The Catch

Ev Bishop

Jan 2020 · River's Sigh B & B Book 8 · Winding Path Books

About this ebook

Is finding "home" simply finding love?

Aisha Bailey has been deeply afraid of change ever since she was a pregnant teenager mourning the loss of her mother. This newly recognized truth clashes with how she’s always seen herself: fiercely independent, spontaneous and willing to take risks, an entrepreneur bent on doing something important and creating a financially secure, permanent home for her and her daughter. 

 

If she’s none of those things, who is she? If she’s happy living and working at River’s Sigh B & B for the long haul, does that make her weak? But if she only pushes herself to change in order to avoid seeming weak, isn’t that worse? Her whole future is up in the air and it’s driving her crazy.

 

Then she meets Jase, the big, gentle, crazy-sexy new groundkeeper. Suddenly, her regular routines and homebody life are even more satisfying and pleasurable than usual, and she catches herself dreaming of a life partner and more children. It’s . . . terrifying. Talk about things with the power to hurt you—and to derail your plan to make plans! Plus, she has enough people to worry about, thank you very much.  

 

Drifter Jase Scott is homeless and always has been. It was a constant source of pain as a kid and doesn’t hurt less with age. Thankfully, he has construction skills and knows how to work hard. He’s not broke and he can take care of himself and his responsibilities. 

 

When he and his foster brother Colton hire on for a couple months’ labor at River’s Sigh B & B, Colton is bored, but Jase finds himself in the kind of home, amidst the type of family, he’s always longed for. And best of all, there’s Aisha, a woman like no-one he’s ever known. He’s not deluded. Guys like him don’t end up at places like River’s Sigh B & B permanently, no matter how hard they work. And someone like Aisha could never truly belong with the likes of him—something she’ll be the first to say if she ever finds out the secret he’s keeping.  

 

Choosing to love is choosing to embrace change and risk pain. That's always the catch, isn't it? 

Fans of heartwarming small-town contemporary romance, mother daughter stories, second chances, friends to lovers, coming of age stories, and furry dog friends will fall in love with River’s Sigh B & B and never want to leave!  

 

Ratings and reviews

I wish I could give this book 10 stars. Reading The Catch was a bit bittersweet. It's the final book in the River's Sigh B & B series and we've come full circle now with Aisha's story. I've wanted her to get her own HEA ever since reading Wedding Bands, the first book in the series. If you haven't read any of the other books in this series don't worry; The Catch does fine as a stand-alone story. But if you start with this one, I'm betting that you will be eager to read the other books in this series. (There is a boxed set of the first books available; currently a steal at only 99 cents.) I am a huge fan of Ev's writing (it's a little hard for me to believe that it's only been 4 years since I read the first book, Bigger Things). The whole River's Sigh series has been a wonderful experience. Anyone who follows my reviews (thank you if you do) knows that I mostly read M/M romances these days. But I still have a few favorite M/F authors that I will always read and Ev is one of them. Since Amazon banned me from leaving reviews, I no longer have to be careful about saying anything personal when I review a book. So full disclosure: I finally got to meet Ev back in September 2019 and we had a lovely, long dinner chatting away almost like we'd known each other a long time. She is just as lovely in person as her writing would make you think and I am happy to consider her a friend. OK, back to The Catch. Aisha was deeply hurt by the father of her daughter. Jase was similarly hurt by the mother of his daughter. (Read the blurb; it really is quite wonderful as blurbs go, and recaps the book much better than I can.) I'm not sure if I can describe why this book affected me so much. Here are the five things (in no particular order) that I thought to myself that might be why. 1. I was ready for a break from MM stories 2. I needed something to make me sob and sob and sob 3. It's the end of an era (I will mis River's Sigh so hard) 4. It's Aisha's story and I've really be wanting her to get her own HEA. 5. Ev's amazing writing All of those items are probably factors, especially number five. 😊 I was hooked right from the beginning and didn't want to put it down. Ev's writing is so wonderfully descriptive that every book of hers that I read makes me feel like I'm in the story, that River's Sigh is some place I've been and want to go back to over and over again. I seriously haven't sobbed so hard reading a book in a long time but I consider that a good thing. Books that affect me like The Catch did are my favorite kind of book. The tears were both sad and happy. Jase is such a wonderful character and he is perfect for Aisha. His childhood was not great but in spite of that he's gone on to become a wonderful and caring person. This review is already too long and my words aren't doing justice to this beautiful love story so I'm just going to say that if you read M/F romances that don't have a lot of bad words or explicit sexy time, I think you will enjoy The Catch. ***Reviewed for Xtreme-Delusions dot com***

It was 4:30 am when I finished reading The Catch! I could not put it down. I am sad that the River's Sigh B & B series is ending, but delighted to learn there will be a spin off series. Aisha and Jase's story dragged me right back to River's Sigh. (I still think I would like to move there.) Jase is a former foster kid who has been a drifter. Aisha still has issues she works on - especially as relates to Sam, her mother. The characters are so well defined they feel like friends. It was awesome to be on this journey with Aisha and Sam; to see how they grow into their full potential. Ms. Bishop has presented a wonderful wrap up to this series. You do not want to miss it!

Ev Bishop hits it out of the park with The Catch. The final chapter in River’s Sigh ties up the series with a bow on top. Aisha, who we met in book one as a scared, pregnant teenager, finally gets her chance at love. This beauty from ashes tale is sweet, funny, occasionally tearful and unabashedly romantic. The poetically timeless story reaffirms that if one is courageous enough, all that has been lost or taken, can be reclaimed and made into a treasure of beauty beyond compare. This is a must read for everyone who loves true romance. The book does stand alone, but I seriously urge new readers to buy and delight in the entire series.

About the author

Ev Bishop is a USA Today bestselling author, best known for her small-town contemporary romance series, River’s Sigh B & B. She hopes you “book” your getaway and fall in love with stories readers call “full of humor, love and wisdom,” set in a place “where breathtaking scenery and the magic of love are the best medicine for the soul!”