Stunning. Beautiful.  Bittersweet yet hopeful.  

 

Rich, evocative prose.  Well developed, intricately layered characters.  Vivid sense of place.  All spun together with a resonate message: life isn’t tidy.  

 

Emilie and Sara both come from tumultuous childhoods.  The narrative shifts between perspectives as both age from youth to adulthood, with both characters maturing to find a way to use what they’ve been given while accepting where life leads.  

This isn’t your quintessential romance.  Rather, this is realistic and whole and adult.  It’s what you get when a deep connection is mixed with growth and healing.  It’s full of life’s complexities and the beauty of how patience and work can create…. It’s a love that allows both to shine while celebrating connection.

 

A gorgeous bouquet.  A perfectly mixed drink.  No matter which… the ingredients must be both unique and properly balanced.  Complement and enhance not overpower or upstage.  

 

Much like the yerba buena herb, LaCour has perfectly balanced the bitter and sweet in this story, giving readers a love story (for self and other) that resonates.  

 

Narrated by Julia Wheelan, the audiobook is exceptionally narrated. It’s important to note that the beginning of the book was easier to follow in physical form, until I got used to the transitions between characters and storyline.  But once I settled into the story, I greatly enjoyed the voice Wheelan gave to this book.  

 

Many thanks to my partner @macmillan.audio and @librofm for the #gifted l-arc!!!