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Near & Far
A North So True
Cold climate, hot hero... a snow-kissed escape with a twist of mystery, adventure, and Scandinavian wildness.
Love has its own latitude.
Zoe Bailey's transient childhood left her with a passport full of stamps, an ambiguous accent, and nowhere to call home. And as a grown-up, her career at a relentlessly slick London PR firm has been half-hearted at best – until she travels on assignment to Lillavik as a not-quite-legit wildlife volunteer.
The tiny Swedish village holds a smorgasbord of secrets... and Jakob Westermark. Aloof and wild, like the wolves he studies, Jakob has good reason for keeping his distance. But it's cold, he's hot, and the temptation to mix pleasure with business is too strong for Zoe to resist.
Then Jakob's wolves are threatened, and suspicion turns her way. With more to lose than she ever imagined, Zoe sets out to untangle the hidden threads running through Lillavik... and maybe, finally, find her own true north.
An alternate cover for this ASIN can be found here.
Love has its own latitude.
Zoe Bailey's transient childhood left her with a passport full of stamps, an ambiguous accent, and nowhere to call home. And as a grown-up, her career at a relentlessly slick London PR firm has been half-hearted at best – until she travels on assignment to Lillavik as a not-quite-legit wildlife volunteer.
The tiny Swedish village holds a smorgasbord of secrets... and Jakob Westermark. Aloof and wild, like the wolves he studies, Jakob has good reason for keeping his distance. But it's cold, he's hot, and the temptation to mix pleasure with business is too strong for Zoe to resist.
Then Jakob's wolves are threatened, and suspicion turns her way. With more to lose than she ever imagined, Zoe sets out to untangle the hidden threads running through Lillavik... and maybe, finally, find her own true north.
An alternate cover for this ASIN can be found here.
257 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 12, 2016
59 people are currently reading
124 people want to read
About the author
Serena Clarke
8 books186 followersSerena Clarke writes escapist romantic fiction set all over the world. Readers have described her books as engaging page-turners, with sigh-worthy happy endings that will leave you smiling.
Her own story? She's lived in thirty-nine houses, in seven cities, in four countries. She's been a riding instructor, edited a medical journal, worked at a London law firm, and taught English as a second language to wayward teenagers. And now she's found her own happy ending — living near the beach in beautiful New Zealand with her family, writing the kind of feel-good books she loves to read. She hopes you’ll love them too!
Serena's newsletter: https://www.serenaclarke.com/newsletter/
Apple Books: http://apple.co/1JVwcJU
Amazon: viewAuthor.at/SerenaClarke
BookBub: bookbub.com/profile/serena-clarke
Instagram: instagram.com/serenaclarkeauthor
Facebook: facebook.com/SerenaClarkeAuthor
Her own story? She's lived in thirty-nine houses, in seven cities, in four countries. She's been a riding instructor, edited a medical journal, worked at a London law firm, and taught English as a second language to wayward teenagers. And now she's found her own happy ending — living near the beach in beautiful New Zealand with her family, writing the kind of feel-good books she loves to read. She hopes you’ll love them too!
Serena's newsletter: https://www.serenaclarke.com/newsletter/
Apple Books: http://apple.co/1JVwcJU
Amazon: viewAuthor.at/SerenaClarke
BookBub: bookbub.com/profile/serena-clarke
Instagram: instagram.com/serenaclarkeauthor
Facebook: facebook.com/SerenaClarkeAuthor
Ratings & Reviews
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 17, 2019
I enjoyed this atmospheric, well-written suspenseful tale. The romance is suitable for adults and contains quite a bit of angst and deception, as we see various sides of several characters.
The main actors are a PR lady and a wolf researcher, and the setting is wild Sweden. A snowy, wintry, land, claustrophobic because people can't get far away from others and everyone knows everyone.
If you would enjoy reading about reintroducing and monitoring wolves, or just a holiday romance with a difference and some danger, this will be a great read. And you'll get to know all the Swedish food and greetings.
This is an unbiased review.
The main actors are a PR lady and a wolf researcher, and the setting is wild Sweden. A snowy, wintry, land, claustrophobic because people can't get far away from others and everyone knows everyone.
If you would enjoy reading about reintroducing and monitoring wolves, or just a holiday romance with a difference and some danger, this will be a great read. And you'll get to know all the Swedish food and greetings.
This is an unbiased review.
December 31, 2019
Gifted copy for honest review.
I really enjoyed reading A North So True. This is about Zoe and Jakob. The story and characters were good. This a a good mixture of business and wildlife. A good read for the evenings or weekend.
I really enjoyed reading A North So True. This is about Zoe and Jakob. The story and characters were good. This a a good mixture of business and wildlife. A good read for the evenings or weekend.
January 26, 2019
Delightful
A beautiful story wrapped into an opportunity to learn a little of Swedish culture. With the study of wolves and the beauty and intense cold of winter in Sweden.
A beautiful story wrapped into an opportunity to learn a little of Swedish culture. With the study of wolves and the beauty and intense cold of winter in Sweden.
April 16, 2016
A North So True combines the best of so many worlds: fast-paced corporate marketing in the city, getting back to nature in the Swedish countryside, family connections and family secrets, icy climate, warm fires, fika, and lots of love.
Every bit of it is done well. Zoe and Jakob (a quiet, well-mannered, but very alpha male) have the requisite chemistry for my liking, and I appreciate their relationship ebbing and flowing naturally. I love the party Zoe attended – so fun to see a character loosen up! I really got to know her as she shrugs off some inhibitions and socializes. Zoe’s host family is adorable and warm and stable. They provide a thread of constancy in Zoe’s crazy life – and in the novel.
But my absolute favorite part of A North So True is the juxtaposition of cold and hot. Serena Clarke crafts it so well. No gratuitous snowflakes on eyelashes and fireplace sparks on a bear rug; Every description has a purpose and moves the plot forward. From ice skating and snowmobiling to gut-warming shots and hot baths, my senses soaked up every description.
I’m not a re-reader in general, but I kinda want to re-read this book just to enjoy the magical Swedish feast again. ❤️❄️⛸
Every bit of it is done well. Zoe and Jakob (a quiet, well-mannered, but very alpha male) have the requisite chemistry for my liking, and I appreciate their relationship ebbing and flowing naturally. I love the party Zoe attended – so fun to see a character loosen up! I really got to know her as she shrugs off some inhibitions and socializes. Zoe’s host family is adorable and warm and stable. They provide a thread of constancy in Zoe’s crazy life – and in the novel.
But my absolute favorite part of A North So True is the juxtaposition of cold and hot. Serena Clarke crafts it so well. No gratuitous snowflakes on eyelashes and fireplace sparks on a bear rug; Every description has a purpose and moves the plot forward. From ice skating and snowmobiling to gut-warming shots and hot baths, my senses soaked up every description.
I’m not a re-reader in general, but I kinda want to re-read this book just to enjoy the magical Swedish feast again. ❤️❄️⛸
June 5, 2016
I received an Advanced Review Copy of A North So True in order to give an honest review.
It's always a pleasure for me to read Serena Clarke's Near and Far novels! The places are described with beautiful imagery, and the author makes an effort to include location-specific details and pop culture references to enhance the reading of the text. In this novel in particular, I loved the inclusion of Swedish vocabulary and the wilderness conservation details. I would describe this as a "romance novel with a purposeful plot." I appreciate the complexity of the protagonist's back story in each of Clarke's novels because it makes the plot much more intriguing. For me, Zoe as a protagonist was very relatable.
I have never visited Sweden, so learning a little bit about language, food and culture with Zoe was fun for me. I also liked the interplay of characters; it wasn't just about Zoe and Jakob the whole time. Personally, I'm drawn to stories about the warmth a little more than the cold, and I think the lead up to romance between Zoe and Jakob was a little blunt off the start, but sometimes those feelings do just happen I suppose! Overall, it was another great novel in this author's genre.
It's always a pleasure for me to read Serena Clarke's Near and Far novels! The places are described with beautiful imagery, and the author makes an effort to include location-specific details and pop culture references to enhance the reading of the text. In this novel in particular, I loved the inclusion of Swedish vocabulary and the wilderness conservation details. I would describe this as a "romance novel with a purposeful plot." I appreciate the complexity of the protagonist's back story in each of Clarke's novels because it makes the plot much more intriguing. For me, Zoe as a protagonist was very relatable.
I have never visited Sweden, so learning a little bit about language, food and culture with Zoe was fun for me. I also liked the interplay of characters; it wasn't just about Zoe and Jakob the whole time. Personally, I'm drawn to stories about the warmth a little more than the cold, and I think the lead up to romance between Zoe and Jakob was a little blunt off the start, but sometimes those feelings do just happen I suppose! Overall, it was another great novel in this author's genre.
May 16, 2016
4.5 Stars - Mix in some corporate nonsense and saving wild animals and you have a great weekend read! The writing was smooth and left you wanting more. The romance factor was just enough that you craved to read the next chapter as you were wanting the characters to see what was right in front of them the whole time. Will they overcome the challenges? You will have to read to find out!
I received a free copy from Instafreebie in exchange for an honest review.
I received a free copy from Instafreebie in exchange for an honest review.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews