There are not enough words to talk about how much I loved this book Maren & Joe are forever in my heart - not to mention the kids! Brother’s best friends, single dad, small town romance and this combination was chef’s kiss. I adored every single page of this book and I’m immediately running to read Hahn’s books about Maren’s friends ASAP!

An easy 5 stars from me.

This was the sweeeeeetest brother's best friend single dad romance. Y'all. I think this was my favorite in the series and I was not ready for it to end. When Maren returns to her childhood stomping grounds after a failed proposal and runs into her brother's best friend Joe, recently divorced with two of the cutest kids ever, the two strike up another renewed friendship and it's only time before feelings come in to play. I loved the meddling from their families, and the natural progression in their relationship. I love how well she loved his kids and how in tune they each were with what they both needed. There were butterflies and melt worthy moments and just all the feels by the time we got to the end. The epilogue was perfect but I still wasn't ready for their story to end!!


Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC in exchange for my review!

A small town brother's best friend romance featuring a woman who just turned down a proposal and moved back into her small town to work on her inherited bait shop... all the while reuniting with her brother's best friend, ex marine single father and completely irresistible but off limits. Maren used to be a popular youtuber before it became too much and she moved out. Now years later after her boyfriend proposed to her, she turns him down and walks away from her job as a park ranger to go home and work on her inheritance, a bait shop. Maren is now reunited with her brother and his best friend, Liam, a handsome ex marine who is now a single father. Liam is completely off limits but she can't help but be drawn to him and his charming kids and the home that they are giving her. While she is meant to be just working on fixing up the bait shop and selling it....but maybe Liam can convince her to stay. This was definitely a small town romance with spice as Maren and Liam instantly fall for each other. The book was just okay for me, the whole "issues" with the relationship weren't really that much of an issue and the romance was insta love. I really wish I could like it more but something about this book just didn't convince me over. The romance was fine but the story just kind of felt like it was missing something and I can't put my finger on it. While this one wasn't for me I do think that if you like the trope of brother's best friend I think you'd have fun with it.

Release Date: October 15,2024

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and St. Martin's Press | St. Martin's Griffin for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

5 solid heartwarming stars.
My first read by author Erin Hahn and looking forward to adding her books to my TBR list.
At 33, Maren has been fishing her entire life. From the time she can remember, owner of an old shake and bait shop would take her out in his boat fishing, when her family vacationed at the resort in northern Wisconsin.
Growing up with all brothers she enjoyed her one on one time learning the secrets of the water from her ole friend.
While in college, she starts a YouTube production called Maren Muskie, which a hit from the beauty queen, but also attracts weirdos.
She follows her back up plan as a park ranger for a steady income. Maren is a private person so when her boyfriend Tyler proposes in front of everyone - she throws up on him then runs away. She lands herself back where she feels safe and secure, Northern Wisconsin resort area.
Here she runs into Cole. Hot. Military veteran. Single dad. Divorced. Resort owner. Her brother’s best friend. 😮
They connect and become fast friends.
Neither one knew they had something missing until the other started filling that space.….. not wanting to make things awkward because she’s always been Liam’s kid sister. And Liam still treats her like a kid.
Coles two children are super special and hold a major role in this book. Anders has a warm heart and wears it on his sleeve. His sister Lucy is autistic and has routine and sensory issues. Hahn does a fantastic job displaying her disability. Giving her the perfect dad for the job is a bonus.
Friends to lovers with romance and spice. As a passenger, I devoured this book on a road trip.
Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’ Press/St Martin’s Griffin for the ARC read in exchange for my review.

Catch and Keep is a tough book for me to rate. I really loved the beginning when we got to know Maren, especially how her life as a teen/young adult YouTube celebrity impacted her, and the initial sparks between Maren and her older brother's best friend, Joe. I thought the setting was unique and fun - I am not into fishing at all, but I weirdly enjoyed reading about it. On the flip side, I sometimes find Hahn's writing to be cringey, which takes me out of the story. I especially had a hard time with the scene Joe admitted his feelings to Maren's best friends' husband and boyfriend (featured in Hahn's two previous adult romance novels). Still, the story was heartfelt and the romance was good.

3.5 Stars Catch and Keep wraps up Erin Hahn's interconnected stories of three best friends' romances. It's a cozy friends to lovers, single dad, small town, brother's best friend romance.

Maren Laughlin's life has turned upside after she threw up on her boyfriend's shoes while he proposed, rejected said proposal, and quit her job as a park ranger. Returning to the Northern Wisconsin resort where she spent her childhood summers learning to fish, Maren is going to spend this time figuring out what to do next while fixing up her inheritance from her mentor: his old worn down bait shop. Everyone seems to be judging Maren's actions, most especially her older brother, Liam. Thankfully, Liam's best friend, Josiah "Joe" Cole sees Maren trying her best and has no place to judge after what he's been through. Despite his marriage falling apart, single dad and Marine veteran is proud of what he has: his two wonderful kids and running his parents' resort. Maren is a breath of fresh air in Joe's life and adores his kids almost as much as him. Things between Joe and Maren are easy--could it be too easy or is it real love this time?

Catch and Keep feels so different from any other romance I've read despite the familiar tropes and I think it's because of the setting and the FMC. I've never read a romance with so much fishing, let alone a FMC who is an expert fisher and leads expeditions. The setting of a resort in Northern Wisconsin was also very different, but the perfect place for Joe and Maren to fall in love. Like all romances with a single parent trope, I adored Joe's kids, Anders and Lucy. I loved how the four of them truly became a family in the last part of the book. I swear my heart grew three sizes when Lucy referred to herself as "Maren's baby."

Thank you Erin Hahn and NetGalley for the ARC! Catch and Keep releases October 15th!

After Maren publicly break off her engagement from her boyfriend and coworkers. She retreats back to her hometown for some much needed revamp of her life. When arriving she runs into Joe, her brother’s best friend who she has secretly crushed on.

Joe is coming off his divorce after returning home from
being deployed over overseas. He is learning to manage the new life of being a single dad when Maren returns back into his life unexpectedly.

Is the both of them being single perfect timing or too good to be true? Will this spark a flame trust they both put out long ago or is just being friends in the cards for them?

Thank you NetGalley for the Arc!

4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Catch and Keep
Author: Erin Hahn
Romance

Loved this so much! Woodsy, cabin, fishing themes. Our FMC is also thirty three which I found super refreshing. I love reading romance books with FMCs closer to me in age. Maren has just moved back to her home in Wisconsin to accept her inheritance which is a cute little bait shop. She loves fishing. Josiah is her brothers best friend, divorced, and raising his two kids by himself. When Maren and Josiah find themselves back in each others orbit, a romance story begins and it is so cute. Also about 🌶️🌶️/5 on the spice scale. Thank you so much Netgalley for this ARC. This book releases on 10/15 and if you love brothers best friend, single dad, cozy romance stories then pick this one up!

This was such a sweet binges me and fun romance! I loved the fishing aspect and that it was focused on the FMC not the MMC. It’s a perfect brothers best friend, single dad romance!

Maren finds herself running for “home” after a tone deaf proposal from a not so great guy. She’s gone to her happy place to heal and sort out things with her faithful dog Rogers. She runs into her brothers best friend, and childhood companion, Josiah, and his two kids Anders and Lucy. Josiah is an ex-marine and divorced, navigating running his parents resort and being a single dad to two young ones. Maren quickly becomes a staple in their lives as both her and Joe navigate their pasts and who they are now. We watch over months as these two fall in love, and Maren falls for his children in turn.

These two were so sweet, supportive, and adorable with one another. I loved that the drama does not directly revolve around conflict between them, but their navigating conflict with others and supporting one another through it. I really liked seeing Maren’s interactions with his kids and it was such a sweet story to watch her fall for all of them. Especially how she interacts with Lucy and the sweet moments they share as she meets Lucy at her own level/pace as a person with autism.

Overall this is a perfect romance for the fall/winter, it feels cozy and is just a happy romance that left me smiling!

Another absolutely perfect book from Erin Hahn!! I have loved this little group of friends so much! And Erin’s writing is full of so much LOVE. Joe and Maren were no different, and truthfully I think she saved the best for last, and I LOVED the other two. But there was something that just felt so special about Joe and Maren and Anders and Lucy that made my heart so happy.

Joe and Maren were honestly everything to me. They were soft and quiet and they tried so hard to fight their feelings because she wasn’t staying and because him and her brother are best friends and she didn’t want to get in the way of that… but it’s so hard to fight what’s MEANT TO BE! And that’s exactly what they were. They both had so much work through and figure out and they both desperately wanted to be able to do it on their own…and they DID but they also needed help and watching them accept help!! I loved them so much.

Every single time Maren was interacting with kids made my heart ACHE. Joe had a lot going on, and didn’t want help…but maybe he didn’t want to have to ASK for help…and Maren just seamlessly inserted herself into their lives and it was exactly what they needed. The way Lucy took right to Maren because Maren was such a safe place for her! And I LOVED that Maren and Anders were fishing partners. I loved that full circle moment for Maren so much.

And not to mention seeing Shelby and Cameron and Lorelei and Craig again was so sweet. They’re such a sweet little family and they are always there for each other when they need it the most. And watching the guys take Joe right under their wing was SO CUTE!

Thanks so much to SMP for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

✨ARC Review✨

⭐⭐⭐⭐ for Catch and Keep by Erin Hahn

This was such a cozy read, and surprisingly emotional! I didn't expect to tear up reading this, but Maren's fierce love for Lucy got me right in the feels.

I loved how the romance between Joe and Maren progressed slowly and naturally, and the way she not only fell in love with him, but with his kids too. Her relationship with Lucy especially is so special, it tugged at my heartstrings!

I'm not a "Lake girl" at all, and yet this book almost made me wish I was; the setting seemed so cozy and delightful, and the fishing expeditions a lot of fun. I was also a fan of the MCs both being in their thirties, it made for a refreshing angle on things.

If you love single dad, slow burn, brother's best friend, age gap romances, give this one a try!

Thank you to St-Martins Press and Netgalley for a copy in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own.

I absolutely loved it, It's a super cute slow burn and best friend's brother romance. It was a breath of fresh air while also taking a deeper look at being a divorced single parent with a child on the spectrum (him) and reinventing your life after an abrupt change (her).
I loved the characters and their depth. This was such a wholesome romance that also dealt with some heavier topics, but I think this had the perfect blend of seriousness and contentment.
This was absolute perfection to me!

I want to go fishing now!

Maren Laughlin decided to take charge of her happiness after the disaster of her fiancé’s proposal and finding out that he got the promotion that she really wanted by taking care of her inheritance from her fishing buddy Fost. But she never expected to see her brother’s best friend Josiah (Joe) Cole who was running his family’s resort next door with two cute kids, a son Anders and an autistic daughter Lucy.

You will love Catch and Keep because Maren falls in love with Anders and Lucy and then slowly realizes that she’s in love with Joe. And you will want to go to fishing with Maren like Anders does with Lucy’s painted lures.

Maren’s friend’s stories are Built to Last and Friends Don't Fall in Love

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from the author and NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recently single former Park Ranger, Maren moves back to her favorite Northern Wisconsin summer resort town when she inherits a decrepit bait shop. Floundering in life, she didn't expect to fall for her older brother's best friend, Josiah, a single dad of two young kids, one a high needs autistic girl, who is struggling in his own right. Full of heart, heat and great emotional depth, this was an entertaining read that was good on audio and perfect for fans of authors like Maisey Eddings or Maggie North. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review. This was the third in a trilogy and can be read as a standalone.

Gah there is so much of this that was so good. Some characters from previous Hahn's books appeared in this book about Maren and Joe. Maren left her job, home, and family when her boyfriend tries to manipulate her into marrying him. She runs away to the summer retreat where her family spent most summers of her childhood and where she was willed a house and shop of one of the fishermen that she'd befriended throughout her childhood. In the meantime, Joe, the owner of the nearby resort where she'd stayed as a kid and her brother's best friend, is surviving being a business owner, divorcee, and dad to two kids. Joe and his family immediately take Maren under their wing, giving her a job, help with the renovations of the cabin and store, and people to care for and care for her. It sounds like the perfect recipe for a happy life, until you throw in a stalker, a brother who is very vocal about his friend and his sister staying apart, and plans to move forward elsewhere.

I loved the conclusion of the story of these friends and the representation of how beautiful Midwest summers and autumn are. I love the strength of Maren, the dichotomy of having a beauty queen park ranger who is capable of her own home renovation. It's so telling of those who grow up in the midwest it was awesome.

#arc
#netgalley
#catchandkeep

I don't know what it is about single-parent romances but they just hit differently.

This one was emotionally tender in the best way. Erin Hahn is really good at making us immediately invested in the character's happiness and story.

Also, nothing is quite as good as a dual POV romance where we can see how gone they are for each other.

3/5 ⭐️

This started off pretty good but it just didn't really work for me overall.

Here were some things I liked:
- Maren and Joe were really sweet and I loved their interactions with each other. Maren's relationships with his kids were also great.
- The setting and the fall vibes in this were so good, a perfect fall read.
- No complaints about the spice.

And some things I didn't like:
- Maren and Joe went from barely interacting, to kind of getting to know each other, to suddenly getting it on out of nowhere. It took reading 50% of the book before anything romantically is set up between them and then it just jumps right into a spicy scene. I needed more set up, more angst, more pining. It was just nothing and then everything. I'm all for having a slow build up, but it requires actually having the build up. Very disappointing.
- Maren's brother, Liam. I'm not quite sure what the author was going for in Liam. He was such an asshole to Maren and then they tried to redeem at the end but his behavior was so awful that it was painful to read. It felt like an easy out to create conflict between Maren and Joe.

There were some fun and cute moments in this but I did have a hard time finishing this.

Thank you to NetGalley, Erin Hahn, and St. Martin's Press for my early access to this.

Read if you like:
🎣 Fishing
🧍Brother’s Best Friend
🧑‍🧑‍🧒 Single Dad Romance
🏘️ Small Towns
🧠 Autism Rep

As someone who loves the outdoors, I really enjoyed this one and now I want to go fishing!

I really loved the chemistry between Maren and Josiah and especially the forbidden aspect with her brother saying he was a no go zone and that Josiah is her brother’s best friend.

Maren’s brother thinks she is too immature and that Josiah has too much shit on his plate with being a single parent to two kids, one with a disability, and an ex wife that signed over her rights. So really, from his pov, you kinda get why he doesn’t support them being together and why he told Marren before anything even happened to not let it.

But sometimes the people we need are the people that those that love us don’t always see why they fit for us, until they get the chance to see how coming together makes them both stronger and brings something they each needed to the relationship.

Overall, this was a sweet and fun read with well done spice that had me blushing, and I’ve said it once, and I’ll say it again, me written by women that take care of their women are top tier!

Thank you so much to Macmillan for my ALC and SMP for my ARC!

*Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this free ARC in exchange for an honest review. Pub date: October 15, 2024

A spicy small town, open door, acquaintances to lovers romcom. Maren grew up fishing on the lake and finds herself back there after her fishing partner left her a lake property in his will. She runs into single-dad of two, Joe (her older brother’s best friend!), and things go from there. This is heartwarmingly sweet and spicy—Joe has a wild amount of emotional intelligence that makes him hard not to fall for, baggage included.

Catch and Keep was such a delightful read. After reading Friends Don’t Fall in Love, I was super curious about Maren and loved getting to know her better.
Maren is her own woman and she’s strong and determined, but she also wants to belong somewhere and to someone. Joe hasn’t been thinking about anything but his kids since the divorce. When they run into each other after a long time without seeing each other, a new story may begin and they might change each other’s lives.
Writing reviews about the books I enjoy the most is always more difficult because I feel I’m not doing them justice. There’s not a single thing I didn’t like about this story. The characters are interesting and complex (except for Kiley haha), the chemistry between Maren and Joe was amazing, the whole fishing scene was unique and overall the book felt lighthearted and heartwarming.
In my opinion, it has the perfect mix of romance, humor, and spiciness. It feels like a well-balanced story, and I love finding books like this that make me laugh and kick my feet in the air.
I also loved having a glimpse of Lorelai and Craig. And even when I haven’t read Shelby’s book (but I will, I already bought it) I already like her so much. It was the perfect culmination of the three friends’ stories and I’m very fond of the characters.
In conclusion, do not miss this book. If you have read the other two (or just one, like me), this one is a must. If you haven’t read the others you can still read this one but I guarantee it will be a thousand times better if you do, you won’t be disappointed.