Keepsake

True North: Small Town Romance, Book 3

By: Sarina Bowen

Narrated by: Teddy Hamilton, Erin Spencer

There's a first time for everything.

Lark Wainright 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 to himself that he's good for much more than farm labor.

©2016 Sarina Bowen (P)2016 Tuxbury Publishing LLC

Critic reviews

"Fantastic!" USA Today

Beautiful book.

I enjoy this book a lot. It has a hint of PTSD for both the hero and the heroine but through friendship they find healing, peace and love. The narration is well done and the voices are beautiful. Loving this series thus far.

sweet story

This was a sweet story about a man that ran from a cult and a woman that experienced devastating trauma in another country. It was set on a farm that allowed both characters to learn about themselves and heal without the added stress of the city life. The author did a great job keeping the stpryline simple to allow the characters to develop, but there wasnt a lot of andst other than their own personal issues. Although the female lead had an ex the re-entered the scene, he didnt cause any noteworthy drama to the story. The narrators did excellent jobs depeicting each character. Glad there were 2.

Healing and romantic

**Audiobook Review**

This story has so much growth and healing in it and that’s exacly what Lark and Zachariah needed. “Keepsake” is a healing, heartfelt and sweet friends to lovers, small town romance that was a great addition to the “True North” series.

I loved the little snippets of Zachariah that we got from the first two books and I’m so glad we got his story next. He’s caring, hardworking and overall a genuine guy. He came from a cult situation and was able to get out and get himself to Vermont. The Shipleys are the family he deserves and I loved how they took him under their wings and gave him a safe place to live and become the person he is today. Lark broke my heart with the trauma she went through and the lasting impact on her and her everyday life. But instead of giving up, she came to the Shipley farm to work past the demons she was fighting. I loved how they saw each other for who they were and not what they had gone through in the past. Their friendship that turned into a relationship was the key to them healing and being able to have a life outside of their past. Zachariah was so supportive of Lark during her dark times and never made her feel less than for the fears she had. They were such a great couple and I loved their story.

Teddy Hamilton and Erin Spencer were fantastic as Zachariah and Lark. Teddy brought the caring and sensitive Zachariah alive perfectly. I loved listening to Erin, her narration was genuine and sweet just like Lark.