War veteran Ethan Quill’s horse doesn’t like people. And that’s okay because neither does he. Broken by their pasts and shunned by the community, they keep to themselves on Ethan’s rundown farm. And then along comes a brown-eyed baker who turns their world upside down.
Heiress by birth, optimist by heart, Elly Baptiste has left Manhattan behind and picked up her spatula in Cranefly, a quaint Adirondack town. She’s looking for love and finds the promise of something unexpectedly delicious with the local recluse. But how does a woman who’s running from life find happily ever with a man who’s hiding from it?
Elly knows sugar. Ethan knows war.
She knows sweet. He knows defeat.
When put to the test, can they prove that love and life really are better with sugar?
BFF K’s Review
Better with Sugar is both heart warming and heart breaking. The story of Elly and Ethan is one that will stay with me for awhile. It is not just a tale of romance between two complex characters, it is a journey of discovery and self-acceptance for both of them as well. Some parts of the book were almost hard to read because you could feel the tug and pull and longing for happiness inside of both Elly and Ethan. But, those emotions make the Happily Ever After so much sweeter. This debut novel by Katrina Kirkpatrick is well written and full of wonderful dialogue and imagery. I also loved the colorful cast of supporting characters (I’m hopeful that Naomi and Noah will get their Happily Ever After in a coming book.) I highly recommend this enjoyable and moving tale of redemption, affirmation and love.
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Excerpt
The evocative creak of bedsprings jerked him into motion. He barely saw the floor in front of him as he moved through the apartment, his mind too busy imagining every curve on her body. The shape her mouth would take in pleasure.
He stopped in the doorway to the bedroom, her scent curled out like tiny fingers begging him into the space. But for a moment, he just stood.
The moon had already set, chased from the sky by a sunrise that wasn’t even yet discernible. It left the room a part of the night, only as well-lit as the stars were pale, but the white of her bedspread glowed like snow on a winter landscape. She had already disappeared under it, now just the vague outline of a body.
Her naked body.
Every cell in his body clenched tight.
Two dark pieces of cloth draped off the edge of the bed.
Her apron, his suit jacket.
There wouldn’t be any turning back after this.
Fear touched the back of his neck, driving a shiver down his spine. He’d none nothing the past few years but give everything up. Because if he hadn’t given it up—it would’ve been ripped from him anyway. And tonight was going to give him so much to lose.
Not just Elly, but himself.
Maybe she sensed his hesitation because she moved under the blanket, pulling it down just enough to reveal a ridiculous mass of hair and two round eyes that didn’t so much reflect the light as they did absorb it, feeding it into her creamy white skin until it seemed to glow. He meant to only go as close as the edge of the bed, but found himself pressing one knee on the mattress and leaning over her. Her eyes widened ever so slightly and the moment hung between them. This would be the end or the beginning.
About The Author
A love of language led Katrina Kirkpatrick to a degree in Speech and Hearing Sciences from the University of Illinois, a love of her babies led her to the illustrious title of Stay-At-Home-Mommy, and a never-ending, lifelong delight of storytelling led her to pursue publication. She infuses love with laughter because love might make the world go round, but laughter lights up the scenery.
She has two daughters who call her Mommy Queen, two dogs, two cats, lots of chickens and a husband happy to call this chaos home. They reside in central Illinois.
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