What a wonderful third installment in this gem of a series. I freaking adored "Vine".

Fearne Hill is one of the best romance authors out there: I know I say this every time, but I seriously have yet to find/read an author, a contemporary MM romance one at that, who manages to balance out the lightheartedness and the romance feels with emotional depth and just the perfect amount of angst. I'm seriously in awe of her writing, and I'm kicking myself for still not inhaling the rest of her backlog yet. Oh well, more books to love, yes?!

Anyway, back to "Vine"... I've been waiting for Max's story since the very first time he appeared on page: sullen and quiet and bitter and sad. Finally being in his head was absolutely priceless.
I admit, I wasn't expecting what Fearne Hill had in mind for him, but I think the way his story turned out was even better than my expectations: I thought he'd be the one needing to be cherished, but I love Max in his "loves to be needed and excels at cherishing and looking after" phase even more. Max cherishes the fuck out of Caspian, and I loved that for him, and I loved him. I loved his dry humour, his steadfastness, his stubbornness, and I adored being in his head.

Caspian, on the other hand, was a bit more trickier for me to love wholeheartedly: I still loved him, don't get me wrong, but being in his head was grueling because it hit a little to close to home, I think. I still adored him to bits though, and I loved his snarky porcupine personality, and I loved how Fearne portrayed his mindset and his anxieties and his mental health struggles. I could totally relate and I'm so glad he found someone as good as Max to take care of him.

I loved their relationship to BITS: it was beyond adorable and so damn sweet, and I think I might have highlighted half of their interactions. So cute 😭

I also adored seeing Èti again. "Oyster" is my favourite Fearne Hill book to date I think, and I'm still sooooooo obsessed with both her and Nico. I loved seeing her again, and I loved her bond with Max. Gah, so adorable.

If I had to find a small niggle with this book, it's the sheer amount of page time dedicated to Leigh and Jonas. They both deserve to die PAINFUL HORRIBLE DEATHS, and I despised seeing Caspian give them any time of his day. Also, I so wish they'd have some sort of comeuppance ugh, but nevermind...

Apart from those two worms, I adored all side characters, especially Emma.
I'm not sure if the author has any plans to write a fourth book (I've no idea who it could be about though!), but I sincerely hope so. This "Island Love" series is fantastic, and I'm not ready to say goodbye to the paradise these characters call home.

Thanks GRR for the ARC. This is my honest review