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The Love That Saved Him
He needed escape…
Suffering from the recent loss of his wife, Pierce Jackson leaves behind his corporate job in New York City and heads to the Klondike. There he meets Sarah Palmer whose eighty-five year old gold mining grandfather wants to lease the most dangerous part of Pierce's property. The last thing Pierce wants is to fall for Sarah. But as they start working together, a bond begins to form, and Pierce must eventually ask himself if he can overcome guilt and heartache and welcome the love of another woman into his heart.
And found a new beginning instead.
Sarah has a lot more on her mind than starting a relationship with her handsome new neighbor. But as she gets to know Pierce, she begins to wonder, what if? Encouraged by her matchmaking grandfather whose biggest wish is to see her settled, Sarah finds herself swept up in the most unexpected romance. But with shocking family history unfolding and a gold-mining expedition that could go wrong in so many ways, there's a lot for Sarah and Pierce to take care of before they can find their happily ever after.
Suffering from the recent loss of his wife, Pierce Jackson leaves behind his corporate job in New York City and heads to the Klondike. There he meets Sarah Palmer whose eighty-five year old gold mining grandfather wants to lease the most dangerous part of Pierce's property. The last thing Pierce wants is to fall for Sarah. But as they start working together, a bond begins to form, and Pierce must eventually ask himself if he can overcome guilt and heartache and welcome the love of another woman into his heart.
And found a new beginning instead.
Sarah has a lot more on her mind than starting a relationship with her handsome new neighbor. But as she gets to know Pierce, she begins to wonder, what if? Encouraged by her matchmaking grandfather whose biggest wish is to see her settled, Sarah finds herself swept up in the most unexpected romance. But with shocking family history unfolding and a gold-mining expedition that could go wrong in so many ways, there's a lot for Sarah and Pierce to take care of before they can find their happily ever after.
245 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 2, 2018
6 people are currently reading
510 people want to read
About the author
Sophie Barnes
67 books1,755 followersUSA TODAY bestselling author Sophie Barnes writes historical romance novels in which the characters break away from social expectations in their quest for happiness and love. Having written for Avon, an imprint of Harper Collins, her books have been published internationally in eight languages. With a fondness for travel, Sophie has lived in six countries, on three continents, and speaks English, Danish, French, Spanish, and Romanian with varying degrees of fluency. Ever the romantic, she married the same man three times—in three different countries and in three different dresses.
When she’s not busy dreaming up her next swoon worthy romance novel, Sophie enjoys spending time with her family, practicing yoga, baking, gardening, watching romantic comedies and, of course, reading.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
October 14, 2018
Originally published at Reading Reality
It’s also about the love that saved her. And it got me right in the feels, on multiple levels. On all the levels. I’m still reeling.
The cover for this one just looks so adorable, but the story is much deeper than it appears. This is one of those ones where not judging the book by its cover is good. Because the cover looks fluffy, and this is not a fluffy story.
It’s an excellent story, but not a fluffy one.
Both Pierce and Sarah have suffered from terrible tragedies. At 35, Pierce lost his wife to leukemia. It was swift and sudden and awful and a year later he is still in the midst of his grief and not dealing with it well. But what he is not is also in the midst of the tatters of the life they planned together. Once the dust settled a bit on her passing, he packed himself up and moved to the Klondike, to the land she inherited from her grandfather.
Whatever starting over he was or wasn’t going to do, he planned to do it far from New York City, their apartment, their career-driven lives, and the friends she left behind. And both his and her still-grieving parents. Because so far all they were sharing was pain, and Pierce just couldn’t.
Sarah Palmer has suffered her own tragedy. At 25 she is living with her grandfather, estranged from her parents, still grieving the loss of her unborn child and reeling from the drunken brute that the baby’s father turned into.
She’s still living in the midst of all her pain, because that’s where her grandfather lives, and his support and their work together are the things that have kept her going through everything.
Sarah’s grandfather Thomas is a gold miner. So is Sarah. They still exist in the Klondike (and other places) even though the easy, close to the surface stuff was gone long ago. There are plenty of smaller veins that were inaccessible but now are thanks to modern machinery. It’s those veins that Thomas and Sarah’s company tries to explore.
But the one place that Thomas Palmer has always been dead certain held a rich vein has always been out of his reach. It’s the ridge on the property that Pierce has just moved into – and for the first time in 30 years the lease on that land is available to him.
Just in time for one last hurrah – and a chance for Pierce, Sarah and everyone else in both their families to heal what’s been broken for far longer than they ever imagined.
Escape Rating A: For a relatively short book it’s a surprisingly slow-burning romance at the beginning. But then again, once you get into the story the romance turns out to be not the half of what’s waiting to be explored. And that’s pretty awesome.
One of the things that makes this story work is the instant closeness between Pierce and the Palmers. It could have seemed much too fast, that they were all too quick to trust, but it reminded me of my own experience in Alaska. In places that are remote and have relatively small populations, those “six degrees of separation” are more like three, or maybe two. And it happens surprisingly fast – as it does in this story.
The reason this story hit me so hard is personal. I’m 20 years older than my husband, so we’ve had to have the conversation about what happens if he ends up in the situation that Pierce is in, because that is the more likely scenario – although hopefully not for a long time yet. But still, this felt so REAL to me that it made my own heart hurt in sympathy with the character.
Part of what I loved about the story was the way that both Pierce and Sarah, coming out of their very different but equally difficult wounds, managed to reach towards each other so slowly and so carefully but still find a way through – and just how much of their respective family traumas managed to get healed in their wake. In spite of the blows yet to come.
The characters of this story, especially Thomas Palmer, are right. Life is too short to not take the time to say and do the things that need to be said. And in spite of the ever increasing height of my towering TBR pile – and the number of sniffles engendered by this reading, it’s too short not to take a couple of hours and fall into this book.
It’s also about the love that saved her. And it got me right in the feels, on multiple levels. On all the levels. I’m still reeling.
The cover for this one just looks so adorable, but the story is much deeper than it appears. This is one of those ones where not judging the book by its cover is good. Because the cover looks fluffy, and this is not a fluffy story.
It’s an excellent story, but not a fluffy one.
Both Pierce and Sarah have suffered from terrible tragedies. At 35, Pierce lost his wife to leukemia. It was swift and sudden and awful and a year later he is still in the midst of his grief and not dealing with it well. But what he is not is also in the midst of the tatters of the life they planned together. Once the dust settled a bit on her passing, he packed himself up and moved to the Klondike, to the land she inherited from her grandfather.
Whatever starting over he was or wasn’t going to do, he planned to do it far from New York City, their apartment, their career-driven lives, and the friends she left behind. And both his and her still-grieving parents. Because so far all they were sharing was pain, and Pierce just couldn’t.
Sarah Palmer has suffered her own tragedy. At 25 she is living with her grandfather, estranged from her parents, still grieving the loss of her unborn child and reeling from the drunken brute that the baby’s father turned into.
She’s still living in the midst of all her pain, because that’s where her grandfather lives, and his support and their work together are the things that have kept her going through everything.
Sarah’s grandfather Thomas is a gold miner. So is Sarah. They still exist in the Klondike (and other places) even though the easy, close to the surface stuff was gone long ago. There are plenty of smaller veins that were inaccessible but now are thanks to modern machinery. It’s those veins that Thomas and Sarah’s company tries to explore.
But the one place that Thomas Palmer has always been dead certain held a rich vein has always been out of his reach. It’s the ridge on the property that Pierce has just moved into – and for the first time in 30 years the lease on that land is available to him.
Just in time for one last hurrah – and a chance for Pierce, Sarah and everyone else in both their families to heal what’s been broken for far longer than they ever imagined.
Escape Rating A: For a relatively short book it’s a surprisingly slow-burning romance at the beginning. But then again, once you get into the story the romance turns out to be not the half of what’s waiting to be explored. And that’s pretty awesome.
One of the things that makes this story work is the instant closeness between Pierce and the Palmers. It could have seemed much too fast, that they were all too quick to trust, but it reminded me of my own experience in Alaska. In places that are remote and have relatively small populations, those “six degrees of separation” are more like three, or maybe two. And it happens surprisingly fast – as it does in this story.
The reason this story hit me so hard is personal. I’m 20 years older than my husband, so we’ve had to have the conversation about what happens if he ends up in the situation that Pierce is in, because that is the more likely scenario – although hopefully not for a long time yet. But still, this felt so REAL to me that it made my own heart hurt in sympathy with the character.
Part of what I loved about the story was the way that both Pierce and Sarah, coming out of their very different but equally difficult wounds, managed to reach towards each other so slowly and so carefully but still find a way through – and just how much of their respective family traumas managed to get healed in their wake. In spite of the blows yet to come.
The characters of this story, especially Thomas Palmer, are right. Life is too short to not take the time to say and do the things that need to be said. And in spite of the ever increasing height of my towering TBR pile – and the number of sniffles engendered by this reading, it’s too short not to take a couple of hours and fall into this book.
January 10, 2019
I received an e-book copy of this book from the author through a giveaway she had on LibraryThing and the following is my honest opinion.
With the loss of his dear wife still fresh in his mind, Pierce Jackson wanting to rid him of all remembrance of her ups and leaves the Big Apple [NYCity] and his well-paying job and head to a small town in the cold reaches of the Klondike where he purchases a large tract of land. And shortly afterwards, 85-year-old Thomas Palmer wants to lease the most dangerous parcel of his land to do some gold mining. Mr. Palmer has a granddaughter, Sarah, who has had several relationships which had gone sour, causing her to cease having any more.
Fate has a way of somehow bringing two individuals together who don’t want any more relationships in their lives for the fear of being hurt once again. And in the eyes of her matchmaking grandfather, he wants to see her settling down with some eligible guy and having the HEA she deserves.
Despite Pierce and Sarah not wanting to get involved with each other at first because of, as I’ve just said, the negative romantic baggage each has experienced in their lives, the more they interact with each other a sort of Kismet attraction to each other starts to develop between these two. Pierce during this period has to get by the remorse and anguish of having lost his wife and open himself to the possibility of finding love with any other woman, and Sarah’s mind is fraught with thoughts other than starting a romantic association with another attractive man.
However, the road to their possibly having the HEA their hearts both desire to have in their lives isn’t going to be a smooth one, especially with a scandalous family past that’s coming to light, and a perilous mining outing, which they both need to get pass, before it can happen.
Ms. Barnes’ writing is quite captivating and well researched, and should definitely warm the cockles of her reader’s heart on a cold wintry night, which is why I’ve given this book 5 STARS.
With the loss of his dear wife still fresh in his mind, Pierce Jackson wanting to rid him of all remembrance of her ups and leaves the Big Apple [NYCity] and his well-paying job and head to a small town in the cold reaches of the Klondike where he purchases a large tract of land. And shortly afterwards, 85-year-old Thomas Palmer wants to lease the most dangerous parcel of his land to do some gold mining. Mr. Palmer has a granddaughter, Sarah, who has had several relationships which had gone sour, causing her to cease having any more.
Fate has a way of somehow bringing two individuals together who don’t want any more relationships in their lives for the fear of being hurt once again. And in the eyes of her matchmaking grandfather, he wants to see her settling down with some eligible guy and having the HEA she deserves.
Despite Pierce and Sarah not wanting to get involved with each other at first because of, as I’ve just said, the negative romantic baggage each has experienced in their lives, the more they interact with each other a sort of Kismet attraction to each other starts to develop between these two. Pierce during this period has to get by the remorse and anguish of having lost his wife and open himself to the possibility of finding love with any other woman, and Sarah’s mind is fraught with thoughts other than starting a romantic association with another attractive man.
However, the road to their possibly having the HEA their hearts both desire to have in their lives isn’t going to be a smooth one, especially with a scandalous family past that’s coming to light, and a perilous mining outing, which they both need to get pass, before it can happen.
Ms. Barnes’ writing is quite captivating and well researched, and should definitely warm the cockles of her reader’s heart on a cold wintry night, which is why I’ve given this book 5 STARS.
October 6, 2018
This a a cute feel good story. The main characters are nice people who've had bad things happen to them. There are no bad people, just people reacting to bad things or in bad ways. The main conflict keeping Pierce and Sarah is Pierce grief and guilt about moving on after his wife's death. The romance between them is slow, sweet and healing. I think this story would feel very true to someone who has suffered a tragic loss.
Sophie Barnes has obviously done a lot of research into gold mining and living a rural Alaska. I was fascinated by the description of the mining operation in the book.
My one issue in the book is with a side character who resents Sarah's grandfather for "stealing" his mother from his father. (Luckly this was a minor, short subplot) I wish someone (his wife) would point out that 1. she's entitled to find happiness and he should be happy she found someone who loved her. 2. his father probably wasn't the best husband 3 his mother wasn't his father's property.
Sophie Barnes has obviously done a lot of research into gold mining and living a rural Alaska. I was fascinated by the description of the mining operation in the book.
My one issue in the book is with a side character who resents Sarah's grandfather for "stealing" his mother from his father. (Luckly this was a minor, short subplot) I wish someone (his wife) would point out that 1. she's entitled to find happiness and he should be happy she found someone who loved her. 2. his father probably wasn't the best husband 3 his mother wasn't his father's property.
October 2, 2018
A second chance at love that hits you right in the feels!
Pierce is mourning the loss of his wife and decides to give up city living for a quieter life in Klondike. However Pierce gets more then he bargained for when he meets Sarah, but will he let her in or will the fear of loving someone again win?
Sarah has had her fair share of bad relationships and has sworn off them altogether, but when she meets Pierce she realises she may feel more for him then even she is willing to admit.
This is my first book by this author but it certaintly wont be my last. I really liked both Pierce and Sarah and i felt Pierce’s grief as if he was someone i actually knew. I loved Sarah’s grandpa, he reminds me of my own. Overall a sweet story about grief, healing and letting love in.
Pierce is mourning the loss of his wife and decides to give up city living for a quieter life in Klondike. However Pierce gets more then he bargained for when he meets Sarah, but will he let her in or will the fear of loving someone again win?
Sarah has had her fair share of bad relationships and has sworn off them altogether, but when she meets Pierce she realises she may feel more for him then even she is willing to admit.
This is my first book by this author but it certaintly wont be my last. I really liked both Pierce and Sarah and i felt Pierce’s grief as if he was someone i actually knew. I loved Sarah’s grandpa, he reminds me of my own. Overall a sweet story about grief, healing and letting love in.
June 2, 2019
Sophie Barnes is one of my favs in historical fiction; therefore, I wished to read this contemporary tale. I enjoyed the characterization during the first part of the book, but, after awhile, I began to lose some interest in both Pierce Jackson and Sarah Palmer. Their reasons for holding back became more tiresome as the tale progressed.
Learning about mining in the Klondike was interesting, though.
The book is not terrible; I just hoped for more. It is a personal taste, and my opinion should not sway others away from the book.
I do wish someone would look at the number of split infinitives: to suddenly walk, to actually do, to never hold, to quickly divest, etc.
Learning about mining in the Klondike was interesting, though.
The book is not terrible; I just hoped for more. It is a personal taste, and my opinion should not sway others away from the book.
I do wish someone would look at the number of split infinitives: to suddenly walk, to actually do, to never hold, to quickly divest, etc.
October 20, 2018
I received a copy of this book to read and give an honest review.
I recommend you get a box of tissues handy, because you will be crying at parts of this. But, to me it was a cathartic crying. As a widow myself, it's hard to put into words the gamut of emotions that you feel. This is excellently written about dealing with those feelings, and that you can get through it, and continue with life.
A nice modern romance, with a few little twists in the plot. I really liked all the characters, and felt a definite connection.
I recommend you get a box of tissues handy, because you will be crying at parts of this. But, to me it was a cathartic crying. As a widow myself, it's hard to put into words the gamut of emotions that you feel. This is excellently written about dealing with those feelings, and that you can get through it, and continue with life.
A nice modern romance, with a few little twists in the plot. I really liked all the characters, and felt a definite connection.
February 17, 2019
I won this book in a giveaway. This was a sweet romance. It took a while for the characters to get together, as they were both facing some pretty big traumas and had to heal and learn to trust again. I liked the family dynamic in the book. I just thought that the ending wrapped the story up pretty quickly and the reader didn't get to experience two major things that the author had built up. It was just, hey, it's 3 months later and both of these things happended off-book. So even though we may have got a HEA, we didn't really get to experience it.
October 5, 2018
I received this as an eBook thru a LibraryThing Member giveaway. Sophie Barnes has written a lot of historical romances (I've read one of them) - this is her first contemporary. I enjoyed it. It takes place in Alaska and features two main characters who have both suffered personal tragedies. Neither is sure if they are ready for a new relationship, but they are clearly attracted to each other. I'll look for more books by this author.
September 23, 2018
I really enjoyed this book. Seeing the suffering Pierce went through after his wife's death was so sad and then seeing him slowly come out of it and falling for Sarah was so sweet. I really enjoyed it and so will you.
October 2, 2018
I thought it was a great book just a little slow paced for me. I kept seeing the discovery channel gold rush show in my head while I was reading it. I could appreciate the struggles both characters went through it was just hard to keep my attention to the end.
September 30, 2018
It's a beautiful love story! I read it this weekend and I couldn't put it down. Worth the loss of sleep.
October 2, 2018
I don’t normally do contemporary. While the book was well written, It was a bit to Morose for me. Too much death. Even with an uplifting ending, for me it was not uplifting enough.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews