In Lost and Found by Tarah DeWitt, Hairstylist Bea Marshall thought her life would take her beyond her small hometown of Spunes, Oregon, and keep her busy 
alongside her best friend Merritt. But the universe had other ideas. After Merritt’s second battle with cancer eventually takes her short life way too early, Bea feels like she’s lost. Going back to Spunes was supposed to help figure out her next steps. Then she finds out her bestie left one final gift, a way to become a mother while hanging on to a piece of Merritt. Everyone has an opinion on going through IVF. Bea tries not to listen to them, instead focusing on staying healthy and getting past her grief one day at a time. But when she suddenly needs a place to stay, one of the best–and sexiest–guys she knows, Silas Byrd, comes to her rescue. Something he has a habit of doing. And not just because he’s a firefighter. No, they have a long, long history together. And it could make becoming roomies very complicated.
‘I don’t know how he does this, laying himself bare the way he consistently does. This man is hope in action. Bravery in human form.’
Silas probably isn’t in the right headspace to have Bea in his house. Having to see her nearly daily and not give in to his attraction to–and feelings for–her will definitely test his resolve. But he can’t imagine her being anywhere else. And somehow, as Bea moves in and becomes part of his days, she also helps Silas see himself as something other than damaged goods since he nearly lost his life in a fire. The scars on the outside are just the beginning. It’s bad enough on its own. But the way it messes with his thoughts about himself and how others view him is something he’s never dealt with before. Silas is used to being the life of the party. And Bea brings that playful side out of him just when he thought he’d never feel like himself again. If he can help her during her IVF journey, he will. He’s hoping along the way, she’ll also let him into her heart now that they finally have the chance to spend time together.
“Sometimes it feels like I lost someone, too, in my accident, as shitty and insensitive as it sounds. Sometimes it’s like I lost…me.”
LOST AND FOUND was an intense character-driven small-town romance that covered a whole lot of emotional ground. Somehow author Tarah DeWitt hit the perfect balance of sorrow and laughter, despair and hope, while exploring the lengths we would go to for our closest loved ones. And it turns out that our heroine, Bea, would do absolutely anything for her beloved sister of the heart, Merritt, even after her bestie’s devastating passing.
“I thought I lost my Always person when I lost Merritt. I did lose her, but you taught me how much room there is for more, if I was open to finding it. And, Silas, I would choose you always, too.”
Written in dual POV, Silas and Bea shared a love that was a long time coming to put it mildly. He fell first way back when they were still in school in their hometown of Spunes, Oregon, and over the years it seemed everything stood in their way. DeWitt used a dual timeline to show the wonder and the heartbreak of it all. The connection Bea and Silas had from the start along with their snappy banter will be enough to warm your heart–until the more heartbreaking moments worked their way in between each of those scenes.
But what I appreciated was that Silas and Bea (for the most part) actually *communicated*. Particularly as adults. The way they used humor to get through the worst of their personal issues definitely fit them to a T. And the fact that they helped each other by going along with it until they needed to dig down into the serious stuff just felt right. Because not only was Bea working through her grief over losing Merritt and wondering if going through IVF to keep some part of her bestie close was the right thing to do, but firefighter Silas was also coming to terms with the scars–physically *and* mentally–from nearly dying in a wildfire.
TROPES/VIBES:
💕 Friends to lovers
🏠 Forced proximity
🔥 Childhood friends
🚒 Firefighter hero
🌊 Small-town romance
💔 Right person, wrong time
❤️ Second chances
👫 Roommates
CW: View Spoiler »
With all the loss they both went through over the years, it was honestly Silas figuring out how to respect and love his changed body after the fire that gutted me. He was usually the ray of light. The funny man. The one who made everyone around him feel happier. So, to see Silas having negative thoughts and watch his light dim a bit was disheartening to say the least. But Bea was there for him. And she had a way of getting him to smile, of bringing him around to their patented flirtations to prove he was still worthy of not only her time but also of her love.
Whether or not you’ve read the other two books in DeWitt’s Spunes, OR, series, I think readers will cherish the time they get to spend with Silas and Bea. But I will caution one thing: before you sit down to read the epilogue, have tissues–lots and lots of tissues–on hand because boy will you need it. The chapter is told from a different POV. And it brought a perspective to the story that will both make you want to weep and make your heart soar.
QOTD: Have you ever helped a loved one cross items off their bucket list, or would you if you had the chance?
Book Info:
Publication: Published: August 4th, 2026 | by St. Martin’s Griffin | Spunes, OR, #3
A stunning novel of romance and redemption set in the Spunes, OR world, filled with heartbreak and hope from “master of emotion” (Rachel Lynn Solomon) USA Today bestselling author Tarah DeWitt.
Bea always wanted to be a mom. But she never expected she’d have to lose her best friend to do it. Armed with nothing but her best friend’s eggs and a bucket list to complete, Bea’s world is a sea of changes.
When she needs a place to stay, her longtime friend Silas steps in to help. A firefighter grappling with the aftermath of an accident, Silas has his own challenges to work through that have left him cautious and vulnerable.
At first, they expect nothing. But as these two former sunshines knit together in a love that has been unfulfilled until now, a new beginning comes out of the ashes of the past—one that will lead to a love that can withstand all the slings and arrows, joys and triumphs, that life can throw.
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