Although this one started a little slow for me, I was captivated by the sweet story of Harry and Rowan. Both have walls up from troubles in love in their pasts, but together they work to tear down walls and build a firm foundation for a lasting relationship. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press, St. Martin's Griffin for a copy of this book for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for this beautiful ARC. Bend towards the sun is a debut novel releasing in august 2022 by Jen Devon. It’s a heart warming story in a picturesque land becoming a vine yard. I liked that it helped on mental health issues and that it wasn’t necessarily a slow burn. The couple definitely seemed meant to be, but had a lot of obstacles to work through. Harry’s family I also loved for their unending support. The characters felt like real people I could know. Check it out in august !

While this book started off a little slow for me once it hit its groove it was simply stunning. I loved these characters and I am already excited for Jen's next book. If you loved The Love Hypothesis for the STEM factor and want something even steamier pick up this book!.

WOW! Where to begin? I LOVED IT!!! At first, I was thinking "oh great another nerdy girl gets hot doctor" but it turned out to be so much more. This book gave me all of the emotions. When I reached half way, I was yelling "just let him love you already!" Rowan kept Harry at arms distance because of the heartbreak she suffered before. Then finding out that he was basically still married when they had their first kiss really added a blocker. What Harry didn't know is that Rowan was the other woman in a previous relationship and didn't know it. Harry had to break through a lot of emotional barriers for Rowan to see his deep love for her. I loved all of the supporting characters and in the end, I wanted to be apart of the Brady family and live at the vineyard. Now I will be impatiently waiting book 2 because there must be a sequel to feature Duncan and Temperance.

Oh man, oh man is this book good! For a debut novel, this will completely blow you away. This book doesn’t come out until August 2022, but you need to go ahead and add this to your 2022 TBR. It was full of a delicious romance, was hilarious, and overall SO FREAKING GOOD. This book was well written and very engaging. Like I said, go ahead and add his to your books to be read once it’s released. I promise, you will not be disappointed.

Thank you NetGalley, Jen Devon and St. Martins Press for the ARC of Bend Toward the Sun. This is my personal review.
Rowan McKinnon and Harry Brady have serious issues in their past that keep them from being able to open up to others. The pull towards each other was amazing. They need each other but can’t quite deal with their past until the romance between gave them the push to feel what inside of them.
There were so many emotions bubbling up in me as I read this amazing book. I had to lay the book down and I stared into space to go over what I was reading. This book was a wonderful written by an author that I will definitely read more books from.

Great book! Super steamy, characters had great chemistry! Romance fans, you will love this! Characters are very fun to read about.

I wanted to like this book more. But Rowan drove me nuts for most of the book. She had boundaries and baggage that she expected Harry to respect and understand without even the smallest hint or detail. Her constant back and forth with Harry made me want to scream at her to just give him an inkling as to why she struggled with opening up her heart and it made me want to stop the roller coaster ride. And I found it frustrating that everyone around them - mostly Harry’s family - seemed to find nothing wrong with any of it.

I did like the set up for future books in the series especially Duncan and Malcolm’s stories.

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin’s for the arc.

I love this book! Jen Devon's BEND TOWARD THE SUN is a beautifully written story of two damaged people who heal themselves and each other in the sunlight of a vineyard. Every single sentence in this book is gorgeous. Devon's words echoed in my mind long after I read the last page. I saw recently that Rachel Lynn Solomon blurbed this book, and I agree with what she wrote: "This is a book to be savored."

While the prose stands out here, but the characters are wonderfully crafted as well. Rowan is an academic and green thumb who takes a job working at the Brady family's farm/vineyard/bed and breakfast. There, she meets Harry Brady, one of the siblings, who is home for a while recovering from the loss of a patient. Both of their stays on the Brady compound are meant to be temporary, and neither expects to fall in love, especially Rowan, whose past wounds have her believing that love isn't for her. Harry and Rowan's journey is wonderful and heartwarming and sweet.

I also love the cast of supporting characters here, which include Rowan's two best friends and Harry's innumerable siblings. I can see Devon setting up at least two more books in this universe, and I hope I'm able to read those someday. This book is really, really special, and I'm so glad I got to read an early copy.

Thank you to St. Martins and Netgalley for the ARC!

The only murders I gotta is a girl who has been in a bad mood and it is so pretty but i was a good night I had to sneeze it all over the world and it is a good place and it is still the same as it was kind and

If you want to read a beautifully written book - Bend Toward The Sun is for you. Loved the main characters, loved the setting, loved the supporting cast. Jen Devon knocked this debut novel out of the ball park. Hoping there is a series adapted from this book!

This book is stunning. The prose, descriptions, and settings are so beautiful I had to read some sentences twice just to savor them. I loved Harry and Rowan, and I loved the Bradys. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series!

Our main characters Rowan and Harry cross paths at a time when they both are looking for a change in their life. Sparks fly when they meet, and from there, they both learn about themselves while falling in love.

This was a decent romance, but it didn't really draw me in. The main characters where fine, and so was the writing, but I think I was thrown off by how they met. It painted Rowan in a way that I didn't like, like she was just some clumsy, frightened woman, and I really didn't like that. At times I wanted to shake both our MCs because all they had to do was be honest with each other!

I did like our side characters and Harry's big family, as well as the tension and steamy scenes. Overall a solid romance that I'm sure most will enjoy.

i did not enjoy this book. i wanted to. truly i did. but it was just kinda boring, the be honest. oh well. can't win 'em all. thank you so much netgallye.

This is easily the best book I read in 2021.

So many things worked for me with this story. The lush, almost poetic descriptions of the vineyard that Devon truly brought the property to life. Rowan's use of plant behavior as metaphors for the ebbs and flows of life. The side characters and their contributions to the cozy big family dynamic. As someone who wants to be an OB, it was truly a pleasure to read Harry's love of helping women bring life into the world, the sorrows of patient loss, and his desire to change the framework of maternal health. Devon's ability to create two characters who are so three-dimensional and complex in a debut novel is beyond impressive. I will simultaneously savor and devour anything else she publishes. I don't foresee any other outcome than this novel winning the 2022 Goodreads Awards romance category by a landslide.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with a free ARC of this novel (released Aug 09, 2022) in exchange for an honest review!

Straight up romance. These two characters were soooo frustrating - in a good way. The way when you personally know two people who are in love with each other but they don’t see it and you do. I just kept saying, “Ugh stop being so difficult and admit you’re in love!” Especially Rowan. Why Rowan why? Eventually, we do learn why. This is an open door romance. Steamy. I am hoping this will be a series. There were a few people in the story who were on their way to romance themselves. I also need more because I can not wait to gobble up Jen Devon’s next book.

CW: Death, Grief, Parental Neglect

Attention all plant loving bookstagrammers! I have discovered a book that will combine your two favourite things.

I don’t ordinarily cry at movies or books (unless it involves an animal) but in this case I sniffled a little towards the end and THAT NEVER HAPPENS. This book has so much heart even though the main character appears at first to be so cold and believes herself to be incapable of love. It presents a kind of reverse of the typical grump and sunshine trope.

Love is really the main focus of the book. Throughout the author takes us on a journey of exploring what love is, emotion v. sensation, and how bad experiences can leave you closed off and guarded. All of this is done within the context of the blossoming relationship between Rowan and Harrison.

There was a quote which said something along the lines of leaping being easier when you have faith in the one that will catch you and that really stuck out to me.

The one thing that kind of kept this from being a five-star read for me was the pacing. The events of the story take place over the course of about a year. There are months that pass without anything “exciting” really happening. It started to feel a bit repetitive.

Also, the scene where they check each other for ticks was a little weird and I’m not sure what it was supposed to do in terms of serving the story. Was it supposed to show how methodical Rowan was about removing her clothing?

The farm setting and the big family reminded me a little of Bittersweet by Sarina Bowen which was one of my favourite contemporary reads so far this year.

Many thanks to #StMartinsPress and #Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Heartbreakingly beautiful, Bend Toward the Sun is an incredible love story sure to touch everyone's heart. This well-written story evokes all the emotions as it takes you on a journey through one unlikely couple's struggle to find themselves, fall in love and achieve their happily-ever-after. It's complicated and NOT an easy journey. I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this book! Turning the pages, I felt like a fly on the wall observing all the action. As I neared the end, I couldn't turn the pages fast enough, yet I desperately did not want the story to end--truly the mark of a great book! I highly recommend Bend Toward the Sun to all romance lovers. I'm confident you will love it as much as I did.

This book was absolutely beautiful. The imagery and the vineyard and how real it all felt. And the emotional connection between the two main characters was absolutely palpable. There were times when the boom dragged a bit for me, but inertial it felt really lived in and emotionally satisfying. I would 100% recommend it to a friend and I can’t wait to share my review up on my Instagram.

It was ok, I felt it was too cliché, and even though I normally don’t mind that, this one just didn’t grab me and I kept dragging to finish.