Review: Only for You

Barb Curtis published her debut novel, Forever with You, last year and I thought it was super cute so I was excited for the next book in the Sapphire Springs series. Only for You, just published today, featured a new couple in the small western New York town and I loved it.

Here's the book's description:

Will a fake relationship between two friends lead to true love?
After having his heart broken on national television, Tim Fraser knows only one way to stop the gossip about his love life-a new girlfriend. The problem is, he's done with romance forever. A fake relationship with his friend and Sapphire Spring's sweetest baker, Emily Holland, seems the perfect solution to getting rid of his newfound fame, but their fleeting fauxmance is stirring up the kinds of feelings Tim has sworn off for good.
Emily has secretly lusted after Tim for years, but pretending her feelings are all for show never factored into her fantasy. Still, her decades-long crush makes it impossible to say no to Tim's proposal. But with each date, the lines between pretend and reality blur, giving Tim and Emily a tantalizing taste of life outside the friend zone . . . if they can find the courage to give real love a chance. 

I liked Only for You so much more than the first book in the series. I think a lot of that had to do with the couple in this story. There was something about Emily and Tim that had me enjoying their love story more - even when it was driving me bananas! Both characters are big hearted and so kind. They have their differences, which makes things interesting, but their values are so similar. It was hard to see how Tim could be so blind to Emily's feelings for him.

Tim's obliviousness knocked off a few swoon points, to be honest, because he just couldn't see what was right in front of him. It was hard to understand some of his hangups and I'm glad Emily approached things the way she did near the end. I was Team Emily, as much as I adored Tim, and even though I knew he'd get his head on straight because, hello, this is a romance, I would have been right by Emily's side with her bestie Leyna (the heroine from the first novel), telling her she was better off without the knobhead and we'd find her someone else who was perfect for her. 

As I mentioned in my review of the first book, this story technically takes place in New York state but Curtis did her wine research with a winemaker in Niagara in Ontario, which is where I live. I can totally picture the town near that winery and it fits so well with the town of Sapphire Springs so I couldn't help but picture it again as I read this novel. I almost feel like pitching the Maple Magic Festival to the town because it sounded like SO much fun. 

I'm already looking forward to getting back to Sapphire Springs in whatever novel Curtis writes next. I think the story will feature Rob, Leyna's brother and friend to every character we've met so far. He's been through a nasty divorce but seems like such a wonderful guy so I hope we get to see his Happily Ever After too.

Only for You is such a sweet read that you'll have finished in no time. This story is perfect for those who like closed door romances and small towns that are a character all on their own. Barb Curtis' second novel thoroughly entertained me - so much so that I'm sad the story is over! Definitely consider picking this one up!

*An egalley of this novel was provided by the publisher, Forever, via NetGalley in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.*