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Friends, I’ll be honest, I didn’t love the first book in the True North series, Bittersweet, and decided the series wasn’t for me. But when I learned the author was creating the World of True North – inviting other contemporary romance authors to borrow the setting for their own standalone novels – I decided to return to Vermont! Vino and Veritas – the proudest little spot in Vermont! On your right you’ll find the LGBTQ bookstore. On your left, the inclusive wine bar – is one of four off-shoot series set in the True North world; all the V and V stories showcase an LGBTQ+ couple, and the series is penned by some of my favorite queer contemporary romance writers. Featherbed, the first book, introduces readers to Vino and Veritas, and is a lovely, low angst introduction to the rest of the series.
Harrison Phillip Fletcher III didn’t expect to settle in Burlington, Vermont, but he couldn’t pass up on the chance to open an inclusive wine bar and bookstore with his mom, Audrey. After all, he’s not sure he’ll get another such opportunity. Both his father and grandfather died before their forty-third birthdays; at forty-two, Harrison is convinced he’s living on borrowed time. He’s careful with his body and mind – eating right, exercising regularly, and reading many of the books he hopes to sell in the new shop, and doctors say he’s perfectly healthy, but Harrison can’t quite shake the worry that each day might be his last. So he gave up his legal career in New York City and relocated with his mom (a former librarian) to open Vino & Veritas. With days to go before the grand opening of the book shop, things are mostly proceeding according to plan. But when Featherbed begins, an altogether different worry consumes his thoughts. Chickens. Lots of chickens. In boxes. On his loading dock. Harrison tells himself not to panic.
A quick inspection of the smeared and mangled mailing label on one of the boxes reveals the chickens were meant for 4569 Church, and his new stocker Oz helpfully adds:
“… but I’d bet it’s supposed to be Old Church Road, down past South Burlington. There are some big farms in that area, including that hot chicken guy’s, I think.”
After clarification from Oz – it’s the farmer who’s hot and not the chickens – and a quick internet search of the address, he calls Puddlebrook Farms and inquires whether they’re missing any chickens. The man that answers the phone has a deep, masculine voice, and Harrison can’t help imagining a hot farmer on the other end of the line… but he refocuses after the amused voice on the other end of the phone asks if his call is a prank. Harrison quickly explains who he is and why he’s calling – to the sounds of squawking chickens in the background – and the stranger on the phone confirms they belong to him. After a brief discussion of what to do with the chickens until the farmer can pick them up, Harrison promises to keep them safe until Mr. Barnes, the hot chicken guy, arrives.
When Finn Barnes shows up at Vino & Veritas and discovers his shipment of chickens running amok in the V&V storeroom, he isn’t happy. It’s already been a frustrating day, and he’s quick to remind the handsome, older man chasing after his chickens that he wasn’t supposed to open the boxes. When the man informs him that setting them loose wasn’t intentional, his snappish tone is no surprise. The Librarian Guy, whom he assumes must be Mr. Fletcher,
… had that rich-guy attitude that instantly reminded me of my ex, Astin. Nice clothes. Expensive shoes. And a similar superior tone that said he was too good for handling chickens.
Finn orders him to stand back, taking no small delight in being able to give Mr. Bigshot Bookseller an order, and quickly gathers up the chickens. Only the fortuitous arrival of Audrey forestalls further angry words. Audrey asks about the chickens and Finn’s farm, and by the time she offers him a tour of their soon to be opened bookstore, Finn is no longer angry. Later, when he’s returning to the farm, he realizes he never said thank you for the phone call or the offer to keep the chickens until he could pick them up. A guilty conscience has him returning to the bookstore, farmstand treats in hand, to thank them for their help.
This visit nearly starts off on the wrong track, too, when both men make incorrect, less than flattering assumptions about each other, but again, Audrey is there to smooth the way. And once she does, it soon becomes apparent that Finn and Harrison are attracted to each other, and that their first impressions were mostly wrong. Before Finn leaves, he invites Harrison and Audrey out to the farm for a tour, and it soon becomes clear that despite their mutual interest, both men are wary of getting involved. Harrison is convinced he might only have a few months left to live, and Finn’s been burned by a former lover who hated everything about farm life.
On paper, Harrison and Finn are total physical opposites – Finn is burly and big, and favors casual, comfortable clothes; Harrison is tall and lean, and prefers tailored clothes, leather shoes and hipster glasses – with different life experiences and expectations. But it soon becomes clear – over a shared love of queer historical romance novels and good food – that their differences compliment each other. A warm friendship quickly gives way to a passionate affair; both men then spend the better portion of the novel trying to ignore the intensity of their feelings, and persist in lying to themselves that theirs is a casual affair. Ahem.
Featherbed is a gentle, too-long love story about two likeable men with great physical and emotional chemistry, who are destined to be together, but whose past history precludes them from admitting they love each other. Finn is wary of another lover rejecting the life he loves; Harrison is afraid he’s a bad bet for anyone hoping for a long-term partner. The author does a lovely job proving them both wrong – revealing how their differences and similarities compliment each other and make them stronger together. Finn is protective and full of life and lives life in the moment; Harrison is logical, thoughtful and less impulsive, but open to new experiences and pleasures – and Finn exults in giving him pleasure whenever and however he can. Their union is joyful folks. These are kind and good men who genuinely like each other nearly from the get-go, who always seek out ways to please each other, and have crazy good sexual chemistry. Honestly, they’re perfect for each other – which is great, but maybe not quite enough to sustain a full length novel? When the requisite ‘trouble in paradise’ moment occurs… well, it’s totally predictable and since these are two mature adults who are already deeply in love, it is quickly resolved. Friends, I love a happy, joyful, low-angst, low-drama love story. I do. But when it takes nearly 200 pages to get to the official HEA, perhaps it’s 100 pages too long?
On the plus side, Albert does an excellent job introducing the World of True North and investing readers in the Vino and Veritas community of characters, and the loving family members that support and love Finn and Harrison. I was happy to be in Burlington, Vermont, again, and happy this pair found each other, too. I also loved the tease for the next story in the series, Heartscape, by Garrett Leigh, featuring the man hired to manage Veritas. Finn knew him in school, but alludes to a backstory both intriguing and annoyingly vague.
Featherbed – like its title – is a soft and fluffy introduction to Vino and Veritas. It’s overlong, but I recommend it anyway.
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Grade: B
Book Type: Contemporary Romance
Sensuality: Warm
Review Date: 24/03/21
Publication Date: 03/2021
Recent Comments …
Yep
This sounds delightful! I’m grabbing it, thanks
excellent book: interesting, funny dialogs, deep understanding of each character, interesting secondary characters, and also sexy.
I don’t think anyone expects you to post UK prices – it’s just a shame that such a great sale…
I’m sorry about that. We don’t have any way to post British prices as an American based site.
I have several of her books on my TBR and after reading this am moving them up the pile.
I love romance novels - all kinds.
I love music - some kinds.
I have strong opinions about both and I like to share them.
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Just goes to show how different readers want different things. :-) I thought this book could have been a bit longer! Would have liked some more actual conversation between the MCs about their current states of singleness and the why of it all.
Harrison, having engineered a major life change by stepping back from a city career at an age when many professionals are just hitting their stride, has good reasons for not jumping into a long-term relationship (quite aside from the daunting father/grandfather dying-young thing). And Finn has good reasons for thinking the average city slicker is not likely to embrace the rural life.
The pacing of this book worked for me and I thought the MCs were very good together. As someone on the downhill slide to 60, I would not have minded a little more focus on ‘what might the second half of our lives look like, if we go into them together.’ However, with this being the launch of a new round of connected stories, I wouldn’t be surprised if I get a bit of that in the books to come.
You’re right – I could have used more exploration of the characters. I just thought the story – as is – didn’t have the heft for a full-length book. I still enjoyed it & would recommend it, but it seemed to lack substance overall.
Hey, folks!
If anyone is interested in the rest of the Vino and Veritas series, I just stumbled across their official Amazon page. The publisher is called “Heart Eyes Press LGBTQ.” They are promising 45 new romances in 2021, and it looks like some of them- including Featherbed– are available through KU. Just wanted to give a shoutout for those interested.
Also, may I add that I like the unapologetic nature of this cover? I mean, it’s got nature, a tough guy, a cute chick, and a neon sign. And somehow, it all works for me.
Yes, V&V is one of four (I think) mini-series set in the world of Sarina Bowen’s True North series. (The V&V book are queer romances.) There’s what sounds like an N/A series – Moo-U – and two other m/f series, Busy Bean and… I can’t remember the other one! The Busy Bean books all have illustrated covers but are a bit different to the standard “cartoony” ones around right now. I’ve already reviewed two of the V&V books (Roommate and Heartscape) and I’ve got another one waiting to go. I’m looking forward to the entry from Jay Hogan, especially, and there are books by L.A Witt, Eden Finley and Kate Hawthorne, to name but a few, coming up – and a couple of f/f titles coming out at the beginning of April.
I’ve been recommending Sarah Mayberry’s SWEETHEART, which is part of the Busy Bean series. A woman falls for her sister’s ex—and the complications of that are exacerbated by the sister’s mental illness. I thought the book was very well done and Mayberry handled the mental illness subplot with sensitivity and empathy.
Regarding the True North series as a whole, STEADFAST and KEEPSAKE are my two favorites.
Thanks for the rec! Love Sarah Mayberry.
I really like the cover, too!
I like the covers too!
I read Bountiful and gave it a B-/C+,and decided it was too much like most of the other “hot contemporaries” I’d read by Bowen, Lauren Blakely, etc. Then I read Roommate and really liked it, so I’m happy to delve into the Truth North world of Vino and Veritas.
Thanks for the review. I have this on my kindle right now so I think I’ll move it up to next in line. Low-angst and fluffy might work well for me right this moment! It sounds like the perfect before bed book.
I’m a big fan of the author’s, but I’m holding on for the audio release of this in May :)
I initially opened this review discussing how Bowen’s standalones don’t work for me, but I’ve loved her collaborations – with Elle Kennedy; with Joanna Chambers… LOVED them. But then I decided it took the focus from this author and deleted it all. Her standalone stories tend to earn high C’s and low B’s for me.
Bowen hit or miss for me (whether writing alone or with a collaborator). As I said above, I loved STEADFAST and KEEPSAKE; I’ve been a bit ho-hum about others (particularly the Brooklyn Bruisers series—although PIPE DREAMS, with its married-to-another-woman hero almost gave me a rage-stroke). I really liked ROOMMATE—although there was an odd choice toward the end regarding one of the heroes volunteering to work at a church which had an anti-gay-marriage position. And I like that Bowen is opening up the True North universe and giving so many writers a chance to publish through her Heart Eyes Press imprint.
The part about the church didn’t bother me for several reasons. First, I think it illustrates the character of the hero more than anything else. Secondly, I know that priests have no control over their ability to officiate marriages between gay couples. That’s set by the church. I also don’t think it’s reasonable, as I’ve read in a review or two, that a priest should quit the church if that’s their policy. If we put that kind of rationale out for when people ought to quit their jobs, we’d pretty much be expecting everyone working in corporate America would have to quit. Honestly, I have more problems reading books about billionaires than reading about a good-hearted priest who has to live by the rules of his church.
That part didn’t bother me either. I remember that DDD and I had a mini discussion on the review page – but sadly it was one that was lost during the last site crash. Ultimately, I saw it as Roddy’s way of doing something to help the community – IIRC he was helping to serve meals to the homeless, and it didn’t matter to him if it was under the church umbrella or not; he was focused on helping people in need. I also thought the priest character made an excellent contrast to Roddy’s bigoted parents, so-called Christians who practiced none of Christ’s teachings whatsoever.
While I can see both your and Carrie G’s positions on that situation, it still left a bad taste to me. Why wouldn’t Roderick have volunteered at an LGBTQ-friendly organization? I seem to remember there’s a brief reference early in the book to one that helped Roderick when he was homeless. Don’t get me wrong, I liked ROOMMATE, I just found the choice to have Roddy to volunteer at his parents’ anti-LGBTQ church very odd—and it lowered my opinion of the book somewhat.
I get that. For me, since the author could have made a different choice about the church situation, it feels like she was making a point about Roderick’s heart, not the church policy. The fact that he saw a need and filled it, not expecting perfect compliance with his own beliefs was important. I figured he would be helpful at LGBTQ-friendly organizations, as well. Since it seemed a deliberate choice by the author, I felt she was saying Roderick would help people no matter what because that is his nature. It also highlighted that Roderick, in the end, was a better person than his parents or those who exclude.