Winter in Paradise (Paradise, 1)

Irene Steele devoted her time to renovating the beautiful Iowa City Victorian house she owns with her devoted husband, Russ, thanks to his promotion to a well-paying job with a boutique investment firm that made their financial situation much easier even though it required him to travel extensively. Now the house is a showpiece and when at home with her and spending time with their two grown sons, Russ is a doting, sentimental husband.

And then tragedy strikes. Irene is notified that Russ has been killed in a helicopter crash on the Caribbean island of St. John, but she has no idea what Russ was doing there when he was supposed to be on a business trip.

Ayers Wilson, a waitress at a popular restaurant in St. John, rings in the New Year without her best friend and coworker, Rosie, who is spending the evening with the "Invisible Man." That's the name ascribed to the mysterious boyfriend Rosie spends time with when he is on the island. She does not reveal any details about him and Ayers has long suspected he is married. When Ayers learns that Rosie and the Invisible Man have been killed in a helicopter crash, she is devastated and heartbroken for Rosie's stepfather and young daughter, Maia.

Irene and her sons travel to St. John to attempt to make sense of Russ's untimely demise and are shocked to learn that Russ has been leading a double life. He owns a gorgeous, secluded home that he has obviously been sharing with another woman. Irene sets out to learn the full extent of Russ's deceit and, in the process, finds herself drawn into the magical, spiritual island culture.

Winter in Paradise is the first installment in a new series from best-selling author Elin Hilderbrand. And the series is off to a find start. Employing her signature style, Hilderbrand creates vibrant, complicated, but endearing characters. In addition to Ayers and Irene, the cast includes Rosie's stepfather, Huck, a fishing captain; young Maia; Nick, the longtime unfaithful boyfriend with whom Ayers broke up; and Irene's sons, Cash and Baker, both of whom are smitten with Ayers, but have left their own life complications back in the U.S.

The action moves at a brisk pace, never stalling or stuttering, as Hilderbrand pulls readers into the complexities of the characters' lives and their struggle to come to terms with the secrets Russ kept, as well as understand how Rosie came to be in the helicopter with him and lost her own life. There are many questions about Russ's financial dealings, the business interests of the mysterious company where he was employed, and what the future holds for Irene and her sons, not to mention Maia. Hilderbrand injects details about the beautiful island, a place she knows well and clearly loves. The combination of setting and character mesh perfectly into an enjoyable, compelling story with a jaw-dropping ending that sets up and leaves readers clamoring for the next volume.

Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.

Loved the series