Southern Comfort: after the death of his estranged mother Julia, Lucas must face his complex feelings about her and his family. His feelings are further complicated when the will is read. Julia left Lucas her Highland Beach house…but the inheritance is shared with a total stranger, Rachel Givens. Rachel spent the summers of her youth vacationing in Highland Beach and grew close to Julia, seeing her as a mother figure. But Julia kept many secrets, including Lucas. Neither Lucas nor Rachel want to give up the house. They decide to share, growing closer while uncovering Julia’s secret life.

I read Southern Comfort in one night. I loved it! And listen, I read and love all kinds of romance, but something about how realistic, how possible and real, Southern Comfort is really did it for me. Lucas and Rachel are both full adults with lives and careers and hopes that don’t have anything to do with romance. Of course they fall in love and it’s great, but it is more like a bonus to their lives. I really appreciated how minor the third act obstacle was and how quickly it was resolved. Rachel was extremely chill about the whole thing and I loved it. The whole thing is great!