Catch and Keep by Erin Hahn

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press, St. Martin’s Griffin

Date of publication: October 15th, 2024

Genre: Romance, Contemporary, Contemporary Romance, Adult, Fiction

Purchase Links: Kindle | B&N | WorldCat

Goodreads Synopsis:

In Erin Hahn’s latest cozy, swoony romance, Maren Laughlin has been fishing her whole life, but she’s finally ready to be caught.

At thirty-three, Maren Laughlin’s just turned down her boyfriend’s proposal, walked away from her decade-long position as a park ranger, and returned to her childhood playground in Northern Wisconsin to accept her inheritance: a decrepit waterfront bait shop. After a lifetime of letting things happen to her, she’s ready to start making her own moves, even if everyone else thinks she’s making the wrong ones. Well, not everyone—at least the local heartstopper and resort owner is on her side.

Josiah Cole has made some missteps in his life, but he’s proud of what he has: two awesome kids and the keys to the kind of getaway spot that has families coming back every summer– their up north home away from home. After his marriage dissolved, leaving him a single dad, he feels he’s the last person to judge Maren for her recent transformation (even if his best friend, her brother, wants him to feel otherwise). Besides, he genuinely likes having her around. She’s a breath of fresh air, his kids adore her (not to mention her dog, Rogers), and it doesn’t hurt that she’s beautiful.

Things between Maren and Joe are easy. So easy, they’re fully immersed in the middle before they even decide to begin. It’s not a question of should they, but rather can they make it last? Are things too easy, or is this just how real love works? In Erin Hahn’s heartwarmingly sexy Catch and Keep, Maren and Joe have to be brave enough to find out.

First Line:

“Happy birthday, sunshine!”

Important details about Catch and Keep

Pace: Medium

POV: 1st person (Maren, Joe)

Content/Trigger Guidance: Catch and Keep contains themes that include ableism, stalking, alcohol, cyberbullying, slut-shaming, abandonment, and child abuse. Please read carefully if these trigger you.

Language: Catch and Keep contains moderate swearing and language that might offend some people.

Sexual Content: There is moderate sexual content in Catch and Keep.

Setting: Catch and Keep is set in Wisconsin.

My Review

When I read the blurb for Catch and Keep, I was a little “meh” about it. But I have read a couple of books by Erin Hahn before and decided to give it a go. Well, wasn’t I surprised when I realized this book takes place in the same universe as Built to Last and Friends Don’t Fall in Love. Once I realized that, I started to enjoy the book.

The main storyline of Catch and Keep is split between Maren and Joe. The storyline does merge a little after the middle of the book (when Maren and Joe hook up). This book was well written and well fleshed out, with characters I loved (and one I couldn’t stand).

The storyline with Maren was a little rough to read. Maren had found fame as a YouTuber in her late teens/early twenties. Her channel was dedicated to fishing (the name Musky Maren did give me a giggle), which was her passion. She shut the channel down when a viewer started to cyberstalk her. She turned her knowledge of nature (and fishing) into a career as a park ranger. She put that career on hold after ten years when her boyfriend (and soon-to-be supervisor) proposed in public and made her throw up on his feet. She took off to upper Wisconsin, where she spent summers with her family at a resort, and where a family friend left her his bait shop when he died. The rest of her storyline centers on Maren coming to terms with her life and figuring out what she will do next. Joe and his kids are a massive part of her life from the second chapter on, and they factor in her decisions towards the end of the book.

The storyline with Joe was just as challenging to read as Maren’s was. Joe is ex-military, divorced, and has physical custody of his two children (Anders and Lucy), one who has autism. Joe’s ex-wife took off shortly after Lucy’s autism diagnosis and blamed everything on Joe (the end of the marriage, the autism diagnosis). Joe knows Maren from her summers at his parents’ resort, and he now manages. The rest of his storyline focuses on his daily life with his kids (and how much routine and therapy are needed for a small child with autism) and his reconnection with Maren.

The book didn’t start to pick up until Maren and Joe started dating, which only happened a little after halfway through. The build-up to their relationship was excellent. I loved how good Maren was with the kids and how she bonded with them. I also liked that she didn’t exactly fight her feelings for Joe. As for Joe, he was a little more cautious with Maren because his ex put him through the wringer.

I do want to address Joe’s ex-wife. Honestly, I didn’t like her from the minute she was talked about. I get that she raised the kids alone while he was serving overseas, but it didn’t excuse her taking off when he got back (and after Lucy’s diagnosis). The more she appeared in the book, the more I disliked her. She ignored everything Joe told her about Lucy and chalked it up to her being “difficult.” The culmination of that secondary storyline made me see red. I loved that Maren didn’t hold back when confronting Joe’s ex when they got to the hotel and saw how Lucy was being treated.

I also want to address Maren’s brother, Liam. Not to mince words, but he was an emotionally abusive, manipulative asshole who got his ass served to him by his wife and Joe. I’ll leave it.

I loved watching Maren grow into herself throughout the book. The only time I was iffy (and at one point, scared) for her was when she realized that her cyberstalker from years ago lived in the same town she did. Other than that, I loved seeing her grow into herself and find joy in doing what she loved (fishing).

I loved the romance in Catch and Burn. It wasn’t quite a slow burn, but it wasn’t lightning fast either. It was comfortably in the middle and believable. I also liked that while there was a chapter or two where Maren needed to take a break from Joe (to reevaluate her priorities and goals), there was never a breakup.

I loved the end of Catch and Keep. I liked how everything smoothed out for Joe and Maren. And, of course, that last chapter was excellent. I loved that they got a very much-needed HEA.

Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press, St. Martin’s Griffin, NetGalley, and Erin Hahn for allowing me to read and review this ARC of Catch and Keep. All opinions stated in this review are mine.

If you enjoy reading books similar to Catch and Keep, then you will enjoy these books: