This was a bit disappointing. What I liked the most about Book 1 was the family dynamics and how it dealt with trauma. This novel is mostly focused on the romance and it felt repetitive at times. I also felt like the trauma is not as well treated as in Book 1.

It falls into the trope of "having a conversation with an abusive parent will solve everything because the parent is willing to listen" even though Isabel hasn't listened to Astrid in 30 years.
Also, Meredith is clearly an abusive ex but that is never really dealt with in any way. Once again, Jordan just asks her for space and Meredith agrees to it. Even though we're talking about a woman who sent her messages for a year reminiscing abour their relationship and then tried to ruin her new relationship and job prospects.

In Book 1 the friends and the family were a huge aspect of the story and, while not completely absent here, they don't feel as important. The book is more focused on the romance and the inn storyline. But I thought the inn storyline was mostly ridiculous so it didn't work for me at all