Bittersweet (True North, #1)

by Sarina Bowen

[stacey_is_sassy]

So easy to listen to...

****Changing it up to 4.5 Stars****

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that I actually enjoyed the audio more than reading it myself. This doesn't happen very often, but Saskia Maarleveld and Tod Branson really brought Bittersweet to life for me. Audrey's frustrations and defeats were well portrayed and I felt her anguish and disappointment. With Griffin, his gruff personality made him more lovable and I couldn't help but laugh at his sookie-la-la tanties. I guess you can't be responsible and mature 24/7.

Maybe I've matured since the first time reading Bittersweet and that's why I enjoyed it more? There's a little part of me that recognised the everyday struggles it takes to balance your burdens and try and get ahead too.

Maybe, it's because I know all of the True North gang now and the start of this series reminds me of how it all started.

I really enjoyed listening to Bittersweet and I look forward to listening to more True North in the future.



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The bitter…and the sweet side of family commitments.

It’s amazing what you’ll do for your family. Some of us accept the bitter with the sweet side of family commitments, knowing that we’re better off with...than without. Unfortunately, sometimes you don’t know what you’re missing until you don’t have it or it’s taken away. In Bittersweet both the main characters have family and commitments that can be bitter but can also be sweet.

Griffin had plans for his future until Griffin’s father died from a heart attack at age 49 (way too young) and has to return to his family's farm and takes over the running of it. He loves his family and doesn’t resent returning but he does feel the burden and responsibility of funding his brother and sisters education. He wants them to have the same opportunity and choices he was given…even though he had to put his dreams to the side.

The farm does OK but there’s always room for improvement and always the worry that a crop can be hit by a disaster. Griffin hopes to move more into the cider making business but the outlay and risks have him worried. His life is busy from sunup to sundown and there definitely isn’t room in his life for a relationship. Imagine his surprise when a hook-up from his past gets stuck in the ditch on his property.

Aubrey doesn’t seem to be having much luck. All her life she’s been told that she doesn’t have what it takes to make a success of her life…by her mother. Nice…. Mummy dearest is a workaholic, man-hating, corporate, businesswoman who can’t understand how she created a daughter who wants to …COOK!! THE HORROR!!

Aubrey and Griffin meet again when Aubrey is sent with an abysmal offer to buy produce from Griffin. The more time Griffin and Aubrey spend together the more they realise that the chemistry that sizzled in College is still there. Griffin wants Aubrey and would love her to be part of his life but he knows that Aubrey has dreams of opening her own restaurant and he doesn’t want to hold her back. Aubrey is falling for Griffin but self-doubts hold her back.

The steamy times were plenty and the connection between Griffin and Aubrey jumped off the pages. Griffin can be quite grumpy but the more time he spends around Aubrey, the more he seems to relax and smile.

At times I did feel it dragged a little and I wanted both Griffin and Aubrey to just get to it already. Luckily, it would pick back up and I’d have another chuckle at either Aubrey’s mistakes or Griffin’s cranky behaviour.

I will definitely be reading more of the series in the future.