Keepsake by Sarina Bowen

Title: Keepsake (True North #3)

Author: Sarina Bowen

Publisher: Rennie Road Books

Release Date: October 25, 2016

Source: ARC from Publicist

Buy the Book: Amazon / B&N / Indigo

There’s a first time for everything.

Lark Wainwright used to be fearless. Her life was a series of adventures, each one more exhilarating than the last. But her recent overseas adventure was one too many. Now she’s home and in one piece. Mostly. But her nights are filled with terror.

When her best friend offers her a stay at the orchard in exchange for help at the farmers’ markets, Lark jumps at the chance to spend fall in Vermont. But her nightmares don’t stop. Desperate to keep her fragile state a secret, she relies on the most soft-spoken resident of the Shipley Farm to soothe her when her dreams prove too much.

Zachariah is a survivor, too. It’s been four years since he was tossed aside by the polygamist cult where he grew up. He’s found a peaceful existence on the Shipley’s farm, picking apples and fixing machinery. But getting thrown away by your own people at nineteen leaves a mark on a guy. He doesn’t always know what to make of a world where movie quotes are the primary means of communication. Before hitchhiking to Vermont, he’d never watched TV or spoken on the phone.

Actually, there are a lot of things he’s never done.

Zach and Lark slowly grow to trust one another. One night they become even closer than they’d planned. But Lark may still be too broken to trust anyone. When she pushes Zach away, he will have to prove that he’s good for much more than farm labor. 

If you love romance and have yet to read any of Sarina Bowen's books, then you are seriously missing out. I have loved every one I've read and am always left begging for more. Her latest, Keepsake, was everything I hoped it would be and I loved reading every single page of it.

I absolutely LOVE getting to read a new Sarina Bowen book, especially when it's one I feel like I've been looking forward to reading for forever. Reading one of her books is like reconnecting with old friends after not having seen them for a while and feeling like no time at all has passed. And I love that feeling. So it really should come as no surprise that I loved reading Keepsake. In fact, I pretty much devoured it. Zach's story was one I had been curious about for such a long time and I was so happy to finally be able to read it. And the story completely lived up to my expectations. Lark and Zach's story wasn't always an easy one to read, especially when you find out everything's that happened to them to bring them to where they are today. But at the same time, their story gives you hope that no matter how horrible things are at one time, there is always a chance they will get better. that you'll meet someone that will help you leave that horrible past behind. That's very much what Zach and Lark were for each other and I loved seeing their unlikely relationship grow and develop. They might have been an unlikely match, but they just worked and somehow made sense. And I had full faith that they would make it through everything and come out stronger together on the other side. 

In the previous two True North books, Zach was always there in the background, quietly doing his thing. And because we only ever found out the bare minimum about him, I was beyond curious as to what his story was. I loved getting to know him in Keepsake. Even though it wasn't pleasant, I loved finding out about his past and seeing how that past still affected him today. And there were moments where my heart was breaking for him. Because Zach never deserved what happened to him, and despite his doubts, he deserved to be loved and he was worthy of it. And obviously I loved Zach, but that's pretty much a given at this point. Lark was the perfect balance to Zach's quiet nature. Even if she was putting up a front after everything that happened to her in South America. She was struggling so much with everything even though she didn't want to be struggling. I wanted so badly for Lark to find her way back to herself without too much pain, but at the same time the pain was necessary to get her to where she needed to be. It wasn't easy to read, but I loved reading it and seeing it all come together. 

Sarina Bowen's Keepsake was an absolutely beautiful story. Though it wasn't always easy to read, I loved every moment of it and would have happily kept reading about Lark and Zach. And the Shipley clan in general. Based on the ending of Keepsake, I may be getting my wish about that at some point...

Steadfast by Sarina Bowen

Title: Steadfast (True North #2)

Author: Sarina Bowen

Publisher: Rennie Road Books

Release Date: July 12, 2016

Source: ARC from Publicist

Buy the Book: Amazon / B&N / Kobo

She’s the only one who ever loved him—and the only one he can never have.

Jude lost everything one spring day when he crashed his car into an apple tree on the side of the road. A man is dead, and there’s no way he can ever right that wrong. He’d steer clear of Colebury, Vermont forever if he could. But an ex-con in recovery for his drug addiction can’t find a job just anywhere.

For Sophie Haines, coming face to face with the man who broke her heart is gut-wrenching. Suddenly, he’s everywhere she turns. It’s hard not to stare at how much he’s changed. The bad boy who used to love her didn’t have big biceps and sun-kissed hair. And he’d never volunteer in the church kitchen.

She knows it’s foolish to yearn for the man who returned all the heartsick letters she wrote him in prison. But the looks he sends her now speak volumes.

No one wants to see Sophie and Jude back together, least of all Sophie’s police chief father. But it’s a small town. And forbidden love is a law unto itself.

If you haven’t yet read anything by Sarina Bowen, do yourself a favour and go pick up one of her books as soon as possible. With every one of her books that I read, I just become more and more convinced that she can do no wrong. And Steadfast, her latest release, might just be her best yet.

A few weeks ago I completely devoured Sarina Bowen’s Bittersweet and as much as I loved Griffin and Audrey, Jude is who stayed with me. So I was beyond excited to get to read his story in Steadfast, even though I knew it had the potential to be the kind of story that breaks me. And it definitely broken me, but in the best way possible. Jude and Sophie’s story was just an incredibly touching one, even if they didn’t have the easiest of times making their relationship work To say there was a lot standing in their way would be quite the understatement because at times it felt like everything and everyone was against them. But they made it through and their story often had me in tears. But it was okay though, because despite the need for tissues while reading, I finished the book with a big smile on my face. Because as much as Steadfast broke my heart, it also put it back together. And stories that do that are my absolute favourite. Not only that, but through all the heartbreak and pain, Sarina Bowen injected an element of hope in the story that left me believing that no matter how bad things are, there’s always a little bit of hope, especially if you’re willing to fight for that hope. 

I was craving Jude’s story from the moment I first met him in Bittersweet. There was just something about him that spoke to me and I wanted to hear his story no matter how heartbreaking and difficult to read it would be. And while reading that story, I felt completely in love with Jude. In fact, I don’t think it would have been possible for me to not fall in love with him. Jude had definitely made some poor decisions in the past but he was working so hard to not repeat his mistakes and move on with his life. He struggled and his struggle broke my heart. But I also wanted him to catch a break, to finally have something go his way. And that something came in the form of Sophie, even if both of them were trying to resist falling back in love (did they ever really stop loving each other, though?) with each other. And I loved Sophie just as much as I loved Jude. Though she wasn’t struggling with addiction the way Jude was, Sophie had her own set of struggles and it seemed like at times she had no one in her corner. Except for Jude, even if he didn’t think he was good enough for her. And I know I’ve already said it, but Jude and Sophie just worked together and I don’t think I’ve ever rooted for a couple more than I rooted for them.

Sarina Bowen’s Steadfast was a beautiful and heartbreaking story and I loved every single moment of it. I am completely hooked on her True North series and I can’t wait to read the next book, Keepsake. And I’m pretty much dying to know who will be joining Zach in that story. 

Bittersweet by Sarina Bowen + Q&A

Title: Bittersweet (True North #1)

Author: Sarina Bowen

Publisher: Rennie Road Books

Release Date: June 14, 2016

Source: ARC from Publicist

Buy the Book: Amazon / B&N / Kobo

If you can't stand the heat, get out of the orchard.

The last person Griffin Shipley expects to find stuck in a ditch on his Vermont country road is his ex-hookup. Five years ago they'd shared a couple of steamy nights together. But that was a lifetime ago.

At twenty-seven, Griff is now the accidental patriarch of his family farm. Even his enormous shoulders feel the strain of supporting his mother, three siblings and a dotty grandfather. He doesn't have time for the sorority girl who's shown up expecting to buy his harvest at half price.

Vermont was never in Audrey Kidder's travel plans. Neither was Griff Shipley. But she needs a second change with the restaurant conglomerate employing her. Okay--a fifth chance. And no self-righteous lumbersexual farmer will stand in her way.

They's adversaries. They want entirely different things from life. Too bad their sexual chemistry is as hot as Audrey's top secret enchilada sauce, and then some.

In the past year, Sarina Bowen has quickly become one of my go-to authors when I want some good romance. I have yet to pick up one of her books and not find myself completely charmed by the characters and swept up in the romance. And it was no different with her latest, Bittersweet.

If you're familiar at all with Sarina Bowen and her books, then you know that her books tend to revolve around sports and athletes. But Bittersweet is a departure from the hockey players, skiers, and snowboarders she's written about in the past. Instead, it's about chefs and farmers and cider makers (as a side note, if you don't find yourself craving hard cider by the time you finish reading Bittersweet, there's something wrong with you...I'm only mostly kidding). Just like with the world of high level sports, Sarina Bowen brings the world of Vermont farmers to life. I'm not exaggerating when I say that Bittersweet made me want to hop into a car and take a roadtrip to the Vermont countryside to see some of the sceneries Griffin and Audrey describe in the story. And if it were fall, I would totally be heading to an orchard for some apple picking. It honestly felt like the setting was a character in this story just as much as Griffin, Audrey and the whole Shipley clan. It just came to life while I was reading. And it wasn't the only part of the story that felt completely real.

Whenever I read one of Sarina Bowen's books, I always want to be friends with the characters by the time I finish reading the story. There's just something about them. As you might have guessed it was no different with Griffin and Audrey. I absolutely loved both of them. I loved Griff despite his grumpy and gruff tendencies. Though I wasn't sure about Audrey's flightiness at first, I was completely charmed by the end of the book. And they just balanced each other out so well. Audrey made Griff less serious and all business all the time by reminding him to just have fun sometimes, while Griff showed Audrey that she was more than the disappointment her mother had led her to believe she was her whole life. They were just so freaking great and adorable together. But Audrey and Griff weren't the only people I wanted to be friends with. By the time I finished Bittersweet I wanted to be an honorary member of the Shipley family. I loved reading about the whole family, and seeing the way they were all there for each other, regardless of if they were related by blood or just someone they had taken in. And I'm more than excited to keep getting glimpses of this big, crazy family in future True North books.

In case it wasn't completely obvious by now, I absolutely ADORED Sarina Bowen's Bittersweet. I completely fell in love with the story, setting and characters and I was sad to reach the final page of the book. Thankfully, Steadfast, the next in the series, is out soon because I cannot wait to get my hands on it!

Q&A with Sarina Bowen

All your previous books (and your new series kicking off in the fall!) feature athletes, what made you was to move away from that?

I love athletes, but I’m surrounded by the coolest, hippest innovative farmers, and I thought it would be fantastic to explore their world. And Griff is an ex-football player, because I couldn’t help myself.

In Bittersweet, Griffin makes artisanal cider. What was the research process like for that aspect of the story?

You should see my recycling bin! #notkidding. We drink lots of tasty ciders at my house, and many of them are locally made. Vermont (and New Hampshire) are ground zero for cider appreciation. It’s awesome.

When you’re looking for your next story, where do you look for inspiration?

I don’t even have to look, they just find me in newspaper stories and blog posts and on Twitter.

What about the romance genre appeals to you as a writer?

Happy endings are really important to me. I love that quest.

Describe Bittersweet in one sentence.

Take one perky chef, add one grumpy farmer, season until scorching and serve hot.