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Series Recommendation – Restoring Heritage by Tari Faris

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I loved reading Tari Faris’ Restoring Heritage contemporary Christian romance series set in a small town in Michigan. The series includes three trade length novels and two novellas with eight romantic pairings in the series. The full length novels each include a romantic subplot. Let’s take a closer look at the romances that span the series. The Restoring Heritage series opens with a prequel novella: P.S. Goodbye.

P.S. Goodbye is Carolyn and Grant’s romance story. It’s a fun prequel romance novella that introduces us to the larger cast of characters in the small town of Heritage.

The story opens with Carolyn anticipating a wedding proposal from Mason, her boyfriend for the past four years. Instead, Mason breaks up with her and turns her neatly ordered and planned world upside down. Carolyn drives to her cousin Nate’s house to lick her wounds. Nate is the new pastor in Heritage, and Carolyn is stunned to find Grant, Nate’s best friend, is staying at Nate’s.

Carolyn has had a crush on Grant since she was thirteen, and when she was eighteen she almost thought she had a chance with him. Grant has been medically discharged from the Special Forces and he carries a whole lot of baggage, including the betrayal of his brother now being engaged to Grant’s ex-girlfriend. Grant is staying at the parsonage with Nate while he gets back on his feet.

Carolyn is a newly accredited life coach. She helps run their family store called WIFI with her twin sister, Leah. Carolyn and Leah hire Grant to create an online presence for their struggling store. Carolyn is perplexed to be stuck working in close proximity with Grant, and their simmering attraction can’t be ignored now their five year age gap isn’t an obstacle. Learn more about Carolyn and Grant’s romance story in P.S. Goodbye here.

In P.S.Goodbye we also meet Hannah and Olivia, who are close friends with the twins. Olivia and Janie are sisters. Janie moved to Paris after Hannah’s brother, Thomas, broke her heart. Thomas is now interested in a relationship with Madison. And Leah has a long time crush on Luke, who only has eyes for Hannah. Pastor Nate and Olivia are friends with the potential for more.

You Belong With Me is Hannah and Luke’s romance story. Hannah is a realtor who wants to restore the town of Heritage to its former glory. She’s on a mission to save Heritage from a local developer (Jon’s uncle) who wants to build a strip mall in the middle of town. Luke is a former foster kid who is looking for somewhere to belong. Luke and Hannah are best friends, and Luke has loved Hannah for years. After their dating disaster in high school, Luke doesn’t believe he’s good enough for Hannah, and they are stuck in the friend zone. A fun romance develops as Luke starts to unravel the secrets from his past. Luke and Hannah are probably my favorite couple in the series, although it’s super-hard to try and choose a favorite when I loved all the romantic pairings for different reasons.

The romantic subplot in You Belong With Me is Janie and Thomas’ romance story. Janie has returned from Paris to find Thomas engaged to Madison. Janie is employed as a pastry chef at Donny’s Diner that’s owned by Thomas and Hannah’s uncle and aunt. Janie’s sister, Olivia, also works at the diner. When circumstances lead to Thomas working at the diner, everything becomes complicated and messy for Thomas, Janie, and Madison. Learn more about You Belong With Me here.

Until I Met You is Libby and Austin’s romance story. Libby is Luke’s long lost sister, and she’s the new librarian in Heritage. Austin is Nate’s brother who runs the family construction business. They have won the construction contract to redo the Heritage town square. Libby has to work with Austin to create a solution for the location of the new library, and they both struggle with how to manage their growing attraction due to being hurt by past relationships.

The romantic subplot in Until I Met You is Olivia and Pastor Nate’s romance story. They have been friends for a while, but Olivia can’t convince Nate to act on his feelings. Olivia’s freelance article research assignments that involve Nate are hilarious. Learn more about Until I Met You here.

While It Was Snowing is the Christmas romance novella with Danielle and Gideon’s romance story. Gideon is Janie and Olivia’s brother who works with Danielle at the garage owned by her family. Gideon considers Danielle ‘one of the guys’ and a good friend who’s known by the nickname Dan. But everything changes when Danielle’s makeover transforms her into a beautiful girl wearing a pretty dress at Nate and Olivia’s wedding. Learn more about Gideon and Danielle’s delightful romance story in While It Was Snowing here.

Since You’ve Been Gone is Leah and Jon’s romance story. Jon has loved Leah from a distance since high school, but Leah has always thought Jon hated her. Leah is back in Heritage after serving with her brother in a mission in Costa Rica, and she wants to reopen the WIFI. Jon is a professional basketball player who has returned from Europe with his younger sister to take over the family business. His uncle took over managing Heritage Fruits after Jon’s parents tragically passed away. The WIFI business premises is jointly owned by Leah’s family and Jon’s family. Jon proposes a business arrangement with Leah to assist her in reopening, and also takes steps to try and win her heart.

The romantic subplot in Since You’ve Been Gone is Madison and Colby’s romance story. Madison is one of my favorite characters in the series. I loved seeing Madison’s journey to faith and seeing her find her own happily-ever-after. Colby is a recording artist who’s hiding out at Nate’s to avoid the scandal engulfing his Christian band. He forms an unlikely friendship with Madison, who has returned to Heritage pregnant, alone, and out of good options. She needs to sort out her late father’s estate and fix up the house to sell. Madison is the girl from the wrong side of the tracks who never felt she belonged or was good enough to be friends with Hannah, Leah, Carolyn and their close group of high school friends. Learn more about Since You’ve Been Gone here.

I loved the strong friendships in the group of Christian women who went to high school together in Heritage and stayed in touch. They’re doing life together even if they’re geographically apart. The small town dynamics in the series are heart warming and realistic. Everyone knows everyone else’s business in Heritage. The townsfolk embrace Hannah’s vision and want to see their town revitalised and prosperous. Otis, the brass hippo who mysteriously moves around the town, is an adorable and quirky addition to the series.

We recently chatted with Tari Faris at StoryChats @ InspyRomance in Episode 37 and talked about Since You’ve Been Gone. I couldn’t resist asking Tari to share her inspiration for Otis.

Questions for you: Have you read any of the books in Tari’s Restoring Heritage series? If yes, do you have a favorite book or romance couple? I honestly can’t pick a standout favorite book, lol. Do you like reading series books in order? If yes, do you read each book as they release, or binge read them when they’re all available? Do you reread favorite series? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

I received an advanced reader copy of Since You’ve Been Gone from the publisher. Many thanks to Revell and Net Galley.

Narelle Atkins (199 Posts)

A fun loving Aussie girl at heart, Narelle Atkins was born and raised on the beautiful northern beaches in Sydney, Australia. She has settled in Canberra with her husband and children. A lifelong romance reader, she found the perfect genre to write when she discovered inspirational romance. Narelle's contemporary stories of faith and romance are set in Australia and international locations.


Comments

  1. I do enjoy reading series. I must read them in order. Just makes sense. A binge read is so much fun.

  3. Hi Narelle! Tari Faris is a new author to this Michigander. Was intrigued to find out where in Michigan the small fictional town of Heritage was located? So I purchased P.S. Goodbye. As a teen, I camped every summer with my church youth group at Ludington State Park. Enjoyed a day October 2016 at the park reminiscing about my youth.

    This avid read enjoys reading books in order when each book is released. Very seldom to I reread a book – not enough time, since there is always something new to read (new author to explore, etc.). Cooler weather in Michigan. Fall is in the air – days are shorter, nights are longer. At sunrise this morning, definitely a fall cloudy sky near the shores of Lake Michigan. Road trip time. Best wishes. Enjoy your weekend.

  4. I have not read this series but would love to. Sounds great. Thank you for sharing. Blessings

  5. I have not read this series but I am going to add it to my list. It sounds like a series that I would enjoy reading.

  6. I love series and try really hard to read in order if I can find them all. I love to binge read but also read as they release. Sometimes after a whole series has been released I go back and binge read it over again in order.

  9. Hi Renate, It’s always fun when the story setting is associated with good memories. My tbr pile is large enough for me to never reread books, although that doesn’t stop me from rereading, lol. I’d love to visit Michigan one day. The closest I’ve been is travelling from Chicago to Indianapolis. Enjoy your fall weather and road trips. 😊

  12. Hi Diana, I prefer to read the books in order, and I’ll reread if I’ve forgotten what has happened in earlier books. Now I have an oversupply of books, waiting until they all release in a short series and binge reading can be easier. Longer series I’ll read in order, but occasionally I’ll do a mini binge and try to read a few of the books back-to-back. 😊

  13. I LOVE Tari’s books! I have to say my favorite is P. S. Goodbye. I read a series when each book is released. And I do have certain books I will read over and over again. And this series is one of them.

  14. Hi Andrea, I loved how P.S. Goodbye introduced the series and story world. I will confess that I wrote this post knowing it will help me remember who’s who when I later reread the series, lol. I’m looking forward to reading more of Tari’s books, too. 😊

  15. Narelle, I live east of Chicago – 60 miles across Lake Michigan. On cool crispy fall days we can often see the Chicago skyline in our sunsets. Indianapolis is a nice town to visit. We had friends that lived there. Indy has a fun zoo and children’s museum, plus an authentic German Ratskeller (German Restaurant). Enjoy spring. Best wishes.

  16. Hi, no I do not have any of these books, but they all sound like great reads and the book covers are beautiful! I do love to read book series, and I read them as they are coming out. Have a great weekend and stay safe. God Bless you and your family.

  17. I haven’t read this series, but it sounds really good!! I do like to read a series in order! I’ve read quite a few, and have always read them as the books come out. Very rarely have I found a series I’d like to read where all the books are out! I do like to go back and re-read books! I’ve only binge read one series, and that was The Tales of the Grace Chapel Inn, and there’s still about 3 or 4 books in that one that I haven’t read.

  18. I have all but “Since You’ve Been Gone” on my shelf, but I haven’t read them yet. I can borrow that last one from my Overdrive library now that it’s out :-) Reading books in order is my preference and having all the series books available is ideal, though I don’t mind waiting a month or two. It’s when you have to wait 6 months to a year on the next book that I don’t like! I’ll wait to read them all if that’s the case.

    I don’t re-read books. If I have physical copies, I give them to my sister-in-law or donate them to my library if she’s already read them.

    I can’t really come up with a “favorite” fictional couple because generally I love each one I meet in whatever book I’m reading. Though I do have to say, Becky Wade’s Bradford Sisters series have couples that really stand out to me…..especially “Sweet on You” Britt & Zander. They’ve been forever friends, but he’s loved Britt since almost the beginning & has hidden it for years (she had NO idea). I was really looking forward to their love story & Becky Wade delivered in spades!! That series almost BEGS for a re-read, and that’s saying something for me :-)

  19. I love this series too! I’m a little behind in my reading so I haven’t yet read the last two in the series, but the first novella and then the first full book were soooo good!

  20. I got to be on the launch teams for Tari’s series, and have loved them all! So hard to pick a favorite. A fun side note is that Tari’s grandmother and my mom were roommates in college, and stayed friends all their lives.

    I do like to read series in order, and don’t like series that come out a year apart, so if I discover a series that’s already all written, I’m happy to binge read them all at one time :-) If I have to wait a year between, I’ll often re-read the previous one just before the next one comes out.

  21. I am definitely OCD about reading series books in order but I don’t binge them. There is only one series so far that I have reread and I’m currently on my third reading of it.

  22. Hi, Narelle!
    I prefer to read series in order. When I don’t, it feels like I’m getting spoilers. Usually I only get something in the middle of a series when Bookbub/Amazon has a special which I pick up. I’ll read that and find out that there were other stories before. Depending on prices, I will go back and pick up the earlier books as I can.

    I much prefer binge reading a series to waiting in the middle. I’m a slow reader so I tend to reread only sections of series. There are some series that I am definitely planning to reread at some point. I just want to forget a few more details before I do. :-)

  23. Hi Narelle :) I haven’t read this series, though I’ve heard about it. I also loved getting to read your thoughts on each of the books.
    I do like to read a series in order, but as much as I’d love to binge read a series, I don’t have the time anymore, so, lately, I just read them as they are released :)

  24. I do read book series and in order. This is a new one for me always looking for new authors to read!

  25. I haven’t read this series or any books by this author. With series it can depend how far between releases. if its only one a year I often will wait till closer to the last book being released. With books being released several times a year I am more likely to read as they come out. I got burnt by one series where the author had cliff hangers or just seems to end the book at the end of one chapter and then having to wait a year. I had trouble trying to remember what had happened so now wait but if its a series but each book is complete in itself I will read as they come out.

  26. I have not read any of Tari’s books. They sound fabulous. I do like to read series in order. I have bing read a lot of series. Thank you so much for sharing. God bless you.

  29. Hi Trudy, I remember reading a few books in The Tales of Grace Chapel Inn years ago. A fun series. I hope you’ll have an opportunity to read Tari’s books. 😊

  30. Hi Trixi, Restoring Heritage is a great choice for binge reading because there are many fun connections between the lead characters in each of the books. I’m behind on reading Becky Wade, and I have a few of her books in my tbr, including the Bradford Sisters series. If only I had more reading time, lol. 😊

  32. Hi Margaret, Wow, that is a cool connection you have with Tari! I used to reread series books in anticipation of the six month or annual release. Now, I have too many books to read, and I’ll put some books aside to binge read later as a complete series. 😊

  35. I haven’t read any of the books in Tari’s Restoring Heritage series yet.
    Do you like reading series books in order? I do but often times I read series out of order 🤷🏼‍♀️

  36. Hi Lincoln, yes, it can be frustrating to read the accidental spoilers for earlier books in the series. I tend to remember those spoilers and forget the relevant story details, lol. I like using the Kindle search feature to refresh my memory. 😊

  42. Hi Natalya, I will occasionally read CCR continuity series books out of order if I’m short on time and there’s a particular book that I really want to read first. It also depends on how interconnected the stories are within the series. I hope you’ll have an opportunity to read Tari’s books. 😊

  43. I haven’t read any of her books, but after listening to the podcast episode, I definitely want to!

  45. This is a new to me author, Narelle. Thanks for introducing me. I don’t know how I missed her. The books sound really good. I love to read each book in a series as it releases. Then wait about a year and read the whole thing back to back.

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