Summer won’t last forever.

Sage Byrd has lived in the coastal town of Spunes, Oregon (not to be confused with Forks, Washington) her entire life. She’s learned to love her small world, with the misfit animals on her hobby farm, and her friendships with the town’s inhabitants. But when her 5-year relationship ends and her ex, town-golden-boy Ian, suddenly gets engaged, Sage needs a win―something that will convince everyone to stop pitying her all the time, and to put Ian in his place. The Festival of Spunes, the town’s annual summer competition, would be the perfect opportunity. She just needs a partner.

Fisher Lange was a hotshot chef in New York City until the loss of his sister left him numb, grieving, and responsible for his teenage niece Indy. When Fisher loses his Michelin star along with his love of cooking, his boss sends him and Indy to Spunes on a much-needed summer sabbatical to consult on a restaurant opening. But when clashes with the townspeople threaten his last chance to redeem himself and a kiss with his new neighbor Sage leads to dating rumors, a strategic alliance might just be the best way to turn things around.

A deal is struck. Sage will improve Fisher’s image in the eyes of the town and remove the roadblocks he is facing with the restaurant, and Fisher will be Sage’s partner for the competition. But as their pact quickly turns into steamy rendezvous, emotional wounds begin to heal, and the pair tries to savor every moment, they start to realize that summer is racing by much faster than they would like…

Filled with spicy summer fun, small-town charm, and Big Feelings, this highly anticipated romcom is Tarah DeWitt’s best yet.

I read and really loved Left of Forever, the second book in this series, and I wanted to go back and start with book one before jumping into the newly released book three. I did enjoy this one, but I’ll be honest, it didn’t grab me quite the same way Left of Forever did.

Sage has never wanted to live anywhere but the small Oregon town she grew up in. Between her ragtag collection of farm animals and the community around her, she’s always felt satisfied with her life. Then her long term boyfriend calls things off, and almost immediately he’s engaged to someone else. Tired of being the person everyone feels sorry for, Sage decides to enter (and win) the town’s big summer contest and finally give people something else to talk about. She just needs a partner, and that’s where Fisher (the new guy in town) comes in. He used to run a top tier kitchen in New York, but after losing his sister and taking custody of his niece, cooking stopped meaning anything to him. His boss shipped him off to Spunes, OR for the summer to help launch a new restaurant, hoping the break will bring back some of his old spark. When gossip starts swirling about Sage and Fisher, they decide to lean into it. Over the course of the summer, Sage will help smooth things over with the locals for Fisher’s restaurant, and he’ll be her contest partner in return. What starts as a convenient arrangement turns into something neither of them planned on, all while the end of summer, and Fisher’s return to New York, closes in.

What I liked most here is that the relationships between Sage and Fisher felt real and grounded, and neither of them read as a stock romance type. They came across as actual people dealing with actual, relatable problems, grief, small town gossip, the fear of being pitied, rather than characters built purely to hit genre beats. I also appreciated getting both of their perspectives throughout. Dual POV always helps me connect more fully to both halves of a romance, and it worked well here.

And while there’s technically a third act breakup (which often makes me roll my eyes), it’s handled in a smart way that sidesteps feeling like a cheap trope, since both Sage and Fisher agreed from the very beginning that this was just a summer fling. That agreement adds an interesting layer of quiet sadness underneath the whole romance, because you know going in that they’re not planning on continuing past summer, which makes every scene between them carry a little extra weight.

Overall I liked this one and think it’s worth reading, especially for romance fans who want something with real emotional grounding instead of the usual tropes. I’ll definitely be moving on to book three soon.