Scan barcode
A review by ivanareadsalot
Vine by Fearne Hill
5.0
I would like to thank GRR for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.
Vine was an astounding read from start to finish, and i knew that it would be a mega star win by the end of the prologue.
THIS was THE Fearne Hill magic i'd expected from since Book 1. full disclosure, i thought Salt's narrative style was quite clunky and dissonant and never fully elevated itself, and unfortunately i could not even get through Oyster for the exact same reason!
But here we are at Book 3 with this amazing, gorgeous, oh-so-achy read, and i'm just so happy that my intuition had me giving this series another chance because this was an outstanding gem!
The narrative flow was smooth, deep and weighty, with a solid foundation in some remarkable characterization. The chemistry was off the charts, the story itself was intensely poignant and deeply affecting, and I finally got the extra oomph I'd wanted from this series in the first place, which was to learn a bit about salt and oyster farming and in this book, restoring a vineyard.
The vibe was everything and I'm so happy with how much i really loved this book!!
Right off the bat the drama was arresting! Caspian, contractually obligated to work with his ex-husband and the producer of their tv show -who his ex had cheated on him with- suffered immensely with his mental health, for obvious reasons. My gawd the emotionally manipulative insults and snide remarks Caspian was subjected to made me so mad! It was soooo heart-wrenching to read at times, him buffeted by turmoil while facing down those two vicious bastards with the last vestiges of his unraveling edges.
Then Max came on the scene and both Caspian and I exhaled.
I just loved how rooted in his strength Max was. The contrast between Max owning his "foibles" and Caspian's fragility was a meaningful exploration of a vulnerability that most humans share...which is the feeling of being burdensome to others when things get rough.
And this feeling of being "too much" and "not enough" at the same time was made worse for Caspian, because of his history of being demeaned and rejected by the people closest to him who were supposed to love him enough to shore him up. That lack of security and that kind of inconsideration is very insidious, and would without question realistically chip away at anyone's foundation of self-worth.
Hill wrote such evocative narrative that i could not help but feel very big feelings for Caspian, who was so very isolated in his terror and the demise of his peace of mind.
Caspian's troubled POV was offset by Max's endearing determination to understand the mechanics of "normal" social interactions, and his unique pursuit of a romantic relationship in the sweetest, most sincere and wholehearted way, just boosted his quality beyond measure, and i could not get enough of him!
This marvelous, beautiful and powerful love story, focused on healing, restoration, acceptance and the art of owning your authenticity, and though challenging at times to read, this has been one of the more impactful and important stories i've read all year!
Vine was an astounding read from start to finish, and i knew that it would be a mega star win by the end of the prologue.
THIS was THE Fearne Hill magic i'd expected from since Book 1. full disclosure, i thought Salt's narrative style was quite clunky and dissonant and never fully elevated itself, and unfortunately i could not even get through Oyster for the exact same reason!
But here we are at Book 3 with this amazing, gorgeous, oh-so-achy read, and i'm just so happy that my intuition had me giving this series another chance because this was an outstanding gem!
The narrative flow was smooth, deep and weighty, with a solid foundation in some remarkable characterization. The chemistry was off the charts, the story itself was intensely poignant and deeply affecting, and I finally got the extra oomph I'd wanted from this series in the first place, which was to learn a bit about salt and oyster farming and in this book, restoring a vineyard.
The vibe was everything and I'm so happy with how much i really loved this book!!
Right off the bat the drama was arresting! Caspian, contractually obligated to work with his ex-husband and the producer of their tv show -who his ex had cheated on him with- suffered immensely with his mental health, for obvious reasons. My gawd the emotionally manipulative insults and snide remarks Caspian was subjected to made me so mad! It was soooo heart-wrenching to read at times, him buffeted by turmoil while facing down those two vicious bastards with the last vestiges of his unraveling edges.
Then Max came on the scene and both Caspian and I exhaled.
I just loved how rooted in his strength Max was. The contrast between Max owning his "foibles" and Caspian's fragility was a meaningful exploration of a vulnerability that most humans share...which is the feeling of being burdensome to others when things get rough.
And this feeling of being "too much" and "not enough" at the same time was made worse for Caspian, because of his history of being demeaned and rejected by the people closest to him who were supposed to love him enough to shore him up. That lack of security and that kind of inconsideration is very insidious, and would without question realistically chip away at anyone's foundation of self-worth.
Hill wrote such evocative narrative that i could not help but feel very big feelings for Caspian, who was so very isolated in his terror and the demise of his peace of mind.
Caspian's troubled POV was offset by Max's endearing determination to understand the mechanics of "normal" social interactions, and his unique pursuit of a romantic relationship in the sweetest, most sincere and wholehearted way, just boosted his quality beyond measure, and i could not get enough of him!
This marvelous, beautiful and powerful love story, focused on healing, restoration, acceptance and the art of owning your authenticity, and though challenging at times to read, this has been one of the more impactful and important stories i've read all year!