Violet Duke has managed to create a sweet emotional romance that pulls the reader into the story & keeps them reading through tears, laughter & love. The plot evolves around a pair of childhood sweethearts forced apart by circumstances that accidentally meet up again years later. The chemistry & feelings still exist & are just as intense as they were in the past. While the incident causing the separation could be dark & depressing, it was not the focus of the story & delicate emotions are treated with a light touch. The focus of the story was the emotional growth of Emma & Jake & their path to that growth.

Fourteen years ago, a tragedy happened. Yes, a house burned down, a young girl was burned & scarred, a young man was killed & a marriage didn't survive. The real tragedy was a young man being told his life wasn't as important as his brother's because the brother was actually going to do something with his life. Tragedy was another feeling guilty because of an impossible choice she had to make. Two teenagers are forced to continue their lives paralyzed by guilt.

I have read all of the books published by Ms. Duke & this has to be my favorite. Instead of showing the affection & love through steamy love scenes, the chemistry is shown more through emotional interactions, tender motions & flirting. In tense moments, the mood is lightened by practical jokes, sarcasm & wit. I found myself chuckling several times while reading. The supporting characters, including Megan, add dimension, depth & additional emotion to the story. If the rest of the books in this series are as riveting as this one, Ms. Duke as another outstanding series to her name.

Violet Duke needs no introduction. A brilliant writer of contemporary romance, if you haven’t read her before, you are missing some ultra charming love stories that get straight the heart. Coming up later this week is book one of her new series Juniper Hills, a new set of characters, their fears, and insecurities, hope and love, a new town of warm and caring people, and what is going to be a captivating series for the readers.

Jack Rowan is trying to get his life back in construction after a stint in prison for a crime he never committed, but made a choice to sacrifice for his brother. A job instigated by his brother takes him to Juniper Hills, and his one and only love since his teens Emma Stevens. A perfect opportunity and yet a scary one to mend the relationship with Emma, and “All There Is” for Jake is patience, perseverance and some luck to get the love of his life back into his arms.

Emma Stevens has made a life for herself and her sister, leaving a past that burned to the ground, yet the guilt of losing her stepbrother to a fire never left her heart. Running a successful bakery and having made a fresh start, coming face to face with the boy next door she had loved and hates, was something that she had ever dreamed. But now thrown into a situation with Jake helping her fix her bakery, “All There Is” left for Emma is to let go of the past and giving this second chance of love giving it a shot.

Every book of Violet Duke’s always seems to give me a glimpse of the author herself. Endurance, hard work and perseverance is the norm of her heroines, as well as in real life and she reiterates the fact that there are so many good people in this world who are kind and helpful, and that all is not lost. With a positive attitude and courage, she pours her heart and soul into these wonderful stories of love, hope and faith.

Received an ARC from Montlake Romance via NetGalley for an honest review

All There Is
By: Violet Duke
📚💕⭐⭐⭐⭐💕📚

Sweet not Steamy

All there is Jake and Emma's long road to love. Not seeing each other after tragedy hit them both at sixteen years old shocked is the only word to describe each other's reaction fourteen years later.

Jake taking the blame for the fire that burned down Emma's home that left her sister with burn scars and the loss of her stepbrother Peyton. Thrown back together by outside influences Jake takes on the job of restoring Emma's bakery back to working condition after a huge water breakage that resulted in a huge expense and time Emma will have to close her shop. Coming in as the lowest bidder Jake is given the job. We get to watch these two people rediscover each other while also having truths be revealed. Violet Duke did a tremendous job making these characters not only believable but likable as well.

Written in dual POV my personal favorite this story flows so incredibly well that the next thing you know your 80% into the book and loving every second of it. The believable way the characters interact is perfect. Run, Hop, Jump or use your (1 click) finger to do whatever you have to do and get this amazing book. It'll break your heart, you'll want to scream with frustration and it'll let you discover that love just might conquer all. The chemistry is steamy and sweet and oh so romantic.

Thanks you Netgally for letting me read and review.

OMG what a beautiful story written by the author.
Jake has lived a hard life, a choice made by his father. He & Emma met when they were 14 and spent a lot of time getting to know each other over the fence that separated their yards.
Young love destroyed in one fateful night. 14 years later they meet again and it's not a happy meeting! Can they overcome their pasts so they can actually have a future? Or will the events from that one night forever keep them apart?
5 stars for this one by Violet, make sure you add it to your TBR and grab it when it's available

Second Chance Romance
I loved the characters in this book and the friendly, quirky town. Both Jake and Emma have been through trauma that has left them still guilt ridden many years later. The author wrote about it very sensitively (moving me to tears in places) and I connected with both characters; rooting for them to get their HEA. I will be looking out for more books by this author.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley I was not compensated for my review, and I was not required to write a positive review. The opinion expressed here is my own.

Jake moved next door to Emma when they were 16 and for that 1st month they talked over the fence and became friends. But one night Emma's house catches on fire because of fireworks. Jake helps Emma and her sister Megan out of the fire, but Emma's stepbrother ends up dying in the blaze. Jake ends up being charged with shooting off the fireworks that ultimately killed Emma's stepbrother and he goes to juvie for this crime. Emma tries to put the past behind her, by moving to Juniper Hills with her sister, after her family falls apart. and start over. 14 years later, when Emma's bakery gets flooded, who comes to bid on the restoration ... you guessed it - Jake! It doesn't take Jake long to realize that he still has feelings for Emma and would like to explore them, as Emma decided they should pretend that they just met and not talk about the past. This story has lots of twists and turns and secrets that surely can't stay hidden forever. This is a sweet heartbreaking story that shouldn't be missed.

I received an ARC copy courtesy of Montlake Romance through NetGalley in exchange for a honest review.

Violet Duke’s All There Is is a sweet and heartfelt second-chance romance with a hero you’ll fall in love with. Jake Rowan went to juvenile detention fourteen years ago for accidentally starting a fire that burned down the house next door killing a young boy. He was falling in love with the boy’s older sister, Emma Stevens, when the tragedy occurred, and he is tortured by what happened that night. But there is much more to the story of the fire than anyone realizes, and Jake walks numbly through life burdened by secrets and guilt.

He is a carpenter and travels to the small town of Juniper Hills to work on the renovation of the town’s library, which his older brother bought. He sees Emma again when he agrees to help repair water damage sustained to her bakery, and both are overwhelmed to be reunited. Jake sees this as an opportunity to make reparations to Emma, and he pushes her to allow him to help her. She’s resistant because seeing Jake brings back all of the emotions and horror of that night, including her own guilt over what happened. But she does agree to give him a chance, and they agree to mute their history and try to start over.

As they get to know each other again, Emma and Jake find themselves drawn to each other just as they were in their teens. Although they would like to pretend they do not have a tragic past together, Jake knows they cannot. In order to move forward, they must look backward. Jake is incredibly sweet and patient with Emma as they excavate the past and come to terms with what happened.

All There Is is an incredibly bittersweet and captivating romance. Ms. Duke does an excellent job of developing Jake and Emma’s current relationship while balancing it with their past. There is so much feeling in the story that the reader will be left breathless, and All There Is is a phenomenal and emotional second-chance romance. - Keeper Shelf Book Blog

Nobody delivers complicated like Violet Duke. Whether bemused or enthused, her tales of tempestuous love and heartbreak get the emotional juices flowing. Her brand of seduction is laced with enough suspense to keep readers intrigued and enough emotion to add realism. All There Is is a tragedy that spins out of control. Jake and Emma are caught up in a storm that continues to wreck their lives. To the naked eye this romance seems doomed to fail, but revelations come to light that could redeem them all. A powerfully crafted eye-catcher that left me breathless.

This is an absolutely fantastic book! It's a little different from other books by this author but she did an amazing job with it. Her building of the story between Emma and Jake, both past and present, really helped us get to know and care about these characters. Their story is very emotional and it's one of forgiveness, understanding, and acceptance. It's beautifully told and not to be missed.

Everyone needs this on their must read list. I highly recommend it.

Beautiful story. Loved it and I loved the characters xx

This Is my first book by violet and I loved it! Her characters are intricate with so many layers of emotions... something that I wish more authors would strive for. Great job!!

A wonderful story.

I'm a sucker for romance stories that touch on all of my emotions and All There Is does that in spades. One of my favorite romance tropes is the second chance romance and Violet Duke did a fantastic job with it in this book. Ms. Duke warned her fans on Facebook that this story doesn't have as much heat to it as others she's written. Be that as it may, explicit sex scenes aren't necessarily needed to get the point across; sometimes less is actually better.

Jake and Emma were neighbors and friends when they were young and there was a spark of something more between them. Everything came crashing down when a fire destroyed Emma's home and left her sister scarred and her young step-brother dead. Jake saved Emma and her sister but he also took the blame for starting the fire. Emma doesn't know he didn't actually start the fire and can't bring herself to ever forgive him.

Violet Duke writes with such emotional depth and I bet this book had her tears flowing in more than one place as she wrote it. But the story wasn't all just sad emotions at all; it also has a lot of humorous moments. Emma is fond of playing innocent pranks and her sister is pretty good at them, too.

Jake is the kind of guy that most women would fall for in a heartbeat. He's kind and considerate and there doesn't seem to be anything he can't fix. I wanted to hug him and keep him for myself.

I would love to see Emma's sister, Megan, get a book of her own. She's been through fire and come out scarred but her attitude towards life is amazing; she deserves to get her own HEA. This book is a fantastic start to a new series and I hope additional books are coming.

A review copy was provided by the publisher via NetGalley but this did not influence my opinion or rating of the book.

This review will be posted to Xtreme-Delusions dot com on June 27, 2017.

This was truly a touching story. I really enjoyed the development of the characters and watching them overcome the challenges they were facing to overcome their past. Can't wait to see what the next book is about!

I loved this book. It was a sweet love story with a HEA. I fell for both the heroine and hero. As always Violet Duke blew me away. I highly recommend this book.

I picked this book randomly , since the summary sounded interesting and it was by an author I was not familiar with.
WOW, it’s one of the best stories I have read in a long time.
It’s the story about Emma Stevens and Jake Rowan. They were teens when they became neighbors and formed a special friendship. A friendship that was shattered when a fire destroys Emma’s house, kills a child and injures another one. As well as sends Jake to juvie when he confesses to a fire he didn’t start.
Fast forward 14 years and they meet again. I won’t spoil the story for you but I will tell you that it’s more than the plot.
It’s a story about family loyalties and lack thereof. About family dynamics and some of them dysfunctional. A story about regrets , guilt, walls built around the heart to protect oneself. But also a story about redemption, acceptance, overcoming adversity, finding hope and love. A reminder that life is messy and not always predictable. That yes, you need to be true to yourself, but that you also need to be open to possibilities. Because in doing so, you might find the biggest present of them all - love.
At times you will want to cry, laugh, shake the characters and cheer them.
The secondary characters are wonderful and I just can see another complex and challenging book for Megan and Carter.
Definitely a rollercoaster ride worth taking.
I was gifted this book by Netgalley. The opinions expressed are solely my own.

Wow! What an emotional book.

I loved the witty banter between Emma and Jake. 

Jake is a real sweetheart. I felt so sorry for him.

Emma and her sister have become the darlings of their new town. I liked how all of the people in Juniper Hills were protective of the two girls. I also liked how the whole town welcomed Jake.

This novel is the first book in the Juniper Hills series. This book can stand alone. My guess is the author will use characters introduced in this first book in future books in the series, but there is no cliff hanger where you will be aggrevated as you wait for the next book to come out.

This book has characters that I loved.
I loved the setting of a small town full of friendly, gossipy people.
I loved reading Emma and Jake's story. Full of wit and charm. The pranks and witty dialog made the book for me.

After the debacle that was the last Violet Duke book I read, I knew I'd have to try another. And All There Is was the best choice I could have made. Emma's and Jake's story was phenomenal!

I loved the set up for the book: two kids who loved each other but were torn apart with so much anger and pain between them meeting again as adults and finding that sometimes, no matter the issues between them, love endures and survives. Both Emma and Jake suffer from guilt over the night a fire ripped through Emma's home, killing her young brother. But that night remains shrouded in mystery and each of them only knows part of the story.

Watching them struggle with their terrible internal scars is painful in the extreme, but watching them fall in love with the adult versions of themselves is immeasurably sweet. The bitterness of the years of separation, the familial abuse, and the overwhelming guilt, not to mention the lack of knowledge and understanding really are written amazingly. This is almost all show and little tell. It's so visceral and heartfelt. The core of this book and where it shines best is the complex emotions among the characters.

But this book is also funny. Zingers and one-liners, witty byplay: yes. But also the practical jokes, the fun things they do to dig at each other. Just when you think it's going to get overwhelmed with the weight of pain, someone cracks a joke. And some of the funny stuff is also sweet and endearing or deeply bittersweet.

That's probably the best word for this book: bittersweet. It was just so beautiful with it. I can't recommend this book enough.

I couldn't get into this book for the life of me. The pace was so slow and characters we're just plain boring. DNF

Jake and Emma's story was sad and tragic yet beautiful and triumphant. Slow paced with intrigue left for book 2, VD gave us some needed fun and humor while telling a love story destined from tragedy.