Mary doesn’t trust her choices in men because she’s made some poor ones.
However she’s a sharp designer and soon is hired by Stephen to reinvision the local theater.
Mary may not be savvy in some things but she does hold to her convictions.
Stephen is quirky and a good potential match for Mary but I couldn’t get past the snakes, ick.
Readers are shown more about Kelly’s background.
Once character turns out to be a total skunk and that was disappointing.
I like the development if this not so quiet seaside town.

This is book two in the Sand Dollar Cove series. It can be read as a standalone though I think reading book one is a good idea.
In the first book we got to know Hannah. Now we get to know more about her younger sister, Mary. Who can be just a bit…..exasperating in many ways!
I loved the authors descriptions of Sandy Dollar Cove.
All in all, a cozy story that is both heartwarming and heartfelt.
Thank you NetGalley, Bookouture and the author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Publication date: February 15, 2024

Photographs from the Cove is the second book in the Sand Dollar Cove series by Jennifer Bardsley. I received the ARCs for books 1 & 2 at the same time.

This second book focuses on Mary Turner, the younger sister of Hannah the focus of the first book. Mary and Hannah have lived in Sand Dollar Cove their whole lives. They were raised by their grandmother after losing their father to a car accident and their mother fell into a drug and alcohol addiction.

At the end of the first book, Mary finds out her longtime boyfriend not only has cheated on her but is married and expecting a baby. This book locks up right as the first one ends. Mary is in a deep depression just plugging along after being dumped.

Mary is an interior designer and lands a dream job with Steven the new owner of the Sand Dollar Cove cinema looking to restore it to its previous glory. As Mary gets to know Steven, she can’t deny her attraction to him. She’s interested but has so many trust issues between her ex boyfriend and her mother.

After Mary catches Steven in a lie, she breaks up with him before he can explain his reasoning. Will Mary ever find true love?

I liked this book better than the first but still had trouble connecting with the characters. I’m giving this one 3 stars but will be passing on reading the next instalment of the series.

Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

#NetGalley #jenniferbardsley #photographsfromthecove

2.5 ⭐️

The old cinema sits proud—but neglected—on the cove’s sun-bleached main street. Mary is determined to bring it back to its former glory, but when she discovers a crumbling photo album inside, one picture will change everything…

There was a lot of things about this book I liked and also disliked. I like that we got to learn more about the characters from the first book and see the characters develop. From the character development, I ended up changing my opinion on some of the characters. There are some that I like and others who I am not the biggest fan of. Although, I liked Mary in the first book in the series, I wasn’t the biggest fan of her by the time I finished this book — she doesn’t feel like she’s a 23 year old, she feels a lot younger as her decisions and the way she acts makes her feel younger than what she actually is.

Although I do think that you could read this as a standalone because there is enough backstory given from the previous book, I do actually think that there is too much given as it felt very repetitive at times.

I feel like the mystery in the book was solved way too quickly, it didn’t feel fleshed out enough and it felt predictable in the direction it went in.

Also for a book that talks quite a lot about different ways to be inclusive to the disabled community and features a character in a wheelchair, the last thing I would have expected was an ableist slur being used.

Despite all of this, I’m interested in seeing how this series will end, with us following Brittany and her life after her son goes to college in the next book.

⚠️ CWs: cheating, derogatory language, cursing, victim blaming, controlling behaviour, ableist slur, verbal abuse, vomiting, mentions car accident, murder, domestic abuse, past abuse and neglect ⚠️

Thank you Bookouture and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book!

Mary is expecting her boyfriend to propose after years of being together. He even rang her sister to see what type of ring he should buy. But when he came home from being away for four months, he brought a pregnant wife with him. Poor Mary is devastated. Steven has bought the very old cinema in town, and hires Mary to do her magic. And it sure does need a lot of magic. To go with the snakes. This story was absolutely wonderful from beginning to end. I sure hope there are more stories from Sand Dollar Cove.

Photographs from the Cove is the second book about the Turner sisters. It focuses on Mary the younger sister. Mary thought she had met the love of her life and was just waiting for Aidan to propose. He had already called her sister Hannah to ask about the ring advice.
Mary had gone to Hollywood to seek her dream job of becoming an actress and even took a role in a low production movie film that Mary wasn’t very proud of what they had demanded she do in the production and when it basically belly flopped Mary came home dejected. Mary signed for classes to become an interior designer/decorator. She was given the opportunity to decorate the lobby at the Cove resort which as much as she appreciated the job she felt it was given to her because Hannah her sister was the new general manager and dating the new owner of the resort.
Mary gets blind sighted by Aidan when he walks in to town with a very pregnant lady who is wearing engagement ring on her finger.
Mary has a hard time struggling with her self worth as she struggles to remember what their mother put them through when their Dad passed away and her mother made horrible choices in life.
I received ARC of this from NetGalley and enjoyed the story of Mary.

This is the second installment in a series, but can easily be read as a stand alone novel. It is set in a small coastal Washington town, and features Mary as the main character. I found her exasperating at times, but overall enjoyed her story.

Photographs from the Cove is book #2 in the Sand Dollar Cove series, but it could also be read as a standalone as there is enough backstory which makes it easy to follow.
I’m loving this series and I can’t wait to read more, I eagerly await book #3.
I loved the storyline and the characters which are all well developed. I couldn’t put it down. I was just hooked and loved being drawn into the story.
It’s beautifully written, vividly descriptive of the coastal town and surroundings, and it tugs at your heartstrings.
It’s about long buried family secrets, learning to love yourself and overcoming hurt from the past. The stories focus is on Mary, Hannah’s younger sister, who we hear from in book #1. I enjoyed getting to know Mary and how her character develops throughout the story.
Overall, a beautiful, enjoyable lighthearted read. It’s just brilliant.
Definitely recommend.
With thanks to #NetGallery @bookouture for an eARC of #PhotographsFromTheCove in exchange for a honest review. All opinions are my own.
Book publishes 15 February 2024.

Photographs from the Cove is the second book in the series(Postcards from the Cove is the first). This book follows Mary the youngest of the sister. You learn some more backstory to both sisters. It has a little bit of mystery, love, and family.

Spoiler alert****************
There are many times in the books that talk about snakes like pythons, if you happen to be afraid of them like me.

Even with all the snakes, I still really enjoyed the story. I think I enjoyed this one more than the first just because I loved all the characters.

This is book 2 and the story continues with Mary, the younger sister. Mary was younger and doesn't remember a lot, that happened when she was young. Now she is an adult, and her journey is bringing her to discover who she is, and who she is meant to become. As she learns about the past, both her past and also the past that Sand Dollar Cove had, she finds the confidence to move forward in her journey, The women she is becoming, is who she is meant to be, and she follows it. It was interesting seeing who she was and all the changes that are taking place to become the woman she is going to be.
I received an ARC from Bookouture through NetGalley.

This was a decent follow on from Postcards From The Cove although I enjoyed the first book more.
I enjoyed learning more about Mary and liked how her character developed through the story.
This town has some pretty dodgy history haha

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book.

Words hurt. Yes they do. They can make your whole world crumble if you let it and there for awhile I thought that certain someone was going to crash in on herself. My heart really hurt for her.
I was really excited to see Mary's story right along with Hannah's so I grabbed them both.
I loved little Sand Dollar Cove and it's residents. They became family to me.
I think both stories had triumphs and trials but for Mary hers was a little more sadder. I loved in getting to know her.
I did miss Hannah too but it's really Mary's story.
I wish I had a big sister like Hannah. She's pretty cool too.
I loved this book so much that I hated to see it end. This family came to mean a lot to me.
Jeremy cracked me up too. I think in a way, he's what made this story special.
Your typical teenager who went out of his way to make me laugh and shake my head at the same time if that's possible.
What made me love it was the support of family and friends were there for Mary and Hannah.
Guy too! I was glad to see him back. Only better laugh out loud.
I hope this series continues cause I love this author who has me in all sorts of feel good emotions through these two sisters and their stories.
5 stars for two wonderful ladies that I have come to know and love.
I highly recommend!
My thanks to Netgalley for a copy of this book. I was NOT required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are my own.

3.5⭐

This is the second book in the Turner sister’s experience at Sand Dollar Cove, Photographs From The Cove, and it focuses on the younger sister, Mary.

If you choose to read this as a stand-alone, the author has provided enough backstory that you’ll have no problem catching up quickly.

Although I understand the focus of the book, I really missed Hannah. I think it was because I identified more with her than Mary. You’ll get a chance to meet Elvis the snake, the Cove’s newest resident, Steven Clarke, see how Mary has fared since her shocking news, and embark on a mystery with her as she struggles to understand the significance of her find in the old cinema’s storage room. I think I enjoyed the development of the mystery more in this second book than the one in the debut. Regardless, unearthing a secret puts everything Mary holds dear in jeopardy. As with the previous book, Bardsley engages readers quickly with her believable story, her vivid descriptions and her ability to tug on the heartstrings.

Thank you for the Easter eggs in both books, Jennifer Bardsley. I love turmeric lattes, too.

The next stop on the Sand Dollar Cove Tour is to see Brittany and get a peek at her new life after Jeremy goes to college.

I was gifted this copy by Bookouture and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

After reading the first book from the Sand Dollar Cove books I couldn’t wait to delve straight into this and let me tell you it did not disappoint. Every bit as fabulous as the first in fact I may have enjoyed this one just that bit more! Definitely looking forward to reading more from this author.

Finished in two days. Absolutely brilliant. It has bestseller written all over it. What a book! Giving copies to friends for Xmas!

I liked the second book in the Sand Dollar Cove series better than the first. I was really impressed with Mary's strength and her pushing back for what she wanted. I was also surprised to hear about Kelly's background and understood her struggle with addiction after a very troubling childhood. Her experience helped her to give up custody of her children to their grandmother because she knew from experience that they needed a better mother figure. I really enjoyed the second book and can't wait to read the next in the series.

“Photographs from the Cove” by Jennifer Bardsley is the second of the “Sand Dollar Cove” novels. This book can be read as a stand-alone, though I’d recommend reading the first book to fill in some information - though Ms. Bardsley does a good job catching the reader up on background material. As a sequel, this book wasn’t bad - it focuses on Hannah Turner’s sister, Mary, who is a minor character in the first book. The other main characters make appearances, along with a number of new characters, including Mary’s new love interest. My one complaint about this book is that there was, again, a lot of back story - including a lot to do with Mary’s mother’s behavior and story (also, why one character kept insisting upon “family” things really annoyed me). The fact that there’s a tie between the two main characters bugged me. I also felt like the two main characters should have had better communication skills in general. I did like getting to know Mary a bit better - she was obviously more fleshed out in this story, but I did miss the interaction with Hannah. This book has some odd bits in it - such as focusing on the new fitness person (not sure why those scenes were included) and blow-ups between two other characters. All in all, I think if one has read the first book, this might be one to pick up - the storyline is pretty solid, but I cannot say that I enjoyed it as much as the first book. A 3.5 read, rounded up to 4 stars.

Book two in this intriguing series...photographs...the Cove...curl up in a comfy chair...before a blazing fire...by the beach...just enjoy the realistic characters in this series by a talented author. Hope there is Book 3...enjoy. Thanks Netgalley.