If I see Sarina Bowen's name I read it! She is definitely a one click author for me and this book was one of her best ones yet.

The True North are some of my favorite books by Sarina because they take place in New England, where I live. I love the accurate New England feel the books have plus the characters are incredibly believable and of course likable. This series is a great combination of sexy and endearing with a bit of drama tossed in and Heartland was no exception to this recipe.

Dylan was not a character I thought I needed a book from but wow was I glad to read his story and now I am a MASSIVE Dylan fan. He is way more complex than I thought and I love him so much. But the true hero of this book for me was Chastity I really felt for her and how she struggled to deal with her past and present difficulties.

If you enjoyed this book you should absolutely read the others in this series because this cast of characters and the world they live in are deeply engaging. My one word of warning is read this book in public with caution as it is delightfully steamy! ( )

This book is not for me. I wasn't expecting a college age romance book with the Hero being such a man-whore.

As with this troupe the heroine is in the Hero's life before they get together.

He has a girlfriend when the book starts, though this is a new thing to him as he's been described as the 'family slut' before this.

So for the safety gang, there are some details of the Hero with the girlfriend.
As his girlfriend is the heroines roommate she overhears then having sex and wishes it was her.
She is constantly exposed to his hook-ups and overhearing about his exploits.

Of course due to the heroine's background she is inexperienced, sigh, I wish these type of heroines wouldn't go for the disease infested men.

The theme seems to be one night stands fueled by drugs and alcohol. The Hero of course has daddy issues.

The history of the heroine, growing up on the cult type compound is interesting and Zach is mentioned.

HEA, if you believe it. ( )

This was another 5-star read for me from Sarina Bowen. Her True North series continues with one of the youngest members of the Shipley family and the girl who has come to love him.

Chastity is new to a lot of things in the modern world, and who could blame her? Growing up in a staunchly religious cult where a woman’s only job was to cook, clean, and birth the next generation meant that Chastity had missed out on a lot of things but as a college freshman, she’s eager to correct that – especially if that means spending more time with Dylan Shipley.

Dylan is usually the love ‘em and leave ‘em type – and that’s just how he likes it. He already has enough responsibilities as Griff Shipley’s younger brother and as a full-time college student. He’s as surprised as anyone else when he ends up with a girlfriend. Even more surprising – it’s not Chastity. Unwilling to admit his feelings for the girl he considers his best friend and reeling from his breakup with the aforementioned girlfriend, Dylan is shocked when he finds out that Chastity – sweet, naïve, beautiful Chastity – has been lusting after him and wants him to tutor her in more than algebra.

Dylan and Chastity’s relationship easily falls into the trope of friends to lovers romance despite the many, many hiccups along the way. Chastity struggles with verbalizing her desires as a product of her upbringing and Dylan likewise struggles with the obligation he has to his family and the Shipley legacy. Dylan is a really loveable character. He’s sweet in a puppy-like way but so oblivious sometimes it’s painful to read. I loved him as a character, but some of his decisions were questionable (i.e., not sticking up for Chastity when she was being badmouthed, hooking up with his short-term girlfriend – Chastity’s roommate – within earshot, etc.). It was gratifying to see their relationship flourish, if only because, ultimately, he is sweet and Chastity deserves happiness.

Although I adored Dylan and Chastity in Heartland, there were a few things that bothered me with other characters – mainly Griff. Reading Heartland reminded me why I ended up skipping the first book in the True North series. I know that his character is meant to be gruff and hard on his family in the name of love, but in the last several books it’s felt like it’s his way or the highway. I did like that there was a heart-to-heart moment between Dylan and Griff. It went a long way towards swaying my opinion on the eldest Shipley brother. The other character I didn’t care for was Kaitlyn. I could understand her hurt and embarrassment to some extent, but she took it out on the person who deserved it least. In my mind, there’s no excuse to be needlessly cruel even when you’re hurting. Although she redeemed herself a little in the end, I still don’t care for her.

Overall, Heartland was another wonderful addition to the True North series and I truly enjoyed reading it. Sarina Bowen has a unique ability to weave painful topics and deep characters into a beautiful love story, and Heartland did not disappoint in that regard. ( )

I enjoyed this but didn’t feel as though we learned enough about the characters; I guess I might not have been as emotionally involved as I was with the other books in the series. ( )

What a great read! I really have enjoyed every Sarina Bowen book that I have read so far so I was pretty eager to read this book. This is the seventh book in the True North series and like the other books in the series, it reads as a stand-alone story. I didn't want to put this book down once I started reading because I was so invested in Dylan and Chastity's story. I really enjoyed the time that I spent with this incredible story.

Chastity has a very interesting past. I am always looking for something different so I really liked how unique her story was. She grew up inside a religious cult where the women were not treated very well. She didn't go to school and only escaped in her late teens. She is a freshman in college even though she is twenty-one and she needs some extra help in some areas to keep up. She gets weekly help from her friend and neighbor, Dylan, who she might have a giant crush on.

Dylan spends his weeks at school, juggling classes, a girlfriend, and some fun, but he spends his weekends back at the Shipley farm helping out and taking care of the animals, including his pair of goats. He has a hard time seeing Chastity as anything but innocent but he is very protective of her and likes spending time around her. When they decide to try to make some money making caramels out of goat milk, he is dedicated to the endeavor.

I loved Chastity and Dylan. They were both great characters and once they got together, I thought that they made a great pair. They did feel younger to me than characters in the other books in this series and I guess they were. Dylan is twenty and while Chastity is twenty-one she felt younger because of her limited experiences. A lot of the book is set at college where there were some pretty interesting characters that I grew to appreciate over the course of the story. I thought that Dylan and Chastity had great chemistry and it was fun to watch the progression of their relationship.

I would recommend this book to fans of contemporary romance. This was a great romance with great characters, a believable romance, and a few pretty touching scenes. This is a series that you do not want to miss!

I received a digital review copy of this book from the author/publicist. ( )