Simply Amazing! It's fun, serious, sexy, and heartwarming all wrapped up with so much love! Oh, and maybe a G-string or two and some hard abs. Umm, yes!! *madly waves dollar bills at the hottest fictional character yet!* Derek and Talia bring it all. There is humor as well as tears. Derek and his father Jonah are a packaged deal and it's going to take someone strong and caring with a huge understanding heart to take a chance on the two-for-one special. Talia IS that person. Accepting what Derek does for work is hard for Talia. It's a hurdle she needs to overcome.

“Let it go, sweet Talia. It’s not who I am; you know it’s true. Be with me. Let me show you.”

*Sigh*. He has all the right words, doesn't he? I love him. He is serious but still playful with his sexy humor.

The story was a lot of Derek and Jonah, yes, but they are Team Grant and come together. You can't have the depth of this story feel real if you don't show the good, bad, and ugly as well as the happy and sappy. This book brings all the emotions. And the ending?? Gah!!! The.BEST!

I didn’t want to put this book down. It was fast paced and excellently done. Wonderful characters and a storyline you can really sink your teeth into. Melissa really hooked me in from beginning to end. Would definitely recommend.

This book hits you with all the feels and takes you on an emotional journey through laughter and tears. I love how beautifully the author captures the hardships of such a devastating disease and how it truly takes a toll on the loved ones. Talia and Derek's story makes me want to believe in love and I'll definitely be reading this one again in the near future!

I have really been enjoying getting to know each of the Dalton siblings and watching them find their HEAs but I must admit that there is just something about Talia and Derek's story that will be sticking with me for a while. Melissa Foster doesn't shy away from difficult topics while bringing us a sweet and sexy romance and I think that is one of the things I love most about her books. In Love Like Ours, Derek is caring for his father whom suffers from Alzheimer's Disease, see what I mean about difficult subject matters, while going to school full time for his graduate degree, he also tends bar and dances at the bar for extra money. You can say that Derek has his hands full and has very little time for a social life let alone a girlfriend but when the sexy Talia nearly runs him over with her car things are finally looking up for him.

Talia is quiet, shy, and more secluded of the Dalton siblings and to be honest I thought it was because of her position as a professor made her that way, turns out that a jerk made her that way. Talia has had her heart broken and hid it from everyone except her brother Ben who happened to be there when it happened. I'm not kidding when I say that Derek was out of Talia's comfort zone, it was even spoken about a few times in the story, but I will say that sometimes venturing out of your comfort zone can bring you happiness you never knew before.

This was a great heartwarming story about two people finding their perfect match and not letting others get in their way of happiness. Jonah, Derek's dad, had his good days and bad and it was so nice to see that everyone was willing to help out and I am thrilled that Derek didn't resent his father on the days that things got particularly bad. This was at times a bit hard to read, especially if you know someone suffering from this disease, but it was so well done it was definitely a feel good story. Oh and sexy times a plenty too, we cannot forget that because although Melissa Foster can write stories that pull at your heartstrings they can get you hot and bothered as well.

I recommend this book to everyone that enjoys a small town romance with big family love. The student/teacher trope isn't a taboo factor at all so don't even let that play into your consideration. I look forward to the companion book to be released later this year, Finding My Girl which will have all the drawings Jonah had done of his wife, Eva, and Derek, as well as the drawings Derek did of him and Talia that were mentioned in this book. This book can be read as a standalone if you haven't read any of the Sugar Lake series yet, but I'm betting once you read this book you'll want to get to know how Willow and Bridgette got their HEAs as well. Happy Reading!!!

**I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Readers Copy of this book**

This has been a fun series to read and I enjoyed this book just as much even though we run into some pretty heavy subject matter. I love the strong family of characters in this series and Derek and his friends and family fit in perfectly.

Talia has seemed so quiet and reserved compared to her big over powering family thay she loves dearly. As we learn more about her past, the more some of her behaviors make more sense. When she meets Derek she slowly starts stepping out of her box and trying new things. Forcing herself to be more confident in the strong beautiful woman everyone else sees.

Derek has changed his life plans and direction in order to care for his father who is in the early stages of Alzheimer's. His dad is all he has and he wants him to have everything he can have during this deterioration. So far he is achieving this and working towards his degree. He has good days and bad days and sometimes it is too hard and difficult not to get upset. He has found himself a good group of friends and soon to be colleagues. When he comes upon the beautiful professor, she draws him in and has him wishing for more sooner.

Can Talia embrace Derek's current job and understand the why's? Has she found her one? Will Talia open herself to Jonah and except the difficulties of Derek's life right now?

Check it out.

*** Advanced copy provided in exchange for an honest review. ***

This is another great.book by Melissa Foster. Tallia and Derek's romance burns bright, and it's always great to catch up with the Daltons. The subject of Alzheimer's disease isn't just brushed over like it sometimes can be, it's an integral part of the story that shows Melissa Foster has clearly done her research, and gives this part.of Derek and his fathers lives the acknowledgement it deserves. There were times this story really made me well up, while others had me laughing out loud. A perfect balance.

I adored this book. Derek is completely swoon-worthy; not just in looks, but in his loving relationship with his father and the growing relationship with Talia and even her family.

Talia has so many insecurities and it’s a joy to watch as Derek helps her work through them and get more and more out of her comfort zone.

I absolutely love how the story shows that a relationship is so much more than just 2 people, but really between everyone that those 2 people care about when they are so close to their loved ones.

Very enjoyable read. This book really made me think about and appreciate all that goes into being a caretaker. The characters are wonderfully written. The story was steamy, fun, and heartwarming. And an added bonus is getting to see the characters from the previous books, but it can stand alone- you won't be lost if you haven't read the others.

Love Like Ours is by far one of my most favorite books. I pray Alzheimer’s never happens in my family. If it does I hope my family carries themselves while caring for their loved one with the dignity, respect and love that this author portrays Derek and Talia doing throughout the story. Derek has so much love inside him and Talia is the lucky lady that he bestows it upon. Their relationship will never be easy because of what it takes to be a caregiver, but you can see them both making every effort to make it work. And the sparks definitely fly with these two. There are too many parts of this book that I love. If I tried to name all of them I would have to type out the entire book making my review way too long. Just trust me when I say that this book is one to read, own and keep forever.
One thing that I did notice while reading is there weren’t many extra/past characters from other books that made an appearance in this story. Many times that can get overwhelming, hard to keep up with and I feel it takes away from the story being told. It also makes the story a bit choppy. Because that isn’t happening in this book the story was able to flow and develop easily and work its way right into my heart one word, kiss and drawing at a time. I truly love this story and Derek and Talia are some of my favorite characters!!

The story of Talia and Derek starts with her almost running him down. And fate decides that they will see much more of each other. After finding out that he is really not a student they start a passionate relationship which is entwined with her family and his father illness. A charming story with sweet characters. I just hoped to story to be deeper. I just got the feeling that besides Derek dancing everything was just too perfect.
I volunteered to review an ARC of this book for Netgelly

Cute story - loaded with angst for both Talia and Derek. Derek dances / bartends as a living temporarily until be can fulfill his dream of opening an Adult Daycare center in his home for patients with dementia and other memory disorders. Talia is the oldest daughter in the Dalton family of overachievers. Talia almost runs over Derek in the local college campus - as she is fighting with her family about her love life. Her mother even put a love spell on her to help her find her true love. Derek feels like he is cheating Talia from having a real relationship - due to his commitment to caring for his father. Talia is dealing with trust issues - she was cheated on in a previous relationship and has a low self esteem about her looks.

How the hell am I reading my first Melissa Foster’s book just now?

Where was I before, like seriously???

Sometimes I read a book and just know that I will love the author’s other works too. In Love Like Ours I loved everything – the writing, the pace, the characters.

Talia is a professor at the university. She replaces her friend on the job, she loves her family and she is protective of the people she loves.

Derek is a student who works as a bartender and male dancer because the money helps him with providing for him and his father. He knows what he wants, he is a man with plans and knows how to achieve his goals. He is stubborn but in a good way. I loved his honesty when talking with Talia. He didn’t beat around the bush but he told her how things were. I also love how much he cared for Talia and how romantic he was (true relationship goals here, people) 🙂

While I did love that the characters actually talked to each other (maybe for the first time in a while), I missed more drama. But overall, it was a heartwarming story about family, friends and love, which I recommend.

I really hope her other books are just as amazing as this one.

4 stars.

ATING: BUY IT

“You can trust me to be careful with your heart.”

I’m so in love with Melissa Foster’s Sugar Lake series, you guys. I read the first book, The Real Thing, when it came out last year, and the second book, Only for You, when it was released a few months later, and ever since, I have been looking forward to getting to know more about the Dalton family.

Well, book three is finally here. It feels like it was a long time coming, and yet it was wonderfully worth the wait. Smart, sexy and sweet, Love Like Ours is big sister Talia’s story, and kind of a tearjerker, TBH. Not in the overly angsty, all-the-drama way, but in the way Ms. Foster handles Derek’s story—and in the way Talia + Derek so sweetly come together. {Quick side note: Love Like Ours can most definitely be read standalone, so don’t be dissuaded by the fact it’s book three.}

Y’all, I got completely and utterly lost in this book. The banter between Talia and her sisters was 100% on point—seeing them all again, the married, soon-to-be married and unattached ones alike, was a treat—and the fact that family is central to the overall story made every exchange that much more rewarding.

And none of that is even mentioning how perfect Derek is. I feel like I could probably sit here and list all the things that make him Grade-A book boyfriend material, but why take away your chance to discover every last swoony thing about him? I’m not cruel. {But I am going to fight you for him.}

I sincerely hope that there’s more to come from Sugar Lake. I’ve become so attached to this family that I need to know that Piper and Ben both get their HEAs, just as much as I simply want to drop in on Talia + Derek again and see how far out of their comfort zones they’ve ended up . . .

“Are you looking for the nearest exit so you can sprint back to your comfort zone yet?”
“I’m actually hoping tonight never ends.”

Love Like Ours by Melissa Foster
Sugar Lake #3

Delightful from beginning to end! Piper and Derek meet when she is distracted and nearly hits him while she is driving. They meet again when he attends her class and though her perceptions of him are off-target at first glance she soon realizes that this man who on the surface seems all wrong for her is truly the man for her.

Piper has a big loving family that provides her with love and warmth and a lot of goodhearted teasing. She is the quietest of the group and yet perhaps the anchor. Derek is an only child predominately raised by a loving and wonderful father – a father he is losing a little bit more of every day. As the main caretaker of his father he is loving, kind, patient, caring and giving AND he brings those same attributes to his relationship with Piper…along with some sizzle and steam and charm and so much more.

Watching Piper and Derek grow together as a couple was a delight. Hearing about the cartoon sketches drawn by Derek and his father to commemorate life events was charming and made me want to look over his shoulder as he was drawing. Wondering who will get their story told next left me eager to read the next book in this series although this is the first I have read in the series so far. AND did you know that the cartoons in this book are actually collected together in another one so perhaps I will get to look over Derek’s shoulder after all!

Thank you to NetGalley, Montlake Romance and the author for the ARC – This is my honest review.

5 Stars

BLURB

I re-read the other Sugar Lakes books before diving into Talia's story. I love this family. Their love for one another and by extension their love for the ones their loved ones love is heartwarming. Talia is the serious older sister. She's always a little prim and proper. Until she meets Derek after almost running him down in the school parking lot. He gives her love and support and she blooms. And Talia gives Derek her heart and her unwavering support. A beautiful love story. Not just between her and Derek but also about their families. Derek's love and support of his father and his Alzheimers is touching. I received an early copy and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

I thought this one was fantastic! It has it all. A seriously sexy male dancer hero and a stoic, conservative professor heroine collide (literally) for a sweet but oh so sexy romance. I loved Talia and Derek together. She needed someone to shake up her well ordered world and he needed someone to bring some calm to his chaos. The story is very well written and I think you'll enjoy these characters as much as I did. This is the third book in the Sugar Lake series but it absolutely can be read standalone. Put this one on the must read list.

Love Like Ours is the newest installment of the Sugar Lake series by the very talented Melissa Foster! And boy is it a good and yummy story, but this book has many levels, which is normal for this author, and that is one of the things that makes her one of my go-to authors, so if you want a book with depth, feeling and will bring out real human emotion, keep reading!

This book is set around Talia Dalton, Professor and member of a totally insane family I mean seriously! Her mother sprayed her "love potion" in Talia car, so Talia would get a date! But the family (no matter how crazy) love each other, and that is a family I could totally be a part of.

And then she meets Derek Grant; who is a bartender, male dancer, graduate student and caregiver for his grandfather who is suffering from Alzheimer's, by nearly knocking him down with her car! Little do either of them know how much they will mean to each other.

This book is so much more than two people falling in love, it's a mixture of opposites attracts and also highlighting the role of caregivers, who tend to be overlooked and overworked. As the only caregiver for my disabled husband, it's nice to see the hardships and difficult days we go through!

Love Like Ours is a wonderful book one of which I truly love and appreciate, which is why I give it 5 stars!

When Talia Dalton literally runs into Derek Grant, her world and her stomach flip.

Derek is a hot beast of a man, taking a few college classes, while being a dancer...not a stripper!!! But a dancer and bartender, all while helping to care for his father (Jonah) with Alzheimers. He is trying to earn enough money for a project to help fund an assited living home with his group of friends who are also caregivers.

Talia is a professor, and at first is standoffish to Derek, because she believes him to be her student...which wasn't hard because he kept showing up in her class. She is still avoiding a relationship after her disasterous last relationship.

This is the third book in the Sugar Lake series by Melissa Foster. I loved this whole series and liked the way she connects each of the books with the characters and situations. This book flows so nicely, the characters were fantastic, I love the way Talia's family takes Derek and Jonah under their wing. This book pulled at my heartstrings! I loved it and whole-heartedly recommend it!!!

4.5 Stars for Love Like Ours by Melissa Foster, this is book 3 in the Sugar Lake Series and It was great to catch up with the Dalton family and read Talia and Derek’s story. This book captivated me it took over my life and I couldn’t put it down it’s not just a love story it’s a book that covers Alzheimer’s and it’s written beautifully and with compassion.
The Dalton family are determined to find a man for Talia to settle down with so her potion mad mum mixes a love potion concoction which she chucks all over Talia’s car and whilst Talia is trying to get rid of the smell by opening all the windows whilst driving she nearly runs over the most gorgeous man she has ever seen ( maybe Love potions work after all). Derek is a man who is on a mission he looks after his father who has Alzheimer’s whilst holding down various jobs in order to convert his family home into a community day care for ailing adults. An instant attraction for Talia and Derek but will one of Derek’s jobs send Talia running in the opposite direction.......
This author touched on a subject most would run from and she did it with compassion, a love story like no other once again aperfect addition to the great Sugar Lake Series.

Love Like Ours by Melissa Foster took me by surprise! I read this sensitive, emotional romance featuring college professor Talia Dalton and graduate student Derek Grant, in one afternoon. I adored Talia and Derek’s seemingly opposites attract romance, the importance of family and Mrs. Dalton’s magic love potion.
Professor Talia Dalton took one look at Derek Grant’s long hair, two- day stubble, bracelets and rings and assumes he’s not her type. She’s intrigued and turned on when she watches him dance but, runs out of the bar before his performance ends.
Their next conversation sets the tone for the novel:
“That’s what I do, not who I am.” He took a step back and said, “I misjudged you. I thought you saw beyond societal expectations and generalizations. I guess I was wrong.”

I loved that Derek wasn’t what Talia assumed; Talia was challenged to see Derek through her eyes and her experiences with him. Through conversations with Derek, she learns he is finishing up his Master’s degree in health administration; his father has early onset Alzheimer’s and he left a lucrative accounting career to care for his dad. Derek has a part time job bartending and dancing at a local bar. Dancing—yes dancing. His dancing is both a source of income for him and a source of discomfort for Talia.
Talia’s friendship and ensuing romance with Derek unfolds perfectly. Derek encourages Talia to step outside her comfort zone-they enjoying walking in the park, meeting his friends for dinner and a ski weekend. Talia understands that Derek has given up his dreams to care for his father and that being a caregiver is a 24/7 job. She encourages Derek to take time for himself- to give himself a well-deserved break.
The caregiving piece of this story and how it affects a person and their family resonated with me. One of the most touching scenes in the novel occurs when Derek and Talia visit an assisted living center. Derek’s struggle with caring for his father and trying to have a normal, healthy relationship with Talia is genuine and relatable. I could hear the struggle and frustration in his words as he tried to explain his feelings about his father to Talia. Talia asks him a very important question which told me that she loved Derek with all of her heart.
.Acceptance, assumption and secret keeping are three powerful themes that Melissa Foster includes in Love Like Ours. The strength of Talia and Derek’s relationship is tested throughout the novel. I loved reading how the couple learned to communicate honestly and face their issues together. The couple’s struggles with work family and their relationship are real. The conclusion to the novel was perfect and I can’t wait to catch up with them in the next Sugar lake book!
The characters and the themes from Love Like Ours made a huge impression on me. Caretakers are truly unselfish people—they put their loved one first each and every time. Kudos for Melissa Foster for bringing the role of a caretaker to light in a sensitive, honest manner. Love Like Ours wasn’t what I expected—it was SO MUCH BETTER!