Savor It

"I can hear giddiness buzzing in my veins, even in the silence."

Oh what a DELIGHTFUL story! I can HEAR the giddiness buzzing in my veins after enjoying it! I absolutely adored Sage & Fischer's story. I did not savor it like I should have, instead I just flew through it in less than 24 hours because I could not put it down.

Set in small town Spunes, Oregon (not to be confused with Forks, Washington), Fischer and his niece Indy move into the rental next door to Sage's farm for the summer. Fischer is help set up a restaurant and, tasked with winning over the town, fake dating Sage goes a long way to earning their hearts. Nothing is ever fake, but the two agree to savor their time together before Fischer and Indy have to move back in the fall for her school year. Sage is the most precious ball of sunshine and I absolutely loved her energy. Fischer did too and I don't bame him!

An absolutely beautiful story of finding your people and purpose, and enjoying life along the way.

I highly recommend this one! Especially if you're looking for:
Fake Dating
Neighbors to lovers
Single Uncle
Small town
Meddling brothers
Dual POV narration
A menagerie of unique pets on a farm.

I mean - a mischievous, three-legged cat named Legoless? SAY LESS.

I tandem read and listened to this one. The audio was absolutely amazing. Especially the male narrator was a perfect fit for Fischer. The female narrator brough Sage's sunshine energy to life so well and I loved it.

Thank you to Macmillian Audio and St Martins Press for this ARC/ALC. Savor It is on shelves May 21, 2024. My opinions are my own.

I had read this book and really enjoyed it. When the audio version came out I knew that I wanted to hear the story this time. The narrators did an amazing job. A fun story of a former New Yorker getting to spend the summer adjusting to small town life. With a bad boy chef , surly orphaned teenager , a sassy neighbor and all of her quirky pets how could a story not be entertaining! Thank you to NetGalley for this advanced copy of this audiobook. I am voluntarily leaving this review

The Bear x Gilmore Girls, complete with quirky small town festivals!

Fisher Lang is a Michelin Star chef who recently lost a star and got let go from his job. He also has taken on the responsibility of caring for his niece. An opportunity arises for him to consult for a new build in Spunes, Oregon and he takes it.

There he meets Sage Bird, a local woman and his new neighbor. She is fun, eccentric, and has a rehab farm with tons of animals. They meet on his first day in town and hit it off.

This book was so cute and fun. I loved Sage as a character especially all her wild robes and graphic tees. It did remind me a lot of The Bear (Hulu tv series) and one scene was even nearly word for word with the show.

Spunes is an eclectic town with Gilmore Girls energy and all the characters to boot.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and it satisfied my love for cartoon character covers and contemporary romance.

My only issue was with the audio. I’m not sure if parts of the book didn’t get uploaded or if it was a NetGalley glitch, but a couple chapters ended abruptly in the middle of sentences and I felt like I missed half a chapter at least.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the ARC!

Wow
Savor it
This audio book is to die for! The banter and wit!
The fake dating trope with the clear angst and longing for each other, as soon as I began to read I knew this would be one of my favorites of the year! I love so much how he couldn’t stop thinking about her and how she was so nervous because she had never allowed herself to feel and be frisky before! She never longed for anyone as she had him!
I love the beginning with the scene being set with her living such a comfortable and happy life in a small town as a teacher and growing her small farm and gardens ! I so connected to wanting o live like this ! Even though it’s hard to ! I love his niece and how she’s struggling but how she understands more than we all give her credit for, this is a must read this year no joke ! The narrators were so lovely and made me truly love this book more !

This book was so much better than I expected it to be, I was pleasantly surprised! Sage and Fisher's journey was really sweet and with both main characters being so likable, I couldn't help but cheer them on towards their HEA. If you like your romcoms on the cuter side, this one should be on your list. I also highly recommend the audio version - it was amazingly narrated!

This was such a sweet, small town romance! I loved the humor mixed in and all the quirky animals. This story didn't get too deep, but still had some emotional elements. Tarah DeWitt really knows how to write engaging and likable characters and I really enjoyed this book!

Extremely enjoyable. Amazing narration. Loved the spicy library scenes. Perfect for fans of small town romance with realistic adult problems and healthy communication. Some grumpy sunshine, some fake dating, lots of lovable characters. The conflict was moderate surface level - predictable - so it's like a comfort read. You know what's going to happen so just enjoy the ride. There were some scenes I audibly cackled. Mostly involving the farm animals.

Did I mention the library? 🥵

This is my first book by this author and I can't wait to read more.

Do the audio. It's great. I listened at 1.75x for most of it. It's super bingeable.

Thank you to NetGalley SMP and Macmillan for the advanced copy. #MacAudio2024

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio for the gifted copies of Savor it, out 5/21.

Sage Byrd is a teacher and hobby farmer in the small town of Spunes, Oregon (not to be confused with Forks, Washington - HA). Raised by her brothers after being orphaned at 12 and recently dumped by her boyfriend of 5 years, Sage can’t escape the town’s pity. Winning the annual Festival of Spunes competition would show everyone that she’s doing fine, thanks very much, and doesn’t need anyone’s pity.

Fisher Lange, a chef de cuisine at a Michelin-starred restaurant in NYC, is in Spunes for the summer to prepare for the opening of his backer’s new restaurant. Bowed by the pressure of maintaining culinary perfection and raising his recently orphaned 16-year-old niece, Fisher has lost his love of cooking and can’t snap out of his funk.

When Sage and Fisher strike up a friendship, they agree to help each other get the wins they need. Fisher will compete with Sage in the festival and Sage will help Fisher navigate town bureaucracy to get his restaurant going. As their friendship evolves into something more, Sage and Fisher are determined to savor the summer they have together before… (sings) August slips away into a moment in time… cause you were never mine (SORRY I CAN’T HELP MYSELF!).

I definitely Savor(ed) It! After finishing the audiobook, I immediately jumped into the print version. I knew I loved it, but as I re-read, I was struck by how remarkably authentic it all is. In most rom coms, there’s SOMETHING that feels forced. Whether it’s how they meet, the premise of their initial romance, or the reason for the third act break up – some plot point usually feels manufactured or overly fortuitous. In Savor It, every scene and every moment between the characters feels real.

Part of it is how good Sage and Fisher are together. They’re complex, multi-dimensional characters with a lot of baggage to work through. Sage is taking in wounded creatures left and right in an effort to soak in every minute of goodness from life, at the expense of going after what she really wants. Fisher is dealing with the fall out of a years-long functional freeze where he avoided change at all cost because he didn’t know what he wanted. Instead of focusing on building a romantic relationship, they’re focused on helping each other: him increasing her comfort with the unknown and wanting more, her teaching him how to relinquish control and hold on to less. Helping each other become better versions of themselves, they become each other's happy place and their relationship flourishes.

Other random things I loved
-It’s funny! There are so many great hilarious scenes. Some with physical comedy, some with banter, but it’s all quite entertaining.
-The reference to Farley from Funny Feelings when Fisher sees her book in the library entitled, “Farts and Arts: The Craft of Lighthearted and Life-Changing Comedy” lol
-The small town charm! There’s a town hall meeting scene that’s straight out of a Gilmore Girls episode, except ~spicier~.

Audio
The narration is absolutely flawless. This is probably one of the best audiobooks I’ve ever listened to. Karissa Vacker (Last Call at the Local, When in Rome) and Zachary Webber (every Abby Jiminez book except TFZ) are two of my all time favorite narrators and their performance together is stunning. They’re both so emotive, like a true performance. Let’s petition for them to jointly narrate every audiobook from now on. Can’t recommend it enough!!

I loved everything about this! Narrators, characters, setting, story, all of it was such a treat from beginning to end. Sage and Fisher are electric together, their chemistry is genuinely off the charts and I love both of them so bad!! Tarah has written such a tender romance between the two of them and weaved in amazing side characters and family dynamics, I just finished it and already want to read it again.

Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. This is Tara's best book yet (and I've really loved all of them). The ending sets itself up nicely for a 4+ book arc 🤞 (I really, really want a second chance for Wren and Everett). Recommended for fans of Part of Your World, It Happened One Summer, In a Jam or Between a Fox and a Hard Place.

Audio update 5/12/24: Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ALC. Still amazing, loved it all over again 😍.

I ate this one up so fast. Loved it so much. But it's Tarah DeWitt so that's no shocker. I loved these characters on their own just as much as I loved them together. There was so much more than a romcom romance and it was so well balanced. This was one of those books where I didn't want it to end.

4.5 stars.

I listened to the audio version of this book. Narrators Karissa Vicker and Zachary Webber did an outstanding job on the narration. I always love a book more when there is a deep, powerful (if you know what I mean) voice for the male character. Both voices sounded age appropriate and added to my pleasure in the book.

This was such a good romance. I loved both Indy and Fisher. They were funny together, romantic together and realistic as to where their relationship was going. Fisher niece added delightfully to the book and actually became the love match for a goose in the story.

I will definitely look for more by this author, because she gave me some delightful hours of entertainment.

Thanks to MacMillan Audio and NetGalley for this audiobook. All thoughts are my own.

🎧🎧 Book Review 🎧🎧 Sometimes small towns come with big problems. Sage loves her hometown of Spoons, WA but feels a bit stuck…especially since she has to share it with her ex-boyfriend l, Ian and his new girlfriend Cassidy. Her life is quaint enough but the town gets a big shake up when new renters arrive, bringing a chef from NYC and his niece, grieving together from the death of his sister. The theme of grief and healing weaves beautifully throughout Savor It, something that will resonate with people who have experienced death, recently or in the past. Tarah DeWitt creates such a scenic town in Spunes, Oregon that no reader would even think of choosing Forks over Spunes to visit. Fun, witty, romantically adorable, and relatable, Savor It has a little bit of something for everybody and it is impossible to not smile while enjoying this book. Beautifully written and narrated, this is a real gem that tackles some of life’s biggest challenges with a spoonful of sugar and the right amount of spice!

4.5/⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Review is posted on Goodreads and final review will be on Instagram ahead of the publication date!

Savor It by Tarah DeWitt is a romantic novel that centers around Sage and Fisher in a small town called Spoons. Not to be confused with Forks, a reference that piqued my teenage heartthrob. Sage is fun and quirky, while Fisher is an uptight and mysterious newcomer. This book slowly unfolds into a wonderful love story, with a good mix of humor and seriousness.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book for two reasons. First, it's not a typical romance; the heavy petting didn't start until nearly the end of the book. Second, it was an easy read and relatable.

This review is based on an ARC sent to me for free by NetGalley. Thank you to the publishers and author for allowing me to review this book.

I love dual POV books, and this one was well executed, and the choice of narrators were perfect. He’s from the city trying to restart his culinary life and bond with his teenage niece that he took in when his sister passed, and runs into the neighbors. He doesn’t like small towns cause everyone is nosey, but is sent there for work to help set up a new restaurant. I still give this book 4.5 stars, cause while the story was cute and well paced, I just didn’t see the mmc as very likable.

This review is specifically for the audiobook version of Savior It. I'd previously read an ARC copy of the book, and loved it.

This one of my favorite audiobook performances, especially the voice actor for Fisher. It's a fine line between a bland performance and over-acting.

Full book review:

Tarah Freaking DeWitt, you’ve done it again, and have quickly become my favorite author in this genre.

Rom-com books are a dime a dozen, even reasonably well-written ones. They follow their beats: girl meets guy, eventually, they hit it off, there’s some conflict or another that threatens the relationship, but it gets resolved and everything ends with a ‘happily ever after’.

There are a few authors, however, that imbue these familiar plotlines with as much emotion and meaning as Tarah DeWitt. I know that anything she writes will stick with me for a while; haunt me in the best way.

Staying on theme, it’s like this: You can eat at McDonald’s. Hell, you might even be craving McDonald's, and when you eat there, you’ll be fed. But you won’t be nourished in the same way you’d be if you ate a four-course meal. This book nourished something in my soul. A solid five stars.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the advanced copy of this audiobook, provided in exchange for my unbiased review.

This book is utter perfection. The second I finished I was ready to reread it. I don't know who gave Tarah Dewitt permission to make canoeing sexy, but boy do I want to break the seal with Fisher Lange. Like every Tarah Dewitt book I've read, Savor it was a charming and heartwarming blend of romance and self discovery. Sage has lived in Spunes, Oregon her entire life and is a school teacher on summer break. She is seeking redemption after the end of her long term relationship with the town "golden boy". Fisher is a New York City chef who recently gained custody of his niece after the death of his sister. After some issues at work and experiencing burn out, he is sent to Spunes to oversee a project for his boss. The two are neighbors that turn friends to lovers and teammates in the Festival of Spunes. The banter between Sage and Fisher was chef's kiss. The side characters (both humans and animals) were amazing and I hope that we see more of Spunes in the future. I am seriously invested in Wren and Ellis and was devouring whatever crumbs I could get.

What to expect:
-small town
-friends to lovers
-grumpy x sunshine
-fake dating
-summer romance
-dual POV

This is the fourth book I've read by Tarah Dewitt and she outdoes herself every time. The narrators were amazing and had me laughing out loud and close to shedding a tear at times. This was the perfect read to lead me into the summer and I definitely recommend this, as well as Dewitt's backlist, to any romance reader. Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the Audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

"Savor It" by Tarah Dewitt is a captivating audiobook that I thoroughly enjoyed. Set against the backdrop of a small town in the Pacific Northwest. The best way to describe it is if Stars Hallow from Gilmore Girls was in Oregon. This romance novel beautifully weaves a tale that is both funny and heartwarming (the town name alone made me giggle).

The narration by Karissa Vacke and Zachary Webber is superb. Zachary Webber, one of my personal favorites, delivers an exceptional performance that truly brings Fisher to life.

I did find some aspects of the story, such as the tournament and the ex-boyfriend/friend storylines, a bit off. It muddied my perception of Sage the character.

I really appreciated how emotionally intelligent characters ended up being. They face loss and make tough decisions, but they do so in a healthy and productive manner. This refreshing approach circumvents most of my frustrations that come with romance (two mature adults actually sharing what’s happening and listening to eachother - who knew!). It adds an extra layer of depth to the story.

I wholeheartedly recommend "Savor It" to anyone looking for a well-narrated, emotionally intelligent romance novel. I would also suggest going for the audiobook, but I’m probably biased.

A big thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for providing me with this book for review. As always, all opinions expressed are my own.

This was a cute small town romance. The main characters were both going through their own things but figuring out also how to be together. The audio was enjoyable!

Thanks so much to NetGalley for this ALC in exchange for an honest review. Tara DeWitt's books are always a pleasure to read, and Savor It was no different. Sage lived in a beautiful coastal town that she LOVES, but her ex, with whom she dated for five years, got engaged shortly after breaking things off.

Fisher is a pierced, mega-popular chef who was kind of run out of NY after some bad reviews. He recently lost his sister and is hoping for a reset, with his wayward nieve in tow. Sage hasn't given up hope that someone will love her for exactly who she is. There is an annual summer competition, and Fisher and Sage might just be able to take the prize. As they start to get closer to the end of summer, though, Sage knows that Fisher is leaving.

Fake dating, emotional banter - the story was lovely. A sad/grumpy x sunshine that was spicy and sweet - the banter is cute, cute, cute!

Dual POV, Zachary Webber and Karissa Vacker KILLED the narration - so good. Pun absolutely intended, I savored the heck out of this book - I didn't want it to end.