In a split second, life can steal a last breath … and derail all future plans. While flying home after a phone call that left me heartbroken, a row to myself would have been ideal. Instead, I was unknowingly sitting shoulder to shoulder with a strikingly attractive single dad and ex-Marine. I could have pretended not to notice the man, but there was something familiar about him. It didn’t take …
It didn’t take long before I pieced together where I knew him from or why he was back in my life.
With chaos holding me hostage, I wanted to hide but couldn’t avoid Brett Pearson, our old family friend, and my teenage crush, because he kindly offered to help out with my family’s business—The Barrel House.
Handling my father’s distillery would be a distraction from my brutal reality. Except, I never paid close attention to the art of making bourbon, unlike Brett, who was full of bourbon knowledge. He offered to teach me a thing or two, but all I could focus on was the way his lips moved when he spoke to me.
I needed to grieve, and my head was in the wrong place at the wrong time, but my heart was splitting at the seams.
Bourbon was spilled, drinks were shared, but could passion ignite from a dying last wish?
*Bourbon Love Notes is a small-town second-chance angsty romance.
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This was another solid offering from this author! Melody gets the phone call that everyone dreads. Her father is sick again and the family needs her home. Brett is helping out at the distillery while Melody is with her family. He is also the son of her parents best friends. This was an emotional one. Not only is the family trying to cope with the loss of the patriarch, everyone is also trying to find their place. I really enjoyed reading it and I can’t wait to see what the author gives us next.
Thank you for the privilege of reading this book! Well done
When Melody receives a letter in the mail from her father saying not to open until he was gone she called home immediately. She learned her father was sick again so she dropped everything and rushed to be with her family. Her boyfriend didn’t act like she was hoping and things weren’t working out between them so on the way home she ended things with him. One the plane home she meets a man that is going the same way she is and they chat a bit. He ends up giving her his number in case she wants to call him and they go their separate ways at the airport. Once she was home she joined her mom and sister as they surrounded her father to spend time with him before they lost him. When she goes into the family’s business she runs into the man again and realizes its her crush from when she was growing up. Will this time home give her a second chance with Brett?
This is an emotional story about a daughter coming home to her father dying and wanting to be there for her family. During this time she finds a second chance at love with a man she used to have feelings for when she was younger. This is a well written and very entertaining story. I would recommend this book to any book lover.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Bourbon Love Notes by Shari J. Ryan is an excellent read.
Book 1 in The Barrel House Series.
Melody & Brett are excellent characters with amazing chemistry.
A well written emotional story about finding love during heart break.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Yes, I cried. I am a crier and when the story has so much heart that there is no way you will not shed a tear, I cry even more. The story is emotional and the chemistry is amazing but it’s the family and the background that kept me reading. I also learned a thing or two about Bourbon!
Melody and Brett have a lot of unfinished business however the timing couldn’t be worse when Melody has rushed back to town due to her ill father and Brett is helping run her Dad’s business. This is definitely and emotional book that has plenty of lows but also some great laughs as well as awkward and sweet times as we see Melody and Brett both navigate seeing each other after so many years and how their lives have changed so much. I just loved both families and how everyone had such defining and realistic personalities that you could totally relate to as well as feel the emotions they go through. This is definitely a series you will want to read one book after the other!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Melody is moving back home to take over her father’s business. She doesn’t know much about the brewery but she is determined not to let it fail. Good read and romance.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Bourbon Love Notes is the first book in Shari J. Ryan’s The Barrel House, and while this is a second chance romance, I didn’t feel the connection with Melody’s character that other readers did. Melody came across as someone in love with the idea of being in love and not genuinely desiring a relationship with Brett. There was also a lack of sincere grief at her father’s passing as she presented as self-absorbed. Brett’s character was likeable enough, but the romance for me was non-existent in this drama packed story. I’ll read the next in the series before I decide whether to give this series a miss.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Bourbon Love Notes (The Barrel House Series Book 1) by Shari J. Ryan. Beautiful slow burn, emotional journey of love, loss, and perseverance. Melody and Brett have a past although short lived it is not something that either one forgot. This story opens up possibilities for both of these outstanding characters and it made my heart flutter while reading as their relationship flourished. I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This is book one in the Barrel House series. Oh man does this book pack a powerful punch! If I could give it more than five stars I would. It is well written, steamy, entertaining, and packed full of emotions. Grab some tissues before starting this book because you’re gonna need them. Its emotional punch starts pretty much right off the bat. If you can read this book without crying you’ve got super control over your emotions. There is a lot of sadness in this book, but it’s also filled with smiles and joy and happiness. It reminds you that even in the sadness you can find joy. I could not put this book down and finished it in one setting. This was my first book by Shari Ryan, and it won’t be the last. I can’t wait to dig in to book two in this series.
Melody isn’t happy in her life, but she’s fell into a rut and hasn’t found a way to tell her boyfriend Ace that she’s done, it’s over she wants out of the relationship. When she accidently received a letter from her father that was meant to be given to her after his death, she finally breaks free. She breaks up with Ace and is on the first plane home to be with her family. Her dad’s cancer is back after being in remission for five years and this time it’s spread. The doctors aren’t giving him much time left. Melody is one of those people that wants to control everything around her, so she’s reeling from the cancer diagnosis because there’s not much she can do about it but be there for her dad. She decides that she’s going to start learning about bourbon making since it’s her dads’ business. Brett’s home from the marines with a daughter in tow. Melody’s dad has hired him to help run the Barrel House. Brett knows about the business since his family has been the one to supply the Barrel House with their barrels for aging the bourbon. Brett and Melody shared a kiss before Brett left for the military and neither knows how much that kiss affected the other. As Brett and Melody get to know each other will they grow closer and become friends or maybe more?
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This is the first book of The Barrel House series, and my first read from this author. The heartbreaking news that brought Brett back into Melody’s life was a real tearjerker! While the tragedy seemed to take over more of the story than the romance did, I liked the family dynamics, the ups and downs of life, and the details about bourbon making and the business. Overall, it was a sweet romance with light heat and not all that much angst between Brett and Melody. I like my romance books to have a lot more steam, but I thought this was still an enjoyable story.
This is the 1st book in The Barrel House Series what a way to kick off a series.
Bourbon Love Notes is an emotional roller coaster ride. Your heart is warm one minute and absolutely shattered the next!
The characters are very well written and believable, as is the chemistry.
This is definitely a must read, you will not be disappointed.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Melody has come home to help out her dying father with his bourbon distillery. She does not know a lot about bourbon, but her undying love for her father pushes her to learn the family business. Her sister is not wanting to be a part of it. That leaves it up to her. Brett is returning home. He is an ex Marine. He is also Melody’s first crush and first kiss. He is determined to help Melody with the business. Loved it!
This was a sweet slow burn second chance romance. A secret crush that had a first kiss at the same time as a goodbye.
Ten years later and they are reunited due to unfortunate circumstances. Brett makes for perfect book boyfriend material. He is just what Melody has always wanted and needs.
Loved the slow burn and getting to know each other after all this time. Enjoyed watching melody come into her own.
The bourbon distillery setting was interesting as well to me.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I absolutely loved this story. It was well written and captivating, as I literally could not put it down. Every free moment I had I was reading to find out how it would end. I thought the story was original and sweet, fitting to the title (love how she did that), it made me connect with my own past and all the what-ifs that we all have had, I’m sure. Not certain everyone that reads this will have my same reaction to the past, but it was one way that I was able to relate to the characters. Being a Marine’s wife myself, I find that when I read Shari’s books, often I am able to relate to the characters and storyline in more ways than one. Shari has a great way of finding her way into our hearts. I don’t know always how she does it, and this particular book found it’s way to mine. I think some of you may feel this review is somewhat vague, but I do not want to spoil this story. Going into this, I had no idea what it to expect and I think that led me to the best reaction I could have had for this book. It was a true connection to the characters and their love for each other and their family.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This is a very emotional, wrenching story that presents the reader with the pain of Melody’s losing her father. She has to come to grips with her grief, and must take over the family distillery business, an overwhelming task. But Brett Pearson’s arrival in her life not only got her through the turmoil, but provided someone very special in her life that was meant to be. He was her long-ago crush, her first kiss experience, and he feels the pull as well toward her.
Familiar with the barrel business, Brett was able to teach Melody the basics of bourbon. Having his presence there made her grief more tolerable with a caring person from her past there to share it.
This story was well written and powerful. Grab your copy and feel the author’s capable handling of a difficult subject. You won’t be left in the pain because there is good coming along that you won’t want to miss. But the whole experience will be memorable.
What a sweet read! Melody finds herself living in a life she’s not happy in. When a family tragedy hits she returns home to find heartbreak but also renewed hope for a life and love she’s wanted since she was 17. Full of emotion, this sweet romance was a delight to read. There were several small typos through out but my copy was an ARC so I imagine that will be corrected by the time this goes into production. My favorite characters were actually Parker as well as the glimpses we have of Brett and the dynamic between him and his daughter. I found Melody’s sister Journey a difficult and frustrating character but I’m excited to read more about her in Bourbon on the Rocks.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I loved this story about Melody and Brett. Throw in a tutu-wearing daughter and I’m hooked. This was a bit of a tear-jerker. I loved the relationship Melody had with her family and their extended bourbon family. Life doesn’t always put you in a straight path, but Melody and Brett made their way. Another great book by Shari Ryan.
Who are Journey, Melody, and Brett? How do they know one another? Just minutes into the story and I have an inkling of where the title comes from. What happened in the past and how does it affect the present? Who are Ace, Suzette, Mia, and Tim? What reason has Melody heading home? It really hit home for me personally. I was trying so hard not to cry while reading this book. I was where Melody was in 2016. This read was sweet in how Brett and his family stepped up to help! I love Pamela. She was fun. I recommend this story!
RECEIVED THIS BOOK AS A GIFT FOR A FAIR/HONEST REVIEW and REVIEWER FOR Bloggin’ With M. Brennan.
Absolutely amazing book. One that makes you feel like you are in the story with them. Such a great story
This book is an emotional rollercoaster in true Shari fashion. You are going to fall so in love with Melody and Brett. This book is about a daughter losing her father which just tore my heart out as I’ve not healed from losing my daddy. But it is also about connecting with the crush Melody had as a teenager. These two will have you swooning one minute, laughing and then crying. This is a great book to kick this series off too and I cant wait to read more of the books.