Love, Lists, and Fancy Ships

Jo Walker works as a yacht stewardess, a job below deck that takes her around the world. She owns a condo on the beach, where she is the youngest resident by several decades. For a year she has been working through a bucket list of thirty goals meant to be done by her thirtieth birthday.

Then her nephew dies, and the list is dropped. Her two nieces arrive without warning, intending to stay for the summer. They find the list and insist on helping her finish it.

Eight items remain, among them running a marathon, visiting ten countries and sleeping in a castle. Twelve weeks looks far too short, but Jo takes up the challenge. Item number five, kissing a stranger, is the one she finally gets done, and it brings her to Alex Hayes.

This is a contemporary romance with a family story running beside it. Jo's feelings for Alex deepen while her reluctance to face painful emotions about her family strains her closest relationships. The book follows a ticking summer deadline, with grief and love sharing the page, and Jo has to stop guarding her heart before she loses the people who matter most to her.