4 Cider Stars

The Simplicity of Cider is a sweet and charming story about family tradition, loving what you do and opening up your heart to the truth. Sanna Lund is passionate about one thing...her simple life on her family's apple orchard and making her cider. Her and her "Pa" have a daily routine on the orchard and it all gets interrupted when Isaac Banks and his son, Bass, come along to work for the family.

Single dad Isaac and his son are on a summer adventure and find themselves in Door County, Wisconsin working at the Lund's apple orchard. Isaac feels like this simple, hard-work life is what they both need to escape reality. for a couple of months. But having these two strangers throws a big loop in Sanna's routine. One, the attraction she has for Isaac is a distraction that she doesn't need. And two, having his child, Bass, help her, has Sanna not happy.

Not only is Sanna learning to work with others, but she's also facing outside drama when it comes to her orchard. The Lund orchard is not financially stable and the best bet is to sell the land to developers, but getting Sanna to agree to sell is not going to be easy. Overall, The Simplicity of Cider is a great read and seriously, I didn't realize how complicated it is to make cider!

Awesome story!!! 4.5 Stars!

The author really took this new book to new heights. The Simplicity of Cider is extremely well written. Her characters are interesting and unique and she captured them perfectly.

You can just feel the uncomfortableness in Sanna. The strain of family, finances, and not knowing anything about feelings, let alone how to deal with the newcomer, Isaac and his son.

Set in a beautiful countryside, the descriptions and details in this book suck you in and make you feel like you are right there watching everything unfold.

I don't know what it is about this specific book but it is my favorite of hers so far. You can feel the characters passion for the farm and business as well as the developing feelings between the two main characters.

The Simplicity of Cider by Amy E. Reichert is a heartwarming and wholesome book that you will fall in love with. It is Americana at it's best. This story will reach into your soul and remain there for a long time to come.

A warm, often humorous, story of a father and son on a summer journey heading east from California, and ending up in the Midwest, working on an apple orchard. Wonderful characters and an interesting description of the intricacies of raising apples and cider making.

Thank you, Netgalley, for this arc!

It's always a delight to return to Amy Reichert's writing and to her characters. (Al and Lou, from her debut The Coincidence of Coconut Cake, make an appearance toward the end!)

The Simplicity of Cider was a cute book to read; I thought the parts about apples and cidermaking were very interesting. It was fun not only enjoying the novel, but also learning about Sanna and Einars' way of life. Sanna is a self-described "hermit" and I thought at first that she was childfree (by my definition) but Isaac and his 10-year-son Sebastian ("Bass") found their way into her stony, lonely heart.

I loved the romance building up and building up between Isaac and Sanna... and when they finally let their feelings flow and stole kisses in the orchard, just like a pair of teenagers. There were definitely some heartfelt and emotional moments in this book, and who knows, maybe it will be a Hallmark movie one day. Sanna's story is one you won't soon forget.

I rate this book between a 3 and 4 stars only because I didn't really care for the beginning parts of the book. I didn't find any way I could connect as a reader with the heroine as she really didn't make much sense to me. However, later on as the book developed so did her character and her personality. At first I was confused with her actions and her way of thinking. Clearly she was bothered or troubled by something but I just didn't feel any empathy towards her as I'm sure the author was trying to convey.
I did like the hero however and his son but once again, his son seemed a bit immature for a ten year old and I don't know if that was deliberately written that way or the author isn't too sure how 10 year old boys are supposed to act. Also, in the beginning of the story the heroine said the boy was twelve years old - whether that was on purpose or the author forgot about the age of the boy.
The beginning and middle parts of the story were okay but the ending was nice and it tied everything well together.

This was a beautiful story about what makes a family and what makes a home. Sanna's passion in life is working on her family's apple orchard and coming up with perfect blends of apples for her cider. She lives on the orchard with her father and loves everything about her life, except that she is mad at the mother and brother that abandoned her. She has the uncanny ability to see the final colors of a cider blend and know what it will taste like and which apples to use to get there.

This is a contemporary novel and so there is a love story involved but it is a beautiful one. Sanna learns a lot about herself and about her interactions with others. She grows so much throughout the development of the story.

It was a great read and one that I could not put down and made me cry. I highly recommend picking up this book and reading it with a nice bottle of hard cider!

The woman is too tall, devoted to her family business and oblivious to the financial straits her single-minded pursuit of cider-making has wrought on her father. Her father is aging and needs to find someone else to help with the orchards and farm. Along comes an equally tall man with a young son, traveling for a mysterious unresolved reason with some surprising farming skills (along with 21st century coding skills.) Combustible reactions will occur when all the parties meet, separate, agree/disagree...the whole gamut of potential interactions. And accompanying all that human drama are the orchards and apples with their own special allure. While there are other characters and dynamics to explore in this tale, our interests are really focused on the four main characters and how they sort out. It turns out cider isn't that simple to make, but the book surely is to enjoy. I received my copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Reading Amy Reichert's books has been such a great joy. Her depictions of the people and places of Wisconsin are just beautiful and true, and having spent most of my life in this state, I have so enjoyed reading books that are set here and are written about in a loving way. There is a scene in The Simplicity of Cider that describes the farm's store, and the description, down to the ancient cash register that I can picture and even hear very clearly, reminded me of all the orchards I've ever visited.

(OK, the part where I just gush about the author is now over.)

The Simplicity of Cider is a contemporary and a romance of a kind (there is a romance, but it's not the sole focus of this book). It's being touted as having some magical realism, but I'd forgotten that element going in, so it didn't bother me that the magical realism is pretty much blink and you'll miss it. The essence of this book is Sanna's love for the orchard and the cider she's crafting. She's been focused on these things for so long that when Isaac and Bass's arrival disrupts her usual routine, it takes her some time to adjust and open up to the possibility of letting anyone else in. Isaac has ended up in Door County after a road trip he's taken his son Bass on in order to put off dealing with the difficulties of their life back in California. It soon comes out that the orchard is struggling to stay afloat financially, and Sanna must also struggle with the possibility of losing the one home she's ever had.

This story is heartwarming without being trite or cheesy. As I already mentioned, I love the sense of place that this book evokes, and while I'm biased in my love of Wisconsin, I think the setting is well described enough to enjoy to those from far off as well. Those who read for character as well will find interesting, likeable characters here, too.

I might find myself reaching for this one again when apple season rolls around in the fall.

Title: The Simplicity of Cider
Author: Amy E. Reichert
Publisher: Gallery Books
Reviewed By: Arlena Dean
Rating: Five
Review:

"The Simplicity of Cider" by Amy E. Reichert

My Thoughts....

The readers are in for a good read about cider making, the love of a family and to one who is getting away from CA for the summer with his son then you are in for a good read. This author really works her magic in giving the readers a good read about 'family, dedications, ambition, challenges, struggles, suspense and love that takes place in Door County, Wisconsin. The main characters from Sanna, Einers, Isaac to Bass...all are some very complex but so relatable to any one. Along with all of this the readers will be given a story from "The irritating casserole making neighbor,the brother...only wants to sell the orchard, the villain who wants to turn the orchard into a water park and the irritating ex of Sanna's who is sabotaging the orchard" all make this story such a interesting read. Now add all that is going on with Isaac and his son Bass along with the tremendous food descriptions the readers will get one heck of a good heartwarming read. In the end will Sanna be able to save her beloved orchard that she truly loved and will Sanna and Isaac end up finding each other? To get all the questions answered and so much more the reader will have to pick up this enjoyable read "The Simplicity of Cider" to see how this author will bring it all out to the reader.

Disclosure: I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Do you ever read a book that makes you crave something delicious? This is what Amy E. Reichert's books do to you. I wanted coconut cake for WEEKS after reading her last one. Now she is releasing a book ALL ABOUT CIDER.

Come on, lady. You're killing me. Of course, I don't have any cider in the house. I have beer, and brandy and wine and rum...and literally everything else drinkable. BUT NO CIDER.

The story is as sweet as the golden nectar that flows throughout the book. It was a bit of a slow start--I didn't connect with Sanna right away, and Isaac's narrative is a little off kilter too. But once they start to intertwine, things pick up and the plot forms more of the typical contemporary romance structure.

There's a lot of secrets going on. Some of them are a little problematic--without giving away spoilers, I liked Isaac but what he did just bothered me. And we never do get to the bottom of Anders's character. There's a few things he says that go unanswered.

Bass is completely adorable, though. And for the most part, the book fills that spot in my soul that requires quaint farm romances in the summer. But I'm definitely stopping by the liquor store tonight for some Vandermill Totally Roasted. Make sure you have some craft cider in your house when you read this. You're going to need it.

I had a really hard time adjusting to the prickliness of the main character of this book, Sanna. She wore anger like her favorite outfit. She was not approachable, and believe me, no one wanted to. That is until Isaac and his son, Bass show up at her family's orchard.

Thankfully Sanna starts to soften and seems to become human again. And lo and behold, she can and is a nice person. I have no idea how Isaac saw this at the beginning when he met her, but he was stricken with her. SMH.

This was a very enjoyable read after I got through these quirky character's different emotions and personalities. It's a story about family, about finding love and there is even a mystery involved. Simply put, you will need tissues in order to finish this book, but it is worth it. An interesting story with an interesting ensemble. Truly entertaining and enjoyable.

Thanks to Gallery, Threshold and Pocket Books for approving my request and to Net Galley for providing me with a free e-galley in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

Another amazing read from Amy Reichert. I fell in love with her writing in The Coincidence of Coconut Cake (a must read for sure) and was excited to see another novel from her. This one had depth. It had mystery. It had love. It had magic. And it was centered around food, drink and working the land. Loved every moment in the book.

Sanna's family has lived in Door County, Wisconsin, for generations. Now, she and her father are the only ones left, trying to keep the family's apple orchard afloat. A single father and his young son, passing through the area while trying to escape a tragedy at home in California, become an integral part of the orchard family in a very short time, and Isaac becomes invaluable to Sanna after Einars' accident. While trying to keep the orchard out of the hands of a developer who wants to acquire the land to build a money-making indoor water park, Sanna also finds herself trying to ignore the attraction to Isaac ... and to young Bass as well.

I loved this author's previous two books, and was equally enchanted by this one. While there were several story lines going throughout the book, it wasn't hard to keep track of them, and they all seemed to work together into one overall story by the end of the book. I loved the touch of magic that Sanna used to develop her unique cider blends, and am fascinated by the idea of seeing colors associated with flavors. The characters seemed to fit the setting and the circumstances, and it was fun to watch them grow and change as events progressed. The descriptions almost seemed to come out of a "Visit Wisconsin!" travel brochure, and made me want to book a trip to Door County during the next apple season :) I will most definitely look for the next book by this author.

Reading this book will leave you feeling refreshed and relaxed.The beautiful smells if the orchard, the colors, the tastes, even the roughness of the bark. It is like going on vacation without leaving the pages. You get that happy after glow just from the words. Pick up a nice glass of cider curl up under a beautiful tree and enjoy this beautiful book. This author has such a talent for spreading simple joy with her words.
The story is about family, one family with a strong history to the land and trees. One family set a drift by a terrible death. Both families have skeletons that are pulled out and dusted off leaving that closest a cleaner happier place. The romance is slow and gentle, patient and just right for the characters. The drama is light, never so tense that you feel uncomfortable or stressed. Strong good people, doing their best, living the best way they know.
Great relaxing read

From the author of The Coincidence of Coconut Cake and Luck, Love & Lemon Pie, Amy E. Reichert brings us another magical story of family, love, and complex relationships. Set in Wisconsin and full of delicious food and characters.
Sanna Lund loves making cider. Her family has been on this land for generations and while her brother has moved away, she has stayed, tending the heirloom apple trees that are just right for cider making. Sanna has a gift for knowing which apples go together to make the best ciders.

When Isaac and his son show up at the orchard, not quite sure how they got there, Sanna's father hires Isaac and more than the apple trees are blossoming! Love is in the air but is Sanna ready for it?

In between trying to save the farm from being sold, Sanna doesn't have time for relationships, and isn't sure she wants one. But will Isaac and Sebastian change her mind?

This was such a charming and magical story. The characters are well developed and the apple desserts had me drooling!

If you haven't tried one of her luscious stories, you really should.

For Sanna and her father Einars, Idun's Orchard is not only their home, but their source of income and biggest source of joy. Set in a Sarah Addison Allen - esque charming town where everyone knows everyone and has a history with one another, that is until newcomers Isaac and his son Bass arrive in Door County, Wisconsin. Not only does this book have a lot of depictions of love, it also takes readers on a journey of family strife and the welcome surprises that can come out of new circumstances. Readers who enjoy the way Nicholas Sparks explains the attraction between his protagonists shines through in Reichart's The Simplicity of Cider. If you binge Hallmark movies on Netflix in the middle of the night and have ever enjoyed a trip to a local apple orchard, grab this book immediately!

What a delightful book! It's a slice-of-life story that takes place at an apple orchard in Wisconsin, where two unhappy people end up finding each other. The characters are likable and believable, and in this world, where every day we are bombarded with bad or upsetting news, it's nice sometimes to just read a sweet story. I enjoyed this author's previous book, The Coincidence of Coconut Cake, and I liked this one just as much.

This book was a bit slow to start but, once I got into it, I remembered by I love Ms. Reicherts' writing. This story is about Sanna and her father, who are trying to desperately keep the family apple orchard. Sanna's brother wants to sell the land but,, Sanna and her dad refuse. Along comes Banks and his son Bass,. Banks is looking for a short-time job to get he and his son away from the painful reality of what happened in LA before they left.This book is about family, responsibility, forgiveness and, ultimately, opening your heart back up to love.

Amy E. Reichert has done it again! This is another fantastic read, every bit as good as The Coincidence of Coconut Cake and Luck, Love & Lemon Pie. I don't know what anyone else calls this type of novel, but I consider it magical realism and rank this author right up there with Sarah Addison Allen's work.

From her beautifully simple descriptions to her way with dialogue and character development, I was pulled into the story of Sanna Lund and her father's apple farm and lives immediately. Add in Isaac and son Sebastian, and the story got even better.

The "whodunit" aspect was fairly laid back, not really being a large part of the story, but was no less interesting. What absolutely had me on the seat of my chair though, was Sanna's cider making skills. Even though I dislike anything made with apples except applesauce, I wanted to try some of her cider so badly! The descriptions of both color and flavor had me salivating and I so wanted her to be successful.

This is very much a story of a farm and lives, that harken back to simpler times, when neighbor helped neighbor and families did the same for each other. If you're looking to get lost in a story this is definitely the book for you. I just finished reading this and can't wait for the author's next novel!

Thank yous to the author, publisher and Netgalley for allowing me to read an ARC.

The Simplicity of Cider is a sweet and charming read. Being new to the author, I wasn't sure what to expect in terms of how she delivers her stories so I was quite surprised to see that she does, in fact, deliver. I am so glad I was able to read a copy prior to publication! Now, while I did feel like there was a little too much going on within the story, I did appreciate how Reichert was able to make her characters relatable to many people. This is truly an added bonus to a wonderful novel.

If your looking for a heartwarming read to get lost in for a few hours I would definitely recommend this book. After reading it, I am going to have to go back and pick up her other books based on this one.