Disclosure: I received this book to review. Opinions shared are mine.

Sigh.

Book covers call to me, the way a chocoholic can hear a Hershey’s kiss singing from a desk drawer.  I love the way this cover looks, with the romantic faded-out couple walking on the brick-paved road. The pretty font-mosaic is just icing on the cake.  Love Arrives in Pieces is the dessert within, just waiting to be enjoyed with a cup of hot tea. 

What struck me most deeply about Love Arrives in Pieces is its relate-ability.  Many women struggle with self-image after a divorce, but especially if said woman is a former beauty pageant girl.  Now, that’s not the part that I can exactly relate to, but I can definitely tell that my self-image has taken a hit after a couple of decades past my prime.  Stella certainly had her crosses to bear with finding her self-worth, after submerging it in her vanity and expectations of a perfect life.  In that way, I think she’d be the kind of girl I could get along with.

Dixie’s character was my favorite; her witty, whimsical ways put a smile on my face. There was a lot of draw in the renovation of a historic building; that was something that caught my attention and made me want to keep reading. However, the romance issue between Stella and Chase felt rather forced to me.  While part of me rooted for them, I also wanted Stella to stand tall on her own.  It felt as if she was trying too hard in some parts of the story; Stella got her groove back too easily in Love Arrives in Pieces.  It’s a great beach book if you want something low-key, but not necessarily a mind-blowing mystery.