Name: Lynn Braden's review of The Family You Make by Jill Shalvis
Item: The Family You Make
Rating: 4.5
Author: Lynn Braden

Jill Shalvis

Beloved New York Times bestselling author Jill Shalvis begins a new series—Sunrise Cove—set near beautiful Lake Tahoe, with a heartwarming story of found family and love. During the snowstorm of the century Levi Cutler is stranded on a ski lift with a beautiful stranger named Jane. After strong winds hurl the gondola in front of them into the ground, Levi calls his parents to prepare them for the worst…but can’t bring himself to say goodbye. Instead, wanting to fulfill his mother’s lifelong wish, he impulsively tells her he’s happily settled and Jane is his girlfriend—right before his phone dies. But Levi and Jane do not. Now Levi’s family is desperate to meet “The One.” Though Jane agrees to be his pretend girlfriend for just one dinner, she’s nervous. After a traumatic childhood, Jane isn’t sure she knows how to be around a tight-knit family that cherishes one another. She’s terrified, and a little jealous. But an unexpected series of events and a host of new friends soon show Jane that perhaps this is the life she was always meant to have. As Jane and Levi spend more time together, pretend feelings quickly turn into real ones. Now all Jane has to do is admit to herself she can’t live without the man she’s fallen in love with and the family she has always dreamed of.

A Novel

The Family You Make

b.andherbooks

Beloved New York Times bestselling author Jill Shalvis begins a new series--Sunrise Cove--set near beautiful Lake Tahoe, with a heartwarming story of found family and love. During the snowstorm of the century Levi Cutler is stranded on a ski lift with a beautiful stranger named Jane. After strong winds hurl the gondola in front of them into the ground, Levi calls his parents to prepare them for the worst...but can't bring himself to say goodbye. Instead, wanting to fulfill his mother's lifelong wish, he impulsively tells her he's happily settled and Jane is his girlfriend--right before his phone dies. But Levi and Jane do not. Now Levi's family is desperate to meet "The One." Though Jane agrees to be his pretend girlfriend for just one dinner, she's nervous. After a traumatic childhood, Jane isn't sure she knows how to be around a tight-knit family that cherishes one another. She's terrified, and a little jealous. But an unexpected series of events and a host of new friends soon show Jane that perhaps this is the life she was always meant to have. As Jane and Levi spend more time together, pretend feelings quickly turn into real ones. Now all Jane has to do is admit to herself she can't live without the man she's fallen in love with and the family she has always dreamed of.

Thanks to Steph from Stephloves for recommending this book.

Levi Cutler and Jane Parks find themselves stranded in a gondola during a major surprise blizzard in the mountains outside Lake Tahoe.  Thinking they are going to die, Levi calls his mother to say good-bye, but instead, tells her about his "girlfriend," Jane.  When they survive, Levi is stuck with his lie and manages to convince Jane to pretend to be his girlfriend at his parents' 40th anniversary dinner.  What happens after that changes both of their lives forever.

The Family You Make is a very sweet romance between two people who have lived through strife and come out of it with damaged hearts.  The characters in this book are very well developed and are extremely likable.  A wealth of funny and quirky supporting characters helps to make the leads' love story heartwarming and emotional.  Even though the story is filtered a little through rose colored glasses, it is still an entertaining and poignant read. 

Lynn Braden

Thanks to Steph from Stephloves for recommending this book.

Levi Cutler and Jane Parks find themselves stranded in a gondola during a major surprise blizzard in the mountains outside Lake Tahoe.  Thinking they are going to die, Levi calls his mother to say good-bye, but instead, tells her about his "girlfriend," Jane.  When they survive, Levi is stuck with his lie and manages to convince Jane to pretend to be his girlfriend at his parents' 40th anniversary dinner.  What happens after that changes both of their lives forever.

The Family You Make is a very sweet romance between two people who have lived through strife and come out of it with damaged hearts.  The characters in this book are very well developed and are extremely likable.  A wealth of funny and quirky supporting characters helps to make the leads' love story heartwarming and emotional.  Even though the story is filtered a little through rose colored glasses, it is still an entertaining and poignant read. 

Totally Addicted to Reading

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
  🎧︎The Family You Make is the first book in the brand new Sunrise Cove series. My expectations for this one were high and in true Shalvis form, it did not disappoint. The visit to Sunset Cove was filled with heart tugging moments, humour, awesome characters, passion and not one but two lovely romances.

The beginning of 🎧︎The Family You Make saw the main characters, Jane and Levi, stranded on gondola during a freak snowstorm. When the gondola in front falls to the ground, they knew they were in trouble. Fearing the worst, Levi calls his mom to tell her goodbye. But then he couldn’t go through it and instead led her to believe that Jane was his girlfriend. A revelation which made her ecstatic. 

Despite the seriousness of the situation, one could not help the laughter that bubbled up occasionally during Jane and Levi’s interactions. These two developed a bond during their hair-raising experience and the fact they survived made it even more special.

While Levi may have survived his time in the gondola, he faces an even greater problem. His family wanted to meet Jane. If only he could convince her to be his pretend to be his girlfriend until his parents’ 40th wedding anniversary dinner.

Jane and Levi were wonderful characters. Jane fears forming relationships as based on her experience, the ones you love abandon you. So she left first. Levi is dealing with his share of pain, but after meeting Jane, he wants to take a chance on love. Then there are Charlotte and Mateo. These two were definitely made for each other. However, issues from Charlotte’s past hinder her from opening her heart. Levi and Mateo had faced many walls in the pursuit of the women they knew were meant for them.

The romances that developed between our characters were sweet and passionate. I enjoyed them both and became invested in their journey to happily ever after.Levi’s family members were a hoot. They loved meddling in his life, but it’s all done out of love. The lengths they went through to meet Jane cracked me up. 


Narration

This is my second time listening to Erin Mallon’s narration, and it was a pleasurable experience. She has a great array of voices for all the characters. Charlotte’s southern accent sounded authentic. She did a great job with portraying the characters’ emotion, which added depth to the story.

🎧︎The Family You Make is a beautiful story that will make you laugh, cry and swoon. Its a story of healing, forgiveness, love, family and friendships. It demonstrates that family isn’t necessarily made up of blood relations. Family represents the people in your life who will stand with you through the good and the bad times. The people who accepts you the way you are. There were so many things to love about this story.  The  delightful characters, the gorgeous setting and the variety of themes highlighted throughout the story.  

This review was originally posted on Totally Addicted to Reading

"Fall in love with Jill Shalvis! She's my go-to read for humor and heart."-- Susan Mallery, New York Times bestselling author Beloved New York Times bestselling author Jill Shalvis begins a new series--Sunrise Cove--set near beautiful Lake Tahoe, with a heartwarming story of found family and love. During the snowstorm of the century Levi Cutler is stranded on a ski lift with a beautiful stranger named Jane. After strong winds hurl the gondola in front of them into the ground, Levi calls his parents to prepare them for the worst...but can't bring himself to say goodbye. Instead, wanting to fulfill his mother's lifelong wish, he impulsively tells her he's happily settled and Jane is his girlfriend--right before his phone dies. But Levi and Jane do not. Now Levi's family is desperate to meet "The One." Though Jane agrees to be his pretend girlfriend for just one dinner, she's nervous. After a traumatic childhood, Jane isn't sure she knows how to be around a tight-knit family that cherishes one another. She's terrified, and a little jealous. But an unexpected series of events and a host of new friends soon show Jane that perhaps this is the life she was always meant to have. As Jane and Levi spend more time together, pretend feelings quickly turn into real ones. Now all Jane has to do is admit to herself she can't live without the man she's fallen in love with and the family she has always dreamed of.

🎧︎The Family You Make is the first book in the brand new Sunrise Cove series. My expectations for this one were high and in true Shalvis form, it did not disappoint. The visit to Sunset Cove was filled with heart tugging moments, humour, awesome characters, passion and not one but two lovely romances.

The beginning of 🎧︎The Family You Make saw the main characters, Jane and Levi, stranded on gondola during a freak snowstorm. When the gondola in front falls to the ground, they knew they were in trouble. Fearing the worst, Levi calls his mom to tell her goodbye. But then he couldn’t go through it and instead led her to believe that Jane was his girlfriend. A revelation which made her ecstatic.

Despite the seriousness of the situation, one could not help the laughter that bubbled up occasionally during Jane and Levi’s interactions. These two developed a bond during their hair-raising experience and the fact they survived made it even more special.

While Levi may have survived his time in the gondola, he faces an even greater problem. His family wanted to meet Jane. If only he could convince her to be his pretend to be his girlfriend until his parents’ 40th wedding anniversary dinner.

Jane and Levi were wonderful characters. Jane fears forming relationships as based on her experience, the ones you love abandon you. So she left first. Levi is dealing with his share of pain, but after meeting Jane, he wants to take a chance on love. Then there are Charlotte and Mateo. These two were definitely made for each other. However, issues from Charlotte’s past hinder her from opening her heart. Levi and Mateo had faced many walls in the pursuit of the women they knew were meant for them.

The romances that developed between our characters were sweet and passionate. I enjoyed them both and became invested in their journey to happily ever after.Levi’s family members were a hoot. They loved meddling in his life, but it’s all done out of love. The lengths they went through to meet Jane cracked me up. 


Narration

This is my second time listening to Erin Mallon’s narration, and it was a pleasurable experience. She has a great array of voices for all the characters. Charlotte’s southern accent sounded authentic. She did a great job with portraying the characters’ emotion, which added depth to the story.

🎧︎The Family You Make is a beautiful story that will make you laugh, cry and swoon. Its a story of healing, forgiveness, love, family and friendships. It demonstrates that family isn’t necessarily made up of blood relations. Family represents the people in your life who will stand with you through the good and the bad times. The people who accepts you the way you are. There were so many things to love about this story.  The  delightful characters, the gorgeous setting and the variety of themes highlighted throughout the story.  

Linda Quintanilla

You know that I dropped everything and started reading this book immediately. Jill Shalvis will always be my all-time favorite author to read from. I am never disappointed whenever she releases a new book. I am always the happiest whenever I read her books. And I know I will be excited when I read The Family You Make.
The Family You Make is the beginning of a new series, The Sunrise Cove, so we get to read about new characters and new settings. In this book, we get familiar with Levi and Jane. Unfortunately, they ended up in a terrible incident that made them bond in one way rather than another. But it's the perfect set-up for them to form something deeper.
I won't go into too much detail, but I will say that this book will heal you in one way rather than another. There are some complicated issues discussed in this book, so get ready for the tissues. It will be an emotional read. 
Trigger Warning: death, past trauma, anxiety

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The Family You Make by Jill Shalvis

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