Happy Harbor

In this familiar contemporary from Hanna (Chasing Sunsets), an acerbic single mother and her rebellious teenage daughter find they can go home again. In quick succession, Josie Campbell gets fired from her Atlanta, Ga., marketing job for refusing to be a team player, dumped by her condescending fiancé, and told that her daughter, Kendra, has been expelled from school. Then she learns that her beloved grandmother has died, leaving Josie her house and restaurant back home in Happy Harbor, S.C. Josie does not intend to stay in Happy Harbor, especially after she finds her mother—whose alcoholism made her childhood miserable—working at the restaurant. But her grandmother’s will requires her to stay in town for six months without firing any staff. Josie must learn to moderate her impatient and distrustful nature if she’s going to manage the restaurant, reconnect with her mother, and build a relationship with her grandmother’s handsome tenant. Unfortunately, her bad attitude makes her an unsympathetic protagonist and hampers the book’s intended feel-good vibe. The love interest is too perfect to be believable, and though the setting is quaint, it’s not enough to carry the story. This is nothing special. Agent: Robert Gottlieb, Trident Media Group. (June)