Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing
Review: After thoroughly enjoying the first two books of this series, I eagerly grabbed Summer off the shelf and settled in for an entertaining read. But Nick and Octavia never came alive like the Madison men and Harte women of the previous books. JAK continues her wonderful cast of secondary characters, human and non (especially Winston who she portrays so strikingly in just a few sentences that he becomes a major figure). However, even the two family patriarchs lost some of the punch of the earlier books. Did JAK lose interest in this group? After foreshadowing the main characters in the earlier stories, did she find they didn't work out as planned? Count me in as a devoted reader, however....although I may check out a few pages more carefully next time before making a purchase. Summer ended up in the library/charity shop pile.
Rating: 
Summary: NIce Read
Review: Although this is not the most spectacular of romance novels, I couldn't help but be intrigued by the character development. To be perfectly honest, I picked up this book on a whim at an airport while waiting for a connecting flight, and I didn't really think much of it. I have never read the first two books in the trilogy, I found myself surprisingly engrossed in the novel. I read the book in one sitting... (Alright, I'll give it was a very long sitting while waiting for a plane with nothing better to do with my time), but honestly I was pleasantly surprised. I truly fell in love with the "Nick Harte" character, in spite of the fact that there were several occasions in which I'd have loved to slap him right across the face. After all was said and done, there are limited scenes of sensuality, but the point is made. Not all romance novels have to be steamy and plotless. I really enjoyed this novel, and I've definitely been turned onto Jayne Ann Krentz. I'd be pleased to read another of her books, though I'm not sure I'd back track through this trilogy. My advice to all those interested is definitely invest the seven dollars on this one, especially if you've never read JAK. She's definitely got a way with words.
Rating: 
Summary: Terribly average . . .
Review: I listened to this as an unabridged audiobook and if it weren't for the fact that I was trapped in a car with no other form of entertainment to be found I more than likely would've given up on this one mid-way through. The characters were too blah to hold my attention and their attraction to each other just didn't come alive for me. It turns out this story is the third in a series but it easily stands alone since its plot isn't exactly complicated. Octavia Brightwell is relatively new to Eclipse Bay and runs a successful art gallery. She arrived in Eclipse Bay to soothe the rift between the Madison & Harte families that her dear departed aunt caused years earlier. Once Octavia realizes the feud has been mended without her help she decides it's time to leave Eclipse Bay. She's also desperate to get away from gorgeous, heartbreaker Nick Harte who continually pesters her for a date. When she finally makes up her mind to high-tail it out of town she agrees to the date with Nick (don't ask). They soon become romantically entangled and banter back and forth denying their true feelings. Before long the two find themselves partners in the search for a valuable missing painting and, well, I bet you can figure out the rest . . . These two are very much stock characters. We have Nick who lost the love of his life years earlier and has never allowed himself to fall in love again (and has a reputation for loving 'em and leaving 'em before the night is over) and then we have the "free spirit" Octavia who sort of floats through life and avoids romantic entanglements. Stock characters are all fine and good when they're written with depth and emotion but these two were just flat out bland and their relationship lacked any sort of spark. Nick also has an annoying habit of referring to Octavia as a "fairy queen" that made me cringe every time he uttered the words.
There are also pop-up appearances by characters who I only guess starred in previous books. They add a little to the story but their visits did not convince me that I need to search for the previous books in this series. There are also far too many over the top weird/quirky/cult-y/odd speaking secondary characters populating this story to be believed. The few bits of fun banter and Nick's enjoyable little boy Carson are about all that I'll be remembering about "Summer In Eclipse Bay" once I finish writing this review.
Rating:
Summary: Just so-so.
Review: I think I've burnt out on Jayne Ann Krentz. The chemistry between her main character never sizzles, it just slow simmers. And I'm so tired of her cliched characters: the cold, uptight, calculating, corporate male hero and the emotional/spiritual, free spirit heroine. Tired, tired, tired. On top of that, the plots are boring. I give up on this author.
Rating: 
Summary: ANOTHER ONE OF MY FAVS BY JAK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Review: I was very interested in reading this book because the very fisrt book that got me into her was A SHARED DREAM. It had a good story line as well as summer in eclipse i still havent had the chance to read the first two but if theyre anything like this one im sure ill buy it and read it.
JAK makes it so easy to read her books and enjoy them that its hard to put them down.
KEEP ON ROCKIN'
Rating:
Summary: It's the 3rd in a trilogy - I just HAD to read it!
Review: I'm giving this a "4", mostly because it's JAK & she's tops in my book, but was a little disillusioned by it's lackluster. Not that I don't recommend it - but the characters, most of them the spunky & strange ones from the previous 2 installments, were getting just a bit tiresome. Nick & Octavia were destined from the beginning to pair up & I "know" this going in, but it was fun seeing them through the dilemmas to the end. Carson is a charmer, and I look for JAK to dredge him up someday when he grows up and becomes an adult Harte. Winchester, as always, is a star. You won't be disappointed to buy this book and read it just to satisfy your curiousity if you read the Eclipse Bay and Dawn at Eclipse Bay, but don't expect fireworks.
Rating:
Summary: the perfect ending to a perfect trilogy
Review: If you want my honest opinion I'm not a big Jayne Ann Krentz fan. I can't stand any of those crystal balls or the future. But since I read the other 2 books in this trilogy I figured I had nothing to lose by reading this one. So I eagerly awaited this books arrival and read it the instant it arrived on my door. Sure enough, I wasn't dissappointed and I didn't regret ordering it. It starts out simple enough with Nick Harte asking out Octavia Brightwell. For the seventh time. She finally says yes and she falls in love. Even with his son too. Of course, every happy ending has its share of problems. Nick's family is known around the whole town for it's legendary feud with the Madisons. Then there's the person, the one that every town has; the crazy one. I would of given it 5 stars if it wasn't for the stupid astrology stuff.
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining lightweight romance
Review: The conclusion of the cheerful Eclipse Bay trilogy ties things up nicely. The hero and heroine, Nick Harte and Octavia Brightwell don't have quite the richness of the earlier book's characters (especially the delightfully droll Gabe Madison of Dawn in Eclipse Bay, the best of the series) but they are more than adequate. The best thing about this series (and many of Jayne Ann's books) are the quirky,almost Capra-esque supporting characters. The grumpy grandpas, the deliciously loony Arizona, the dumb-as-dirt n'er do wells who pick a fight with Nick and his pal Jeremy, Winston the World's Classiest Schnauser, all make the book worth reading. The plot is practically non-existent, but Jayne Ann excels at making nothing into very entertaining nothing.
Rating:
Summary: A Repeat of the First 2 Books in the Series
Review: There are two things about JAK: She is one of my favourite writers and secondly, I have found her works - except for the Off World books - to be off beam during the last five years. She is great, but it's like she polished the gem just a little too much, and in that glossy mainstream treatment of her romances, she lost the fire that made her so special. She is one of the few writers I collect in hardback (Lynsay Sands, Melanie Jackson and Trish Jensen would be the others, but alas they are not in hardback yet, mores the pity). I still buy all JAK's works, but I have been just a bit let down by her last few books. I enjoyed the first two Eclipse Bays, where she actually showed the flair of catching that spark again, and in this the third, she shows she still has the magick!!! This is an utterly delightful, pure JAK at her best. AZ Snow is back with her conspiracy theories still going, the Bay community is full of the gossipy small town characters that made the first two so special, but in this one, she adds all the fire, passion, wit and humour that has made her famous. Nick Harte (brother of the Harte sisters that married the Madison brothers) has returned to Eclipse Bay for the Summer with his son Carson, a miniture version of himself. Nursing a wounded heart, Nick is hesitant to get too close to any woman, but he cannot stay away from Octavia Brightwell - the neice of the woman that caused the Harte-Madison feud oh so many years ago. Octavia runs the local art gallery, but her real reason for being there was to somehow fix the errors of the past created by her aunt, and see the Harte-Madison feud put to rest. Only by the time she has settled in the Bay, there two unexpected weddings in the Hart-Madison clan, uniting them once again, so her mission is moot and she feel at a drift, without purpose in her life. She adores Carson, and is very attracted by Nick Harte, but is leary getting involved with him. The whole town knows two things about Hardhearted Harte - on the first date he gives women THE TALK saying there is no hope for a commitment, and that he never stays the full night with any woman. Octavia knows she could not stand having to face either of them, so she stays away from involvement with him. Only, when a missing art piece worth a quarter of a million dollars is stolen from Octavia's gallery, and it falls to Nick to investigate - with Arizona Snow in charge - she cannot maintain that distance. This is a funny, engaging book, that has some of the best lines like "Back in the big city, folks would probably say that Euqene and Dwayne are the products of dysfunctional families. But around here we just call them bums." Or "I did not come in here to argue with a woman with big hair" or when discussing the local hair saloon she says their styles were limited to "Very Big Hair and the Senior Citizen Helmet." This is Jayne Ann at her peek form and all I can say is it's about time!!!
Rating:
Summary: A fun summer romance with heart-warming elements
Review: We've returned to Eclipse Bay, home of the much-talked about Harte-Madison feud and the surprising romances in earlier books, Eclipse Bay and Dawn in Eclipse Bay. This time a stranger has come to town - Olivia Brightwell, who hides a secret purpose in opening an art gallery in the little seaside town. The older generation might have a suspicion about why she's in town. But Nick Harte's main worry is whether he'll spend the entire summer collecting rejections from the new girl in town, or whether his 5-year-old son Carson will blame him for messing up Carson's relationship with his friend Olivia. Soon enough everyone's worried about other things, like Nick's love them and leave them reputation, a valuable missing painting, and whether or not Nick has given Olivia The Talk (a lecture about keeping things light that has become famous among the females of Eclipse Bay). This book has all of Ms. Krentz's signature touches -- family ties, down-home atmosphere, a dash of mystery, and a couple who spends enough time worrying about what the other one might do that it takes a while to figure out that they're falling in love. Highly recommended.
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