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3.96 AVERAGE
3.96 AVERAGE
emotional
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
3.75 ⭐️
Where You’re Planted by Melanie Sweeney is a wonderfully sweet grumpy-sunshine romance, but is also so much more! This story explores the important themes of climate change and how that will continue to impact communities, as well as the importance of having safe, accessible, public spaces for all such as libraries and botanical gardens! When I read the Authors Note and realized that this was inspired by a true story of Sweeney’s local library and botanic garden after Hurricane Harvey in 2017, this book became that much more of an important read.
Where You’re Planted follows Tansy, a librarian whose library is damaged after a disastrous hurricane. Tansy must temporarily move her library’s operations to the botanic gardens and work together with Jack, the assistant director of those gardens despite their tense relationship, in an effort to save her local branch from permanent defunding and closure.
I highly enjoyed the plot line of rebuilding the library and botanic garden after the flood and the partnership of those two entities. Merging my two great loves of books and flowers, what more could I ask for! While this might be a complaint for some, I actually appreciated that the romantic relationship between the main characters was not the main focus of this novel. It really drove home the importance of communal spaces such as libraries. While I loved the MMC and all of the side characters we got to know in this book, I did have some issues with Tansy’s character that made following her a bit aggravating. Throughout this book, there were several instances where she acted so entitled, selfish, and honestly childish within her partnership with Jack and the garden, as well as her relationship with her baby daddy. I took issue with the fact that she is so adamantly against all aspects of receiving help, often to the detriment of her child, yet was totally demanding of the MMC to neglect his own efforts in managing his botanic gardens so that her library might benefit. It was very irritating, and honestly Jack is a saint for putting up with it. I also found that once the romantic tension finally broke, the relationship moved way too fast and I would’ve liked to see some more slow moving development between the characters.
Overall, I feel that this story was incredibly sweet and important and despite my complaints, I still had a great time reading it.
** Something important to note: As this story completely hinges on the aftermath of a flood that decimated a community, I advise anyone currently affected by the flooding in the Texas Hill Country to proceed with an immense amount of caution.
A huge thank you to Penguin Group Putnam and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin & Melanie Sweeney for the chance to read this book in exchange for my honest review.
If you love libraries and the endless services they provide- this book is for you.
If you love to read about communities coming together- neighbors, "competing" departments, found family, coworkers and beyond- this book is for you.
Tansy and Briar are such a realistic struggling mother daughter duo. This book does not romanticize the struggle. Not one bit. Tansy does not know how to ask for or accept help- and at what cost?
Letting Jack help, letting Jack in- it's all part of the hurricane and life recovery journey.
Please note- the catalyst for the conflict in this book is a hurricane with catastrophic flooding in Texas. Much of the book deals with the aftermath, the trauma and the recovery. A reader should take care due to current devastating events in Texas.
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A pleasant story featuring a fresh premise. The strongest thing about this book is how Sweeney used her own experiences surrounding Hurricane Harvey as inspiration, which she details in the Author's Note; I like how an extreme act of nature acted as a catalyst for the library temporarily being housed within the botanic garden and thus brought Tansy and Jack within each other's orbit on a regular basis. Unfortunately, I never fell completely in love with either of these main characters. I understood Tansy's desire to not be so reliant on others given what has happened in her past, but she was extremely stubborn about this and needed to come to the realization that having others who you trust shoulder part of your burden can be beneficial much sooner. My main issue with Jack was that he was so unpleasantly abrasive with Tansy right off the bat, which I suppose can be written off as his grumpy nature exacerbated by the weather conditions yet felt like a bit much in his introduction and it took me a while to warm to him. Although the supporting characters are fun, I would have loved more time with them. The tale reaches a lovely conclusion that is satisfying for all parties involved, and I appreciated the welcome spotlight on these two undersung professions.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this title.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this title.
You know when you pick up a book and you end up liking it more than you ever expected to? That was my experience here. I started it based off the single mom/librarian vibes and I stayed for the grumpy gardener, the found family and the messy, authentic and relatable characters. This was such a delight and the dual audio narration by two of the very best was perfect and captured the emotional complexity of the story and characters beautifully.
emotional
funny
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Meet Jack. Jack doesn’t have any time for your nonsense.
Meet Tansy. She is nonsense.
But after a devastating hurricane rips through Houston, and the library where she works, Tansy is about to become Jack’s nonsense.
Jack is the director at the Botanic Gardens, adjacent to the ruined library. When the gardens are back up and running, Tansy and her staff are offered a small shed on the property in which to run a very pared down version of the library. No one is happy, but everyone has to make do.
Jack is perhaps the grumpiest grump you’ll ever meet, and he certainly doesn’t want Tansy setting up story time in his garden or encouraging scavenger hunts along his paths. Kids, amirite?
And yet she does.
This accidental collaboration brings the community together - until funding can be found and assets separated.
But somewhere along the line, Jack’s heart starts to show fissures as he spends more time with both Tansy and her daughter, Briar.
However, Tansy doesn’t want or need to be saved, and her fierce independence can also be seen as stubborn and difficult, and pushing Jack away feels safer.
Despite him swearing off love after heartbreak and her inability to trust, it soon becomes apparent that Jack and Tansy might find just what they need in each other.
__
For fans of grumpy/grumpy (fight me - they’re both grumps!), forced proximity, a man who falls for a mom and her kid, plus kittens, search no more!
Sweeney gives background that this is based on a true story - the hurricane, destruction, and shared space - which only makes it sweeter.
The characters will grow on you, messy though they may be, and in the hands of Sweeney, flawed people face tough situations with grit and communication. There’s wit and swoon and spice and banter. And hard earned love. I do wish Tansy had let go of her “I don’t need a savior” complex sooner, but it did lend itself to a delightful grand gesture.
The found family vibes are strong here - throw in a cute kid, and there’s a lot to like.
Vibe check: The Hating Game and The Grump Whisperer.
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you to Penguin Group Putnam/G.P. Putnam's Sons and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this title to read and give my honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
I fell in love with Melanie' Sweeney's writing with Take Me Home. I could not put that book down. As soon as I saw she would have another title, I stalked NetGalley to request it. I may or may not have squeaked when I was approved.
Sweeney's writing, her character voices, her build up of chemistry between characters, and her flowing and fluid descriptions keep me engrossed in her writing from the beginning of her stories until the end.
This particular story is personal to the author (as per the note she wrote at the end). It focuses on loss after a natural disaster and how people deal with that loss. It also shows the devastation attached to such disasters. This story is filled with heart, found family, and healing after trauma. The entire story shows the resilience of those who are forced to recover from such trauma, what they do when they are presented with circumstances beyond their control and how they come together to heal.
Tansy prides herself on being an independent woman. She doesn't want hand outs and she truly does not want anyone to take care of her. These things make her feel beholden to those who present them. She chooses to embrace her struggles, leaning on her own tenacity and determination to persevere despite her circumstances. The hurricane she encounters is not her first bought with struggles in life, but it upends her and her daughter to the point of making them both feel worried and scared. But her stubbornness often puts her in situations that can be self-sabbotaging.
Enter Jack, a grump if I've ever met one. A man who has faced his own struggles in life and has chosen to be more of an isolationist rather than embrace those around him. His surliness keeps him at arms length from people, despite them trying to nudge their way in. But when he does love, it's fiercely, as you can see with his sister, Amy, and his best friend, Omar. There is nothing he would not do for them. When his life collides with Tansy, he's not sure what to make of her. They butt heads from the get go, making enemies of each other. But that does not preclude them from forming feelings for each other. Try as they might, they just can't seem to stay away.
I absolutely adored all the side characters in this book. Kai, with their freeness. Irma with her want to maintain her youngness despite others worrying for her at her age. Melanie, who has a penchant for saving things, animals in particular. Briar, Tansy's daughter, who wiggles her way into Jack's heart, despite his rough exterior. Ivan, who is Jack's right hand man and the only one who Jack is willing to share anything with. The entire brood is one big found family with so much love you can feel it coming off the page. The way these people support and uplift their friends is something else.
Sweeney kept me enthralled from the first chapter when the storm looms and Tansy is out rescuing birds and has her first encounter with Jack. You could see the sparks right then and there. And, while the book is certainly focused on the romance, that is not the only thing that is happening. We learn about libraries and parks and how they are important to communities. We see the struggles such places have to stay open, to have enough funds to ensure those in the communities can take advantage of the programs they have to offer. Sweeney shows their importance in healing communities and bringing people together in times of need.
This book pulled every emotion out of me. There were parts with amazing banter where I was laughing out loud. But there were also parts where my eyes burned with tears I didn't want to shed in public. And then there were the times my chest felt tight because I could feel the characters panic when things were turning bad.
Sweeney creates characters and a story where all the imperfects become perfect. Where the differences in people become their assets. Where you see how important communities and being open minded are essential to health and growth. Where you realize you can be self-reliant but can also accept help from others because they want to feely give it, not because they want anything in return. It's about taking care of yourself, and others, and finding balance. This story is real and raw, full of humanity and heart. It will stick with me for a long time. I will gladly read anything Sweeney writes.
I fell in love with Melanie' Sweeney's writing with Take Me Home. I could not put that book down. As soon as I saw she would have another title, I stalked NetGalley to request it. I may or may not have squeaked when I was approved.
Sweeney's writing, her character voices, her build up of chemistry between characters, and her flowing and fluid descriptions keep me engrossed in her writing from the beginning of her stories until the end.
This particular story is personal to the author (as per the note she wrote at the end). It focuses on loss after a natural disaster and how people deal with that loss. It also shows the devastation attached to such disasters. This story is filled with heart, found family, and healing after trauma. The entire story shows the resilience of those who are forced to recover from such trauma, what they do when they are presented with circumstances beyond their control and how they come together to heal.
Tansy prides herself on being an independent woman. She doesn't want hand outs and she truly does not want anyone to take care of her. These things make her feel beholden to those who present them. She chooses to embrace her struggles, leaning on her own tenacity and determination to persevere despite her circumstances. The hurricane she encounters is not her first bought with struggles in life, but it upends her and her daughter to the point of making them both feel worried and scared. But her stubbornness often puts her in situations that can be self-sabbotaging.
Enter Jack, a grump if I've ever met one. A man who has faced his own struggles in life and has chosen to be more of an isolationist rather than embrace those around him. His surliness keeps him at arms length from people, despite them trying to nudge their way in. But when he does love, it's fiercely, as you can see with his sister, Amy, and his best friend, Omar. There is nothing he would not do for them. When his life collides with Tansy, he's not sure what to make of her. They butt heads from the get go, making enemies of each other. But that does not preclude them from forming feelings for each other. Try as they might, they just can't seem to stay away.
I absolutely adored all the side characters in this book. Kai, with their freeness. Irma with her want to maintain her youngness despite others worrying for her at her age. Melanie, who has a penchant for saving things, animals in particular. Briar, Tansy's daughter, who wiggles her way into Jack's heart, despite his rough exterior. Ivan, who is Jack's right hand man and the only one who Jack is willing to share anything with. The entire brood is one big found family with so much love you can feel it coming off the page. The way these people support and uplift their friends is something else.
Sweeney kept me enthralled from the first chapter when the storm looms and Tansy is out rescuing birds and has her first encounter with Jack. You could see the sparks right then and there. And, while the book is certainly focused on the romance, that is not the only thing that is happening. We learn about libraries and parks and how they are important to communities. We see the struggles such places have to stay open, to have enough funds to ensure those in the communities can take advantage of the programs they have to offer. Sweeney shows their importance in healing communities and bringing people together in times of need.
This book pulled every emotion out of me. There were parts with amazing banter where I was laughing out loud. But there were also parts where my eyes burned with tears I didn't want to shed in public. And then there were the times my chest felt tight because I could feel the characters panic when things were turning bad.
Sweeney creates characters and a story where all the imperfects become perfect. Where the differences in people become their assets. Where you see how important communities and being open minded are essential to health and growth. Where you realize you can be self-reliant but can also accept help from others because they want to feely give it, not because they want anything in return. It's about taking care of yourself, and others, and finding balance. This story is real and raw, full of humanity and heart. It will stick with me for a long time. I will gladly read anything Sweeney writes.
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes