3 stars. Josie Sanchez is a head winemaker and wants to make an awarded wine. She needs an assistant for the wine making season, and her owner tells her to hire his niece, Mackenzie Layton. Mac is willing to learn and wants to get into the wine industry. All Josie wants is her own wine brand and to be able to make things her own way. She does not want an assistant who does not know anything about wine. They both feel a chemistry with each other and do not know what to do with it.

I thought this book was fine, I did not hate it but I did not love it. I thought the chemistry between the two characters was fine but I felt like it ramped quickly and it had a lot of drama I did not like. I would recommend this book if you like the author, I am not sure I loved this book. This book was a little forgettable and I am not sure I would read it again, It was just an average book with not a lot too it.

I received an advanced copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Set in wine making world, this romance take us to the lives of Josie, and experienced winemaker, and Mac, who just recently decided to join her uncle's business of wine. The two main characters are very likable and keep us attached to their story as they discover new feelings and fight the obstacles that are bound to show up when you find yourself falling in love with your employer/employee.
A light read, although missing some relationship depth, is sure to keep you entertained.

Crush, such an interesting name for the title because of not only referring to two people who have a crush on each other, but it also has a reference to the wine industry where Crush is one of the main steps in the winemaking process, which includes harvesting, crushing and pressing, fermentation, fining/clarification, and then aging and bottling.

The Cadieux Winery in the Willamette Valley, Oregon, is the winery where Josie Sanchez is the head winemaker and has the opportunity to have her very own label if she can earn gold in the CRU Awards. To her dismay, Hank Layton, the winery’s owner, has brought in his niece, Mackenzie (Mac) Layton, to be Josie’s intern. The position requires a lot of important knowledge and Josie is immediately unhappy and upset that Mac hadn’t studied or prepared, leaving Josie having to babysit her and teach her everything.

There is great character development that brings the story to life as we learn the pertinent role of everyone, including other very likable employees, local friends and one unsavory and obnoxious fellow. The brightest character is Mac, who proves her worth with her hard efforts, earning Josie’s respect .
Since Mac is housed in Josie’s basement, the attraction begins between the two. They both know the no fraternization company rules, how Josie could lose her job if they allowed themselves to become involved.

The author obviously knows a great deal about wine production because I found it very amazing to hear about all the different and difficult steps in producing wine, how hard, time consuming and exhausting the work is.

I don’t want to leave out the hot romance but don’t want to give anything away other than to say it was quite a journey with some misunderstandings, low angst, and enjoyable reading.

My thanks to Bold Strokes Books and Net.Galley for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

I’m this is a cute book, but started to get annoyed with Josie. I do love the lesbian representation of this book and live LGBTQ stories are being told. I love wine so was cool getting to know some things about the process. I’d recommend to a fiend looking for something light to read on vacation

t's my first book from Ana Hartnett Reichardt because until now, she wrote YA novels which are not my favorite playfield and despite hearing only good things her writing I never gave it a try. This adult romance was the perfect occasion for me.
I don't know if the author is a wine lover but she clearly did her research thoroughly about the wine universe. As a non English native speaker, Google was my friend and I watched winemaking process videos to help me understand the vocabulary, and I was happy to learn new things. Now what did I think of this romance? Slow burn is like good wine, the longer you wait to consume it, the better it is : and this one was delicious. Reichardt has clearly a talent to write characters feelings and internal fight. The tension between the characters, careful to respect their work ethics was palpable and going crescendo until they couldn't hold it anymore.
Chemistry was definitely there and I had all I asked for : tension, cuteness, feelings and some well written steamy scenes.
My personal downsides were that I found the conflict of interest between the boss/intern relationship might have been dragged a bit to much and the resolution a bit too ideal and easy in a short time in their timeline Reichardt could have also digged deeper into the resolution of Josie's anxiety issue.

But overall I really enjoyed this book, it was fast pace and I couldn't put it down. I hope the author will keep writing some adult novels to feed my granny heart. I could defiy picture a short story between Erin and Shelby.

Ana Hartnett Reichardt crushed it with her latest book. Pun Intended. Haha

This story makes me feel like I want to meet Josie and Mac in real life. I want them to teach me about wine and bask in their love. Go buy this book now.

Reichardt is definitely a top 5 author for me. She writes with such a care for her words and for her characters.
Can't wait for next book in the Alder series.

Thank you to Bold Strokes Books and NetGalley for providing an eARC for an honest review.

5 star
Intoxicating on so many levels!
A very slow burn romance that got very hot. The romance was blended fantastically with the very interesting wine making. You will fall in love with wine along with Josie and Mac.
The dialog is rich and very sexy. All the characters are interesting and warm....with one villain.
My favorite line was " when I dreamed of kissing you, I dreamed you kissed me back". That really described what was happening. (Great writing)
The title "CRUSH" is perfect for this story.
I highly recommend this story.

I was given an arc of this book through Netgalley on August 21st, which is after the publication date of August 15th. I will be reading this in the future, however I have other acrs of books that are not out yet that I need to get to first.

In wine terminology a crush is the harvesting of the grapes. It is the timing of the crush which makes for the best wines. Cadieux Vineyards has lead the way with their award winning wines under the tutelage of head winemaker, Josie Sanchez. This year Josie is hoping to make a limited run of her very own wine which will be made under her personal label. Unfortunately the owner of the business has just thrown a spanner into Josie’s plans. He has hired his niece Mackenzie, who does not have any wine making experience, to assist Josie through the most important crush of her life.

The art and science of wine making is blended nicely into this slow burn romance. Reichardt brings her personal experience and knowledge of the wine industry to life through Josie and Mac. Her storytelling is wonderfully engaging and entertaining. My only complaint is that there is a fairytale ending which I found to be unrealistic although others may love it.

I received an advance review copy from Bold Strokes Books through NetGalley. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Mackenzie Layton has tried working with her father in Marketing but the fit wasn’t that comfortable, in fact she hated her job but she felt she could make a go of it working with her uncle Hank who has grown his winery into a winner. Winning numerous awards has come with the help of Josie Sanchez, head winemaker. Josie knows her craft, making some of the best wines on the market. Now if this year's production is as good as she thinks, Hank has promised she can make her own wine using his winery.
Now Josie is saddled with Hank's niece who appears to have no real knowledge of what it takes to work in a winery. She’s awfully cute but does she have any idea of the long hours and hard work required in making the best wine. Mac comes across as someone who doesn’t know a lot about working in a winery.
This has turned into a book that I had a hard time putting down. Fast paced, great likable characters along with all the ins and out involved in making wine. Good plot that Ms Reichardt has brought to life is a story of two vastly different women. Very, very nice read.
ARC via NetGalley/ Bold Stroke Books

This has been a story set between vineyards and wineries and small towns, starring Josie, a winemaker who dreams of having her own wine while working for a long-standing brand owner. And the other protagonist is Mac, the niece of the owner of the winery, who without having a fixed direction in her life, comes to work at the winery, causing Josie's concern, since she sees her more as a hindrance than as a help. Just now that Josie has a chance to get her dream, wine novice Mac may spoil her plans. So at the same time that it happens to Mac, the book shows us the process of wine production and its adjacent activities, not with many details, but it is certainly illustrative and we are learning at the same time that she does.

At the same time, Josie and Mac, who from the beginning feel attracted even though their employment relationship slows them down, since they have to share a house, although in separate areas, they develop that attraction until they finally decide that it will not be the cause of a labor conflict, being the uncle of Mac who is both Josie's boss and owner of the winery, the last hurdle they must face.

The result of the novel has been quite interesting, the two protagonists are mature and coherent, with the doubts that the circumstances have caused them, but they have known how to dialogue and put the problems on the table. A nice story.

This was my first book by this author and what an undiscovered gem she is! The two characters had instant chemistry that was so palpable I knew they would be explosive when they finally acted on their feelings and I was not disappointed. The build up was perfectly written and added to the reader’s anticipation. The winemaking setting was interesting and well described to the point that you felt immersed in the wine world but it wasn’t so technical that you got bored. It was one of the best romances I’ve read this year. The author clearly has a rare talent for writing sizzling chemistry and I look forward to picking up her next book.

I did not know how little I cared about the process of making wine until I read this book. Despite having absolute zero interest in the wine making process, I still enjoyed the the story. I liked the main characters and found its say to root for them to get together. Some parts of the story were a little slow, but the book held my interest well enough.

thank you to netgalley for this arc!

this years crush is very important for wine maker Josie, as if she wins gold she can finally start her own brand. however, her boss makes her hire his niece Mac as her assistant, and Mac has no experience. it seems bound to be a disaster, but when Mac proves to be a quick learner, and they start developing more than a professional relationship, what will happen when the crush is over?

this was my first book from this author, and it was really good! i liked how the relationship developed, but that it also wasn’t the only plot point.

I also loved how both the characters where ambitious. Josie wants her own wine brand more than anything, and has been working towards it for years, and Mac has just left her old job that she didn’t enjoy, and was never taken seriously by clients, and is determined not to let that happen again.

overall the romance was very sweet and believable, and at the end i was rooting for them!

Josie has been working at Cadieux Vineyards for the past 15 years. As the head winemaker, the owner promises her that she can make her own label if she gets a gold medal pinot this season. Josie has the confidence that she can do it, until the owner hires his unexperienced niece Mac as her intern for the summer. This crush wasn't turning out like she expected.
I absolutely adored this Sapphic novel. I learned so much about the process of winemaking all while getting wrapped up in the small town vibes. The main characters have depth and dreams; I felt like I was in the story with them half of the time. The book had just the right amount of spice, giving my overall rating a 4.5! Highly recommend this book if you love wine and Sapphic romances!

I enjoyed this book. It started out slow but gradually picked up as the story progressed. It turned out to be quite intriguing, 4 stars.


Thank you, Bold Strokes Books, and NetGalley for this ARC.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a slow read in the beginning, but then I was up until 2:30 am because I had to know what happened to the main characters!
The main characters are Josie and Mac. Josie is the head winemaker at Cadieux Vineyards. Mac has been given an internship by her uncle, who is also the owner of Cadieux. Josie is not happy about the situation having no say in the matter. To make a bad situation worse, when Josie meets Mac, she finds out that she has little to no experience with making wine.
Josie does her best to train Mac and Mac does her best to impress Josie with the skills she has learned. What starts off as a bad situation is turning out to the best for both women as they learn more about the other.
I would recommend.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Crush by Ana Hartnett Reichardt is a delightful age gap romance set in the majestic Willamette Valley with two wonderful main characters who are lovely both inside and out. The winemaking process is perfectly detailed in a user-friendly manner and is a highlight. There are two adorable and devoted doggos who will steal your heart and supporting characters whose loyalty will make you smile. I highly recommend this book if you’re looking for low angst and high sweetness. So grab a glass of pinot, and settle into your favorite spot to enjoy this sublime read!

This my first book by Ana Hartlett Reinhardt and I enjoyed the story for the most part. It was especially interesting as it was set in a vineyard which followed the wine makers romance and the process of making a wine vintage. Josie may come across as grumpy when Mac first meets her but she soon learns that it thinly hides her passion for making wine and for all things Mackenzie.

Living in an area that produces world class wines and having a large tourist following, I could really relate to this story on many levels. There were a few little threads in this storyline that seemed to have been forgotten or could have been followed up but it didn’t detract from the story too much.

Believable characters, some cute dogs, great wine I could almost taste and a HEA want more could you want in a story.

A story that takes your hand and sets you up at a nice table on top of a hill overlooking the gorgeous winemakers valley. A glass of tasty Pinot in your hand. Oh and there’s a cute couple sitting next to you. If you love wine and a hot falling-for-your boss trope, this book is the one for you.

I received an advance review copy for free from Netgalley and I am leaving this review voluntarily

Josie is the best winemaker in the Willamette Valley. Or even the country. She has been solidly working her way to winefame at Cadieux winery for the past 15 years. And this is the year her boss Hank will finally let her produce her own label. A dream come true. If only Hank doesn’t insist on hiring his incompetent niece as her only intern for this very important harvest.

Mac is done being viewed as inconsequential. Her career at her fathers marketing firm is getting nowhere, because no one takes her seriously. She is determined to make a life and career for herself once and for all in the, new to her, wine making business. When her beloved uncle hires her as an intern at his prestigious vineyard she jumps at the chance. If only her boss and head winemaker wasn’t so harsh and, ok, seriously hot.

The love for wine and the process of making it seeps through every page. Although all the technicalities went far over my head, they only helped cement the importance and love for wine these two main characters have. Hartnett Reichardt does a great job in immersing her readers in the beauty of the wine country and the passion for the profession.

I loved reading how Josie’s walls crumbled around Mac. She goes from cold and not wanting her there to being warm and lovable. It all happens naturally. Mac on the other hand is determined to impress Josie with her learning curve and her personality. She succeeds by being her authentic self and that is what makes her so admirable.

The tension and growing connection between Josie and Mac is a sight to behold and, may I say, searingly hot! The way these two connect emotionally and physically is the stuff of dreams.

Josie struggles with what their relationship with Mac will mean for her professional life. The way Mac stays by her side through it all shows the strong and courageous woman she is.

This was my first book by Ana Hartnett Reichardt and will certainly not be my last. She has a way of using descriptive imagery that lets you immerse yourself completely into the story.

Now please pick up this book for yourself and excuse me while I book a trip to the Willamet Valley.