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Review

4.5 sweet, angsty, sassy stars

I love this book! Both sweet and angsty, it’s a wonderful love story with great banter, lots of chemistry and a nice amount of steam. But it’s also the story of two damaged people moving on from their pasts and finding something very special together.

Olivia is 22 years old, rich, pampered and popular, but she made a big mistake whose repercussions shattered her picture-perfect life – this is part of the story of the prequel novella, Isn’t She Lovely – and I love that the author took the character who was essentially a villain, and painted her as a very likeable but misunderstood heroine in her own book. Bizarrely, Isn’t She Lovely isn’t available for me in Australia until later this year, so I went into this one without all of that history. But the story is recapped really well, and I was able to get a good sense of what had happened and where everything was at.

Wanting penance for what she has done, and in an effort to run away from her life in New York and the mistakes that she has made, she takes a job caring for a war veteran in rural Maine. Expecting to be spoon-feeding a crotchety old man, she is surprised when she discovers that her veteran is actually a gorgeous, although scarred, 24 year old whose main problem seems to be his attitude.

Paul was the only member of his team to return from Afghanistan where he was wounded and badly scarred. Tormented by his memories, he is angry and overwhelmed with guilt, and he channels those emotions into being a sullen and moody bastard. Since his return he has lived his life as a recluse, hiding his scars from the world in a plush estate set up by his wealthy father and after pushing away a series of carer/companions, he gets the shock of his life when Olivia turns up on his doorstep, and he is instantly on guard.

I don’t need a gorgeous blonde to remind me of all the things I can’t have.

The set up to this story is very similar to one of my all-time favourite books (Me Before You) and I must confess it took me longer than I wanted to get into it as I kept comparing it, but Olivia and Paul are strong characters, and the dynamic between them as well as the charm of the story soon had me hooked.

“It’s just so romantic. The beautiful angel swooping in to save the surly dickwad who’s quite possibly a murderous recluse.”

The story is told in dual POV, and the author does a great job at getting us to the heart of her characters – both of whom are very different from how they initially appear. They are both immediately attracted to each other and it doesn’t take too long sparks to begin to fly as Paul is at his assholish best, and Olivia soon learns that the best way to handle him is to dish it right back!

“You’re one messed-up piece of work.”
“Yeah, but you’re starting to worry that you might like me,” I say confidently. “Considering I also give you a boner, shit’s gonna get reaaaaal complicated here in the next few months.”

There is a lot of push and pull between them as they figure out how to act around each other with all of the zinging chemistry, but the banter is fantastic as Olivia’s strength and sass slowly start to drag Paul out of his shell. And as they get to know each other, it’s no longer just raging lust between them, real feelings start to develop.

She makes me forget to breathe. She makes me forget everything.

I want her. But more than that, I want her to want me.

I loved the development of Olivia and Paul’s relationship. It’s slow building and it’s realistic, and it’s pretty freaking hot. And each little step forward has a lot of significance to it.

No matter where I look, my walls are crumbling, and this damned girl keeps presenting me with the most dangerous element of all.
Hope.

Both Olivia and Paul have issues that they need to deal with, and they certainly don’t make it easy on themselves – or each other – but I thought that the way they come together was really beautiful. It’s not an easy ride, and they have many hurdles to face before claiming their HEA, but I actually enjoyed the angsty moments, and through all of the ups and downs I could feel everything that they were going through, and I thought their story was beautifully told.

Olivia hasn’t just taught me how to love. She’s done something much bigger. She’s taught me how to live.
And I don’t want to do it without her.

I really enjoyed this book. It’s sweet but has a lot of depth, and the romance is absolutely gorgeous! Paul and Olivia’s story is very special, and I’m hoping that we get to see more of them in future books of the series.

4.5 stars.

 

The Redemption series