Annie by calling her bluff! That’s when I realized that there was more to Rose than met the eye.

It was nice to discover a Rose who is fed up of playing second fiddle to her sisters and Annie and  decides that she needs to get her family off her back about her single status. She allows Annie to set her up with the visiting actor Cole, and both of them decide to pretend date for their own reasons. Cole wants to practice the art of romance to get it right in his upcoming movie and Rose wants her family to think that she’s dating!

This sweet, clean romance has the typical plot of fake relationships, but the characters are so wonderfully created that it is very different. Love for family and community, the warmth of a small town and the downside of everyone knowing everyone else are common themes in this series and make the books all the more enjoyable reading.

A sweet romance suitable for Hallmark. Another fake romance fail. Lots of self examination and growth on the part of both individuals. No intimate details, just some sweet kisses.

Home at Summer’s End by Alys Murray and is the final book in the Full Bloom Farm Series.  It was an enjoyable story that I recommend.  I was drawn to this story as it was well written and drew me in.  This is Rose and Cole’s story.  These two started out deciding to “pretend date” but end up having real feelings for each other.  It is a romance story about opening your heart and finding your true love.
 
I received my advanced copy from NetGalley for my honest review.

Rose is looking for true love, and until she finds it, she is happy the way she is. She doesn’t mind being single as much as she doesn’t like being set up on dates by her sisters. Cole is a former tv action hero who just quit his series for the movies, and broke up with his gorgeous actress girlfriend. He is not ready to be set up with a new girl either. But they compromise by trying a fake relationship to fool some, satisfy others, and make some jealous.

Good book, and lots of fun to read, if you can suspend your disbelief over being set up on a blind date with a tv star. And I can, for sure, because romance novels with small town charm have always been  good friends to me!

The characters were all likeable and believable. A good, charming, cozy romance. With a good message at its heart — love  the people that you love, and accept them for who they are.

Fake relationships never work out the way they're supposed to, but local beauty Rose and actor Cole are determined to do it right and not fall in love.

Well, I did it again and didn't start with the first book. Though, with a book series like this, it isn't strictly necessary to read them in order; they're more or less standalones, though it's still nice to know the background on the surrounding characters. In this case, Home at Summer's End is the last book of the Full Bloom Farm quartet. But I really wanted to read it because I found myself in Rose just from the book description. While I would have liked to have gotten to know her sisters and friend via the first three books, I can't say I was disappointed because Rose and Cole just drew me in.

The Plot: A Beautiful Fake Relationship

Rose Anderson is the oldest Anderson girl. As Hillsboro, California's resident nice girl, she's a romantic at heart who has been hurt by love, but that doesn't stop everyone in her life from believing she won't be fully happy without a man in her life. Cole McKittrick just quit a popular TV series and his Hollywood perfect girlfriend just dumped him, so he's glad for the escape to small town Hillsboro, where he starts filming an upcoming romantic movie in two weeks. The only problem is, he has no idea how to be a romantic lead, so a friend from Hollywood, who just happens to be Rose's matchmaking best friend, sets him and Rose up.

The rules are simple: they'll pretend to be in a relationship (with some strict ground rules) so Rose can get everyone out of her hair and Cole can get his ex-girlfriend back. It makes perfect sense to both of them since Rose will also be helping to mold Cole into the perfect romantic lead and teaching him all about romance. There's no way this could go wrong. After all, the rules are rigid.

Home at Summer's End is such a sweet romance. Not light and fluffy, not trope-y, not cute. Just sweet. Since Rose is an avid romance reader, she knows all about how fake relationships never, ever work out, so does her best to make sure hers is a success. I loved that the typical romance tropes were addressed throughout the novel and how hard Rose struggled to make sure they didn't fall into any of the normal traps.

It follows the standard pattern in a romance novel, but never shies away from casually dropping in how this is supposed to happen at this point in a relationship and that could never happen because this wasn't a romance novel. It somehow managed to transplant me as a reader from the pages of a book into the lives of two very real people. Written with a light, deft hand, Home at Summer's End managed to avoid everything I hate in romance novels (the formula, the tropes) and present a very sweet, very clean story about a couple who know they're not allowed to fall in love. The only quibble I had was that Rose's reason for everything felt a little weak and she blew up a little too much at the end (when things typically go south), otherwise I really enjoyed most of this book.

The Characters: The Sweetest Couple, and a Loving Family

Rose is the entire reason why I wanted to read Home at Summer's End. She's the nice one who is the only one not bothered by her single status. She has an amazingly loving, if amazingly meddlesome, family, but loves them anyways. Though she runs the family's flower shop, she's a bookworm at heart who has probably read every romance novel and who loves every romantic movie ever filmed. She's sweet and, as the oldest child, puts everyone else first, but is finally realizing she's kind of done with that, and this last setup with Cole will be her last. I loved that she's a romantic at heart, though past hurts have her carefully guarding it.

Cole is a man of two faces. As an actor he presents a carefully cultivated bio and face, one that may or may not be the truth. As a man, he just wants to prove himself while keeping his secrets close to home. He didn't exactly come off as a swaggering, good looking actor, but that's what made him charming. He was deeper than his actor persona, and the chapters from his perspective showed his depth and his ever-conflicting feelings about everything. I didn't find him to be especially swoon-worthy, but he did make me sigh a few times.

And then there's Rose's family and her best friend Annie. They're all cozily paired up and overzealously involved in Rose's love life, or lack thereof. But they all have hearts of gold and are perfectly charming. If a bit too overly involved. I loved how close they all were, how much they cared about each other and only wanted the best for each other. Annie and Rose's sisters Harper and May have their own significant others and their romances are hinted at throughout the book, but their stories are the first three in this series.

The Setting: A Small Town in Northern California

Home at Summer's End takes place in a small town in Northern California. Being from a big city in Southern California, I struggled to believe there could be a small town in California, but thinking of wine country helped. I just replaced the vineyards with Rose's family's sprawling flower farm. It was delightful and charming. I liked that it actually didn't feel particularly Californian, but was geographically placed close enough to Hollywood that it could be believable.

The small town charm is everywhere in this book. Everyone knows everyone else, but there's still a very secret pie recipe. There are only so many date spots, but Rose and Cole make the most of all of them. It was cute and cozy, though it never felt stifling. I loved that it was small, but there was still breathing space. There were enough eyes looking over Rose and Cole's shoulders, but it was possible for them to keep secrets close to their chests. Overall, a delightful location.

Overall: A Sweet, Clean Romance

Romance is far from my preferred genre, and I almost passed on this one, but I'm really glad I read it. I just saw so much of myself in Rose. It's rare for me to find that, so I couldn't let the opportunity to review this one pass me by. I'm so glad I did because it did its best to turn the typical romance tropes on their heads, and I honestly couldn't stop reading. Rose and Cole were beautiful and perfect, and I desperately want to reread their story because it was that sweet. Overall, Home at Summer's End is both probably a fitting end to the series and a really sweet, tender romance that failed to get my eyes rolling at the ridiculousness. While it does fall into the formula, the lines felt a little more blurred and I could almost believe I was reading the story of a real couple. I did like the ending, but, once that last quarter hit, it started to feel too predictable and I felt like I'd been tossed into the romance novel formula, which was a little jarring since the rest of the book had been a dream.


Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for a free e-copy. All opinions expressed are my own.
Link to post: https://thelilycafe.com/book-review-home-at-summers-end-by-alys-murray/

This is the first book I’ve read by Alys Murray and I’ve already purchased the previous books in this series, so I can read when time permits.  This is the story of the last single Anderson sibling, Rose, and Cole, an up and coming actor.  Cole left a television series and is going to star in a movie.  He realizes he needs some help to pull off the non-existent chemistry with the female star.  Enter Annie, a friend to both Cole and Rose, with the perfect solution.  Rose has her own reasons for getting Cole on board with her plan and Cole figures this will be the perfect way to get his ex, Vivienne, back.  I won’t leave any spoilers, but if you enjoy fake relationship stories, then you will enjoy this book.

I received an advanced reader copy of this book from NetGalley and Bookouture and this is my voluntary and honest review.

Thank you Netgalley and Bookouture for this ARC! This review is based completely on my honest opinion.

This book is the fourth and final book of the Full Bloom Farm Series. This is the second book I have read from this author, the first, Perfect Hideaway, which is book 3 of this series. This time, the book tells about Rose Anderson who is now the only single one in the family. She is happily running her flower shop and is creating perfumes with the flowers in her shack. Then meet Cole McKittrick, a famous Hollywood actor, who breezes into Hillsboro from L.A. for a movie shoot. Annie Martin sets the two of them together. Rose is not really interested in romance and Cole wants to act as if they are together, so he could get back together with his ex-girlfriend, Vivienne. So they fake that they are dating together and at the same time, Cole starts reading romance novels and Rose helps him with them. And soon, without realizing, they both fall for each other...

The story started out really good. The chapters were divided as Rose's parts and Cole's parts and there were some parts that were funny to read. The writing was good as well and I was drawn into the story, so the author did a good job making the reader go into the story. Both Rose and Cole's characters are quiet likable as well. This romance book is cheesy and warm and cozy to read as well. Only thing was the story was not very realistic but other than that, I enjoyed reading this book and couldn't really put the book down!

Sweet, small town romance💕

3.5-4🌟stars
This story struck me as more women's fiction than romance though the male lead also does his share of soul searching and emotional growth.  Heroine Rose is stuck in a rut, hiding from her emotions and afraid to stretch herself toward any of her lifetime goals, including a career as a perfumier, love and a family of her own.  She's got issues with her family and hopes an outsider can help solve them without putting herself out there too much to risk bursting her protective bubble.

The romance between Rose and visiting actor Cole was sweet, fine, but not really all that memorable.  And I found the character of Annie, one of Rose's friends, pushy and annoying.

Maybe I would have enjoyed the story more if I had read the previous novels in the series about this small California town.  But one thing struck me as really odd.  The setting is California but several times the author describes Cole as having an American accent.  Duh!  Totally nondescriptive (we Americans, after all, can boast many dialects and accents but why even mention it?)!

Thanks to publishers Bookouture and NetGalley for sharing an advance copy of the book;  this is my voluntary and honest review.

This is a very sweet and tender love story. Rose is trying to get her family off her back about finding true love, Cole is trying to win back the woman who broke his heart. They decide to pretend-date, but as the days go by they start to have feelings for each other, but neither of them are brave enough to tell the other. I love books which feature characters who have closed off their hearts, and it always warms my own heart when they let themselves be vulnerable. This is the fourth book in this series, but I haven’t read the others and it was great as a stand-alone.

Could not put this book down. Loved the story about opening your heart and finding true love when you least expect it. A wonderful read

The fourth in a series and although each book's love story is self contained, I really recommend starting at book one as the stories build upon each other as the characters show up in each book.  

This book focused on Rose Anderson, one of the sisters from this family in Northern California that owns and operates a flower farm.  Rose owns a floral shop, but her true passion lies in making fragrance and it is where she would much rather spend her time.  Cole McKittrick is in this small town to film a romantic comedy and heal from a broken heart.  He wants to keep his movie career moving forward but needs help becoming a leading man and maybe Rose (who reads a lot of romance) could be just the trick.  But of course they must avoid falling in love . . . 

If you are a romance reader then this book is SO up your alley.  All the romance book references just made my day and I love reading a book through the lens of another romance reader - was so great!  Their story although was so predictable, was still so great to read.  

If you have read the other books, you will enjoy how this one completes the quartet.

Why is it that you have to have a man to be complete? What if a woman chooses not to ever marry? Why does everyone assume she is a lesbian? People should not put people into a box!
Rose is happy not in a relationship. She is truly waiting for her true love like the love her parents. Why does her sisters and friend continuously want to set her up on dates?

Cole is a sitcom star who just left not only a highly rated series for a movie role, but was dumped by a another actress. He is wondering what he did wrong because he was extremely affectionate but that’s not what she wanted. So, what do women want? He is in a small town for his new role where it’s to be filmed and a friend is going to set him up with someone who knows romance because she reads nothing but romance books! 

Cole & Rose decide to fake a romance in order for him to make his ex jealous and her to get everyone from setting her up! Watch out for the fireworks because someone has secrets and another has desires! 

I thought the author kept the book flowing to a point,  but at times it felt as though it needed more insight for the characters because I lost the intrigue of the secret. It was not as exciting as it could have been it felt a let down. The book was too predictable, I think there could have been more drama between the ladies.

I received an advanced copy from NetGalley and these are my willingly given thoughts and opinions.

I have been eagerly awaiting this book as it concludes the Magnolia Sisters series.  Each of which has been a glorious love story.
This visit saw the focus falling on Rose, the eldest of 3 sisters and, from previous books in the series, the most resistant to matchmaking.
Rose is a pure romantic and, because of a dreadful past experience, she is determined to find love naturally and not be forced into any arrangement from a well-meaning friend or family member.
Of course, she should have known that involving Annie was a mistake! Rose believed that she could spend time with Cole and convince the town and her family that she was dating whilst protecting her heart.
Cole is wonderfully written as the movie hero with a heart of gold.  He has his own reasons for entering into the arrangement with Rose but, like Rose, he underestimates the power of attraction.
I really loved this gorgeous courtship and the final result will satisfy even the hardest of hearts.
This entire series has been wonderful and refreshingly romantic. I’m excited to read Alys Murray’s next book which sounds gorgeous!

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC. Rose and Cole made a cute couple. Happy to see Rose  found love.