*This review was first posted to Goodreads in December 2022*

TL;DR: This dual-pov second-chance romance was a delightful slow-burn as Beckett and Evie learn more about each other but also about themselves. Beckett is absolutely the perfect book boyfriend and that plant-daddy really had me swooning! If you loved him in the first book with his kittens, then you’ll definitely love him more now because not only do we get to see him with more animals, we get to see him come out of his shell in full simphood glory! It was swoontastic! 😍 This was a great second book in this series and I can’t wait to continue on to the next.

Hi, everyone. Today, I’d like to introduce you all to my new book boyfriend, Beckett Porter. 😂

This man had me weak in the knees with his non-himbo-himbo-animal-loving-lumberjack-plant-daddy vibes. He was everything and I was, unsurprisingly, swooning all the way through the read. Beckett is such a soft and gentle giant of a man and I was enchanted by how utterly bewitched he was with Evie—and I mean, she was the same way for him and lady, I totally get it. 🥹

I was vehemently hoping that I would enjoy this more than I did Lovelight Farms and I’m happy to say that I did! Borison’s sophomore book was told in dual POV and I’m so pleased that we got both Evie’s and Beckett’s perspectives as that made a massive difference for me in connecting with them and getting into their heads/hearts. As we learn in the first book, Beckett and Evie had a few-night stands several months ago and they never expected to see each other again until Evie rocks up to the farm one day and their worlds re-collide. I liked the way Borison took us back to their first meeting without doing the typical dual timeline thing and it showed how much they’ve been on each other’s minds since those steamy nights months ago. Thanks to Beckett’s inability to leave anyone in a jam, they quickly find themselves in very close quarters which gave their second-chance romance so much room to bloom (no pun intended). I loved every minute of the slow burn!

In a world of endless social media, I found Evie’s storyline pretty relatable. I enjoyed seeing her settle into Inglewild and find moments of happiness every day but what got me was how attentive Beckett was towards her on her her journey of re-self-discovery. The way he asked if she had found her happy and if she hadn’t yet, the lengths he’d go to make it happen was SWOONTASTIC. 🥹 He was so sweet on her that it would’ve given me a toothache if I didn’t enjoy it so much. If it isn’t clear by now, I’m a big fan of Beckett and if you love gruff characters with hearts of gold, you’re bound to love him as well. Acts of service is his love language—he’s the caretaker of the family and always makes sure the people he loves and cares for have what they need, and these actions were even more pronounced around Evie.

They already have a strong connection at the start but I loved seeing that bond grow stronger as they get to know each other and fall in love with what they’ve learned about the other. There’s this delicateness to Borison’s characters and relationships—it’s soft, sweet and almost dreamlike which fits with how they both thought of their time together as a dream they never wanted to wake up from; it honestly could’ve been overly cheesy but it wasn’t in the least!

That said, I think what keeps me from fully loving these books is that there’s a lack of tension and (I can’t believe I’m saying it) angst. There’s nothing wrong with low-stakes romance, I really enjoy it too, but I thought their conflict felt a little too forced because of it. Admittedly, I found the third-act break-up irritating because these two adults could’ve just talked to each other and addressed the glaringly obvious miscommunication, and rather than the situation creating good tension between them, it honestly felt a bit silly. Also, while I wished it had a bit more of the meddlesome small-town community vibes from the first book and more interactions with Layla and Stella, I ultimately really enjoyed this book and can’t wait to read Layla’s story next!

Have you read In the Weeds or is it on your TBR?

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