Catch of the Day (Gideon's Cove Book 1)

I really enjoyed the characters in this book, I felt right along with them. I cried when Colonel died, I’m facing losing my own dog soon. This was a book I just had to stay up and finish!

Well written. Characters are true to life and emotionally moving. This novel made me want to relocate to northern Maine.

The storyMaggie owns the diner in her small Maine seaside village. She’s very single and has the biggest crush on the Irish priest. When she met him she didn’t realise he was the priest, of course now the whole town knows. Between the priest trying to set her up with unmarried parishioners, her mother being angry about Maggie settling for life as the diner owner and her twin sister living her best life, Maggie really can’t win. But when the surly lobster fisherman Malone comes to Maggie’s rescue one evening, maybe things aren’t as dire as she believes them to be.My thoughtsThis story is a little dated, there are phone books, voicemail machines and even a random fax, but this funny story that had me in laugh-tears at one point, is a goodie. Single in your thirties in a very small town where everyone knows your story is definitely a challenge! And to be known for having a crush on the local catholic priest can’t be a joke. Maggie is very kind and civic minded in her attempts to keep the heart of the town beating, and her antics are really funny. She is a very real character with human faults and apparently the ability to fall in love with a very monosyllabic male main character. A fun read.Read on KindleMy rating 3/5 - ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

The story was enjoyable, and I liked that the characters grew when they understood themselves better. There were parts that brought me to tears, which is not something i do often. Thank you for a good story Kristen!

This is the third Kristan Higgins book I've read and I must enjoy being annoyed because she always manages to annoy me and yet... I just keep on reading. So I'm not going to give this book 1 star (for the annoyment factor), because she writes well and keeps me interested.In Catch of the Day, we have the strong and silent type hero and a very chatty heroine who I could never really warm up to. She is a restless do-gooder who fills the vacuum of not having a life by day-dreaming of having a darling husband and cute children. This I found very difficult to relate to as it irritated the hell out of me that she doesn't seem to be able to take real pleasure in anything but expends all her energy trying to please others. And of course they are happy with the cookies she bakes and all those meals on wheels she delivers but otherwise she's a bit of a laughing stock so she isn't getting anything back. That said, I didn't like the patronising way people treated her and it was a bit too much how her love life seemed to be a never-ending series of humiliations at the hands of several unfeeling men.So I really wanted her to stand up for herself and I was waiting for this to happen...and in a way she did but it was somehow very very unsatisfying. I really didn't like the way the hero got away with not contacting her for long periods leaving her to think what anyone would have thought in the same situation and then... he did some nice but to be honest trivial gesture and all was forgiven as if it hadn't mattered after all. I'm not saying that the guy should have been burnt at the stake but this is not resolution. (For me the lowest point was the hero returning the heroine's offering of pie on her doorstep the next day - that was like slapping her in the face. This was totally glossed over as a minor incident with no resolution.)In the end I sincerely wanted these two people to try and find happiness with somebody else. It left me so frustrated that I think I now want to read a romance in which the heroine just gets a life respecting herself and leaving the hero to lead the life of his choice, rejecting as many offerings of pie and love from others as he sees fit.OK, so why do I like Kristan Higgins then? I just love the angst and how it's built up. It's the right kind of angst (the kind I prefer) when the heroine is in total doubt whether the hero is interested at all. Probably not. There's excellent story-telling, very funny scenes and observations and many moments when you can just laugh because these things happen to you too (people's quirks and flaws, including yours).But then it becomes too much. The angst gets to a point where it is no longer enjoyable. When it is no longer just quirky characters popping up to give us a few laughs but a heroine who never experiences love and real appreciation from anyone. And sorry but this can't be patched up by winning the girl a blue stuffed rat at the village fair.

Maggie is a wonderful woman. She is an identical twin. Her twin, Christie is married with a small daughter. Maggie would like to have a life like Christie's.Maggie owns a diner (the only one in town). She works for the church by cooking. She works for the fire department by cooking. She does meals on wheels for people. She feeds the elderly lady who lives in the apartment downstairs. In other words, she is a kind hearted woman who is a friend and supporter of nearly everyone in town. She is also clumsy and too likely to say the wrong thing in public.Her mother talks to her as though she is a failure. She is constantly comparing Maggie to Christie and pointing out how Maggie does not measure up. In point of fact, her mother is not a nice person. One of the most disappointing things for me is the last minute metamorphosis.This book is really about Gideon's Cove as seen through Maggie's eyes. The town is tiny. The way to make a living is fishing or logging. Because those can be seasonal jobs, the town is not a wealthy place. The families who live there are close knit, caring and willing to gossip about everyone and everything. They do not always let the facts get in the way of a good story.Maggie's theme song could be “Looking For Love In All the Wrong Places.” She gets a crush on a priest. One of her blind dates is a grandfather, another is a man who communicates with dead animals. And then there is Malone.Malone is a lobsterman. He does not talk. No one knows his first name. And he and Maggie do not have a real relationship as much as they become friends with benefits. That would be of course if they were friends.Ms Higgins has created a place that is filled with love, humor and warmth. The characters are each well defined. There are secondary characters who add a wonderful texture to the story.I enjoyed this book very much. It easily held my interest. I think if I woke up in Gideon's Cove, I would know where to eat breakfast, where to go to church and when I wanted a beer, I could show up at Dewey's.A terrific story about life. Life is not always easy or fun. But, at times it can be perfect.

A lovely read, enjoyed the characters especially Maggie, liked the family characters and loved the humour and wit of the writing around the story - fab I am definitely going to look for more books by this author :)

I enjoyed this light hearted read. It has a warm storyline - loved all the characters especially Malone a strong silent type!

Excellent

really enjoyed the everyday style of these promptly delivered novels.

Kristin Higgins books are my go-tos for funny, engaging stories, and this book didn't disappoint—a warm, sweet, delightful heroine, a strong hero of few words who does the most incredibly romantic things, and a town full of quirky yet believable characters (we know these people from our own lives). And the dog—oh, the dog! I laughed, and I cried, and I sighed.