YESTERDAY NOW AND ALWAYS by Sara Beth Williams
SERIES: A Trinity Lakes Romance #12
GENRE: Contemporary Romance (Christian)
PUBLISHER: Independently Published
RELEASE DATE: June 25, 2024
PAGES: 278
He never expected to fall in love with her all over again.
After high school, Jake Monroe had the future all mapped out for him and high school sweetheart Audrey Wright. When Audrey is gifted a trip to New Zealand after her graduation and then spontaneously extends the trip from three months to twelve months, Jake is shattered.
From the age of six, Audrey Wright grew up in Trinity Lakes Washington as a dual NZ-US citizen. Adopted as a toddler, she’d never known her biological parents. During a whirlwind trip to New Zealand at eighteen to visit relatives, Audrey encounters a half-brother she never knew existed and makes the split decision to remain in New Zealand to rediscover the family she never dared to dream she’d find. But the cost of her spontaneous decision may be much higher than she realizes.
Eight years later, Jake returns to Trinity Lakes to fulfill his childhood dream of owning his own restaurant. Encountering Audrey again throws a wrench into his carefully laid out plans and dredges up old attraction that should’ve died when she’d chosen New Zealand over him. Regardless, he’s drawn to her as he was years prior. But mending the past and overcoming the anger and bitterness will take a miracle.
A small town, second chance high school sweethearts’ reunion, contemporary Christian Romance, part of the Trinity Lakes Romance series.
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I fell in love with Jake when I read No Matter How Far… ok, that’s not true. I fell in love with Jake’s DOG Zuzu (for obvious reasons, if you’ve been around this blog from the beginning. If not, read this.) haha! But I was also intrigued by Jake’s backstory and wanted to dig deeper into those layers and see him find not necessarily a ‘happily ever after’ (though that’s a nice bonus) but some peace most of all. That said, you can totally read Yesterday Now and Always as a standalone with zero problems acclimating to the characters or Trinity Lakes.
Jake and Audrey are characters with both a love story and a painful breakup in their history. While their love seemed to have been true back then – and still is, honestly, if they can get past their hurt – the reasons for their breakup several years ago can really boil down to immaturity. The kind that we have when we’re 18, 19, 20, etc. and think we know everything but really still have so much life experience ahead of us to refine us and round out our perspective to expand beyond just how something affects us personally. I appreciated how the author framed their past relationship from the vantage point of hindsight and used it to continue to even out the rough places left over from their separate complex relationship dynamics with family and mentors. In Yesterday Now and Always, Sara Beth Williams gives Jake and Audrey not only a do-over at romance but a chance to make better choices this time around when the same conflicts and knee-jerk reactions crop up. Part of that process is learning to listen to each other, to not avoid the hard conversations, and to put each other first. These are lessons that any of us can take to heart, no matter our relationship status – just to help us be better humans overall in this messy life we live.
And of course, there’s Zuzu. The bubbly, friendly, energetic pup who steals every scene she’s in with her big personality. Williams does a wonderful job of capturing the dog’s antics and quirks and boundless affection to give, and I could easily picture the scenes with Zuzu as I read them. I absolutely loved watching Zuzu interact with Audrey’s sister Cybil whose cerebral palsy affects her mobility, and for that matter I really enjoyed Cybil’s character and her relationship with Audrey as well.
Bottom Line: Yesterday Now and Always by Sara Beth Williams is a sweet romance with great characters and a charming setting. I always enjoy the US/New Zealand/Australian combination of cultures (and accents!) in the community of Trinity Lakes, and this book is no exception. Jake and Audrey’s love story has been a long time coming, but they are such a beautiful picture of God ‘restoring the years that the locust have eaten’ when they position their hearts to allow Him to do so. If you’re looking for a story that will uplift & challenge you as well as entertain, check out Yesterday Now and Always!
(I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the author. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.)
My Rating: 4 stars / loved it!
KissingBook Level: 3 / may forget to breathe on occasion
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Sara Beth Williams is a published author of Contemporary Christian romance, an ACFW and CIPA member and freelance writer. She has a background in freelance publicity, blog managing, newspaper journalism and ten years in the field of education. Two of her three novels have been nominated for a Selah Award – A Worthy Heart (2020) and Anchor My Heart (2022). She lives in Northern California with her husband and two daughters. When she’s not held hostage by the keyboard, she enjoys playing guitar, reading, gardening, and spending time with her family. Find out more atsarabethwilliams.com
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