The Cottage on Juniper Ridge. Sheila Roberts

      

      How to Change Your Life…

      Can a book change your life? Yes, when it’s Simplicity, Muriel Sterling’s guide to plain living. In fact, it inspires Jen Heath to leave her stressful, overcommitted life in Seattle and move to Icicle Falls, where she rents a lovely little cottage on Juniper Ridge. And where she can enjoy simple pleasures—like joining the local book club—and complicated ones, like falling in love with her sexy landlord, Garrett Armstrong.

      Her sister Toni is ready for a change, too. She has a teenage daughter who’s constantly texting her friends, a husband who’s more involved with his computer than he is with her, and a son who’s consumed by video games. Toni wants her family to grow closer—to return to a simpler way of life.

      Other women in town, like Stacy Thomas, are also inspired to unload their excess stuff and some of the extra responsibilities they’ve taken on.

      But as they all discover, sometimes life simply happens. It doesn’t always happen simply!

       Praise for the novels of

      SHEILA ROBERTS

      ‘Her characters are warm and engaging and their interactions are full of humour.’

      —RT Book Reviews

      ‘An uplifting, charming, feel-good story’

      —Booklist

      ‘… will doubtless warm more than a few hearts.’

      —Publishers Weekly

      ‘A wonderful story with characters so real and defined I feel like I am personally acquainted with them … There is humour and emotion in large quantities in this fantastic book that is next to impossible to put down. Kudos and a large bouquet of flowers to Sheila Roberts for giving us one of the best books of the year.’

      —Fresh Fiction

      “Within minutes of cracking open the book, my mood was lifted.”

      —First for Women

      SHEILA ROBERTS is married and has three children. She lives on a lake in the Pacific Northwest. When she's not hanging out with her girlfriends or hitting the dance floor with her husband, she can be found writing about those things dear to women's hearts: family, friends and chocolate.

      You can visit Sheila at her website, www.sheilasplace.com. You can also find her on Twitter @_Sheila_Roberts and Facebook.

       Also by Sheila Roberts

      BETTER THAN CHOCOLATE

      MERRY EX-MAS

      WHAT SHE WANTS

      Sheila Roberts

       www.mirabooks.co.uk

      For my buddy Liz

       Dear Reader,

      I think this book has been bubbling at the back of my mind for some time. A few years ago my husband and I moved from the house we'd been in for eighteen years and I was shocked to see how much stuff we'd accumulated! After so many runs to Goodwill that I lost count and packing enough boxes to fill a stadium, I was so done with stuff. I could drive by a garage sale and not even be tempted! Of course, that didn't last long. Pretty soon I was, once more, braking for garage sales. Then we lost my husband's parents and were up to our eyeballs in stuff again. What to do with it all? Where to put it? Let me tell you, it wasn't easy. And keeping the pile of things to a reasonable level is still an ongoing process, but I think I'm getting it down to a system.

      And that wasn't the only thing I was dealing with. I was trying to simplify my life. Between trying to keep up with work, family responsibilities, house, garden, church and friends, I was on overload. When we first moved to our little lake house, I'd envisioned myself puttering in the garden, growing my own fruit and veggies, sitting on the patio and enjoying the view, sipping cocktails with the neighbours. Ha! Who had time for that? I needed to simplify my life!

      I suspect I'm not the only one who's been faced with this. I've talked to a lot of women stuck in that same cramped boat. It's easy to get overcommitted and overloaded. It sort of sneaks up on us one bargain at a time, one ‘Sure, I can do that’ commitment at a time. Next thing we know, life is complicated.

      The women in Icicle Falls have realised this and they're going to do something about it. But they've got some challenges ahead. I hope you'll enjoy their journey. And if it resonates with you, well, I always love hearing from my readers. Find me on Facebook or visit me at my website, www.sheilasplace.com.

      Happy reading!

       Sheila

      Contents

       Cover

       Back Cover Text

Praise

       About the Author

       Title Page

       Dedication

Dear Reader

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

       Chapter Seven

       Chapter Eight

       Chapter Nine

       Chapter Ten

       Chapter Eleven