This third book the series starts out with a bang, with Sam and Diane meeting at a hotel bar, then spending an explosive night together. The next day they realize they are on opposite sides of a political fight over agricultural methods with Sam representing Big Agriculture and Diane fighting to maintain small seed libraries and local control. Sam is so disgusted at the company line that he quits his job on the spot and tries to find Diane to explain and apologize, but she's already long gone. Much to their surprise, they run into each other a year later at his family farm. Sam now works as a state agriculture extension agent and has just been transferred back to Fork Lick, while Diane has become close friends with his grandmother and is in the middle of filming a series of videos popularizing local farms and businesses. Sam is an adorable but oblivious wiz kid with a fast mind who leaps ahead to conclusions and expects everyone to fall in line with his solutions because they are logical. Diane is the opposite. She's interested and engaged with everyone she meeets and makes sure that her video subjects shine brighter than she does. Nonetheless, the chemistry between them flares back up and can't be denied. The book was on the shorter side but there was plenty of time to establish a strong connection between Sam and Diane. Add in family fights and mended ties, Sam's sweet failed service dog, Gomer, Grandma Bedd's pet sheep, Baabara, and assorted neighbors and friends and you have a great story, one that makes me eager to continue the series. I received a free copy of this book from the author and am voluntarily leaving a review. All opinions expressed are my own.

The description for this book included a warning, kind of: Don’t read this book unless you love hot, grumpy, nerdy heroes, sunshiny, do-gooder heroines, small town hijinks, and steamy one-night stands followed by forced proximity smexy times. Like they say, it’s a dirty job but somebody has to do it, so I went ahead and read it anyway. All joking aside – wow. The Farm to Forking series is already super great, super funny, super-hot, but starting the 3rd book in the 5-part series, For Fork’s Sake by Karen Grey, was like going home. Already a huge fan of everything she writes, after just a few paragraphs I slid smoothly into the humor and heat – and it felt so good. We’re working our way through the Bedd siblings, four brothers and a sister, at Bedd Fellows Farm in Fork Lick, New York. When their parents died in an accident, the Bedd children were raised on the farm by their grandparents Eugene and Ethel. They grew up loved, but they’ve all got some hang-ups or issues that weren’t understood or addressed or communicated. Grandpa Eugene was a big believer in ‘my way isn’t just the only way, it’s the best way’ and the brothers especially weren’t always sure where they stood – or maybe they were sure and that was the problem. They are a family, but not always a close or happy family. Anyway, we’ve already read oldest brother Ethan’s story: he assumed the responsibility of running the farm after Eugene died. The farm that was on the verge of bankruptcy because of Eugene’s business decisions. Next came Alex, who was told he needn’t worry about running the farm because that wasn’t going to be his responsibility, so he moved on to manage the nearby Udderly Creamy dairy farm. Now it’s Sam, the brainiac who’s supposed to use the college education that Grandpa paid for working in the corporate side of farm management as Grandpa told him to. Not where Sam’s heart is, and Grandpa makes it quite clear a week or so before he dies how disappointed he is that Sam has quit. For Fork’s Sake picks up right where Butter You Up left off. Cupid has shot some arrows and dropped some hearts and happiness on Ethan and Alex in the romance department, but Sam still feels like an outsider from his family and romance – ha ha ha – every woman decides sooner or later that he’s too weird for long-term. Usually sooner. His brain does in fact work differently than everyone else’s and there’s a valid medical reason for that, but Sam doesn’t know that yet. He’s working at a job he hates, at a conference he doesn’t believe in and feels alone except for his flunked-out-of-service-dog-school devoted dog Gomer. When he meets Diane at the conference he feels so immediately connected and understood that he is suddenly hopeful. Their night is magical; they discover they are both Trivia-Crush-aholics and have been playing against each other through their screen names for months. It’s amazing. But when he has to give his boss’s speech and Diane walks out, disgusted, he searches for her and then quits on the spot. But she’s gone and it’s probably just as well he’ll never see her again – because he’s weird, right? Fast forward seven months. Sam’s working at a farm-related job he actually enjoys and believes in (except for those stubborn farmers who won’t listen; remember, he doesn’t know about the weird part of his brain yet) and not happy that he’s being transferred to his hated hometown, sort of a last chance to learn to fit in and help, not impatiently lecture. You know who’s going to already be there at Bedd Fellows Farm when Sam arrives, don’t you? Yep, it’s that very same Diane. She’s a do-gooder with a secret past she doesn’t want revealed, trying to do her own tiny bit of good in the world. She remembers that night as fondly as Sam does, except for the horrible job part, but it’s in the past. And when she sees that “corporate suit” Sam she is shocked at the family connection, still disgusted about his work, but man oh man that one night was pretty doggone memorable and he is pretty doggone handsome. The sparks that fly between the two of them are like the 4th of July. And then author Grey makes the story even more impossible to put down. Sam and Diane first try, unsuccessfully, to pretend they don’t already know each other. Then when the thaw starts to set in and Cupid comes for them again, they try, just as unsuccessfully, to pretend that lust and desire are not whizzing through the air. Sam is still so resentful and frustrated and unaware of some particular family history that he is often his own worst enemy and doesn’t know when to shut up. Diane still has her big secret to keep and isn’t sure how/if/when/or should she fit in. Talented author Grey takes so many diverse threads and emotions and possibilities and weaves them together into an extremely entertaining story, populated with silly people and charming people and some not-so-nice people, like Ginny, Sam’s trivia night teammate who is obsessed with him and not averse to a little blackmail. Situations are serious and lighthearted and unpredictable. And fair warning: some declarations of love will bring lots and lots of tears to your eyes. For Fork’s Sake is a wonderful addition to a series that is full of animals, girlfriends, and laugh out loud moments balanced with poignant, serious issues. Grandma Ethel is a hoot, Trixie and Gomer really are man’s best friends, Mootilda is a charming addition to farmer’s market weekend, and Baabara is a princess. Thanks to author Karen Grey for providing an advance copy of For Fork’s Sake. I have already stated I love everything she writes but it bears repeating: her stories are well-plotted with engaging dialogue, quirky references and people who feel real and make you fall in love with them. I voluntarily leave this review; all opinions are my own.