One Summer's Night

Mary Alice Kruesi takes a heaping spoonful of fairy dust and enchants her readers with this delightful novel!I have always been fascinated with the faeire world, and to find a book with all the elements of a great love story, plus the magic and mystery of a fairy tale, well, I was in heaven!Kruesi has a wonderful sense of storytelling, and her characters are charming as well as intriguing. Weaving in a bit of mystery, she keeps the reader wondering if true love will win the day. Look for more great stories to come from this rising star in the romance world.

This romantic tale of faerie magic was a wonderful book. Yes, it had a slightly more leisurely pace and more description than is "politically correct" these days, but to be honest, I found it to be a refreshing change of pace. It was almost as if the author was gently seducing me into the story and boy, once she had me, I didn't want her to let me go! Before I even realized it, I had read huge chunks and was nearing the end. Aside from being a powerful and beautifully written romance, it was also a great female wish fulfillment story. Who wouldn't want to leave behind the hustle and bustle of modern life to live in a charming cottage and eat fairy cakes with Maybelle while being wooed by the gorgeous "gardener" next door? Laurel and Dane are both on a search for self, but in the process, they find each other and that's truly the greatest magic of all. So grab a hot cup of tea, curl up in a comfy chair, open ONE SUMMER'S NIGHT and prepare to be enchanted!

Rejected by the only graduate school of her choice, Laurel Carrington is at loose ends after her college graduation. She is not used to this, having spent a lifetime of eradicating from her existence any taint of disorganization, ambiguity, or right-brain thinking. Not to worry - her father and her hopeful fiance-to-be are more than willing to come to her rescue and lay out the rest of her life for her. In an uncharacteristic act of rebellion against their intrusive planning, Laurel decides to accept a surprise invitation to a summer apprenticeship in Vermont with famous artist Maybelle Starr. Maybelle shows Laurel how to experience life without the trappings of linear thought and logic, and her summer is alternately magical, arousing, dirty, and maddening, as she comes to terms with the intuitive, creative, joyous side of herself. Along the way, she crosses paths with Dane Walden, a self-taught man of many contradictions who is the caretaker at Maybelle's farm. On the surface so different, yet alike in ways they have yet to discover, Dane and Laurel are drawn together in a mystical, spiritual, sexual bond. As the summer lengthens, Dane, Laurel, and Maybelle find their destinies intertwined in a story of opposites, love, caprice, and magic.This book starts out slowly. Beware, because about halfway through, it accelerates unexpectedly, and you may find that you cannot put it down very easily. The characters are written with depth and believability, and the author draws beautiful pictures with words that evoke the sight, smell, and feel of the place. My only regret revolved around what felt to me to be some unresolved issues in the plot, with regard to Dane's sister. However, Maybelle would probably say that it's good to leave something to the imagination.....This book crosses genres and I don't think of it as "just" a romance, but more of a story about love and family. I'm happy to recommend it!

...And in another magical novel by Mary Alice Kruesi, who is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors, she manages to do just that... Ms. Kruesi blends "fantasy" with elements of "reality" so skillfully that it is easy to believe... 'One Summer's Night' is a journey into one woman's discovery of her heart. With the help of one mystical woman, one surprisingly diverse man and the fey, Laurel is able to let go of her need for structure and facts and open herself to possibilities of which she never dared to dream. This is a romance novel; however, there is a depth to this novel, a blossoming of hope. This, in truth, is so much more than a typical "romance novel". Ms. Kruesi manages, once again, to capture her readers minds and hearts, to transport them into a world where wonders beyond imagining are possible. I have become quite a fan... ()

This is the first Mary Alice Kruesi book that I have read, but it won't be the last. I picked up this book after a wretched day, and felt soothed immediately after reading the first chapter. MAK's writing is light, lyrical and a pleasure to read - I liken it to a puff of fresh spring air blowing over me. I enjoyed every aspect of this book - Laurel and Dane's slowly evolving relationship, the connection between Maybelle and Laurel and the fantasy aspects - but I loved Laurel's character the most. Laurel's life was mired in the safety of a practical, goal oriented life before she took a big risk which she struggled with throughout the entire book that opened up her life and soul. Normally, I read either historicals (Balogh, Quinn, Garwood), humourous contemps (SEP, Gibson) or romatic suspense (Nora, Howard or Johansen), but I gave One Summer's Night a chance, and I hope others do also.