A Place to Rest

by Erin Dutton

Sawyer Drake has never known what she wants―except it isn't working in the family restaurant, which is what everyone expects. In order to outrun her destiny, or at least delay the inevitable, she bounces from job to job―and woman to woman. Nothing keeps her attention for very long. Nothing, that is, until she meets shy pastry chef Jori Diamantina. But Jori has no intention of risking the job she loves and a life she's comfortable with for a passing fling with Sawyer, no matter how strong the attraction. Sawyer has no idea what she wants from Jori, or from life, but she's about to find out―because Jori makes her want to stop running.

A Place to Rest is a touching romance about the beauty of finally discovering where you belong.

Genres: Lesbian, Romance, Lesbian Romance, Lesbian Fiction, LGBT, Queer, Fiction

234 pages, Paperback

First published June 24, 2008

About the author

Born and raised in Upstate New York, Erin Dutton moved to Nashville, Tennessee several years ago. No longer a Yankee, and yet not a true Southerner, she remains somewhere between the two, and is happy to claim both places as home. Her days are spent earning a living, while her nights and weekends are divided between several of her favorite things: writing, reading, golf, and her friends. Erin is the author of ten romance novels and the recipient of the 2011 Alice B. Medal for body of work.

Reviews

[Kara · Rating 4 out of 5]

“A Place to Rest” earns a gold star for non-communication between MCs. The narration was very enjoyable, and kept the story moving along better than it would have in print/Kindle, I think.

The MCs are both dealing with family stresses. For MC Sawyer, family expectations and jealousy/anger issues from her sister. For MC Jori, a miserable life spent in the uncaring foster care system from ages 8-18.

There is instaattraction/instalust, but it’s a long path even to a first kiss. Jori rebuffs player Sawyer’s interest; she had a bad experience with a prior at-work relationship, and wants to avoid a relationship with one of her employers. Sawyer is alternately respectful of the word “no”, and often very overly aggressive.

Eventually, Jori decides that the risk of dating a player and getting her heart broken is better than the certainty of her current loneliness. They enjoy a fun date white water rafting, and we learn more of why Sawyer is who she is emotionally. As things go well, panic ensues, bad decisions are made, and….we have a family dynamic moment, a reconciliation and an HEA.

I rate “A Place to Rest” as 3.6* - rounded to 4* for goodreads.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sweet fluffy read which has a feel good factor. Not much angst, drama but still a page-turner, more so in the second half of the book.

3.5 stars ⭐️

[Kennedy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sawyer reminds me of college graduates that use to go to Europe to "find themselves". Instead of Europe, Sawyer moves from job-to-job and woman-to-woman until she meets Jori. Entertaining read with family at its foundation which I enjoyed very much.

[Allison · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a fan of this one. Two big reasons. 1st, this is sexual harassment in the workplace 101. Someone tells you no several times but you still go after them, kiss them and when they tell you no again you say, “you know you want it” and “or are you just being a tease?” Excuse me?! The other big issue was I listened to this on audible and the second I heard AJ Ferraro do Sawyer’s voice, I remembered I didn’t like her the way she portrayed characters. It’s been awhile since I listened to a book she narrated but I quickly remembered that between the 2 main characters she always makes one of them sound like a whining jerk even if they aren’t. Granted in this case it actually fit because Sawyer is a very self-centered unlikeable character that quits when things aren’t perfect. Jori deserved better.

[AL · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet story

A nice book to read describing some complicated family relationships affecting the love relationships. Well described characters with a mix of sadness. Easy to read and easy to follow.

[Cheri · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Place to Rest is one of my favorite books by the author. Andy and I had differing opinions. You can hear our discussion on Cocktail Hour episode 19. http://www.cocktailhour.c-spot.net/ar...

[M · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice, well written and slight.

[Heidi · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one did not feel right for me. It had too much of a #metoo vibe than a romantic vibe to me.

[Sandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoy reading books from early in both the genre and the author’s collection. This 📕 is a fast moving story about two characters who have issues that find themselves drawn to each other even though they know they shouldn’t. Sawyer, the outsider of her family’s unwholesome owns a family restaurant in Nashville can’t seem to find herself drifting from job to job and relationship to relationship. Jori, the Pastry Chef in said restaurant has a wall around her heart after growing up in foster care and beyond in life. The romance grows slowly but not without cautions and roadblocks thrown up by the family. Most of the characters are deceNt people but Sawyer’s sister Erica is a bitch and really unlikable and adds a caustic tone to the story that makes it very unpleasant. Otherwise, it is a decent read and I like the way Ms. Dutton writes.

[Tea · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a hard one to review, because I really relate to how Sawyer feels about herself and her looks, and then how she loves that impact all areas of her life. It’s really toxic and really insidious, and I could see why that led to her acting the way that she did. However I do you think that there were a few different relationships that weren’t necessarily explored or resolved in the book. For example, no point does Sawyer hold Erica accountable for the way that she’s contributed to their relationship’s failing. Whilst it could be argued that these things happened while they were teenagers the fact that they’re still so memorable means that they have been festering and growing for over a decade. The romance was fluffy and sweet though and I liked the setting, plot and characters.

[Kaye · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sawyer has been drifting from job to job since graduating from college. Now at 32 her family needs her to step in and help at the family restaurant. There is instant attraction with pasty chef Jori but Sawyer's sister has declared her off limits. Jori was raised in foster care and loves the family feel of the restaurant. Fairly low amount of angst and a slow build to even a kiss. Family relationships are a major part of the storyline. Only downside is when Sawyer is managing the restaurant flirting with Jori boarders on sexual harassement.

[Barbara · Rating 1 out of 5]

I disliked much about this book. The sister was a royal bitch, completely unlikable. The family chemistry was awful, filled with a guilt laden dynamic. The two main characters were both weak and unlikeable. So one can bake, big deal!

[Julie]

Don't remember.

[Sarah Thornton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well-written, plausible and light-hearted.

[Alena · Rating 3 out of 5]

I believe that's the second novel I read by Erin Dutton.

She created a memorable character with Sawyer Drake, lesbian in her early 30s who drifts through life, never stopping anywhere for long, getting restless in both her personal and professional life.

A family emergency, and her insistent mother, make Sawyer work in the family restaurant to help out. There she meets Jori, the pastry chef I believe anyone would fall in love with for her profession alone. I'm serious, could you resist??

The really interesting plot in this book ist the family conflict, where it stems from, how people are affected by it. It's all slowly unraveled, interwoven with the tender romance of Sawyer and Jori who carries her own baggage. Baggage that, in reading, adds depths to Sawyer's conflicts and shows two sides to a story.

All in all a good read, both characters and plot are believable.

[Anja · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked the book halfway through, the characters were well-written and the plot entertaining. Later in the book their struggle was repetetive (bitching sister, warnings, retreat) and I was a little disappointed about their first love scene. I was missing the chemistry, it felt rushed (after so much time spent flirting and courting Jori).

[Miriam Cortez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book.!! It helped open my eyes to actually a lot that has happened around me.I just loved in the end not only did she find her place but they both found a home in one another, I loved the book very much Amazing story.:)

[Wendy Newton]

Reading this book always makes me hungry for sweets, lol.

I've only read it 4 or 5 times. As for the character descriptions, well I always picture Lauren Lee Smith's L-Word character Lara (even though she's a red head) as Jori & Erin Daniels' character Dana as Sawyer because I loved those 2 on that series!!

So, while not high on my list of favorite books, it's definitely worth a reread. I love to bake, & I seriously need to make that Bananas Foster upside down cake!!! 😉😏