Dandelion Serenade by Lori Soard - Enchanting tale of second chances

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Lori Soard’s Dandelion Serenade, the second novella in the Dogwood Creek Matchmakers series, is a quietly enchanting story that blooms with emotional depth and nostalgic charm.

About the Book: Dandelion Serenade 

Perfect pacing guides the reader through a tale of second chances and rekindled romance, as childhood friends Lauren Juniper and Nathan Brickner are reunited by the fate of a beloved landmark: an old stone bridge. Nathan, now a bridge engineer, returns with plans to replace the structure; to Lauren, that bridge is woven into her family’s history and the fabric of the town itself.

 

But the bridge isn’t the only thing in need of repair. Years earlier, Nathan broke Lauren’s heart when he left Dogwood Creek after high school, chasing a future that didn’t include her. Lauren carries a quiet unforgiveness, her heart still bruised from his departure. Nathan, on the other hand, has spent years believing he must achieve and prove himself worthy, to his family, his community, and perhaps most of all, to Lauren. These personal battles make their reunion bittersweet and layered, turning a simple homecoming into a journey of grace and healing.

 

BookHookup Book Review: Dandelion Serenade 

What makes this novella truly memorable are its likable, flawed, and relatable characters. In just a short span, Soard gives readers people who feel real, woven with longing, regrets, and a yearning for belonging. Lauren’s tension between preserving memory and embracing the future, and Nathan’s pull toward progress and self-worth, echo conflicted hearts we all understand.

Underlying it all is a delicate, symbolic thread of the dandelion, woven through the plot and imagery like a whispered wish. From childhood “dandelion wishes” to a statue in the garden at the end, of a figure holding a dandelion gone to seed—this motif resonates. Is the statue holding on to the past, or reaching for the future? That ambiguity lingers beautifully, as if every seed could land somewhere hopeful.

 

 Dandelion Serenade is part of the Dogwood Creek Matchmakers series, a multi-author collection set in the charming small town of Dogwood Creek, Tennessee. Lori Soard launched the series with Chasing Snowflakes, and new novellas are planned for release every other month over the next two years — promising plenty more heartwarming tales for fans of small-town romance.

I highly recommend this book to readers who enjoy sweet romance and Christian fiction.

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About the Author: Lori Soard

Lori Soard has a PhD in Journalism and Creative Writing, but she's hardly the stuffy professor type. She loves nothing better than a good romantic comedy and thinks the good guy should always win and the ending should always be happy.

From an early age, Lori started honing her story telling skills. As a kid she was rarely seen without a book in her hand, even walking and reading at the same time. Her first stories were about the world around her. At twenty she wrote her first novel, which she admits was horrible. At twenty-one, she sold her first article to a local newspaper. Once she got that taste of having others read her work and realizing that she could reach others and touch their hearts, there was no turning back for this natural born writer.

"If I can make someone's day just a tiny bit better," Lori says, "if I can make them smile even though they are sad, make them think things could be better, make them understand how much God loves them, then I have accomplished something. I write my stories, articles and books with that one person in mind who really needs the message. If I can change one person's perspective, then I've succeeded."

Lori is a life-long Hoosier and lives in southern Indiana with her high school sweetheart turned husband. They have two grown daughters and two granddaughters. She always has a her critters surrounding her, including a couple of miniature dachshunds and several rescue cats. "During the extreme low points in life, it has been my animals that have seen me through. There is nothing like the deep devotion of a dog or the unconditional love of a cat." Lori adores animals and while some of her dear friends have crossed over the Rainbow Bridge she will always stand by her belief that animals make the world a better place.

She loves to hear from her readers and blogs regularly.