The story begins with a very despondent and heartbroken Jo who is a widow facing an uncertain future. She feels unable to move on from her husbands sudden death and can see no further than one day at a time. She is stuck in limbo and knows she must make a decision about her future and that of the hotel they owned. Her children have flown the nest, each involved in their own new venture and Jo feels surplus to requirements. She knows she needs to carve out a new future for herself and that means a possible move away from all that is familiar to her.

Jo's best friend Hattie is feeling equally despondent. Her rat of a husband has treated her badly. Despite Jo warning Hattie about her husbands infidelity, Hattie choose to ignore it until finally realising Jo was right. Now, she too is alone. However, Hattie isn't going to let the small matter of a broken heart stop her and she manages to talk Jo into having a holiday visiting Jo's son in Barbados. And, so the two women set off on their own little adventure.

I really enjoyed this book and I adored Hattie! She was totally nuts and one of a kind. Despite giving the impression of someone who was simply crashing through life, swatting away all her own hurt and pain, Hattie is actually quite a worldly wise woman with a sensible head (whenever she chooses) and a heart as big as the Caribbean itself. Her exploits in the book had me laughing out loud at times. But, through all her bravado, Hattie is as vulnerable as Jo.

Set in the beautiful Caribbean, the story introduces such a wealth of wonderful and colourful characters who really add such a fun dimension to the book. And, thankfully Hattie fits right in with her over enthusiastic embrace of all things fun (and alcoholic!). The story reminds us that life and fun don't have to end just because we are a certain age. Life is still full of second chances and lots of love if we just open our eyes and look hard enough. Sometimes its closer than we think.

What I loved most about the book is the strong bond between Jo and Hattie despite being two completely different women from different backgrounds. They were such great friends who clearly love and support one another in their very different ways. This was a fun read with a serious message and I highly recommend it. Although the second book in the series it can be read as a standalone and I didn't feel at anytime at a disadvantage for not having read the first book in the series.