From Publishers Weekly
To the tiny town of Shelter Rock Cove, Maine, Annie and Kevin Galloway seem to have the perfect marriage. But when Kevin dies suddenly, Annie is left with bittersweet memories, never-fulfilled dreams of children and artistic fame, and massive debt from Kevin's secret gambling addiction. In an attempt to clear the debt and make a fresh start, Annie sells the home she shared with Kevin and moves to a cheap beachfront cottage. There she finds herself powerfully attracted to her new neighbor. Once the rising star in a corrupt Wall Street firm, Sam Butler has secretly turned informant and is laying low until the federal investigation is complete. Even knowing that a trial and possible jail time are pending, Sam can't help pursuing Annie; despite heavy disapproval from Kevin's family, Annie can't help but respond. The two come together only to find that Annie's unexpected pregnancy and Sam's hidden past threaten to tear their love apart. The Wall Street details of Bretton's (At Last) story line are shaky, but she excels in her portrayal of the sometimes sweet, sometimes stifling ties of a small community. The town's tight network of loving, eccentric friends and family infuses the tale with a gently comic note that perfectly balances the darker dramas of the romance. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.


From Booklist
It's been two years since Annie Galloway's husband died, and she is finally putting her life back together, even though she stays in Shelter Rock Cove, Maine. Annie has never lived anywhere else, and her life is tied to the small community, which is a blessing and a curse. Her mother-in-law took her in at sixteen when her parents died, and she feels grateful for her love, but her husband was not the saint that everyone thinks he was. When she meets Sam Butler, a Manhattan investment broker hiding out in the small town and reevaluating his life, they instantly connect, but some townspeople are suspicious of the newcomer and his relationship with Annie. Sam and Annie do keep secrets from each other, hoping to keep their newfound love separate from the past, but prying neighbors may tear them apart. Once again Bretton creates a tender love story about two people who, when they find something special, will go to any length to keep it. Patty Engelmann
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

FROM OUR EDITORS

A Soft Place to Fall is an unabashedly romantic, remarkably realistic, contemporary story of new beginnings, true love, and dreams come true. Annie Galloway had lived in Shelter Rock Cove, Maine, all her life, and that's where she'd settled after she married her childhood sweetheart. Though she'd been widowed young, she owned her own home (though she'd recently moved herself and her two cats into a tiny shorefront cottage) and was a respected, dedicated local business owner who worked hard to make her flower shop a success. In contrast, Sam Butler was a stranger, new in town, with a battered old car, an ill-behaved dog, a lease on an old house, and no sign of any job worth mentioning. The locals might find it hard to believe, but Annie and Sam had more in common than it seemed. They'd each been orphaned young and abandoned personal dreams for the sake of others. They'd both faced unexpected trials in lives most people around them envied. And they had both earned the friendship of Warren Bancroft, a wealthy local entrepreneur, who had decided it was time to bring two of his favorite people together. That's why Warren had brought down the price of Annie's cottage to a level she could afford, despite the crushing debts her husband had amassed before he died. And that's why he'd offered Sam the only other house on Annie's new street, after learning the ex–Wall Street wizard needed a safe haven while waiting to testify in an embezzlement case of staggering proportions. Warren figured that Annie and Sam deserved whatever happiness they could find -- but even he never anticipated the miracles they would share amid the heights of passion and drama that their newfound love inspired.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

A young widow from charming Shelter Rock Cove, Maine, Annie Galloway has finally found the strength to start a new life. All she needs is courage, and time. The last thing she needs is a handsome, charming next-door neighbor...

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly