Title: The Corner of Forever and Always
Series: Everland, Georgia
By: Lia Riley
ISBN: 1455568724 (ISBN13: 9781455568727)
Author’s Website: http://www.liariley.com
Brought to you by OBS reviewer Andra
Summary 
Fairy tales aren’t ever what they seem . . .
Tuesday Knight’s dream of Broadway stardom has flopped, leaving her unemployed and brokenhearted. Ready to quit kissing frogs and make her own happily-ever-after, she takes a job as a princess in Everland, Georgia’s historical amusement park.
Mayor Beau Marino lives an un-enchanted existence-all work, no play-which is fine by him. After his marriage ended in disaster, the last thing he wants in his life is more drama. But Everland’s new free spirit has a talent for getting under his starched collar.
When the town’s beloved but bankrupt park might be shut down, Tuesday and Beau face a choice. Can they join forces, save the day-and each other? Or will their fierce battle of wills destroy any chance of a fairy-tale ending?
Review
The Corner of Forever and Always is the second in the Everland, Georgia series. Author Lia Riley is a new author to me and I must say, I enjoyed my first foray into her writing. My only bone of contention is the name of the female protagonist – Tuesday. It took me SO long to remember that was her name and not being used as a day of the week. Once I got past that little challenge – I was fine.
The story begins with Tuesday Knight asking “Where are my glass slippers?” Now if that didn’t catch my interest ☺. Then I remembered that Tuesday was an unappreciated and underemployed actress who took a job with the Everland, Georgia’s historical amusement park. I found Tuesday an endearing character even with her quirky, artistic personality. Quite in contrast with the main male character -> Mayor Beau Marino. Beau is a bit of a stuffed shirt and should really loosen up, especially since he is still a young man. Albeit, he was burned in his first marriage and this has certainly tainted his view on relationships.
Naming conventions throughout the book kept me on my toes! For example: Tuesday’s pet Boston terrier is named “J.K. Growling”. Can we say Harry Potter fan? Definitely brought a smile and chuckle to this reader. Or the name of her car – an orange car – called Pumpkin.
The puns also were in abundance. As usual, Tuesday tended to run late and while she was trying to get to her obligation (she was hosting a field trip for Foster Friends, a local children’s charity),
“she was thinking that is she did not dillydally she’d have enough in the tank to get to work and home. It Came Down to Fumes and a Prayer: The Tuesday Knight Story.”
The formula is predictable, girl meets boy, boy meets girl. They don’t hit it off… in fact… they clash like oil and water. Then, as time passes, things change and they start to see each other in a different light. But what is NOT predictable, is the way in which the story is told. There is so much humour in how the romance was told that I was mesmerised.
“Much like pineapple pizza, chocolate-covered caramel, or cheesy French fries, she craved the wrong kind of guy. If she felt magnetism to a man, the sensation should come equipped with a red lashing light: STOP! Warning! Emotionally unhealthy jerk ahead. She needed to be attracted to another jerk like she needed to a third nipple. Face it. The mayor liked nothing about her. Nothing. Nada. No thing. Her romance report cards were solid F for failure, but no more.”
How could one not get sucked into continuing the read without passages like the one just quoted? I was snagged -> hook, line and sinker.
The cast of characters were colourful, with their own unique stories to tell. As the story unfolded, I was quite intrigued by Madame Magna. Actually, all the staff at the amusement park were quirky and interesting. We also get an up close look at Tuesday’s sister and Beau’s best friend (they were in the first book in the series – It Happened On Love Street). And the busy body neighbours certainly added another dimension to living in a small town and new relationships.
As the relationship between Tuesday and Beau continued to progress, you could see the self doubt and wondering would it last? Hopefully they can both work past issues and obstacles:
“He’d drive me nuts. Together we’d be a Costco-size container of mixed nuts.” And of course “Could he handle her occasional trips to Chaos Town, or would she spend her days apologizing for being who she was?”
The big question though – will Tuesday be able to pull off a miracle and save the amusement park from being turned into a mega store? Will Tuesday and Beau actually make it work? And what about Madame Magna and her prophecies?
All in all, a romance with humour and colourful characters which kept me engaged throughout the entire book. Would I read more titles by Lia Riley? The answer is a definitive “YES”. I plan to actually go back and read book one (It Happened On Love Street) of the series before proceeding to any other titles by Ms. Riley.
