Savor It by Tarah Dewitt is a heartwarming story about Sage Byrd, a woman who has lived in the small town of Spunes, Oregon her whole life and Fisher Lange, a chef who temporarily relocates to Spunes to help open a new restaurant. Both Sage and Fisher are healing after loss and needing to rediscover themselves after life-changing events. Sage and Fisher come up with a mutually beneficial fake dating scheme but end up finding valuable understanding and support from each other as they spend time together.

This is the second book I have read by Tarah Dewitt (the other was Funny Feelings). I really enjoyed this one. I thought it was sweet, funny, and had the right amount of spice. I really appreciated how gentle the various characters were with each other and also how the story resolved.

3.5 stars rounded up

This was the first book that I've read by Tarah DeWitt, and I definitely want to read more! I enjoyed the characters and the storyline for the most part. Their reason for not being together seems a bit flimsy, especially for two people madly in love with each other, which they were, and I here for it!

The writing for the most part was good but seemed amateurish at times. The writer played out "Savor." We get it. They were into each other. This made for intense sexy times, which the writer handled really well.

I'm looking forward to more of her stories!

After reading a surplus of romance novels at the end of last year, I was nervous to continue the trend. Feeling burnt out by the usual tropes, I decided to still give Savor It a go, as I absolutely loved my recent read of Funny Feelings, also by Dewitt. I’m so glad to say Tarah has done it again! This book split my heart wide open and forcefully pumped in so much hope, giddiness, and love. The slow burn BURNED but once the romance happened, it was so damn good.

5 ⭐️ for a focus mental health and healing, refreshing communication, and strong lead characters that prioritize themselves and their own well-being first.

Thank you to Net Galley, Tarah DeWitt, and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced e-copy!

I loved this book! I loved the fun, the humour, I couldn’t help but smile as I read. I feel like this is the perfect beach read if you’re heading on vacation. It was a nice quick, easy read and I ate it up!!

This was super cute. An opposite Hallmarky book where the big shot MMC chef moves to small town for the summer and meets our FMC as his new short term neighbor. I loved the town of Spunes and all the side characters. Sage and her menagerie of animals was very charming and Fisher was so sweet and swoony. A solid little small town romance read.

“It’s been a privilege to fall in love with you, Sage”

This was soo good! Thank you to NetGalley for the arc. Tarah flies under the radar, she is so unbelievable underrated. Her other books are what I truly consider a RomCom and this is no different. Small town, friends to lovers with dual POV. I really enjoyed Sage as a character.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for sending me an ARC of Savor It in exchange for an honest review.

Sage has lived in the setting of a West Coast Hallmark movie all her life. She’s a teacher and lives on a farm with all the animals. She dated the town’s golden boy Ian for five years, but he dumped her a year ago and is now engaged to her former friend Cassidy. She’s not unhappy exactly—she’s got her brothers and a town she loves—but she’s just so tired of being pitied or overlooked. Fisher is in town for the summer to consult on a new restaurant. A Michelin-starred chef, his life has been on a downward spiral for years, and this job could be his last chance to restart his career. More importantly, he’ll have the chance to rebuild his relationship with his niece Indy, who’s still grieving her mother’s death. Suddenly neighbors, Sage and Fisher soon realize that she can help him cut through the red tape for the restaurant and that he can help her win The Festival of Spunes and finally get the town to see she’s over Ian. But there’s nothing fake about the feelings behind their fake dating relationship, so what will happen when the summer ends and Fisher goes back to New York?

At times, Savor It hits all the beats you’d expect in a small town romcom. The seemingly brooding big city boy meets the quirky and utterly charming small town girl. There are run-ins with her brothers, suspicious townspeople that are often quite funny, and a scene-stealing goose named Gary. And, of course, the fake dating predictably leads to real feelings and some spicy times. But this book has a surprising emotional depth to it because the relationship between Sage and Fisher is often secondary. Sage has a lot of grief she’s working through, sure, but watching Fisher try to regain Indy’s trust and be the parent she needs was really moving.

Savor It is an above average romcom, funny and moving in equal parts. Recommended.

Check out this beautiful romance cover!
Savor It releases May 21, 2024

Fisher Lange, chef who has lost his way and no longer finds joy cooking gets temporarily reassigned to a small town in Oregon to set up a new up and coming restaurant. While there he meets Sage, the eccentric neighbor. Together with his niece they learn how to start over and sometimes the path you thought you needed to be on can be completely wrong.
This has a few spicy scenes and I would definitely classify as a slow burn. I loved the city of Spunes and now I want more follow up stories from other residents. Especially Indy! The one thing that I wish wasn’t so rushed was the competition. I wish that part didn’t feel so rushed and anticlimactic. Other than that I enjoyed it.
Great romance read! Spice level 🌶️🌶️
Thank you to Net Galley, Tarah DeWitt, and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced copy for an honest review.

Savor It by Tarah DeWitt
Pub date: May 21, 2024
Rating: 5/5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

ARC provided by publisher via NetGalley in exchange for honest review.

This book is so good. Read it. I don’t know where else to begin. I started this book at 10 pm, told myself I’d just read for 15 minutes to get it started. Nope. It’s 2 am and I’ve just finished it.

I was laughing from the first page. And swooning every time Sage and Fisher were in the same scene. (After just one interaction between them I was already invested, but in the second interaction when we get his internal monologue that includes the line “she’s so cute it’s downright offensive,” I became obsessed with Fisher and Sage). These characters made me laugh and cry in the best way.

Every side character added something, either depth or humor, to the story; this includes the many animals of Sage. I want this to be a series, I need more of those other characters. I was hooked from the first page to the last.

In addition to the comedy and romance, this book has real emotional depth and deals with grief, an experience I am in the depths of, and I really felt this book captured numerous aspects of that. Also very much appreciate the migraine suffering representation, personally very relatable.

I would’ve read 200 more pages of this story, which is just about the best review I can give a book. Being a fan of this author’s work, I was so excited for this one, and it did not let me down. If you’ve read this author before, you’ll love this book. And if you haven’t, you should read this book and then her others

I’m so so thankful I got this ARC. But I will also buy this book and recommend it to every romance reader I know.

I adored this book. DeWitt has done it again, made such charming characters that you can’t help but fall in love with. Scenes got spicy, and I was loving it. The way this was a different spin on the fake dating trope, the characters quickly admitting to feelings (no miscommunication plot!). The small town of Spunes was a delight to get to know, and I am DESPERATE for an Ellis x Wren book now. I loved the subplots, Indy’s development, the animals, the grieving, and just the powerful passion DeWitt wrote for Sage and Fisher. I adored that this book was full of memorable moments, real dating, and the real-life issue of time being against you.

I really enjoyed this! I discovered Tarah DeWitt after reading The Co-Op and a lot of what I loved in that book is also here. Tarah does communication so well and makes the romance compelling without being overly dramatic. There’s a natural progression between Sage and Fisher and their obstacles are so rooted in reality. It was clear they had chemistry from the start and they never tried to fight it for reasons that felt unrealistic. I also really liked reading Indy and Fisher’s relationship and would’ve enjoyed seeing that more. The one criticism I could give here is that there were a few too many title drops in this. I could not bare to read another time where the characters said they would “savor” the moment.

“You once told me you thought you were a lot of nots. I want you to know that to me, you’re everything.”

You guys know I love a romance with depth and this story brings all the warm and cozy vibes you want from a small town romance - while also diving into coping with loss, burn out, and so much more.

Our main characters are Fisher, a Michelin star chef in need of some time out, and Sage, your quirky and lovable girl next door. I loved the dual POV between both characters, and getting to know them flaws and all. Let’s not forget the lovable side characters (& animals) and unlimited banter, too! Definitely add this to your spring tbr!

Thank you to NetGalley, Tarah DeWitt, and St. Martin’s Press for this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

such a sweet romance. started a bit slow and there were so many names to keep track of (especially if this isn't starting a series), but hit all the right marks to wrap it up. both main characters had traits that made you love them, but also made them feel real. and the small town vibes are there (even when the author makes a point to say not every small town is like a hallmark movie). its a bit spicy, but no where near smutty.

there are plenty of quirky animal companions (no harm to an animal) and a lite fake-dating plot, as well as a small town competition, descriptions of food i could never afford, and a main male love interest with ear piercings. something for everyone!

will definitely have to pick up more from this author in the future!

This book was a cozy warm hug with an occasional hot make out session. A down-on-his-luck chef, Fisher, moves with his late sister's teenage daughter to the pacific northwest to try to revitalize his career. He is downright grouchy at the beginning, and to see him open up and be so sensitive by the end was beautiful. He's been burned by small minded towns before and doesn't want that to happen to his niece, so he's wary of letting people in. BUT, his sunshiny beautiful next door neighbor (Sage) simply won't abide. She's pure chaos with a mix of animals, a giant garden, and deep roots in the small town where she's never quite fit either. They team up to ensure Fisher's new business venture gets town approval and he helps her try to win a town competition to prove to her ex she's not a pushover. I adored how we could really see their love languages come through, always trying to support each other in big and small ways. It's definitely slow burn, but when they do finally get together it's spectacular. They so clearly fall in love, and it's really just watching them try to figure out how to make that work when Fisher is destined to return to New York at the end of the summer. As determined as they are to just 'savor it' while they can, you know that will never be enough :)

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

"Savor It" by Tarah Dewitt is a heartfelt and comical romance set on the picturesque Oregon coast. The main characters Sage and Fisher had tons of emotional depth and chemistry, which I loved. The supporting cast of characters was great and made this book so enjoyable; if there is a future book from the perspectives of Ellis and Wren, I will definitely read it. Occasionally the plot devices seemed a bit hokey, but the emotional beats of the story brought everything back down to earth. Highly recommend!

Wow, I think this is definitely my favorite Tarah book so far! I related heavily to Sage and I loved the small town vibes in this so much!

Savor It was such a sweet story! Sage Byrd who is kind, quirky, smart and always thinking of others is trying to figure out life. Fisher Lange, is a semi-brooding, (at least in the beginning) award winning chef who has moved from NYC to a Sage's coastal, small town in Oregon with his niece. While their first meeting may not have have been the perfect meet-cute, they soon realize they have more in common than they think. What unfurls is an emotional story about love in all its forms! Oh yes, there are also a few steamy scenes that will make your toes curl! Tarah DeWitt delivered! #Oregon, #romcom, #netgalley

I absolutely loved this small town romance! I loved watching them open up to each other and allow themselves to care! Completely engulfed by this book I read it in one day! Can’t wait to get my hands on a physical copy!

4-4.5⭐️

This is the first book I read from this author though she has been on my radar for quite some time, and I really, really enjoyed it. Such a feel good little gem! 💎

While in essence it seems pretty classic small town Romance - boy struggles in life and career, lands in small town, falls in love with it and the girl, comisserating over personal trauma one day and going through small town antics and festival and busybodies drama the next, until oops we fell in love what do we do now, it's so much more than that.

It's the nuances that sell this book for me and what will make everyone love it come summer. It better be on everyone's vacation list!

It's witty, charming, spicey and heartfelt. But with lots of wisdown, inner struggles and development, growth, love, found family and a dozen other tiny things that lie beyond the surface and make it big. It's all very wholesome!
The vibe kind of reminds me of Ali Hazelwood and Jessica Joyce.

If you're wondering why it's not a full 5 stars though I obviously loved it, it's because it was a bit slow sometimes and I felt kinda lulled into distractions. But that may be more of a timing thing than a book thing.

Anyway. Both characters are so beautiful, so endearing, so smart and they put their all in everything they do. Sage is pretty much all heart, bubbly, fun and loving, while Fisher is introspective, withdrawn at the beginning and lost, feeling somehow at a crossroad. His work is not what it used to be, he is guardian to an orphaned teenager and feels like he faild at everything. But as they spend time together and get lost in their little moments, she breathes life into him while he shows her that living in the now, happy is fine, but it can be so much better with the right partner and the prospect of a future together in mind.

Loved all the family dynamic too and how true, realistic and ultimately positive was handled the situation with the niece, work life balance etc.

If there is anything to take from here - (and I have more quotes to share closer to release date) it's this:

"I realized that infatuation was the shortness of breath, the adrenaline, the idea that we could ever just be friends and it wouldn’t kill me each and every day.
Love is this. Love is breathing. A sweet, deep, aching relief. And it’s somehow even more disorienting."

The writing though!🫶

This book was super cute with very big Hallmark vibes. I really enjoyed it, but there’s something keeping me from giving it 5 stars. Their dynamic was great, but I wanted just a little big more from their chemistry. That being said, was a very fun read and I’d definitely recommend this book to someone looking for a quick, cute read. This was my first book by Tarah Dewitt and I look forward to reading more!