Basin Lake Series by Stephanie Vercier

Nine-year-old Paige Kessel’s life is close to perfect with a best friend next door, a swing set in her Seattle backyard and a family she loves. But when her father dies from complications of multiple sclerosis, Paige, her mom, and two younger sisters say goodbye to that life and move to the small town of Basin Lake to live with Paige’s grandmother... moreNine-year-old Paige Kessel’s life is close to perfect with a best friend next door, a swing set in her Seattle backyard and a family she loves. But when her father dies from complications of multiple sclerosis, Paige, her mom, and two younger sisters say goodbye to that life and move to the small town of Basin Lake to live with Paige’s grandmother. Things look bleak on Paige’s first day in her new school until two boys, Evan Mattson and Garrett Hevener, promise that if she sticks with them, they’ll make Basin Lake just like home. Eight years later, and as high school comes to a close, those two boys have become her best friends. When her life is complicated by a breakup and an unexpected change in college plans, she receives a declaration of love from one of her best friends and an offer she can’t refuse from the other. While working to put her dream of becoming a teacher back together, she’ll be faced with having to make the heartbreaking decision of which man she loves as a friend and which man she can’t live without. Evan Mattson’s life has always looked idyllic from the outside, but looks can be deceiving. When Paige Kessel enters his life in the fourth grade, he’s overcome with an interest in her that only magnifies over their years of friendship. When his best friend and high-school football star, Garrett Hevener, appears to finally be taking note as well, Evan must make a grand overture to keep Paige in his life. But Evan’s life is full of secrets, and he must decide whether or not to let her in, a decision that has the power to save or destroy their increasingly fragile relationship. Between the Boys is book one of The Basin Lake Series and may be read as a standalone novel. less

At sixteen, Emma Chambers has a mother who drinks too much and a father who doesn’t pay enough attention to her. When her science teacher, Matthew Thatcher, takes an interest, she thinks she’s found a supportive friend. But when the relationship becomes physical and is exposed, Emma must face the truth of what the man she trusted did to her as well as the long-lasting consequences of their union... moreAt sixteen, Emma Chambers has a mother who drinks too much and a father who doesn’t pay enough attention to her. When her science teacher, Matthew Thatcher, takes an interest, she thinks she’s found a supportive friend. But when the relationship becomes physical and is exposed, Emma must face the truth of what the man she trusted did to her as well as the long-lasting consequences of their union. Three years later, Emma is nineteen and making a habit of sneaking into nightclubs with her friend, Angela. There, she attempts to numb the pain of her past with men, music, and most importantly alcohol. Blindsided into accompanying her ex-boyfriend to Seattle’s hottest club, Rampage, she meets John, a tall, gorgeous guy with the most beautiful blue-gray eyes she’s ever seen. He ignites in her a hopeful spark that burns through her numbness. But can Emma believe a man like John, handsome, successful and established, could love a girl like her once her painful secrets come to light? John Mercer’s life has been planned out for him since he was a little boy, expected to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a corporate lawyer while being paired with the woman his mother deems perfect. When he starts to push back, ending his relationship and reevaluating his professional future, he meets Emma. She’s the beautiful girl dancing at the nightclub he and his friends are at, and when he spots her, he’s left a little breathless. His best friend, Denny, is interested in the chestnut-haired beauty too, but, as John and Emma embark on a blossoming romance, a far bigger threat looms. It will force John to reexamine his own past and decide how far he’ll go to protect the woman he has fallen so desperately in love with. Broken by Love is book two of The Basin Lake Series and may be read as a standalone novel. less

Before being a college and pro football star, Garrett Hevener found himself at the losing end of a love triangle, one in which he’d also lost his two best friends, Paige and Evan. Seven years later, after too many women and too much homesickness, he returns to the small town he’s always loved in hopes of putting down roots and meeting someone truly special... moreBefore being a college and pro football star, Garrett Hevener found himself at the losing end of a love triangle, one in which he’d also lost his two best friends, Paige and Evan. Seven years later, after too many women and too much homesickness, he returns to the small town he’s always loved in hopes of putting down roots and meeting someone truly special. But when he comes across a woman he at first thinks is Paige, he’s taken aback when he realizes she is in fact her now grown up younger sister, Kate. His attraction to her is immediate, but does it hinge on her likeness to Paige or something more? When she was fifteen, Kate Kessel found out she’d never be able to have children. The cloud of resentment and depression that followed has never left, even after two years away from Basin Lake where she’d hoped to find a way out of her inner turmoil. Now back home and hoping to start anew, she runs into Garrett. The huge crush she’d had on him as a kid has dwindled down to almost nothing, and yet a small spark reignites at their meeting. But even as Kate begins to sense Garrett might like her as the woman she’s grown into, she can’t imagine he’ll feel the same once he learns how broken she is. As Garrett and Kate both try to build new lives for themselves, will their pasts keep them from building something together? Or can they move beyond all of the hurt and truly find one another? Unbroken by Love is a small town/new adult romance. It may be read as a STANDALONE novel or as the final book of The Basin Lake Series. Some sexual content may not be appropriate for very young readers. less