Love Me at Sunset

Romano Family, Book 3

De: Lucinda Whitney

Narrado por: Mary Jane Conlon

An ex-con reforming his life. A pregnant widow hiding her past. Will the price of her secrets cost her his love?

Catarina Romano has lost everything: her husband, her house, her lifestyle. She flees to her cousin’s empty manor in the heart of Portugal, trying to find peace and to hide from the scandal spun by the media, only to discover she is pregnant.

Afonso Cortez is done with all the lies. Fresh out of prison for trusting the wrong person, he’s ready to leave the past behind and look ahead to new opportunities. The remote Sunset Manor, in need of a groundskeeper, is the perfect solution, promising to provide Afonso with the solitude he craves while he restores the grounds to their former glory.

Catarina avoids Afonso at first, not wanting to further complicate her life. But Afonso is intriguing, and she feels drawn to him. If only she didn’t feel guilty for all the secrets she’s keeping from him.

When suspicious accidents start occurring at the property, Afonso believes his past is catching up with him. Will he be able to protect Catarina or will he lose the woman who might restore his belief in love?

The Romano Family series follows the stories of the Romano cousins of northern Portugal as they find love and their happily-ever-afters. Each book may be listened to as a stand-alone.

Books in the Romano Family series:

1. Hold Me at Twilight
2. Meet Me at Sunrise
3. Love Me at Sunset
4. Keep Me at Christmas
5. Kiss Me at Midnight
6. Marry Me at Dawn (coming soon)

©2017 Lucinda Whitney (P)2019 Lucinda Whitney

Good story, wonderful narator

I enjoyed the story itself quite a bit, but the narator did an amazing job with the voices and accents and emotion. I've never listened to a book by either author or narator, and I have nothing but positive to say about them both

Travel, Mystery, Suspense, Romance

Although always part of the Romano Family series, "Love Me at Sunset" was originally issued as one of the "Mansions" books, the second series in the "Destined for Love" world. In my review I commented that each novel was as individual as the author.

Author Lucinda Whitney is originally from Portugal and sets her delightful stories there. This is the third in her Romano family saga and if you've read other novels in the group you may recognize some characters but this tale stands well on its own. I am reminded of the Mary Stewart books which so cleverly combined romance with suspense in European settings. Beyond simply enjoying a well-told tale I am very much wanting to visit Portugal to explore some of the destinations described. Travel, mystery, suspense, romance--this one has it all!

And now one has the option to LISTEN to the audiobook. Praises to narrator Mary Jane Conlon for troubling to learn Portuguese pronunciation, adding texture and color to an already delightful story.

Love after trials

Catarina is hiding out in her cousin Philippe’s house.
Afonso is trying to make a new start after being in prison as a result of events in Meet Me at Sunrise (Romano Family Book 2).
There are elements of the prodigal son. There is danger from Alfonso’s past. There is Catarina’s pregnancy.
The narrator did a beautiful job and the story has a happy ending with Afonso and Catarina finding love.

Second chances

I loved this sweet love story of second chances. I was swooning the whole book. The narrator did a fantastic job with all of the characters accent.

Very Sweet Clean Romance!

Catarina is a young widow who is pregnant. Alfonso just got released from prison for a crime he didn't commit. He takes a job restoring the gardens at an estate where Catarina is staying. They slowly build a relationship. As the walls each has built around themselves begin to come down the past comes back to haunt them. This is a sweet clean romance with a bit of mystery/suspense brought to life by narrator Mary Jane Conlon. I reviewed this ARC audiobook from Sweet Sounds Audiobook Group. I chose to share this review. I enjoyed both the book and the narrator.

Dangerous secrets

Great romance. I wasn’t expecting the secrets from the characters’ lives that brought danger. The secrets helped the characters have more depth though.

Two people starting over

This is another great story about the Romano family in Portugal. We met Afonso Cortez in Meet Me at Sunrise (Romano Family #2). Afonso is starting over in a small town as a groundskeeper at Sunset Manor owned by Filipe Romano. He wants to leave his mistakes in the past and not waste the second chance he's been given.

Catarina Romano is also starting over. At first, we only know that she's a young widow hiding out from the paparazzi at Sunset Manor, thanks to her cousin Filipe, and she's not happy that he hired Afonso. She's got quite a few secrets she's not ready to share with anyone, and a lot of guilt from some decisions she made when she was younger.

Afonso really wants to make a fresh start and he's open about the mistakes he's made that sent him to prison. He's a hard worker and a caring person who shows it by his actions. It's in his nature to be kind and thoughtful to those around him. Unlike Afonso, Catarina is closed off, not trusting anyone, even her family, with the secrets that burden her.

Their friendship turned to romance doesn't feel rushed or forced upon the reader. Their story takes place over a 5 month period and feels like a natural progression for people that spend a lot of time together every day. Afonso's kind gestures mean so much to Catarina it made me wonder what had happened in her marriage that she was so affected by something as simple as someone making her breakfast. When she finally unburdens herself you can understand why she was so closed off at the beginning of the book.

I love when she decides to start decorating the mansion. You can almost see her self-esteem grow. I also loved the scene when all the cousins descend upon Sunset Manor--one big supportive family that loved her and had missed her during the years she had been away.

Not everything was smooth sailing for Afonso and Catarina. Although Afonso had left his past behind, it didn't stay there and put them both in peril, but of course the good guys came out on top. There are many Romano cousins which hopefully means more Romano Family stories.

This is a clean romance with moments of mild peril towards the end. I liked the narrator. She has a pleasant voice and does the Portuguese accent well.

A New Start

Afonso and Catarina both wanted a new start. He had just got out of prison after foolishly allowing a woman to catch him up in something that hurt his employer’s customers, but could have cost them their lives. Catarina was running from a life in her deceased husband’s spotlight after scandals over his love and business affairs had caught up with him. They were both hurt by others and trying to make a better life. They weren't asking for the attraction between them especially since she was pregnant and so had someone else to think about now. Afonso past also catches up with him and wants revenge. There were plenty of sweet, funny, romantic, and scary moments in this clean romance.

The narrator had a nice clear tone with plenty of emotion. She added accents to the characters’ voices.

So Sweet

Such a great addition to the Romano family. Catarina and Afonso are great characters and a cute couple. Catarina grew a lot in the story which I enjoyed. I loved the twists in their story. It was great to get a little update from Matias and Vanessa as well as Jacinta and Knox. If you like a sweet clean read, then this is definitely one you should check out

Mary Jane Conlon's narration is fantastic. She did a great job with the different voices and accents.

I love the suspense element of their story

Out of all the Romanos’ stories that I’ve read and listened to, this has got to be the most suspenseful. It made the story unique and different from the Romano cousins.