Title:  The Comfort of Favorite Things
Series:  Hope Springs #5
Author:  Alison Kent
Genre:  Contemporary Romance
Published:  September 15, 2015
Publisher:  Montlake Romance
My Rating:  5 stars
Source:  NetGalley
Cover Description:

No matter how many years Dakota Keller has spent trying, he can’t outrun his past, so when a private investigator tells him his sister needs him, he travels to the small Texas town of Hope Springs to start a new life with the support of his siblings. When he arrives to do a routine construction job at the town’s new espresso bar, he’s shocked to discover that the owner is Thea Clark—the girl he couldn’t resist in high school and whose memory kept him sane in prison.

Recovering from an abusive relationship, Thea decides that her past is off-limits for discussion, even with Dakota. After all, it feels like a lifetime since she last saw him. But when Dakota’s brother’s firm is tapped to renovate the women’s shelter Thea runs out of her home, old feelings quickly reignite. Could a casual affair from high school turn out to be the one connection neither of them can live without?

Read on for my thoughts on The Comfort of Favorite Things.  No true spoilers, promise.

I was so excited to finally have Dakota’s story.  He has been within almost every story in the Hope Springs series.  In The Comfort of Favorite Things we will get the chance to hear directly from Dakota, as he gives us his reasons for disappearing for so long and where his future will lie.

This fifth novel of the series also touches on some very important and sensitive subjects with a realistic touch and compassion for those who have dealt with some of the worst that can happen done in the name of “love”.  And others done for power and control.

Thea’s life has changed a lot since Dakota spent the last night before entering prison with her.  A life that has offered more pain than anything else.  Now she’s settled in Hope Springs, she’s bought a rundown old mansion on a hill and fortified it so that no one can ever enter to harm those that live within its walls.  Thea has created a shelter for other women who need protection and a chance to rebuild their lives.  It won’t be easy, but she is determined.  The new business she is opening will help to fund that shelter.  The last person she expected to show up to do construction on her shop was Dakota.

The Comfort of Favorite Things is such a powerful story.  Not only are we getting Dakota’s side of the story of his disappearance after serving his time for the actions he took after Indiana’s attack – but we get the chance to also meet some very courageous women.  Each of the women that Thea is helping has their own unique story and reason to need the safety of the shelter and to rebuild their lives.

It was fun to run into old friends in this story.  Most of the couples, and people we met in previous novels have a brief appearance in this newest story.  It’s always a good feeling to get an update on characters who mean so much to the town and the series.  I would recommend The Comfort of Favorite Things to anyone who enjoys a deeply layered story that feels realistic and believable from the first chapter.

*I received an e-ARC of The Comfort of Favorite Things from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. That does not change what I think of this novel.*

Available in paperback and for the Kindle