* ARC provided by the author in exchange for an honest review *
** Spoilers for Book 1 and 2 ahead**
I love novellas. Want to know what I love MORE than novellas? A CRANBERRY INN novella, that’s what! Room for Just a Little Bit More (RFJALBM) is a very worthwhile addition to this addicting series from Beth Ehemann. If you’ve read the first two books (Room for You and Room for More) then you’ll definitely enjoy reading what happens next to Kacie, Brody, and the Twinkies.
Rating: 5 out of 5 twinkie stars!
Synopsis:
** Spoilers for Book 1 and 2 ahead**
I love novellas. Want to know what I love MORE than novellas? A CRANBERRY INN novella, that’s what! Room for Just a Little Bit More (RFJALBM) is a very worthwhile addition to this addicting series from Beth Ehemann. If you’ve read the first two books (Room for You and Room for More) then you’ll definitely enjoy reading what happens next to Kacie, Brody, and the Twinkies.
Rating: 5 out of 5 twinkie stars!
Synopsis:
Five years ago, my dreams were shattered in an instant.
One year ago, a horrible rainstorm flooded a bridge in town, leaving us with an Inn full of stranded travelers. Turns out one of those travelers would give me a whole new set of dreams, ones I never thought possible. Brody Murphy spent the last year teaching me what it was like to live, and more importantly love, again.
Two days ago, he asked me to marry him, and if I’d said yes any faster, I would have interrupted the most romantic proposal ever offered. I can’t wait to marry him and spend the rest of our lives spoiling our Twinkies.
One year from now I’ll be Mrs. Kacie Murphy, assuming everything goes nice and smooth.
In RFJALBM, we see our favorite Cranberry Inn characters after Brody’s awwwww-inducing proposal. Room for More may not have been intended to be a cliffhanger but it no doubt made me want to read more more more. The ending felt a little open-ended so I was very ecstatic to find out what happens next! And, thankfully, that is exactly what Beth Ehemann gives her readers with Room for Just a Little Bit More.
Some of the other fans I’ve talked to said they wished it was a full-length novel. But in my honest opinion, I think Beth Ehemann made the right choice in writing it as a novella. Why? Kacie and Brody are in a really good place already. Bringing up more issues and problems for them would have just felt a little overkill, I think. Don’t get me wrong. RFJALBM still packs a bit of drama but the best thing about how Beth Ehemann went about it is that it did not really take away from Kacie and Brody’s happily ever after.
From Room for More, we already knew that Kacie and Brody’s happily ever after is finally within reach. And it is; however, another man from Kacie’s past surfaces and stirs up trouble for the whole Cranberry Inn gang.
It was really, really, really heartwarming to see how far Brody would go to protect the people he loves, most especially Kacie and the Twinkies. His macho alpha-male, papa-bear act elevates him into godlike status in the husband/father category. Although it was really cool to see him act that way to protect his girls, I though the way he did it was a bit sketchy. It could spell trouble for him if ever Kacie finds out what he did.
And Kacie, still as willful and feisty as ever… As much as I ADORE the Twinkies, I really enjoyed seeing Kacie-the-fiance instead of Kacie-the-mom. I loved how RFJALBM kind of emphasized Kacie and Brody’s relationship as a couple. It becomes even more evident how perfect they are for each other and how amazing they are as parents.
Speaking of parents, it was also fun to revisit the rest of the Cranberry Inn gang, including Kacie’s mom, Gigi, and her new husband, Fred. We also see Lauren with their young son, not to mention a very pregnant Alexa! They’re a hilarious bunch and a real treat to read about!
RFJALBM really makes a big deal out of the relationships these characters have while still highlighting each character as an individual. It goes beyond the characters’ identifiers, and paints them in a slightly different light bit not any less interesting.
Hockey played a huge part of Brody as a person in the first two books. That was his identifier so it was endearing to see him away from the world of hockey. Brody isn’t so much of a star hockey player; instead, readers get to see him as a regular guy who can’t wait to marry the love of his life. And Kacie, she’s not just a hockey-girlfriend, or a mother-of-two; she also just like any other bride-to-be who stresses over wedding dress shopping, cake tasting, and all the other details of wedding planning.
Oh, I can’t let this review end without saying how absolutely ADORABLE the Twinkies are!
As usual, RFJALBM is written in the lighthearted but no less emotional way that Beth Ehemann has beautifully mastered. It tugs on the heartstrings and makes readers fall deeper in love with Kacie, Brody, and the Twinkies even with half the pages of a full-length novel.
RFJALBM ties up Kacie and Brody’s story wonderfully and at the end of everything, it made me realize that I’ve always got enough room in my heart and my bookshelf for Beth Ehemann’s Cranberry Inn books.
More to come, I hope! A Viper novel, anyone? ;)
Some of the other fans I’ve talked to said they wished it was a full-length novel. But in my honest opinion, I think Beth Ehemann made the right choice in writing it as a novella. Why? Kacie and Brody are in a really good place already. Bringing up more issues and problems for them would have just felt a little overkill, I think. Don’t get me wrong. RFJALBM still packs a bit of drama but the best thing about how Beth Ehemann went about it is that it did not really take away from Kacie and Brody’s happily ever after.
From Room for More, we already knew that Kacie and Brody’s happily ever after is finally within reach. And it is; however, another man from Kacie’s past surfaces and stirs up trouble for the whole Cranberry Inn gang.
It was really, really, really heartwarming to see how far Brody would go to protect the people he loves, most especially Kacie and the Twinkies. His macho alpha-male, papa-bear act elevates him into godlike status in the husband/father category. Although it was really cool to see him act that way to protect his girls, I though the way he did it was a bit sketchy. It could spell trouble for him if ever Kacie finds out what he did.
And Kacie, still as willful and feisty as ever… As much as I ADORE the Twinkies, I really enjoyed seeing Kacie-the-fiance instead of Kacie-the-mom. I loved how RFJALBM kind of emphasized Kacie and Brody’s relationship as a couple. It becomes even more evident how perfect they are for each other and how amazing they are as parents.
Speaking of parents, it was also fun to revisit the rest of the Cranberry Inn gang, including Kacie’s mom, Gigi, and her new husband, Fred. We also see Lauren with their young son, not to mention a very pregnant Alexa! They’re a hilarious bunch and a real treat to read about!
RFJALBM really makes a big deal out of the relationships these characters have while still highlighting each character as an individual. It goes beyond the characters’ identifiers, and paints them in a slightly different light bit not any less interesting.
Hockey played a huge part of Brody as a person in the first two books. That was his identifier so it was endearing to see him away from the world of hockey. Brody isn’t so much of a star hockey player; instead, readers get to see him as a regular guy who can’t wait to marry the love of his life. And Kacie, she’s not just a hockey-girlfriend, or a mother-of-two; she also just like any other bride-to-be who stresses over wedding dress shopping, cake tasting, and all the other details of wedding planning.
Oh, I can’t let this review end without saying how absolutely ADORABLE the Twinkies are!
As usual, RFJALBM is written in the lighthearted but no less emotional way that Beth Ehemann has beautifully mastered. It tugs on the heartstrings and makes readers fall deeper in love with Kacie, Brody, and the Twinkies even with half the pages of a full-length novel.
RFJALBM ties up Kacie and Brody’s story wonderfully and at the end of everything, it made me realize that I’ve always got enough room in my heart and my bookshelf for Beth Ehemann’s Cranberry Inn books.
More to come, I hope! A Viper novel, anyone? ;)
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