The 3rd in the Chesapeake Diaries Series (this was the first one I read as going back to read the others). A quaint seaside town of St Dennis out of Maryland-- the setting for the series within a small town with a number of business owners, based around an older woman named Grace who works at the newspaper who occasionally summarizes the gossip and events in the town. Main character is Steffie who wants to marry a guy from high school who moved away, buy a house, and open an ice cream shop. She gets her ice cream shop and a wonderful house and now she gets a second chance at her high school love. Along with way are some challenges when life throws the couple a few curve balls and secrets from the past. (Be sure and catch up with the other characters in the other books in the series). I liked #1 much better (currently reading #2). ( )

When she was young, Steffie Wyler knew exactly what she wanted to do with her life: 1. Make ice cream. 2. Marry the coolest boy in town. 3. Live happily ever after. These days, Steffie is the proud owner of One Scoop or Two, a wildly popular ice cream parlor. But the cool guy left town right after high school, before they could scratch the surface of their mutual attraction to see what, if anything, lay beneath. Steffie's made a great life for herself in St. Dennis, but true love has never come knocking...(summary from ISBN 0345520378)

I've enjoyed the Chesapeake Diaries series so far; they are entertaining, romantic, and I like the familiar characters and settings that come with a series. This particular entry didn't grab my attention the way others have. It's enjoyable, but not outstanding. ( )

Nothing gives more pleasure than to return home, the place where we were happy and free, and the happiness to find our true and first love.
Again, Mariah Stewart delivers a wonderful tale about hope, friends and happiness that will keep you dreaming and wishing to live on the Chesapeake. ( )

Third and best so far, for me, in Stewart's Chesapeake Diaries series. ( )

3.5 stars.I loved the first book in this series. Liked the second one a lot. This one was a solid "like".Certainly, I enjoyed returning to St. Dennis and all the characters from the previous books. I liked Steffie in her previous appearances, and had been looking forward to getting to know her better. Part of the problem was that I didn't feel like I had a deeper understanding of her character by the end of the book. Sure, she was fun to hang out with, and I really enjoyed the look into the working of her ice cream creation process, but I never felt I knew her as more than a good buddy.Part of the problem is all mine. The base story was a very standard romance plot-- girl falls in love with boy, boy moves away. Boy turns into man, girl turns into woman, but somehow something is missing in both of their lives until they meet each other again as adults.For someone that likes romance novels, I have very little patience with the ideas of love at first sight and that there are matches that are fated to be. On the other hand, these are such staples of the genre that it makes no sense to fault a book for containing them.Wade (the love interest)did have a creative story, one that I haven't seen before. It had moments of both predictability and of being over the top in what it asked me to believe, but mostly it was the blend of fun and touching that I would hope for.As with the other books in the series, the strength is in the characters and their relationships. I particularly like the links between friends that cross generations, and I think the way the books actually let some of the folks older even than me be real people is a very refreshing change of pace.If you've been following the series, go ahead and pick this one up. If you haven't, I'd suggest starting at the beginning. ( )