Customer Reviews

A Place to Rest

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This book was decent. The author is still often imprecise with her language, and shows a somewhat bothersome tendency to tell us things versus showing us things. By that I mean that we will often get a paragraph of exposition that tells us something about a characters, versus putting said character in a situation in which those personality traits are revealed through action and reaction. This was more of an issue in the beginning of the book, and definitely got better as the story moved along, but it's something for this author to watch.

Still, one of this author's strengths is her flair for characterization. You could tell that she really put a lot of thought into the details of background and motivation, yet she didn't hit the reader over the head with it all, but rather doled out the details as the story progressed. Her characters are flawed, but their motivations have enough detail and consistency to allow the reader to forgive them, and therefore make them sympathetic.

I also enjoy the importance she gives to family dynamics. They're pretty much a central theme in this book as Sawyer is unwillingly drawn into working at the family restaurant in order to help her very pregnant younger sister, who manages the business with her twin brother. Sawyer is drawn to Jori, the new pastry chef, and vice versa, but the potential complications of a relationship between them ending badly, as Sawyer's family is convinced it will, as well as some bad history Jori has with workplace relationships, hinders the development of their romance.

I think I was looking for a bit of a stronger emotional resonance in the resolution of the family dynamics, or perhaps a bit more vindication on the part of Sawyer. Still, I enjoyed the way that important issues were addressed, and I was also satisfied with the progression of Jori's and Sawyer's relationship. The setting was well-wrought, with some detail of food preparation and restaurant management lending a realistic flair.

This book didn't blow my mind, but it was definitely a pleasant diversion. This author is able to construct a good story around ordinary events and lives; her scene transitions and character action/reactions flow smoothly. Her strengths outweigh her weaknesses, and I look forward to her future efforts.

This reader has read and enjoyed everything written by Erin Dutton. Sometimes an author comes out of the proverbial gate with winner, but subsequent offerings are of lesser quality. Such is not the case with this talented author.

Sawyer Drake is the eldest child of a restaurant family. However, much to her parents' chagrin, she has no interest in participating in the business. Her younger brother is the head chef and her younger sister, who is unmarried and pregnant, is the manager. Sawyer's parents have retired from the business, but her mother convinces Sawyer to help as her sister's pregnancy progresses.

Coming on board with skeptical siblings is only part of Sawyer's problem. She also is immediately attracted to their new, extremely talented pastry chef Jori. Jori has career aspirations and doesn't want to lose her position under any circumstances - especially not by having an affair with Sawyer. However, Sawyer's charming personality is hard to resist.

Taking on Jori's resistance as a challenge, Sawyer is determined to sway the other woman into at least a physical relationship. She almost gives up, but something pulls her back into the game. It is this inner struggle for both Jori and Sawyer that keeps the reader engaged. I couldn't wait to get to the next page. When I finished the story, it was like saying goodbye to a close friend.

Bottom line - Great book. A part of my permanent collection. Buy it, read it.

I believe that's the second novel I read by Erin Dutton.

She created a memorable character with Sawyer Drake, lesbian in her early 30s who drifts through life, never stopping anywhere for long, getting restless in both her personal and professional life.

A family emergency, and her insistent mother, make Sawyer work in the family restaurant to help out. There she meets Jori, the pastry chef I believe anyone would fall in love with for her profession alone. I'm serious, could you resist??

The really interesting plot in this book ist the family conflict, where it stems from, how people are affected by it. It's all slowly unraveled, interwoven with the tender romance of Sawyer and Jori who carries her own baggage. Baggage that, in reading, adds depths to Sawyer's conflicts and shows two sides to a story.

All in all a good read, both characters and plot are believable.

Good read, I read half of the book in two days and I'm a very busy person. I enjoyed it.

A Place to Rest is the story of two women and their contrasting experiences with family. One has a family she rebels against and the other has no family and feels the loss keenly.

Sawyer Drake is like a rudderless ship. She drifts from job to job, woman to woman, never satisfied with what she has, but unable to determine what it is she wants. She knows that she doesn't want to work in the family restaurant, but she doesn't have much choice for a while. Her sister Erica is having a difficult pregnancy, so Sawyer puts a halt to her rambling and helps her brother Brady run the business. There she meets pastry chef Jori Diamantina, a woman who has a long history in foster homes and of being on her own. Sawyer is used to making conquests, but Jori isn't interested. She's been hurt too much in her life to take a chance on Sawyer, plus she doesn't want to lose a job she really likes when the relationship falls apart, which she's sure it will do. Each woman represents what the other fears the most. For Sawyer, Jori represents permanence, settling down, accepting responsibility, things she has always tried to avoid. For Jori, Sawyer offers the possibility of permanence and a family that can be yanked away in a moment when Sawyer's restlessness pushes her to move on. The question is if the women can find a relationship that provides what each of them needs.

Erin Dutton has written a novel that is about family dynamics as much as anything. Sawyer represents the child who has never lived up to the family's expectations. The battle that goes on between Erica and Sawyer will feel familiar to many. Sawyer has failed so many times that no one expects her to succeed, least of all Erica. Erica's attitude towards her sister is almost painful to read, yet also understandable. How do you rely on someone who has never been reliable? Jori's story is as difficult, coming from a shattered family and abusive foster homes. The reader wants to say to her that it is OK to trust other people, that not everyone will fail her. Dutton captures the emotions of all three of these women very well and engages the reader in the process of hoping that each one is able to overcome her attitudes. Then she surrounds them with secondary characters that fill out the story. The reader gets a chance to think about both what family members can do to each other and what the lack of family means to a person who hasn't had one. The book is listed as a romance, but it goes beyond that and should provide a satisfactory reading experience.

Set in lovely Nashville Tennessee, A Place to Rest is about family, with a wonderfully sexy romance for Sawyer and Jori a big plus!

Sawyer is thirty-two years old and has comfortably bounced from one job to another (none of them amounting to a career). Younger sister Erica is pregnant and deeply resentful of her older sister's freedom and ability to always land on her feet. Erica and twin brother Brady run their parent's restaurant. Through circumstance set in motion by their mother Sawyer finds herself stepping to help at the restaurant, setting off a delicious series of events.

Twenty-something Jori is happily finding a place for herself in her personal and professional life and fighting any attempt to rock her finally steady boat.

This was a very sweet romance but for me the highlights were the interplay among the siblings and how their relationship extended to everyone around them.

One of the other highlights for me was any and all aspects of the day to day running of restaurant.

If you love this book you might want to try the author's other books -
Sequestered Hearts
Fully Involved

Sorry to disagree with the other reviewers, but I didn't like this book at all. It just went on and on with no apparent reason and then stopped. Don't waste your time.