About the Book
Book: Driftwood Dreams
Author: T.I. Lowe
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: June 1, 2020
Synopsis: Josie Slater has allowed the circumstances anchoring her in Sunset Cove to become a life sentence. Since her mother’s death years before, she’s spent most of her waking hours helping her dad run the Driftwood Diner. As her best friends, Opal and Sophia, make their dreams come true, Josie watches her own art school aspirations drift on by. But when a French-speaking Southern gentleman from her past moves back from Europe, Josie is launched into a tizzy of what-ifs and I-sure-do-hope-sos.
August Bradford left Sunset Cove six years ago to sow some life oats and conquer his ambitious career goals. Finally ready to lay down some roots, the successful artist is back in town and determined to win Josie’s heart. When he enlists Josie’s help in the preparations for a children’s art camp, Josie finds herself unleashing her artistic side in a way she hasn’t since before her mother’s death. August hopes to convince Josie to paint a life with him, but the problem is convincing her to let go of her apprehensions and give him—and her dreams—a fair chance.
My Thoughts
Driftwood Dreams is the second book in T.I. Lowe’s Carolina Coast Series. The books can be read as standalone’s, but I did see returning characters’ appearances from the previous book; I loved the first book, so I recommend going back to read that one as well. The whole series takes place in a small seaside town off the coast of Carolina (which is one of my favorite places ever) and makes you feel at home right from the first page.
Characters can make or break my interest in the story, and T.I. Lowe did a great job of capturing my interest with both main characters in a very relaxed manner. Josie is a quiet, helpful, and loyal person who is always willing to lend a helping hand. She has high expectations of herself, is a people pleaser and an artist at heart. August is something of a mystery (maybe why I liked him so much) and is a mix of a hard-working and laid-back artist. I thought that his thought process was easy to follow and engaging to read. The chemistry between August and Josie was developed at a fun and interesting pace, and from the beginning, there were hints of the end goal for them. It was a twist on the girl next door type character plot.
I thought that T.I. Lowe did a great job with the storyline movement and that the characters were genuinely relatable. The themes she wove in were great reminders that we only have this one life to live, and we need to live it how God calls us to. Also, we need to remember to follow our dreams and not be afraid of what others might think. T.I. Lowe described island life in a way that made me feel like I had sand under my feet and palm trees growing in my house. I truly loved her vivid descriptions. I think readers who like Debbie Macomber, Rachel Hauck, and Denise Hunter will love this book and the Carolina Coast series.
I give this book 4 out of 5 stars for the relaxing storyline (So made me want to go to the beach), the interesting characters, and for the theme of following your dreams. I recommend picking up this book (or series!) to read while at the beach this summer!
*Reason for 4 instead of 5 stars: I loved the characters, I really did, however, some of their reactions or choices just did not seem believable to me.
**I volunteered to read this book in exchange for my honest opinion. The thoughts and opinions expressed within are my own.
About the Author
Tonya “T.I.” Lowe is a native of coastal South Carolina. She attended Coastal Carolina University and the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, where she majored in Psychology but excelled in Creative Writing. In 2014, Tonya independently published her first novel, Lulu’s Café, which quickly became a bestseller. Now the author of 12 published novels with hundreds of thousands of copies sold, she knows she’s just getting started and has many more stories to tell. She resides near Myrtle Beach with her family.
Read an Excerpt
Josie’s reverie came to a screeching halt as the screen door squeaked open and ushered in not only a briny breeze, but also a vision from her past.
With a pronounced air of confidence, August Bradford walked over to the counter and halted in front of a dazed Josie. Her heart jolted at the sight of him, something only this man could elicit. He spoke—or at least his lips moved—but she couldn’t hear anything over the roar suddenly residing in her eardrums.
The Knitting Club’s table kicked up in volume, sounding like a bunch of hens clucking away, but there was no focusing on what they were clucking about either. She knew the answer anyway and had a feeling their timing wasn’t coincidental. All Josie could do was just stand there and stare, as if looking into his silvery-blue eyes had turned her to stone. With a hint of purple near the center, those uniquely hued eyes were made to belong to an artist such as August Bradford. The thick fringe of black eyelashes only emphasized their beauty. It was enough to spawn jealousy in Josie, her own fair lashes barely visible, but it didn’t. It only tempted her to stand there and stare unabashedly. Mouth agape, that’s exactly what she did.
“Are you okay?” A throaty voice penetrated the roar in her ears as a hand waved in front of her face.
Oh, my . . . that voice . . .
The words simply wouldn’t come—only pitiful squeaks of breaths escaped—so Josie did the only thing to come to mind. She hightailed it into the kitchen.
Blog Stops
Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, May 27
The Power of Words, May 27
Batya’s Bits, May 28
CarpeDiem, May 28
Through the Fire Blogs, May 29
Back Porch Reads , May 29
Livin’ Lit, May 30
Hallie Reads, May 30
Adventure of a Travelers Wife, May 31
Happily Managing a Household of Boys, May 31
She Lives To Read, June 1
Soulfully Romantic, June 1
Remembrancy, June 2
Mypreciousbitsandmusings, June 2
Texas Book-aholic, June 3
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, June 3
Just the Write Escape, June 4
deb’s Book Review, June 4
Inklings and notions, June 5
For Him and My Family, June 6
A Modern Day Fairy Tale, June 6
Artistic Nobody, June 7 (Guest Review from Donna Cline)
Simple Harvest Reads, June 7 (Guest review from Joni Truex)
Locks, Hooks and Books, June 8
Daysong Reflections, June 8
Cultivating Us , June 9
Pause for Tales, June 9
Giveaway
To celebrate her tour, T.I. is giving away the grand prize package of a $25 gift certificate to the bookstore of his or her choice and one copy of Driftwood Dreams!!
Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.
Thanks for sharing this link to me! The book sounds great!
This sounds like an interesting book to read. Thanks for sharing this brilliant review.
Thank you 🙂 I try to make them interesting.
I sure like the covers and this is on my tbr list in print so i can read and review on a few sites.
I enjoy Tonya’s stories! I’m excited to read Driftwood Dreams. Thank you for sharing. 🙂
Driftwood Dreams sounds like a perfect summer read! Do you get a good “sense of place” when reading the book? I really like to imagine myself in the setting.
I do! That is why I like certain authors so much. They bring settings to life that fuel my imagination 🙂
Your books sounds intriguing and like a very good read! I enjoyed reading the excerpt. I love the cover also, it is Beautiful. Congratulations on your New Release!
This sounds like a terrific read.
Thank you for hosting me! Glad you enjoyed the book!
I did 🙂 Thank you for writing it!