Positively Pippa

#1 Ghost Falls

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From author Sarah Hegger comes an exciting new series set in small-town Utah, where secrets don’t keep for long—and love turns up in the most unexpected places.

For Pippa Turner there’s only one place to go when her life self-destructs on national TV—home to Ghost Falls, and her heavily perfumed, overly dramatic, but supremely loving grandmother, Philomene. If anyone will understand how Pippa’s hit makeover show was sabotaged by her vengeful ex, it’s Phi. But she’s not the only one who’s happy to see her—and Pippa can’t help but wonder if Matt Evans, her gorgeous high-school crush turned Phi’s contractor, is game for a steamy close-up…

 Matt owes his whole career to Phi and her constant demands to embellish the gothically ridiculous house he built for her. Getting to see red-headed, red-hot Pippa is a bonus, especially now that she’s no longer the troublesome teenager he remembers. He’s willing to stay behind the scenes while she gives her own life a much-needed makeover, but not forever. As far as he’s concerned, their connection is too electric to ignore. And the chance to build something lasting between them—before she can high-tail it back to Hollywood—is going to the top of his to-do list…

 

Hegger (Nobody’s Princess) invites readers into the delightfully quirky small town of Ghost Falls, Utah, in the warmly sincere first book of a contemporary romance series. Pippa Turner was a media darling, thanks to her makeover show, until a vengeful ex sabotaged her career. Now she has run back home in disgrace, the most hated woman in America. Back in Ghost Falls are her very complicated family—including her diva grandmother, Phi—and Matt, her high school crush, who feels beholden to Phi. Matt’s family situation is as complex as Pippa’s, and their separate struggles hamper their sizzling and sensually fun fling. What begins as a simple second-chance romance quickly transforms into a beautiful, frank examination of love, family dynamics, and following one’s dreams. Hegger’s unflinching, candid portrayal of interpersonal and generational communication elevates the story to the sublime. Shunning clichés and contrived circumstances, she uses realistic, relatable situations to create a world that readers will want to visit time and again. Agent: Nalini Akolekar, Spencerhill Associates. (June)
— PUBLISHER'S WEEKLY STARRED REVIEW
When Pippa’s career explodes on national television and she returns home, the last thing she expects is to fall in love…or to heal the rift between three generations of women in her family.After her ex, a producer for her makeover show, edits a clip of Pippa in a way that makes her one of the most reviled women in Hollywood, she goes back to the place she feels safest—her hometown of Ghost Falls. Her grandmother Phi (short for Philomene) was a great opera singer who packed houses and performed for royalty before returning home to care for her daughter, Emily. Phi’s absence in Emily’s childhood created an almost irreparable distance between them that carried over to Emily’s oldest daughter, Laura. Phi tried to make up for lost time when Pippa was born, but instead of bringing the four women together, it divided them: artistic Phi and Pippa against sensible Emily and Laura. So, upon returning home, Pippa takes refuge in her grandmother’s house, where her childhood friend and high school crush, Matt Evans, is doing contracting work. All the problems that keep cropping up at Phi’s place seem to be the result of intentional, but luckily unskilled, sabotage. While Pippa is busy putting her life back together and Matt is trying to figure out what to do with his, some of Phi’s mementos from her career go missing. Is it theft, or have they been misplaced? This first book in the Ghost Falls series has a bit of everything—mystery, sex, love, family drama—and it’s all exceptionally well-done. The mystery is compelling. The heat factor for the sex is off the charts. The familial drama is bittersweet and poignant. Most important, the amount of love in this book doesn’t stop with romance—maternal and familial love are given as much of a spotlight as the story between Pippa and Matt. This is the type of romance that makes readers fall in love not just with characters, but with authors as well.
— KIRKUS STARRED REVIEW
The very talented Hegger kicks off an enjoyable new series set in the small Utah town of Ghost Falls. This charming and fun-filled book has everything from passion and humor to betrayal and revenge. It is also a warm look into small-town life with all its loving quirks, and proves sometimes you can go home again. The warmth and depth of Hegger’s characters makes this a story you won’t soon forget. Truly wonderful!
Pippa Turner — or Pippa St. Amor as she is known on her makeover TV show — is fleeing the disaster her life has suddenly become. Pippa was sabotaged by her ex-boyfriend, Ray, who falsely edited a video making Pippa look vicious to a poor woman, and then released it on YouTube. As a result, Pippa was fired and now Ray’s new girlfriend is taking over. Angry and humiliated, Pippa returns home to Ghost Falls and her eccentric grandmother Philomene. It also brings Pippa back into contact with high school crush Matt Evans, who is Phi’s general contractor. Matt runs his own successful business, but he got his start working on Phi’s monstrosity of a mansion. Matt has refurbished nearly everything in that building, and he knows being at her beck and call for little fixes is part of the deal. Matt is surprised when he overhears Pippa return and tearfully tell her grandmother what happened. Phi would love to plot revenge, Matt would love to get to know Pippa once again and Pippa wants to give her life a makeover ... but will that makeover include a new love? (ZEBRA, Jun., 352 pp., $7.99)
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