Title: Harvest Moon Kisses
Author: Sara Ohlin
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Book Blurb:
Choosing true love suddenly seems like no sacrifice at all.
Starting an equine therapy program is Vivianna Orleans’ dream, and she has three months to work on it at Brockman Farms before family obligations will pull her back to France. Arriving in the charming town of Graciella, Vivianna discovers her small rental house is right next door to bachelor Jake Cooper.
Thirty-six-year-old estate attorney Jake Cooper has purchased his first home in Graciella. Too bad his girlfriend doesn’t share his love of small-town life and dumps him. But Jake’s used to moving on from relationships. He’s also used to charming people and being the life of the party, but the woman in the rental next door won’t give him the time of day or even her name.
Slowly, guardedly, the pair draw closer, bonding over their love of animals…including Jake’s crazy rescue mutt who adores Vivianna. When Vivianna gets hurt, Jake swoops in to care for her and their love affair begins. The people and town of Graciella swirl their magic and friendship around Vivianna, urging her to stay…despite the family duties demanding her return to her old life.
Will she give up her legacy and inheritance for a beautiful found family and true love?
Excerpt:
There was a hanging bed on the screened-in back porch of Gale House. A hanging bed. At first, Vivianna had laughed over it. How absurd. And yet it was so pretty and inviting. It was two days after she’d arrived before she discovered it, after her first evening class, when she’d poured herself a glass of local wine and decided to inspect the backyard, to walk barefoot in the grass with no one watching.
A wooden daybed frame with an enormous twin mattress in it hung with oversized rope at one end of the porch facing the yard and her neighbor’s house. It swayed gently, and it was covered with lovely throw pillows.
She’d seen wealth and opulence in her life, living in her father’s estate, newly restored to fit the needs of modern conveniences. But everything had also been so cold and perfect. Her grandmother’s home was also very stately, an old 1800s colonial in upstate New York. But this swing was ridiculous and lovely and plush. It practically screamed, “Come enjoy me. I’m made for comfort.” And…fun.
Currently, this was where she was perched working on her dissertation notes. Wearing the softest sweatshirt and sweatpants that Miranda Brockman had left as a gift on the bed in the house for her. It had only taken Vivianna a few days to move from caressing the soft material to actually allowing herself to wear them. She was so excited when they’d fit.
Today her hair was loose, a cup of tea on the table beside her and she was covered in plush blankets. A lulling breeze swirled through the screen. Really she wasn’t working at all. She’d even turned off her music. The man from next door, my neighbor, she reminded herself, was outside in his backyard with his new dog, and she was trying and failing not to eavesdrop.
“Gus, come.”
Jake’s strong voice carried across the yard and through the low fence. The dog leapt off the porch, threw himself across the lawn, wiggled his body up and put his paws on Jake’s shoulders. Next, looking more like a shaggy bear, it proceeded to cover Jake’s face with kisses.
She would have thought a man his size, easily six feet five inches, and weighing over two hundred pounds if she had to guess, would have no trouble fending off a dog, but the dog was winning, hands down. No matter that Jake turned his head and tried to shove the furry beast off, with hands and words—furry beast was having none of it. The slobbery love poured out of him.
She covered her mouth before the laughter could bubble out too loudly across the yard. Oh my.
“Oh, come on, pal.” Jake succeeded in shoving the dog off and taking a few steps backward but then it was obvious that the dog thought it was a game as he gave chase. Surprising her, man got his hand up just in time and gave the command. “No, sit.” And with all the reluctance in the world, the dog plopped his butt down, still shivering with energy, with love. Animals loved so easily. It was what had drawn her to them in the first place, as a child, a child with no friends and no warmth, and no love.
“Good job, Gus. You damn good dog!”
Jake’s joy was contagious, and she smiled at the duo. So, the man is a fast learner too. That’s always a good thing. Because she’d been right that most of the time, bad dog behavior was the fault of the owner, not the dog. And loving gentle giant though he might be, that dog was going to be a handful. His energy was ten times his size. Luckily, she suspected his love was as well.
And Jake is being gentle. Even when the dog had been sliming his face and not obeying. Jake’s swearing sounded like the best praise ever. A featherlight glimmer of joy brushed inside her chest. Jake and Gus. So, he’s decided on a name. She’d been wondering since the other day when she’d engaged with them out front for a few moments. A few moments she’d been poring over in her head on repeat. She’d quickly admonished herself for getting involved in the first place, but as she’d thought about it, that initial reaction had upset her.
Why shouldn’t she talk to her neighbors? Just because she was a nervous wreck in his presence, just because she didn’t know how to interact with people casually didn’t mean she couldn’t learn. She wanted a new way of living, or at least a glimpse of it before she returned to France.
Then, of course, her censure had been at how she’d so abruptly left. How was she going to learn a new way of living if she ran away all the time? But, good Lord, when he’d smiled, something inside her had crumbled open. It was the first real smile aimed her way from a man in maybe forever. It was warm and full of joy with his mouth quirked up higher on the one side, kneeling there beside his dog, his large hand fingering the soft fur, asking her for help. The flutter in her stomach had quickly turned to a riptide of confusion. She’d even left her stupid shoes outside again.
Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub):
**Harvest Moon Kisses will be released on September 5, 2023
Universal Link: https://books2read.com/HarvestMoonKisses
Totally Bound: https://www.totallybound.com/book/harvest-moon-kisses
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/harvest-moon-kisses-sara-ohlin/1143601851?ean=9781802508307
Google Play:
What’s the first binge-worthy book you read and why was it a must-read?
One of the first I can remember is the Born In Fire from the Born In trilogy by Nora Roberts. It was so full of emotion and tension and passion and it just sucked me right in. It was one of the first books I read by her and of course I had to go devour all her other books.
What makes your featured book a binge-worthy read?
I hope it’s the emotional pull between the two main characters in their search for a happy every after. Don’t we all want a happy ever after? I also like to think it’s the fictional town of Graciella I’ve created full of beauty, friends and family that lures you back over and over again, just like a Brigadoon.
Giveaway –
One lucky reader will win a $75 Amazon gift card
Open internationally.
Runs August 1 – 31, 2023.
Drawing will be held on September 1, 2023.
Author Biography:
Puget Sound based writer, Sara Ohlin is a mom, wannabe photographer, obsessive reader, ridiculous foodie, and the author of nine contemporary romance novels with Totally Bound Publishing.
She has over twenty years of creative non-fiction and memoir writing experience, and you can find her essays at, Panorama, Anderbo.com, Feminine Collective, Mothers Always Write, Her View from Home, Literary Mama, and in anthologies such as Are We Feeling Better Yet? Women Speak about Healthcare in America, Take Care: Tales, Tips, & Love from Women Caregivers, and Chicken Soup for the Soul.
Sara loves creating imaginary worlds with tight-knit communities in her romance novels. If she’s not reading or writing, you will most likely find her in the kitchen creating scrumptious meals, or perhaps cooking up her next love story.
She once met a person who both “didn’t read books” and wasn’t “that into food” and it nearly broke her heart. You can learn more on her website https://saraohlin.com.
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