I loved this book! It had me hooked with its slow-burn romance, cozy small-town vibes, and relatable characters. Perfect for anyone who loves a feel-good, emotional escape to the beach. 🏖️💙

Izzy is a widow looking for a new start for her and her children. She meets Sander but he is supposed to be leaving town, so will she take a risk on love again?

A wonderful read!
This novel drew me in from the very first page and kept me hooked until the end. The characters were vibrant and relatable, the writing was engaging, and the story had just the right balance of heart and humor. Highly recommend!
Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

"The Coast is Clear" is such a sweet second chance story. I'm not usually a lover of books that feature a dead spouse because it makes me far too sad, but this was one of the best novels I've read in a while.

this was a sweet and heartfelt book about grieving, healing, and moving on. I loved how loss was handled in this book and the insights it gave to how people deal with death differently. Zander's character was amazing; because of his past experiences, he deeply understood Izzy's feelings, which is exactly what she needed. He was kind and patient with the boys and always willing and happy to help. Izzy is strong and passionate about her family and doing the best she can. The characters in this book were great, and I loved the scenery.

The Coast is Clear is a contemporary romance written by Jensen Rose Long. It is book one in the Breakaway Shores series.

Summary: Izzy is a widow with two small children. It’s not even close to the life she pictured for herself, but it is her reality.

Needing a fresh start, she moves across the country and finds the perfect house for her and the boys.

Zander is ready for a fresh start too. Forced to choose a new career path for himself, he’s ready to sell his home and move.

But when he meets the prospective new owner (Izzy), he finds more and more reasons to stick around.

Is he really ready to leave town for good, or should he consider staying and starting something new right where he’s at?

My Thoughts: I had mixed thoughts on this one. I didn’t mind the storyline, and I liked the relationship and the characters, but it didn’t need the sexual references, and for me, it wasn’t one I would read again.

I would like to thank Victory Editing Co-op for providing me with a free digital copy of this book in exchange for my review. Thank you.

A slow burn, brother’s best friend trope is to DIE FOR. This was so sweet and immediately hooked me in. The vibes of the book overall left me with such a good cozy feeling. I will definitely be reading the next one!

This is a book about loss, about finding love after a loss and our lives when we actually decide that it's time to move on, the FMC really surprised me and the book was a bit fast paced regarding some feelings that I think it should have been better explored

Zander has stolen my heart ❤️, this is such a beautiful story of hope and love following such heartbreak, also told in Dual POV which is my favourite.
It follows Izzy who is tragically widowed at the age of 26 leaving her to raise her 2 precious boys. She chooses to move back to Breakaway Shores, Oregon where her brother Luke still lives, he’s a real estate agent and arranges her viewings.
She finds the perfect house, the owner Zander a retired professional football star happens to be Luke’s best friend, he is selling and moving out of the town. He is immediately drawn to Izzy, her courageous strength and her beautiful family.
Zander himself is familiar with grief and doesn’t push Izzy at all, Izzy struggles with her emotions but is clearly drawn to Zander too.
I devoured this book in less than a day, it was so beautifully written and I was praying for a hea for the both of them.
There was enough ups and downs to keep me on edge in just the right way. I look forward to reading more from Jenson and hopefully Breakaway Shores 2 will Luke’s story 🙏 with more from Izzy and Zander 🤞🏻❤️
Thank you NetGalley, Jensen Rose Long and Victory Editing Netgalley Co-op for this ARC, all opinions expressed are my own.

The Coast is Clear is book one in the Breakaway Shores series by Jensen Rose Long.
I was hooked to this story right away.
This was a fun! Super cute and adorable slow-burn.

Thank You NetGalley and Victory Editing for your generosity and gifting me a copy by of this amazing eARC!

Dual POV, Second Chance at Love, Swoon Worthy MMC and a strong FMC--loved this book from the very beginning! I was given an eARC of this book and I cannot wait to read more from this author! "The Coast is Clear" takes place on the Oregon Coast with some highlights in Portland and Seattle. The two main characters are well-developed, along with the secondary male characters; wonderful vibes between all three of them. I loved them from the start. There was some spice (not completely closed door) but mostly a lot of love & connection. Although it takes place over the summer, it's a cozy romance would be great to read any time of year. *I received an advanced complimentary copy from the author/publishing company via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

What a sweet and tender romance this was! For me personally, when dealing with widows in romance, I think it can be really difficult to strike the right balance between acknowledging that first love and not taking anything away from it... while also getting that feeling in the current romance of finding your person. I thought this one found that right balance. It didn't feel like Zander was trying to replace Jack (Izzy's first husband) at all. He understood and acknowledged that Jack had been an important part of her life. I loved the way that he just showed up for not just her... but her boys too. The relationship he had with them was super sweet and added so much to their story. The idea behind the story felt really unique too--- Zander has plans to move and Izzy plans to buy his house... talk about complications. It was a sweet story and one that has me looking forward to reading more from the author in the future.

The Coast Is Clear is a closed-door romance with fade to black moments and implied intimacy. While nothing explicit happens on the pages, it does get a little more heated and there is a scene where the two are in the shower together so it might not be for all closed-door readers. There is also some minor language as well.

**ARC received via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

The coast is clear was such a lovely read. I loved Zander he was a patient king and was totally swoon worthy! You could feel Izzy’s pain coming off the pages. Such a heartwarming story!

This was a very sweet book. I loved the plot and the storyline but it wasn't 100% for me. I love the single parent trope but somehow i couldn't get fully into this one. I would still recommend it since i liked the writing style!

The Coast is Clear follows Izzy, a 26 year old widow with two young boys, who is ready for a new start so moves to live near her brother Luke. With Luke's help she finds the ideal house for her and her young boys, the owner, Zander, being her brother best friend and she finds that she begins to fall for as they spend more time together.

This was a quick read that I couldn't put down and found to be really heartwarming. I couldn't put it down and wanted to continue to read about these characters who I really loved reading about.

Izzy and Zander were both well developed and complex characters who understood each other really well and were characters that I wanted to learn more and more about and found their backstories to be well built into the plot and not just there for the sake of the characters having some dramatic backstory. Izzy clearly always looked out for the boys best interests and doing her best to create the best environment she could for them. Her grief was also tackled really well and I love how she worked with the boys too, helping them to remember their dad but also work through their big feelings about what was going on.
I also really liked meeting Luke and look forward to getting his book in the future and seeing his love life develop because it has been hinted at in this book but I definitely look forward to seeing it develop more.

I also really enjoyed reading the romance story and seeing Izzy and Zander's relationship throughout the story. They didn't rush into a romance and thought about what a relationship between them would impact and both how to make the transition easiest for the boys and also if it was worth it. I also liked how Zander understood Izzy's priorities through personal experience and didn't push her to do things that went against what she thought was best for her family even if he disagreed instead trying to give her space and explain why he thought differently.
It was also a spice free romance which was nice to read and felt like it was right for the characters and the story.

Overall this was easy a 4 star romance and a fun debut story from an author I will be coming back to in the future once she has released more books, and hopefully Luke's story.
Thank you to Netgalley and the author, Jensen Rose Long, for a free e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

This is a slow burn, closed door, romance with so much love and heling. It’s funny and heartwarming.
The writing is very enthralling from the first pages. Very dynamic with a good balance between description and action. The pace is perfect.
Grief and lack of confidence, this book is a testimony to overcome your difficulties and believing in yourself.
Zander is a swooning man, and very sweet, romantic.
The book has such a cozy feeling, the kids are so cute and adorable. He falls in love with the kids first.
Quotes:
“I wish I could have met him. I’d thank him for loving you so much”
“Daddy Zander is home!”
Overall: I would 100 % recommend this book for those who like a good romance, with no big surprises, and who want to have a good time with a good book that will lead you through the journey of the characters at a very good pace.

I had no idea what this book was about prior to signing up. I really liked the title! And I’m very pleased with going into it blind! U very much enjoyed Izzy and Zander’s relationship. But swooned heavily on Zander’s relationship with Kingston and Christian! This book was so heartwarming and refreshing to read.

No spice, but that’s fine!

I felt the book did rush through some topics and were a little unfinished. Ie; Izzy’s relationship with her mom- how and why it was tumultuous. What happened with Izzy’s ex in-laws- the ex MIL seemed- off. I’d love to have seen how Izzy dealt with kinda being a step mom, I felt it only showed how Zander dealt with it. I just think some topics in the book could have been wrapped up in the epilogue.

Overall think it was a great palette cleanser and I hope the second book is about Luke! ❤️

Expect:
- Single mom
- Dual POV
- Second Chance Romance
- Talks of death
- Short chapters

Thank you NetGalley and Victory Editing for an eARC copy in exchange for an honest review! 💕

This was such a nice read, a story of second chances at love. Love the dual POV and the MMC was swoon worthy. I did find it the MMC a little too good to be true at times but it was also nice to read a romance that wasn't filled with toxic behavior. There was some intense moments where I couldn't turn the pages fast enough to see what happened and it was different to read a romance story of a widow. Overall I did enjoy this read and enjoyed a happy story for a change!

This was a sweet single mom/widow romance; Izzy is a great character. However I didn't find there to be much chemistry between the characters and the writing itself was just so slow I was bored. Sorry but this book just didn't fully land for me. The plot was good though.

I really liked the description of this book- young widow with two kids moves to start over in a small town and catches feelings for her brothers best friend. So many tropes I love: small town, second chance, brothers best friend...I was disappointed in the execution of this book. As a mom I can't imagine allowing a man I barely knew to take control of my time and my kids the way Izzy let Zander do! Surprising her and the kids with an overnight?!? What? There was good raw material here, interesting characters, and exploration of grief, but this book didn't land for me at all. It would benefit from some editing and dialogue being punched up. Probably better for fans of Lifetime romance movies. Thanks to Net Galley and Jensen Rose Long for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.