Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: Vine
SERIES: Island Love
AUTHOR: Fearne Hill
PUBLISHER: self-published
LENGTH: 268 pages
RELEASE DATE: October 10, 2024
BLURB:
Caspian Pumkin-Watts is at the end of his rope. Facing a career crossroads, when he’s offered a chance to spend nine months filming a reality TV show on a French holiday island, he grabs it with both hands.
There are only two problems. His co-star is his ex-husband, and the producer is Caspian’s replacement in his ex-husband’s bed.
Max La Forge of La Forge Oyster Farms knows he’s peculiar. He has a penchant for blue rubber, for instance, and only drinks from a blue mug. He loves driftwood and seashells and hates being touched without his permission. Living alone in his little hexagonal house suits him perfectly, until his dog discovers a young Englishman unconscious on his driveway. Inexplicably drawn to the lonely, complicated stranger, Max garners courage to set out on his first ever romantic exploration.
Author’s note: as always, I write with a light touch, but please heed the trigger warnings for anxiety disorder and deliberate self-harm (on page).
REVIEW:
Caspian is stuck with a contract for a TV show he has exactly zero interest in doing. Especially since it’s with his cheating ex-husband and their “producer” (aka the one he cheated with). It’s the 7th and final series of the contract BUT it’s also nine months of dealing with Leigh (the ex) and Jonas (the producer) on a French holiday island trying to resurrect a vineyard that’s fallen into disrepair. Starting in January and ending in September at the next harvest. Boy is it going to be a long nine months.
When Caspian arrives on the island with Emma, the expert they’ve hired to help with the makeover of the vineyard, well he can’t exactly say he’s happy. He’s glad to be away from the city, but he’ still got to deal with Leigh and Jonas. His anxiety is through the roof despite his medication. He’s self-harming and not eating. Emma sees through his charade of being fine.
Then Caspian catches sight of Max. It’s like Max was designed as his dream man. Physically anyway 😉 Max isn’t necessarily what he expects in any other way. But he’s intrigued. That Max seems to like him is a bit of a wonder. Caspian self-view has never been strong, but it’s taken an absolute drubbing with having to deal with Leigh and Jonas all the time. He doesn’t cope in the healthiest of ways. Max wants to help him and he becomes quite protective. Which is precisely what Caspian needs 🙂
This is such a lovely romance! I adore this setting and seeing Eti again was fabulous. If you haven’t read Oyster, the previous book in this series, you should. Immediately. Max is not at all who I thought he would be after being introduced to him in the previous book. This book takes place years later and he’s grown up quite a lot and is living on his own. Caspian had a LOT to deal with. Never the healthiest in his coping mechanism, he’s really in a bad place when this book begins. As he and Max get together, he starts to view things a bit differently – but it’s not an easy ride.
RATING: 
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