Author: Karly Lane
ISBN: 978-1-76029-182-2
RRP: $29.99
I was on a very tight timeline to get this one read and reviewed, it’s been sitting on my desk a week or so but I picked up a different book to read first then got my Blog Tour date which gave me a week to finish that, read this and review them both. I was worried I would miss my deadline, I shouldn’t have because once I got started it didn’t take me long to get through this captivating read.
Third Time Lucky started life as the Christmas themed novella December’s Wish which was released back in 2013, I remember being interested in the lead up to the release but I never ended up finding the time for it.
Christmas Creek is a small town in the mountains of NSW and it is strongly Christmas themed, but it’s struggling. The local economy isn’t great and many families are struggling. December Doyle has a plan to help put the town back on the map but she needs community support.
December is back in her home town and living in a flat on her parents property after being widowed and left drowning in debt. Slowly she is putting her life back together and working towards clearing her debt, she has two part time jobs in town and is pretty content with the way things are going.
Of course in a small town the rumour mill runs rampant and there is a lot going on. It seems that there’ve been property sales, an old town mansion empty for decades is being renovated and then the really big one… the abattoir is reopening. The decline of the town largely stemmed from the loss of the meatworks so it could be a good thing for the town if it reopens.
Along with all of the changes happening around town the first of the new arrivals is someone well known around town, for all the wrong reasons. Seth Hunter was the resident bad boy as a child and teen, he’s been gone over a decade and his return stirs up all sorts of trouble. Small towns have long memories and sometimes rather large prejudices. Seth may have left town a teen delinquent but the grown man who returns is a successful businessman. The question remains is he back to exact revenge and settle old scores or does he really want to help rejuvenate his home town.
Grudges last a long time in this small town but from the outset we know there is more to the stories than we’ve been made aware of and it takes the bulk of the book for all the secrets to to be unearthed.
Seth was a kid with the misfortune to be born into the wrong family and the town tarred him with the same brush from early on, never willing to give him a chance as a child and always quick to see the worst. The Doyles are a large extended family and December is the first girl in three generations, so she has a lot of people looking out for her and being overprotective. As teenagers Seth and December embark on a clandestine relationship that sees them fall madly in love until Seth is accused and convicted of a serious crime.
December and Seth are both back in town, emotions throughout the town are riding high and it’s clear to them both that whatever they had as teens is still there but can they risk it…
Karly Lane’s story telling is descriptive and evocative and captivates me every time. I could see the little town of Christmas Creek and though I am not quite as enthusiastic about the holiday I could certainly feel the charm of a complete Christmas town all year round. I could feel December’s love of her home town and her desire to bring it back to its former glory.
The characters were complex and multi faceted which meant that though you believed in the good heart of Seth Hunter you always had to wonder, though there was never any doubt that his love for December was pure.
The story is told in the present with the unfolding of events in the wake of Seth’s return. New families, new business and a whole lot of old prejudices; too many in town can’t see past the delinquent teen that left town in a police car to the strong and successful businessman that returns. Yes, anger and revenge fueled his desire to return to his childhood home and prove everyone wrong about him but is it just revenge when his plans do so much good for a town that’s struggling to stay afloat.
We learn about the events that lead to this point through the memories of Seth and December, as the present unfolds we are taken back in time to when the two were madly in love and making plans for their future – until that was no longer an option.
I loved everything about this story and it made me smile, it made me giggle and it had me on the verge of tears more times than I care to remember.
I love a bad boy with a heart of gold and I love a good girl who sees through his facade. There were a lot of interesting layers to this story and a lot of past events that added fuel to the animosity of the present, it’s interesting to sit back and watch how they all play out.
A fantastically heart-warming read in the lead up to Christmas set in a little town where it’s Christmas all year round, even if the Christmas spirit does tend to wax and wane a little through the course of the story. Karly Lane you’ve done it again and I am left wishing that I had more time to go back and catch up on the titles I’ve missed in your back catalogue.
Third Time Lucky is published by Allen and Unwin and available now from Angus & Robertson Bookworld, Booktopia, iBooks, Amazon and where all good books are sold.
Karly Lane loves to hear from her readers, you can find her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and her Website.
Third Time Lucky is book #62 for the Australian Women Writer’s Challenge 2016.
We love being involved in Blog Tours so please do take a look at the tour banner below and be sure to check out the other stops on the tour.
Thanks to Allen and Unwin 10 of our Beauty and Lace club members will be reading Third Time Lucky so please be aware there may be spoilers in the comments below.
I devour books, vampires and supernatural creatures are my genre of choice but over the past couple of years, I have broadened my horizons considerably. In a nutshell – I love to write! I love interacting with a diverse range of artists to bring you interviews. Perhaps we were perfect before – I LOVE WORDS!
Sounds like a good book to read. Gee book covers are looking so wonderful and inviting these days too.
Thankyou to Allen & Unwin and Beauty and Lace for the opportunity to read ” Third Time Lucky” by Karly Lane.
It a great book, A story of love between December, the daughter of a prominent family in Christmas Creek and Seth, the son of a family from the wrong side of town. It is hard to put the book down as you want to know the answers to the past and will it be third time lucky for December.
After a disastrous marriage December Doyle returns to her home town Christmas Creek. She is in debt, works two jobs and lives in a cottage on her families property. Her father has a business in the town, her Uncle is the policeman and brothers and cousins are over protective.
Her high school love Seth Hunter also returns to the town. He has been wrongly accused of a serious crime and spent two years jail. Now ten years later he is a successful business man. He has spent those years ambitiously building his business empire. Seth has plans for Christmas Creek , but are these plans for revenge or to help the town?
December and Seth meet again and their feelings for each other have not changed. Her family still label him “trouble” and don’t want her to have anything to do with him.
We know Seth is innocent of the crime, and we the reader want December to know that too! We want her to know who was responsible for the crime and the secrets her family have been keeping because they love her and want to protect her.
December and Seth are really likable characters and you want them to work out past differences and for her family to butt out!
Will she follow her feelings and her heart and choose Seth or will she listen to her family ?
I really enjoyed the book, it was easy to read and you want to know how it ends! Thoroughly recommend the book to anyone who enjoys love stories!
This was a quick and easy read – I was delighted with the bigger print in the book making it easier for my old eyes.
This is a light romance which I found pretty predictable. The story flowed smoothly along as we meet the characters and form judgement on their part in December and Seth’s lives.
The idea of a town trying to promote itself as celebrating Christmas all year because it is called Christmas Creek seems a little corny to me, but it fits with December’s job of trying to convince the Chamber of Commerce that this is exactly what the town needs to get it up and viable again. We read of how much work is involved to put this simple idea into practice, and the opposition by some townsfolk of the cost involved and the fund raising needed to make all this happen.
Meanwhile December and Seth reconnect and discover that the flames of their teenage romance 10 years ago is still there, but so are the problems of her family not willing to accept a bad boy (now man) as someone suitable for the only girl born in their family for 3 generations. December’s Dad, her two brothers, and a cast of cousins, including one who is the local policeman, all believe ex crim Seth should pack up and leave town again as he is no good for December.
But love is strong, and can beat down barriers, despite some long hidden secrets the male Doyle’s have kept from December for years.
An entertaining read. Look out for Gran – she is amazing!
Thanks Beauty & Lace and Allen & Unwin for allowing me to read and review this Karly Lane book.
I loved this book. It was very quick to read and I got swept into the story and read the whole thing in a day.
The story focuses on December and Seth who grew up in the town of Christmas Creek and were once a loved up couple as teenagers. Unfortunately Seth comes from a family that has a bad reputation and was once a juvenile delinquent who got up to too much mischief and ended up in jail after an incident that he claimed he didn’t do. December and Seth broke up and went on with their lives with December marrying another guy from town and Seth becoming a successful rich businessmen that the town still sees as the bad teenager he was.
Now they are both back in town and the sparks are still flying but they are still hurt by what the town did to their relationship and the heartbreak they suffered. Will they rekindle the romance they once had or are they still to hurt on the inside.
The story jumps between the present and the past and I really enjoyed how it played out. The setting is also really beautiful up in the mountains where I want to move asap.
Its a great book for anyone who enjoys a romance novel but it isn’t as sappy as some other books. In the end I loved the book so much I have borrowed more of Karly Lane’s books from the library.
Thanks for the opportunity Beauty and Lace.
Thank you for the opportunity to read Third Time Lucky Karly Lane.
It is the story of December Doyle who moves back to the family property after her husband dies. She is working two jobs with not much time for anything else. She is flabbergasted when the love of her life Seth Hunter returns to Christmas Creek. Her family didn’t approve of him then as he was from the wrong side of the tracks, and are not about to start liking him now.
Through circumstances December ends up working for Seth and is finding it hard to fight her feelings. She knows her family will not approve and remembers how it felt to be rejected by Seth originally.
I love her Gran as the voice of reason in the family who gets her to do what’s right for her. Can they make it past previous hurts and make a go of it for a new life together now?
I really enjoyed the potential Christmas theme for the town all year ’round as a way to revive the town. It was especially nice to read it just prior to Christmas.
I would recommend this book to lovers of rural stories, romances and those trying to solve and heal from their pasts.
Long lost love ! Family secrets !
This book has them all!
December goes home to Christmas creek to will she get together with her old flame? Will she find out the secret her family has been keeping from her? Life in a small town can be tough. I loved reading this story fantastic read I recommend it to everyone who likes a tricky romance.
I am one who doesn’t like a book review the reveals the books storyline, a bit like a movie trailer that shows too much of the movie 🙂 .
So my review will be short and sweet 🙂
This story by Karly Lane has two of my favourite things, a reformed Bad Boy and Christmas!! (now tell me, who doesn’t love these two things?) Without giving too much away, Bad Boy returns, ex flame lusts, the town rebels and family fights. Great book, definitely didn’t want to put it down and all the way through you were rooting for December and Seth to sort through their problems and get back together..fast!!
Would recommend this book in a heartbeat 😉
Karly Lane’s book, Third Time Lucky is a lovely adaptation of a Christmas novella. It’s a story that translates well to the longer format but it’s also one that is difficult to write about without revealing some crucial plot points. It is perhaps best if we consider that this is a rural romance that poses and solves a number of questions, including: is it possible to forgive the past? Can you learn to love after you’ve been duped by your partner and left a widower? Can young lovers that were once torn apart rekindle their relationship? Do you choose revenge or forgiveness after being slighted?
This novel stars December Doyle, a strong and relatable character who lives in a small and mountainous town in country NSW called Christmas Creek. Doyle is a kind character that only sees the best in people. She’s also the only female to be born into her family for some time. As a result of this, she is often protected by her well-meaning but stubborn father and brothers.
Doyle finds herself newly single. Her childhood sweetheart, a former bad boy-turned-successful businessman named Seth Hunter returns to town just as she is beginning to pick up the pieces and rebuild her life. What ensues is a period where the main and supporting characters meet again and reassess their past relationships, rights and wrongs.
Third Time Lucky sees Karly Lane penning another intriguing romance novel. Lane is a country girl and it is obvious in her authentic prose and descriptions that are quite detailed and multi-faceted. Third Time Lucky is an easy and breezy read that will make you want to kick off your heels, relax into a couch and enjoy a simple but satisfying romance tale.
Thank you to Beauty & Lace and Allen & Unwin for the opportunity to read “Third Time Lucky” by Karly Lane.
I found this story to be so easy to read and the characters likeable & relatable. I found similarities to the town I grew up in. I spent my childhood in Kelso, a suburb of Bathurst, back in the 70’s & 80’s and back then, it was a little country town. Everyone knew everyone. I also met my first love in this country town, and still to this day, hold a torch for him….this book made me dream of what could be…..
December is the main female character, a very warm, lovely person, who grew up in Christmas Creek, a little country town in NSW. After surviving a a hellish marriage, she has decided to return to her hometown.
Seth is the main male character, a bad boy, grew up on the wrong side of the tracks, always judged for the family he comes from. He and December were young loves back in their high school days. Seth was sentenced to two years in jail, after being wrongly accused of a crime….. This event sends December & Seth on their own paths away from each other, December marries another guy from town, while after getting out of prison, Seth makes his way in the Business World. Eventually making his way back to his old hometown of Christmas Creek too….but his feelings for the town aren’t happy ones, he is bitter because of the way he was treated growing up and he despises the town.
December is trying to get her life together, working hard and paying off her huge debts left over from her marriage….she also is aware that Christmas Creek is slowly dying, the economy has hit rock bottom and she has an idea that she puts to the Chamber of Commerce, in an attempt to woo tourists back, an attempt to put the town back on the map and make it ‘known’ for something.
December & Seth rekindle the spark they once had, to the dismay of December’s family, who all still believe that Seth, now a distinguished Businessman, is still the same juvenile delinquent he once was.
The story is a true romance one but doesn’t have the banality of sappy romance novels. It has much, much more. December has to go against the wishes of her family, to fight for the love she has for Seth. There are long buried family secrets to uncover and the livelihoods of a community & its townspeople to revive.
At times I felt transported back to my childhood, growing up in the gorgeous country, as Karly’s descriptions were so visual, I could ‘feel’ and ‘see’ what she was writing about…..my heart still belongs in the country
This was my first book by Karly Lane and I thoroughly enjoyed it….
This book is so lovely! I really enjoyed reading it…. who doesn’t love a bad boy who turns his life around ?With lots of twists and turns and some I didn’t even see coming. I couldn’t put down until I found out the ending.. I highly recommend this book for those who love rural romances. Kelly Lane is one of my favourite authors, she knows how to keep the reader hooked and takes you on a journey that is full of surprises ♥