Jane’s husband just died, and she lost her precious dog shortly thereafter, but she is keeping something secret from those nearest to her – she’s more broken up about the pooch!

Maybe she would have told her closest friends but she’s not living in her hometown of San Diego. Instead she’s still in Philadelphia where she lived with her husband but never really settled. Even though everyone says one shouldn’t make any sudden changes when recently widowed, Jane feels this is exactly the right time for her to make the move home.

But life has other plans for her. Her aunt and uncle need her.

The thought of helping to look after a B & B, and its customers, makes Jane shudder (she’s really not a people person!). However it will help fill in the time while she looks for a new job and being there for family is important to her. So she heads off to Prescott, Arizona, meeting a stray dog in a rest stop on the way. She can’t leave her there all alone but can’t bear to let another dog get into her heart so takes her to a nearby rescue. What will become of the beautiful pup?

This is Jane’s story: a time of changes, self-analysis and new adventures while dealing with a huge range of mixed emotions at her recent losses. It’s a story about the past, the present and the future and all the planned, and unplanned, things that happen along the way.

As the reader I found this book highly entertaining, engaging and funny. The characters are well written and described, some more likeable than others but all people I’d love to meet. Even though Jane’s situation at times is quite a sad one, it is most definitely not a tragedy and there are plenty of comic moments all the way through. Jane’s lists, the “signs” and the titling of the chapters in the book are nice additional features that I really enjoyed.

This is definitely a book that dog lovers will connect with. Anyone who’s had a pet can appreciate what Jane feels and goes through. So who rescues who? Read and find out – Maybe! ( )

Jane is having a tough time. In a few short weeks, she has lost her husband and dog to cancer, and she feels guilty because she misses her dog more than her husband. Just before his cancer diagnosis, Jane was ready to ask her husband for a divorce, after years of unsuccessful attempt to rekindle the early days of their marriage. Once Ryan received the diagnosis, Jane could hardly desert him, so she stayed on to nurse him and support him through his unsuccessful battle with cancer. Her beagle had been with her for years, and his diagnosis was far more unsettling for Jane. Now, after all this is past, Jane is planning to move back to her former home, San Diego. Then, her mother volunteers her to stop enroute to San Diego in Prescott, AZ to take over her mother’s sister’s B&B while her sister and her husband take a cross country trip for surgery for Jane’s Aunt. Jane has misgivings at first, but figures she can stop, stay at the inn and look for a new job in San Diego during the time her aunt and uncle are away. At a rest stop close to the B&B, Jane picks up a stray, obviously abandoned, dog. When the dog is not adopted from the shelter where they put her, Jane’s aunt and uncle adopt the dog and leave Maybe with Jane while they are away.

This is a fantastic dog story, a story showing how one dog can really make a big difference in one’s life. Maybe quickly and easily worms her way into Jane’s and everyone else’s hearts. The story is really her story. I do not want to go into too many specifics, but Maybe ends up undergoing some of the same treatments Jane’s earlier dog did, for the same reasons and emerges like a real trooper. In addition to Jane and Maybe, the story is filled with other endearing characters: Selene, who works at the B&B and who has some interesting secrets/dreams that come to light, Kai, their friendly next-door neighbor fix-it man who likewise has secrets of his own, Jane’s mother, who means well but drives Jane crazy with her hoovering, Jane’s in-laws, who each have attitudes and/or characteristics that would either endear or drive one to insanity, and the quirky guests, who stay at the inn and who make for interesting and sometimes humorous interludes in the story. The book definitely shows just what adopting a stray and letting him/her work his/her way into your life and hear can do. Maybe was and is the perfect dog, gorgeous, resilient, loyal, loving, accepting of all things and anyone, etc. I quickly fell for her as the book progressed, for Maybe is the one character who manages to bring Jane out of her funk after the two deaths, manages to smooth over and bridge any gaps/problems between Jane and her in-laws, manages to show everyone that all it takes is love, loyalty, devotion and easy acceptance of life. I cannot give this book more than five stars, but I would if I could. I have not read anything else by the author but will after reading this one. I highly recommend it to anyone who loves dogs or a real, fee-good story. Maybe will worm her way into your heart, as she did with me. I received this from NetGalley to read and review. ( )