Have you read FIVE DAYS IN SKYE by Carla Laureano?

/ Dora Hiers
Five Days in Skye

About the book~
Hospitality consultant Andrea Sullivan has one last chance to snag a high-profile client or she’ll have to kiss her dreams of promotion good-bye. When she’s sent to meet Scottish celebrity chef James MacDonald on the Isle of Skye, she just wants to finish her work as efficiently as possible. Yet her client is not the opportunistic womanizer he portrays himself to be, and her attraction to him soon dredges up memories she’d rather leave buried. For James, renovating the family hotel is a fulfillment of his late father’s dreams. When his hired consultant turns out to be beautiful, intelligent, and completely unimpressed by his public persona, he makes it his mission to win her over. He just never expects to fall under her spell.

Soon, both Andrea and James must face the reality that God may have a far different purpose for their lives—and that five days in Skye will forever change their outlook on life and love.


Meet the cast~

“I like men. I just don’t particularly trust them.” 
Meet Andrea Sullivan. After a disastrous marriage straight out of college, Andrea abandons her dream of playing in a symphony and strives to become Vice President of a hospitality consultant firm, ignoring the hurtful zingers from the men she works with about her personal life. She’s a workaholic with a strong closing ratio, and that coveted VP designation is right around the next contract.

Until she runs across celebrity Chef James MacDonald, who’s flirty and fun. His smile ignites her dormant excitement about life, but he’s too much like her ex-husband to stand a fighting chance to claim her heart. Besides, he’s fighting his own demons from the past. After a devastating breakup with his ex-fiance, he’s determined not to become emotionally entangled again. It doesn’t help that Andrea’s equally determined not to be just a pretty girl on his arm.

Sharing my thoughts~
OK. Here’s where I confess that I’m not particularly enamored with either the cover or the title, so this book sat unopened in my kindle for at least a month. But, when I read the first few pages and they totally reeled me in, I was hooked! What a playful, engaging book! I loved it, from the cast of characters to feeling like I was actually touring Scotland, if only in the pages of a book. 

I mean, really. What’s not to like about this?

“The entire Sound of Sleat spread out in front of them, a wide expanse of blue. Gentle waves lapped at the rocky beach below, creating lacy ripples of white froth against the dark sand. Across, she could see the mountainous edge of the Scottish mainland. The sun had finally risen, and now the sky was a brilliant blue, dotted with fluffy white clouds.”

Don’t you just want to dive into the pages of this book? Or book a trip to Scotland? Yeah, I know. I hear ya. If I like that excerpt, why don’t I like the cover? For some reason (lack of people maybe?) the cover doesn’t work for me. This is a prime example of why I shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but that’s such a challenge for me.


If you know me, you know I love “happily-ever-after’s.” Like the title implies, this book covered just five days, so there wasn’t what I’d call a “proper” HEA, but the ending definitely left me satisfied. No spoilers from me. You’ll just have to read the book. Those Five Days in Skye are jam-packed with character depth, emotions and setting. 

Reviewers have noted that Five Days in Skye isn’t your typical Christian romance. Some readers might not appreciate particular topics like drinking wine/ale with meals, which I considered to be more of a cultural difference. It’s also rated high on the kissing intensity scale, yet I found the scenes well-balanced with emotional tenderness and never graphic. I appreciate how the author showed realistic characters and tackled sensitive issues like this:

“Christians like to talk about love and forgiveness, but they’re no better than anyone else. They’d sooner judge you than accept you. I’d rather be a heathen than a hypocrite.”

Ouch.

Have you read Five Days in Skye? 

Do you agree with my review? What were your thoughts?
What about you? Do you decide whether to read a book based on whether you like its cover?

Purchase Link

Disclaimer: I scooped this book up from Amazon when it was offered free. The opinions expressed in this review are my own, and I received no monetary compensation.

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2 thoughts on “Have you read FIVE DAYS IN SKYE by Carla Laureano?”

  1. I took one look at the cover and my stomach dropped. 🙂 I see what you mean. The story sounds all romance, but the title and the cover give it a different feel. Maybe more women's fiction?

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