The Cabin Contract

by Julia Soren

One storm. One cabin. One bed by the fire.

Owen

I took the job because it was simple: fix the cabin, work alone, move on.

Then Ash showed up, almost bear-sprayed me, and somehow I agreed to be her fake boyfriend for her sister's wedding. Stupid. I knew better.

Now we're snowed in together, and I can't stop watching her. How good she looks in my flannel. The way she looks at me like I'm not broken.

I've lost everyone who mattered. I decided a long time ago that love wasn't for me.

But I keep finding reasons to be near her. Keep forgetting why I shouldn't.

I don't want to fall for her.

I don't want to lose her too.

Ash

Owen is quiet and guarded and looks at me like I terrify him.

Maybe I do. I talk too much and I showed up here running from a job that was killing me and a family that thinks I'm a mess.

But he rescued a dog in a blizzard. He chops wood in the cold like it's nothing, just to keep us warm. Now there are three of us by the fire, and I'm not ready to leave either of them.

I wasn't looking for this.

But when he touches me, I stop running.

Owen thinks he's meant to end up alone.

I'm starting to think we could prove each other wrong.

This is book one in the series The Men of High Country. Rugged, protective heroes and the women they’d risk everything for. Escape to the Blue Ridge Mountains of High Country for steamy, interconnected standalones with guaranteed HEAs.

256 pages, Paperback

Published December 9, 2025

Reviews

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

A huge thank you to Julia Soren for trusting me with her book. I laughed, I cried, laughed some more and then cried all over again (tears of sadness, tears of relief and tears of happiness were shed throughout the book). She's written a beautiful story within these pages and I am honored to have been able to read it.

Owen and Ash will stay with me forever. Reading their story felt like I was spending time with two friends, listening to them tell the story of their beginning. It felt real from the very start until the final word. I read it in a single sitting; there was simply no way I could walk away without knowing how things ended up. Their story resonated deeply with me and I can't wait to recommend this book to anyone who's willing to listen. I sincerely hope this book makes the rounds repeatedly.

Both characters have their insecurities and their doubts, one is working through emotions as he walks his grief journey and the other is too worried about disappointing her family to realize that there is more to life than just surviving. When they meet each other, they begin to see that life is about so much more than a job, or pleasing other people. They figure out that life isn't about keeping people at arms length, they realize its about sharing it with someone who cares about them. Thankfully, they realized it before it was too late (I yelled at both of them on different occasions). His fears are valid, hers are too. Their misgivings are natural, especially under the circumstances. I couldn't and didn't fault either of them for the way they acted. I'm pretty sure most of us would have done and said the same if not similar things if we were in the same situation.

I loved the way that Owen worked through his grief. It may have taken a while for him (as it does for us all), but getting to see his after was absolutely beautiful. I'd hate to think that he stopped himself from choosing love because of his fear (which would have been valid, but if anyone deserves love its Owen). Ash standing up for herself and what she knew she truly wanted was a breath of fresh air. Inspiring even.

Stormy will always occupy a special place in my heart. ❤️🐶

This book reminded me that life is about more than just surviving. It was definitely a book I needed without even knowing I did. I'll be thinking of Owen, Ash and Stormy for a long time. ❤️

[The Book Ssirren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Owen and Ash were wonderful in this story. It had hallmark vibes. Falling in love, learning one another. It was sweet and romantic. I loved that it felt so real. So relatable. The pace was perfect. The romance was just right. The characters were well developed. I love it when you can go into a story and just become so engrossed in it because it’s just sweet and loving. The warmth that this brought to my heart really made this book a favorite for me. This is definitely one you can cozy up with and enjoy on a quiet day.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first book by Julia Soren and I was impressed. Her writing style was great and I really liked the story she told. Ash and Owen meet when she drives up to her family’s cabin for a quick break, unaware that he’s there working on the place. Ash decides on the spur of the moment to ask Owen to be her plus one to her sister’s wedding. Not only will it quiet her relatives, but she’s attracted to the guy and wouldn’t mind getting to know him better. And Owen, despite his misgivings, agrees. He’s harboring an attraction to the woman who crashed his solitude. The intense chemistry between them is more than noticeable at the wedding, but the following day they part company. Fate, and Mother Nature, have more in store for them, though. This story didn’t have any billionaires or women struggling through a recent break-up/job loss/home loss. No one swooped in to save anyone. It was such a refreshing change. They were simply two adults falling in love. Ash and Owen talked about their feelings and dealt with things reasonably. Owen struggled with fears of abandonment and Ash called him on it. It was so nice to have two characters acting like real people. I really enjoyed the dynamic between the two. And the addition of Stormy made the story even better. The last part of the book took me by surprise, but not in a bad way. I only wish Frank had been around more. He was fantastic. I’m looking forward to reading more from this author.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Nia · Rating 3 out of 5]

📚The Cabin Contract

***I received an advance reader copy from the author. All opinions are my own.

🤩 If you love:

🔹Grumpy x Sunshine
🔹MMC that loves animals
🔹Small Town/ Mountain vibes
🔹Cozy Winter Read


THEN THIS IS FOR YOU….

Characters:

Ash

I like Ash a lot, she is smart good head on her shoulders and straight forward.

Owen

Owen was very sweet! I like how he slowly came out of his shell with Ash. He also feel in love without even realizing it!


Plot/ Storyline/ Pace:

Plot felt good despite this being a shorter read. Nothing felt rushed. I enjoyed the plot it was very low stakes and this was a nice cozy read.

Themes/ relatability/ :

I actually did find this pretty relatable. It was not completely love at first sight, I would say it was more attraction at first sight and slowly as they got to know a bit more about each other they realized there was something there worth exploring. After that they did fall in love and it did feel natural and not forced or rushed.


Writing Style/ feelings:

Wiring styles is relatively modern. No metaphors or other literary devices.

Genre/Type: Romance, cabin/ mountain side,
APK: Kindle
Pages: 256
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️/5
Series or Stand Alone: Standalone
Tropes or Themes: Romance, small town
Check Triggers ⚠️: Explicit sexual content, car crash

[Chelsea · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 rounded up to 3

this book had lots of potential, i liked the characters, the tropes and the set up to the book but it just felt so rushed :( by chapter 4 the whole premise of the story was happening and from there it just didn’t stop, we had a fake relationship, real sex, like 3 big arguments and makeups in the space of about an hour, a big final fight and break up, and a car crash all within a week in the book.
i think this book could’ve been perfect with an extra 200ish pages, the writer had the right idea but the execution just wasn’t it for me. i’d gladly read another of their books though, just hopefully it won’t feel so rushed.

[Audrianna Farrall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let start off & say how im shocked at how much i loved this book consider I've mainly read dark romance. Outside of the Spice scenes I felt like I was reading a hallmark movie. I highly recommend reading this! This book is more of winter read than a holiday. as it mentions the holidays but no scenes actually took place during the holidays. Im hoping this author write another book to show case what happens later on between these two and their relationship.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was so cute! I enjoyed that it wasn’t the “cookie cutter” romance, where everything is absolutely perfect and goes according to plan. Throughout the book I kept finding myself trying to guess where it was going, and not one time was I right(which is a good thing in my opinion). The author does a fantastic job describing the different places and the landscape, I could actually get a great mental picture. Overall a really cute read!

[Julia Bragg · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was… something. It felt like the author was determined to fill a trope bingo card. Grumpy/sunshine, fake dating, only one bed, snowed in, all by the 30% mark - and it didn’t stop there. Unfortunately, the sheer number of tropes wasn’t balanced by strong editing as frequent spelling errors pulled me out of the story.

Wow. What a ride.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute and Feel Good Book

This book was so cute and had me sucked in quick. It was a little fast I felt in the beginning but not in a bad way. Picked it up after a really heavy and long book and it was a great change of scenery.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you for the ARC!

I really enjoyed this book!

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Blizzards and flannels and a stray dog, oh my!

This book was so sweet. Just like Ash and Owen, I should have thought it was too much too soon, but I found myself rooting for them and just wanting to read “one more chapter”.

If meet cutes and all of the insanely impossible things that would never happen in real life (which is why we love fiction, am I right?) are your thing, this one is for you!