Thirteen years ago, Natalie lost a part of herself when her twin sister died. Will traveling back to the family winery finally put the memory to rest, or will it completely destroy her? When Natalie Mitchell learns her beloved grandfather has had a heart attack, she’s forced to return to their family-owned winery in Sonoma, something she never intended to do. She’s avoided her grandparents’ … grandparents’ sprawling home and all its memories since the summer her sister died–the awful summer Natalie’s nightmares began. But the winery is failing, and Natalie’s father wants her to shut it down. As the majority shareholder, she has the power to do so.
And Natalie never says no to her father.
Tanner Collins, the vintner on Maoilios, is trying to salvage a bad season and put the Mitchell family’s winery back in business. When Natalie shows up, Tanner sees his future about to be crushed. He knows Natalie intends to close the gates, and he’s determined to convince her otherwise. But the Natalie he remembers from childhood is long gone, and he’s not so sure he likes the woman she’s become. Still, the haunted look she wears hints at secrets he wants to unearth. He soon discovers that on the night her sister died, the real Natalie died too. And Tanner must do whatever it takes to resurrect her.
But finding freedom from the past means facing it. For both of them.
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I enjoyed this book. Lots of emotional family issues. It was interesting to watch how each character worked through their issues and grew…emotionally and spiritually.
This book dealt with real people in real situations…fear, anger, guilt, love, loss, broken relationships, mental health…and the ultimate healing that had to happen. It was emotionally heart wrenching at times. The author did a great job of pulling you into their lives and allowing you to care about each character.
Grace is definitely a theme that flows through the pages and brings a sense of hope. You will feel your heart fill up with a variety of emotions and you walk through the story of these characters…you feel their hurt and you rejoice as they learn how to heal. This is definitely a book I would recommend.
This is the first book I’ve read from Catherine West. She definitely has a new fan and follower of her writing. This is probably the best contemporary romance book I’ve read this year.
From the beginning to the end of the book, it was beautifully written. The author has a style of writing that is fluid, coherent, descriptive, emotional, and vivid. I felt like I was in California among the grapes in the vineyard as the story unfolded.
The pathway to accepting God’s gift of grace, mercy, and love for all the main characters was incredibly real and well-placed. The forgiveness and grace the characters learn to show each other was extremely poignant and heart-warming. The brokenness of each character in his/her life journey was heart-rending but the healing that each experienced was so gratifying.
I really liked that though it was in third-person narrative, the thoughts and feelings of Natalie, Tanner, and Jeffrey were so deeply woven into the writing that it almost felt like the characters themselves were speaking in the pages. All the characters had major flaws and faults, which made them very real. Even such difficult topics like bipolar disorder, depression, anxiety disorder, and PTSD were addressed through the characters and their struggles.
I’ll definitely be reading her other books, especially The Things We Knew, which comes highly recommended.
I received a digital advance reader copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher. I was not required to give a favorable review. All comments and opinions are solely my own.
I have really enjoyed the books written by Catherine West. The Memory Of You dealt with some hard issues,, PTSD as well as forgiveness, family relationships ,healing and faith. I look forward to reading more of her books.
Overall I really enjoyed this book. I think it was written in a moving way. The characters were believable and possible to relate to.
Natalie has been dealing with some very heavy and emotional traumas since the death of her twin sister. The problem is she has been mostly been dealing with them alone. One of the reasons for this is that she always trying to do everything to make her father happy albeit she has never felt good enough. When she has to go to California to see her grandfather and inform that closing his vineyard is the best solution, she ends up with the perfect opportunity to face her own demons but also to learn to stand up for herself and follow her heart.
This book is about two families who have been for so long fearfully holding on to something in the past. Each person with their own history, their own pain, their own regrets. Because of this, I loved how it was possible to apply the title of the book not only to Natalie but to each and every character, even the minor ones.
Catherine West doesn’t measure words and isn’t afraid of approaching some difficult questions. She dealt with them well, and, even though at times I felt she might have overloaded the story with just too many problems, I never felt like she was throwing something in just to give the story some drama. She treated the story with care and compassion and the end was very satisfying.
I recommend this book for people who enjoy contemporary stories about families who are broken and need to find the way back to mercy, grace, and forgiveness.
Where do I begin….as in typical Catherine West style, she paints a beautiful portrait with her words. This book is so descriptive that you can imagine the grapes on the vines and smell the pungent aroma of the winery. Natalie is dealing with PTSD and you can feel her fear and pain throughout. This is a book of finding your Faith, forgiveness of yourself and others, family dynamics, hope, and secrets. Secrets that are so deep that after being brought to light, bring forgiveness and restoration. Be prepared to stay up late as this is a page turner that you don’t want to put down. I Highly recommend this Contemporary Christian Fiction Novel.
I received a complimentary copy from the author. The honest review and opinions are my own and were not required.
I received a copy of this book from The Fiction Guild. I was not required or compensated for a favorable review. All thoughts are my own. This was a wonderful book about a young woman who has to deal with a family secret of her own, plus have pressure from her father since her twin sister’s death. She is sent to CA to see what was going on with her grandfather who had suffered a heart attack and this would be the first time her grandmother passed that she has been back to the winery. But she also has to deal with the death of sister on the grounds. They were only 13. But she has been keeping a little secret which has caused her many problems. She runs into a man whom she liked at 13 but her sister made a go at him also. She always felt inferior to her twin. But she has to come to grip with a lot and bring her family back together.
I enjoyed reading this book! It was clean, entertaining, and held my interest. I read a variety of materials, but after watching the news and dealing with the world, I read to be entertained. This book did just that!
I like a book with substance and this one delivered. I thought it was well written. I enjoyed it very much.
Adding this author to my must read list
Just finessed it was very good