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A review by marilynw
Bear With Me Now by Katie Shepard
4.0
Bear with Me Now by Katie Shepard
Teagan Van Zijl, is handsome, charming, and way too serious for his own good. But the seriousness came from having an alcoholic mother and from having to raise his little sister from the time he was twelve years old. He took this task seriously because he had to take it seriously. Their mother was all about parties and booze and Teague and his sister, Sloane, were on their own.
Years later, twenty two year old Sloane has dragged a drugged Teagan to a wilderness therapy retreat. Sloane is there because she needs rehab due to cocaine abuse. Teague is there because Sloane doesn't want to be there without him. Teague had been in the hospital due to a vicious panic attack and wasn't even clear headed when Sloane swept him away to this expensive Montana rehab resort. He has a non profit charity to run and it's hemorrhaging money. He needs to be back at work but he wants to do what is best for Sloane and he's still reeling from his "not a heart attack, panic attack instead" diagnosis.
Meet Darcy Albano, who has flitted around working bottom rung manual labor jobs in wilderness areas while having spent over a decade trying to get her degree. Something is not right with her understanding of the written word and it's slammed doors in her face all her life. Now Darcy won't even try for jobs that require paperwork, her confidence when it comes to work and school are at rock bottom and her dreams of becoming a park ranger are just that, dreams. But through a major amount of misdirection and miscommunication, Darcy is now going to be Teague's sober companion. How does Teague end up with a sober companion that he doesn't need, for an affliction he doesn't have, while his real needs are being swept under a rug, leaving him more fragile than ever?
Yeah, so these people don't say what they need to say to each other. Teague and Darcy have life long trauma and they are going about things all the wrong ways. But that's life, even when unearned, shame, guilt, embarrassment, and the need to fix others can keep one from getting the help needed. These two are so attracted to each other, the chemistry is so right, but Teague's one little lie and Darcy's jumping to way too many conclusions makes this a romance that may be bound to end way too soon. I hurt for both Teague and Darcy and wish they could really be honest with each other but both feel they have too much to lose to show themselves completely. There is humor here, there is a bear and other wildlife, but the serious issues are what make the story so interesting for me.
Pub Apr 25, 2023
Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for this ARC.
Teagan Van Zijl, is handsome, charming, and way too serious for his own good. But the seriousness came from having an alcoholic mother and from having to raise his little sister from the time he was twelve years old. He took this task seriously because he had to take it seriously. Their mother was all about parties and booze and Teague and his sister, Sloane, were on their own.
Years later, twenty two year old Sloane has dragged a drugged Teagan to a wilderness therapy retreat. Sloane is there because she needs rehab due to cocaine abuse. Teague is there because Sloane doesn't want to be there without him. Teague had been in the hospital due to a vicious panic attack and wasn't even clear headed when Sloane swept him away to this expensive Montana rehab resort. He has a non profit charity to run and it's hemorrhaging money. He needs to be back at work but he wants to do what is best for Sloane and he's still reeling from his "not a heart attack, panic attack instead" diagnosis.
Meet Darcy Albano, who has flitted around working bottom rung manual labor jobs in wilderness areas while having spent over a decade trying to get her degree. Something is not right with her understanding of the written word and it's slammed doors in her face all her life. Now Darcy won't even try for jobs that require paperwork, her confidence when it comes to work and school are at rock bottom and her dreams of becoming a park ranger are just that, dreams. But through a major amount of misdirection and miscommunication, Darcy is now going to be Teague's sober companion. How does Teague end up with a sober companion that he doesn't need, for an affliction he doesn't have, while his real needs are being swept under a rug, leaving him more fragile than ever?
Yeah, so these people don't say what they need to say to each other. Teague and Darcy have life long trauma and they are going about things all the wrong ways. But that's life, even when unearned, shame, guilt, embarrassment, and the need to fix others can keep one from getting the help needed. These two are so attracted to each other, the chemistry is so right, but Teague's one little lie and Darcy's jumping to way too many conclusions makes this a romance that may be bound to end way too soon. I hurt for both Teague and Darcy and wish they could really be honest with each other but both feel they have too much to lose to show themselves completely. There is humor here, there is a bear and other wildlife, but the serious issues are what make the story so interesting for me.
Pub Apr 25, 2023
Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for this ARC.