Yikes. There was potential for this book, but it completely fell through. Hard to believe this was okay to write in 2025.

Sparrow and Vine was somewhat disappointing and the dialogue was slightly problematic. Did not enjoy.

They are a fun couple full of yearning, full of unspoken truths and roads not taken. Their journey is vibrant and sweet and dynamic is bouncy enthralling and as they figure out and navigate their newly established path, we can’t help but fall in love with them as they fall in love with each other.

I enjoyed this. I really like this authors writing. The story was good and kept my interest. Would recommend.

⭐ 2
🌶️ 3.5
🥵 Spicy chapters: 16, 17, 19, 22, 26, 27, 28, 32, 33, 38, Sadie epilogue
📚 Tropes/Themes: enemies to lovers, rivals to lovers, rival families, marriage of convenience, it's always been you, he falls first and harder, my wife
👀 Dual POV 1st person
💔 Triggers: racist stereotypes

💬 So when I was trying to go through and update all of my netgalley arcs I saw this one and realized it was way overdue which is why I started reading it. Then I got to...... That part. 😬 And remembered why I had skipped over this book at the time.

Sigh. I decided to go ahead and finish it since I'd already started reading it and I wanted to mark it off my list. I also had generally enjoyed Sophie Lark's writing and since I'm not going to be promoting it, I feel comfortable giving a review.

So here's my honest review. I'm not going to comment on the racism/racist stereotypes because I feel like everybody has already said what needs to be said about it. The book isn't available anymore so I'm only going to comment on the rest of the story.

This is sort of like a Romeo and Juliet/ Hatfield and McCoy mashup except we know a little of why the Beaumont's hate the Sparrow's.

Most of what I enjoyed about the story was the actual romance between Sadie and Monroe, which was very sweet and swoony.

But beyond that I was confused by the continued animosity between the two families, I had a hard time keeping track of all the parents and grandparents (And especially Monroe's extended family), and then the siblings of each MC hated the other set of siblings but also maybe were interested in them?

Really it there was just too many people to keep track of. Possibly some of this would've been cleared up in the next two books but luckily those aren't happening so it's whatever.

Basically, it needs a rewrite with less charges and an actual apology from the author.

this had so much potential, but I was so put off by some of the dialogue in this book. having the MMC, monroe, ask “shouldn’t there be some people with questionable work visas picking these grapes for us?” and having the FMC refer to someone’s mouth as looking like an anxious anus was about enough for me.

Sparrow and Vine by Sophie Lark is a fun contemporary romance with a vineyard feud, a marriage of convenience, and two families with a complicated, feuding history. Sadie and Monroe team up to save the vineyard and end up discovering real feelings along the way. I liked both main characters overall, even though a few of their choices had me scratching my head. Still, it was an enjoyable read with a charming setting and a satisfying arc.

The novel centers around Sparrow, a fierce and resilient woman, and Vine, a mysterious and morally complex man. Their worlds collide in a story marked by tension, raw emotion, and unexpected tenderness. Lark expertly balances the darkness with moments of vulnerability, making the characters’ journeys both compelling and relatable.

The pacing is swift, with twists and turns that keep the reader hooked from beginning to end. Lark’s vivid writing style vividly paints the settings and inner worlds of her characters, creating an immersive experience. The chemistry between Sparrow and Vine is palpable, fueled by their shared struggles and deepening connection.

Overall, it is a gripping read for fans of dark romance and emotionally layered stories. Sophie Lark delivers a powerful, nuanced tale that will resonate long after the last page

I really enjoyed this book!
I saw it has received so much hate but people doesn’t understand it’s just fiction, I’m sad this author has received so many negative comments from people that hasn’t even read the book. I liked the story, it was fun and a pleasant read. I loved the romance and drama in the story . I will be definitely looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

I usually love the arranged marriage trope and was excited for this one but a few things kept it from being as good as I’d hoped. The Elon musk thing, and the work Visa comment felt forced and out of place. I felt like the author was kinda lazy in the storytelling also, more telling and less showing. It just wasn’t my vibe.

This… well, this wasn’t good on many levels.
First off, it suffers from the classic “tell, don’t show” issue. The narrative constantly explains how the characters are feeling instead of letting their actions speak for themselves, which made the story feel flat and emotionally unconvincing.
There’s also zero chemistry between the characters, which is a huge problem in a book that hinges so heavily on romance and tension. Their interactions felt forced, like the author was trying to convince me of a connection that simply wasn’t there.
But most importantly—and what really made this book hard to stomach—it’s full of racism. Whether intentional or not, there are depictions, stereotypes, and dynamics in this story that are deeply problematic and go unchallenged in the text. It left a bad taste in my mouth and made it difficult to engage with anything else in the book.
Overall, this was not just a disappointing read—it was a troubling one.

Just no. I DNF this book before I even got 20 pages in. Sophie needs to fix her racists comments in this book and take accountability.

This book is different from Sophie Larks other books and is more of a contemporary romance. This was a miss for me. While i did finish I struggled to connect to the story.

I don't even know where to start with this I devoured this book in a matter of a day and a half. It's one of my favs I've read this month. Everything about this book was amazing.

I received this book a few days before it was achieved. Therefore, I was not able to finish the book and leave a review

I started reading this book, but right after, the controversy started about the author.
I've read the quote the controversy was about and I do not support this at all.
Me being a daughter of a woman who immigrated to another country on another continent, it leaves a bad taste reading this.
I will not be reading this book anymore because of this. I'm just giving feedback so my ratio will stay up.

I love a good fake/marriage of convenience story, but I had major issues with Sparrow and Vine. I was very turned off by the blatant racism of the 'shouldn't there be some people with questionable work visas picking these grapes for is?". This was especially gross to me considering the editor recommended that line be taken out or changed and the author decided to keep it. There were also so many unanswered questions about the side characters that left me unsatisfied. All and all I was very disappointed in a book I was excited to read.

2 star rating, thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an advanced copy for my honest review.

Wanted to love this, it had a lot of potential and I had heard amazing things about this author. However some of the wording really threw me off with the racist implications and and I struggled to put myself back in it and/or relate to the characters. That being said there was some light and sweet moments, but unfortunately just not it for me, but I gave it a solid try!

I remember seeing all the talk about this book a couple of months ago but I hadn't realised that it was about THIS book so I read it and I kinda liked it? I don't want to talk about the dampster fire that's USA for the past couple of years because you guys are using your own hands to take your eyes off as we say here. So Elon and the sterotype that every movie and series is forcing upon us (
that illegal latinos are working on wineries to pick up the grapes) will be pushed aside.

A weird thing is that the author seems to be planning for the three Sparrow sisters to marry Monroe and his brothers. That just seems off to me. While I didn't love the book, I didn't hate it either. I wasn't the biggest fan of the two main characters for a long time and tbh it was the secondary ones that kept me going. Monroe is not the best character from either the book boyfriend or just the human being perspective, but he became a great partner to Sadie and I loved that. I got somewhat invested on the book, so if the next two books get published I will probably read them as I want to see where the story will go and what happened between Sadie's sister and Monroe's brother.

DNF 43%

Started off strong and I was really enjoying it. The forced marriage, family dynamics, such good tension.

Then I hit the quote wish left a bad taste in my mouth.

Once I got to the first spicy scene I was utterly confused. I don’t know how we got there. They barely showed any interest I one another then a complete 180.

I had hope then it was lost.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.