Book Bites: 3 Sentence Intro About What This Story Is

Oscar and Noah have reach the next phase of their relationship, parenthood with the new baby girl, Bette. When Noah’s sister becomes very sick and ends up in the hospital, Noah is forced to face a terror of his former life: his parents. Noah must stand up to his parents and confront unresolved issues from his past in order to protect the happy family and life he’s worked so hard to have since leaving the Witnesses.

*Content includes some strong language

*As usual, to see the official book teaser/summary of this, go to anywhere books are found and read up more about what this book is about.

Now on to My Commentary (**May Contain Spoilers: Read at Your Own Risk)

Here’s what you need to know about Sera Trevor’s books. It’s short, sweet and you know it’ll be damn good to read. Hey, that rhymed. Well, keep this saying in mind. Damn, I did it again.

What a great way to jumpstart the month of November. A month of thankfulness! And Noah and Oscar have a lot to be thankful for, especially when their precious new baby girl, Bette, was born. But paradise doesn’t last long. And this time, it’s sweet Noah who has to overcome his issues.

Settle Down is the sequel to one of my favorite books, The Troll Whisperer (read the review for that book here). While the first book illustrates the development of Oscar and Noah’s relationship, get excited for Settle Down because now we get a look into their married life and parenthood.

I was a little sad that there weren’t any spicy love scenes between the husbands. This time there are only implications of love scenes but not explicit details. Though I found this fitting, seeing as though it’s written from Noah’s perspective rather than Oscar’s. And given the story’s plot, it makes sense why there wouldn’t be. I must say, I do live for their steamy love scenes! So hot!

This book carried more anxious feelings than the first. A serious and suspenseful tone throughout the whole story. Noah is forced to face his past and his parents when his estranged sister, whom he’s trying to rebuild a connection with, falls severely ill.

Noah lived his whole life in the Witnesses hiding who he truly was and numbly following the church’s and his family’s rules. He has learned to follow along, but never stand up for himself. He has learned to shut down to protect himself. A very poignant backstory for this kind and caring man. Compared to the introduction of Noah’s character in The Troll Whisperer, a Noah who was more private and optimistic, we finally get a closer look into Noah’s character in Settle Down when the return of his parents stirs up negative feelings in him. Feelings simmer up and boil over to the point that Noah has no choice but to stop running and face his fears.

We do get Oscar being his lovable troll self and demonstrating what a wonderful husband he is during Noah’s time of need. Noah’s parents re-entering into his life has stirred up a lot of issues for the new dad and his new family. It’s been years since he’d seen them since moving across the country to California. Noah thought he’d finally cut ties with them then. That he’d left this restrictive old life behind. He was wrong. The past has come back to him.

But Noah’s a grown man now. Will things be different with his parents? Will they be able to accept the happy life he has? Or will they try to tear it down?

Some of the things that the parents said to Noah were very harsh and it broke my heart that sweet Noah was treated this way. Sure as hell pissed off Oscar too, who’s fiercely protective of his husband and family. We all know from the first book that though Oscar is one intimidating and grouchy son of a bitch, he’s a real softie inside. Seeing Oscar comfort and support his husband, being a great father to Bette, and also having great relationships with his family warmed my heart. He’s Noah’s rock in this book and tries to help his husband confront the past and move forward from his fears when all Noah wanted to do was shut down and run away from the mess.

Good thing Noah also has the whole Lozada family, his Uncle Zeke, Crystal and Jeremy to help back him up during this difficult time.

The audience also gets more details about the lifestyle and beliefs of the Jehovah’s Witnesses community. I know some other reviews mentioned how they didn’t like that it focused a lot on the religion in Settle Down. I found it fascinating. I learned so much about this religion I wasn’t familiar with. And I loved learning more about Noah and cheering him on to stand up to his parents and defend the incredible life he’s built.

On a brighter note, we also get the cutest scenes with baby Bette, Noah and Oscar. They make the sweetest and cutest family!! Having his parents come back in his life makes Noah contemplate how he wanted to raise his own daughter. And he had work through his own demons to become the best father he could be for Bette.

This was a minor detail but I really love that Sera Trevor continued this idea from the first book. Noah listens to ASMR to calm down and relax when he gets stressed out. I’m glad Noah is still into ASMR! We also understand better why Noah was so attracted to ASMR to begin with. It was something he needed to keep calm. What he needed to cope with negative feelings. And every time I think of Noah and ASMR, I have a huge grin on my face because this was how he and Oscar were brought together.

Final Thoughts

A very heartwarming story about family! Something like a Hallmark or Lifetime movie. A feel-good novella that reminds us of who our true family is, even if it’s a found family and not a blood-related family. Perfect start to the holiday season, right? Which is hilarious because Sera Trevor even added Oscar saying this in Settle Down, “This is like a Lifetime movie. I’m ready for the credits to roll.” Trevor knows what’s up.

Check out this book if it piques your interest. Hope you enjoy it as your next read or a re-read!

And remember, “Every story is worth the read. Someone (some poor, overworked, ink-stains-on-the-clothes lovely soul) took the time to write it.”