One fateful night, Sadie Sparks’ young life was changed forever. Just as she was discovering love with her best friend, Dillon McGraw, someone else was plotting to take her for his own. Faced with choosing between the fear and threats and a safer life, Sadie leaves her West Virginia home for good.

A decade later, Sadie returns to Appalachia to care for her ailing mother, but stays to fight for the mountain she loves. Her struggles to protect it from being ravaged for coal put her in greater danger than she ever imagined — and back in the arms of the man she never stopped loving. But the man responsible for changing her life so many years ago is determined to keep her under his control. When she decides to break free, will Sadie and Dillon’s bond be strong enough to endure the truth about his identity?

Grade: A – (4 stars)

This is a lovely book! I don’t like to give too many A’s to books but this one truly deserved it! This is such a touching story, full of emotion, which really grabs on to the reader! I’m not really a big reader of romance novels, but this one was so beautifully done, that I really enjoyed it. There’s such a depth of character in this novel, in Sadie, and Dillon especially. They just enter our hearts right away, and we keep to know them on such a deeper level by the time the book ends! Sadie has gone through horrible things, but she’s working hard to bring her life back together and fix all the regret she feels, and in this book you feel it all too. You go through this emotional journey with the character and it’s painful but the ending makes it all worth it!

I thought this was a lovely read and very touching!

*I was given a copy of this book in exchange for a review.

Originally from Wasilla, Alaska, I now live in Northern California in my first real house with my husband, John, daughter, Elise, and our two mutts, a beagle and an Australian terrier. I’m a vegetarian with a unique accent that merges Alaskan vowels with Valley Girl, and I love Ryan Gosling—but who doesn’t. The eco-theme in my book comes from being Healthy Child Healthy World’s first ever Mom on a Mission in late 2009. My story was featured in People Magazine, Lifetime‘s Remarkable Women series, The Sacramento News and Review, and is a highlighted story on the advocacy website Care2. Sadie’s Mountain is my debut novel.