Romance Book Club discussion

Hey Romance Book Club members! This thread is going to be open for people who like to share thoughts, reviews of books, or people who like to give trigger warnings of books. This thread will be available for everyone to use and I know some people find it helpful to see that before reading a book.

If your not sure about a book and want to even see what others have rated it, check it out here!

Average Star Rating On Goodreads: 4.2 stars ⭐
Series: Yes, this is book 2 of the Silverado Lake Series.
Editions: Kindle, Paperback
Published Date: March 9th, 2021
Trigger Warnings ⚠️: Chronic Illness, Medical Content, Pregnancy.

My Star Rating: 3 stars
I read the paperback version and it was 365 pages.
Sneak Peak:

Heartwarming story of two characters who are swept away with the beautiful Colorado scenery. You have Wes Harding who is a very hardworking bullfighter and has a very dangerous job that can result in one bad move can get him seriously injured. You also have Thea Davis who is a single mother of two children and she lost her husband while he was on deployment overseas.

As the two of them grief over their losses, they start to catch feelings for each other and there is a lot of temptation as Thea hosts this retreat for military families.

My personal review is down below! (DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK YET.) 💖

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I really was planning on enjoying this one but I'm not going to lie.. Thea and her attitude, and the way she treated Wes ruined this one for me. Thea drove me absolutely INSANE throughout the whole book.

Wes Harding is a hard working rodeo circuit cowboy and he left his family's ranch after his father died and he took the blame for himself. He needed a escape zone and he has lived the rodeo career for a while now, and has just got offered a HUGE job promotion and let's not forget the mention of a pay raise. But Wes gets a phone call from his sister in the hospital saying that she is going to need help at the ranch since there is a huge retreat going on. Wes has a huge decision to make on what he is going to do- help his sister out or take this job promotion and pay raise?

Jane is on bedrest for a few weeks since she is only 30 weeks pregnant and is having contractions already. Doctor is trying to stop them because they baby is not fully developed and need more time to cook. Toby is also in the rodeo business and is a bull rider who gets a call saying that their daughter will be coming sooner than they expected and he will need to fly home so he can be there if the baby is born early. Wes and Jane are really close and he chooses to step in and help his sister but in the meantime he didn't mean to fall in love while he was in charge of working this retreat at their ranch..... Thea Davis rents the ranch out during the summer every year and she is the leader of hosting this retreat to talk about how families can make their marriage better while their significant other is in the military.

Well Thea and Wes hit it off strong when just one kiss sends electricity winding between then but Thea is not quite over her ex husband Dylan who was shot while he was on deployment. The secret is that Thea had told her ex husband Dylan something very terrible and she figured it was time to call it off since they always were fighting and Dylan never gave the kids the time of day when he was home. Thea always did things to make Dylan happy but he didn't seen satisfied either but she always hides the truth from people because she knows that people will judge her because of what she said to Dylan. Read the book to find out what she says?!

Thea is a single mom with a daughter and son who she loves tremendously and will do anything for. This retreat is suppose to be a vacation to where she can talk amongst her friends, and share wonderful stories about their lives! But Toby has to interrupt the retreat by letting Wes know that his sister Jane is sick in the hospital and the baby has to be taken out or else it can kill Jane and the baby. Charlee (newborn baby) is now born at 30 weeks and will be staying in the NICU unit for a few months. Wes is determined not to leave his sister's side until he knows she will be okay and no matter what happens at the ranch, he needs to prove to his sister that he can handle things without her.

Thea gets side tracked and her son Ryan becomes attached to Wes very quickly. Thea knew from the start that Ryan was going to get his heart broken once Wes had to go back on the rodeo circuit. Thea promised herself from the very beginning of the book that she was NOT here to find love and she is trying to tell herself to walk away but once Wes mentions Dylan- Thea loses her shit and instead of using communication she lets her emotions go waaaay out of whack and now it's too late because one night in the hotel room and shit hits the fan. She claims that after she has royally messed up that she can only be friends with him and doesn't want to pursue a relationship because she is not over her ex husband Dylan.

Will Thea and Wes be able to stay friends after the night of the hotel room or will they be a thing? Read the book to find out? This book could have gone better and Thea ruined this book for me. (view spoiler)[ (hide spoiler)] (hide spoiler)]

Average Star Rating On Goodreads: 4.0 stars ⭐
Series: No.
Editions: Kindle, Paperback, Audiobook, and many more
Published Date: June 13th, 2022
Trigger Warnings ⚠️: Murder, Death, Death of a Parent, Violence, Gaslighting, Pregnancy, Toxic Relationship, Car Accident, Gore

My Star Rating: 5 stars
I read the paperback version and it was 322 pages.
Sneak Peak:

This book has a whole different suspense level and will keep you wanting to know more and it will feel like it takes forever to find out who the real killer is. Once you do find out it's not someone that you would think but it's a twist that will have you shocked! I could not put this book down.

My personal review is down below! (DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK YET. 💖

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Oh man this one was a wild ride..... I was not expecting the killer to be ___________. If you want to find out you need to read the book.

Brooke Sullivan was never the girl to do things that would get her in trouble when she lived at home with her parents. She was on the cheerleading team and she had got good grades and took her education seriously but at the time she was in a relationship with Shane Nelson. Shane was the quarterback of the football team in high school and was known to be popular but was a bully to other people as well. Well one night Shane convinces Brooke that everything was going to be fine and he has been wanting some alone time with her and the perfect time is when Shane's mother decides to go out of town for the weekend and Shane has the house to himself.

Shane invites his best friend Brandon and Chelsea, Brooke, Kayla, and Tim are all hanging out playing drinking games but it's all fun and games till Tim is not happy that Brooke is in a relationship and has been trying to convince Brooke that Shane was the one who murdered her that night by choking her with her necklace. Tim Reese has had the biggest crush on Brooke since they were little kids and had always talked about them getting together sometime but Brooke never really gave the thought much idea.... Well Brooke invites Tim to hang out with the group because Kayla tags along and she has no one to hang out with. Bad weather approaches and the power ends up going on and the tires of Chelsea's car and Shane's car are slashed so they have no way to make it back into town to figure out who is killing people.

Throughout the book the suspense level is real and you will find out who the real killer is and Brooke had made a mistake by not using protection and ended up getting pregnant with Shane's kid. Shane is now serving a life sentence for murder but he claims that he is not the one who tried to kill her that night. Tim hate Shane and will do anything to protect his best friend Brooke from getting killed. Now when Brooke decides that she is going to keep the baby, she loses connection with her parents and she is left to figure out what she needs to do with herself and her son. Her parents end up dying in a car wreck and she is left with their will which means she is given her childhood house and she is currently working has a nurse practioner at the prison.

Brooke knows she can't be picky when it comes to a job and she didn't think she would ever come in contact with Shane Nelson again but she works at the prison and was eventually going to see him at some point in time. Dorothy on the other hand gave her strict instructions on her first day and those were..... 1) Treat all inmates with respect. 2) Never give out any personal information to the inmates. 3) Never become friends with the inmates.... Will Brooke be able to follow those rules and will she be able to keep her job after finding out that the old nurse was fired because she was giving the inmates drugs and that led her to getting thrown in jail.

With sooooo many twists and turns that you will not expect... this one picked my brain and Josh turned out to be a really smart little boy who eventually didn't like the fact of not knowing who his read father was. This little boy has grown up without a father like figure until Tim comes back into the picture and ends up being Josh's assistant principal. Tim Reese makes his move and they decide to take things slowly because Tim claims he has not been able to move on since he is hung up on loving Brooke.(view spoiler)[ (hide spoiler)] (hide spoiler)]

Average Star Rating On Goodreads: 4.0 stars ⭐
Series: No.
Editions: Paperback, Hardcover, Kindle, Ebook, Audiobook etc.
Published Date: May 17th, 2022
Trigger Warnings ⚠️: Death of a Parent, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Infidelity, Drug Use, Addiction, Grief, Toxic Relationship, Fire/Injury, Emotional Abuse, Sexual Content.

My Star Rating: 5 stars
I read the paperback version and it was 389 pages.
Sneak Peak:

Nina Riva knew what she had to do in order to make sure her siblings got their education since their dad decided to leave and have divorce after divorce with women and he didn't care to provide for his kids at all. Nina has also been dealing with her issues and every year the Rivas throw a huge end of the year party and these kids are known for throwing the best parties. The ending in this one was shocking but I felt sooooo bad for Jay, Hudson, Kit, and Nina.

My personal review is down below! (DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK YET.) 💖

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This is by far one of the best books that I have read this year! That ending was totally not what I was expecting at all!

August of 1983, Nina Riva had thrown the biggest end of the year party at her mansion style house and I mean there are 200+ people that show up to this party and it gets WILD! Each of the Riva siblings have a story to tell and Jay and Hudson have some beef with each other after Jay finds out that Hudson lied to him about him having a relationship with his ex girlfriend Ashley. Jay had specially told him no but what's too late when Ashley is already pregnant....

Jay is a championship surfer who spends most of his time on the water every chance he gets. He ends up finding love and thinking he found the one with Lara but turns out it was not what they wanted. Hudson goes by his brothers side and takes fabulous photos of his brother surfing. All of the siblings have a very famous father named Mick Riva who is a professional singer. He also has a story to tell with his traveling and tours, and the women he has been with.... You would think after 6 failed marriages that he would slow down and learn to respect women..... wrong.....

By midnight this party has gone absolutely nuts and someone has put the house in flames. Nina has already been dealing with alot and throughout the book the siblings work together to make life work. Nina had to drop out of high school to raise her siblings since June drowned herself in the bathtub and was drunk. Nina had gotten custody of her siblings and tried very hard to show them the way but she would make sure her siblings are taken care of first and foremost. Casey Green thinks that Mick Riva may be her father and wants to speak with Nina, Nina has never heard of Monica EVER..... Are Casey and Nina sisters?

Brandon is a professional tennis player and travels to compete for championships but he finds that he messed up brutally when he left Nina for Carrie Soto. Carrie is a very famous female tennis player and Brandon gets caught up in her bull shit and leaves Nina for Carrie. Carrie told Brandon from the very beginning that if he fucks her over he would pay but she shows up at the party threatening to burn his clothes. She is pissed off with Brandon and Nina wants nothing to do with Brandon nor Carrie.

The ending was totally not what I was expecting and I am not going to spoil the ending for anyone, but if you want to know how it goes read the book! You won't be disappointed and I am telling you right now that the first part goes from past to present but Part two gets better and will pick up the read pace! The characters choices aren't great by any means but the suspense kept me wanting to know more and how the story played out. Felt terrible for the Riva siblings and Mick is a real piece of shit by wanting nothing to do with his family while he is famous but thinks he can come back and just win his children over by showing up at the party......
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Average Star Rating On Goodreads: 4.2 stars ⭐
Series: Yes. This is book 1 of the series.
Editions: Paperback, Kindle, Hardcover, Audiobook, etc.
Published Date: August 23rd, 2022
Trigger Warnings ⚠️: Domestic Abuse, Torture, Emotional Abuse, Gaslighting, Physical Abuse, Murder, Confinement, Toxic Relationship, Mental Illnesses, Violence, Death, Infertility, Child Abuse, Injury Detail, Infidelity, Forced Institutionalization.

My Star Rating: 5 stars
I read the paperback version and it was 329 pages.
Sneak Peak:

Andrew and Nina Winchester have been married for a while and Cecilia is Andrew's biological daughter. Nina had once been attractive to Andrew but once Millie starts working as the housemaid they start catching feelings for each other and they try to keep it from Nina. Nina is a whole different level and she finds out that she is not able to have kids anymore and Andrew has wanted kids of his own for a while but knows what decision he needs to make. Millie or Nina?

My personal review is down below! (DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK YET.) 💖

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Holy shit..... can we talk about that ending?! I was totally not expecting that at all. It's okay y'all.. I am not going to spoil it for you but if you haven't read this book you NEED to! At first I thought Nina was fucked up but Andrew is just as bad let's be real.

Andrew Winchester is the CEO of his father's wealthy business. His father retired and the business is still booming as he is bringing home some pretty good paychecks. Andrew owns his $5 million dollar house and was engaged to a woman named Kathleen before Nina came along and needed a decent paying job. Nina had gotten pregnant from a one night stand and was barely making it by so Andrew hired her to be the receptionist of his business. Nina and Andrew had caught feelings for each other and Nina pretty much took Andrew for granted and had lost all self control when she finally realized the type of person he is. Andrew has always envisioned a life with kids of his own and married to the woman of his dreams. Nina had lost all self control of her body, and was accused of drowning/drugging her daughter Cecilia in the bathtub. Nina Winchester has spent 9 months in the Clearview psychiatric hospital because she was suffering from depression and needed some medication to help her. She lost control when she drugged herself with pills as well. Andrew couldn't deal with Nina's lifestyle anymore. She wasn't cleaning the house anymore, she didn't bring any source of income at all, and all she cared about was spending money pretty much.

Throughout the book Nina figured that when Andrew's parents retired and moved to Southern Florida for retirement she was going to need to hire a Housemaid. The housemaid would also have to help Nina take care of her daughter. Nina hired Wilhelmina Calloway who had just gotten out of prison for 10 years for murder. Millie is currently on parole and she needs to find a job soon before her parole officer finds out she is living out of her car. She got fired from her last job and Nina figures she would be the perfect fit but Nina also doesn't alert her husband Andrew that the housemaid will be living inside the house. Millie soon finds out when she starts that Nina is psychotic and there is something not settling because almost everyone she talks to warns her that she needs to find another job since she is in "danger." Millie gets hired and on her first day she figures this is a dream come true as she gets to live in this expensive house, gets to get paid to clean and lounge around. Cecilia and Nina are very picky and treat her with absolute disrespect the whole time she is cleaning this house, but Millie doesn't understand how this house gets so dirty so quick.... Millie wakes up one morning and finds Nina purposely dumping food all over the floors of the kitchen, leaving used bloody tampons in the bathrooms, and leaving soaking wet towels on the floors of the bathroom. Nina has totally changed her attitude every since Millie has worked here and Millie is starting to catch feelings for Andrew and doesn't understand why a man so good looking can be with someone like Nina.

All comes crashing down when Nina gets the IUD placed in and pretty much lies to her husband Andrew saying she has fertility issues and she will not be able to give Andrew kids like he wants. Andrew has already been second guessing and going with his gut feeling about getting divorced from Nina because of her stupid wicked ways. Andrew claims she is not who she used to be and does nothing but complain all the time. Andrew is also tired of being taken for granted and Andrew is understanding that Millie is not a bad maid after all, and Nina is complaining over things she is doing but never told Millie what needs done. Accusing her of things that she didn't know what was wrong or not because Nina is a terrible host. Andrew has it made for him, drives the perfect car, lives in a huge gated house, and can have any woman he wants.

Throughout the book, Nina suspects that Millie is trying to make a move on Andrew. Millie finds out from one of the ladies at Cecilia ballet practices that Nina has a past that everyone knows about.... Again has been warned that she needs to leave. Millie does not believe what she is hearing... if you want to find out you will have to read the book?! Andrew divorces Nina for Millie after they have had the most wonderful night in Manhattan watching the Showdown opera. Millie had bought the tickets and Andrew didn't want them to go to waste so he decided they would go together but Millie realized Nina installed a tracking device on her phone.

Enzo is the landscaper and is claiming to be very good looking by all the ladies in the neighborhood. Enzo is from Sicily, Italy and ever since Millie's first day on the job, he warned her that Millie was in danger and she needs to figure something out. Millie didn't leave because she desperately needs this job. Millie really pictured her life in Nina's shoes and her parole officer told her that as long as she was careful she would be able to move on in life. Finding a job would be hard for Millie because of her past. (view spoiler)[ (hide spoiler)] (hide spoiler)]

Average Star Rating On Goodreads: 4.4 stars ⭐
Series: Yes. This is book 1 of The Boys Of Tommen.
Editions: Ebook, Kindle, Paperback, Audiobook. etc.
Published Date: July 24th, 2018
Trigger Warnings ⚠️: Bullying, Child Abuse, Domestic Abuse, Physical Abuse, Alcoholism, Emotional Abuse, Violence, Injury Detail, Cursing, Panic Attacks, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Medical Content, Blood.

My Star Rating: 1 star
I read the paperback version and it was 610 pages.
Sneak Peak:

I absolutely hated this book with a passion. Johnny is someone who needs anger management classes and thinks violence is the key to everything and I don't agree with this. Shannon has been bullied at school and her dad physically beats her at home so the only escape she has is school. Her mom is pregnant and can't seem to stay away from her abusive husband and Joey and Shannon have to figure out a way to leave the house and save their younger siblings from the torture.

My personal review is down below! (DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK YET. 💖

(view spoiler)[

I know I am going to get some comments on this but this is the WORST book I have read this year. There were parts of the book that was horrible and made me sick to my stomach. We all have lives that aren't perfect and that's where Shannon's life comes into place. Shannon's dad is very abusive, and the way he treats Shannon is not okay at all. Now her mother is stupid as well because she is choosing to stay with her abusive husband rather than be concerned for her children's needs. If that was my own father, I don't give a shit- I would have gotten authorities involved a lot sooner because he needs to learn his lesson. Now do I feel sorry for Shannon's mother having a miscarriage- yes, but she also chose to stay with her husband and could have asked him to help her out instead of constantly stressing about how Shannon is going to get her education finished.

Shannon Lynch is the sweetest girl you will ever meet and the things she goes through in this book is stomach sickening. Like I said, her childhood is very fucked up and she gets blamed for everything in her house, she can't hang out with friends, or have a life outside of her house because of her parents. Shannon and Joey have a very close bond with each other and Joey is also in a relationship with his loving girlfriend Aoife. Joey has been saving Shannon the best he can, and has saved her from getting bruises all over her body multiple times throughout the book. Joey comes to his wits end with their dad and gets in a fight telling his father that he needs to knock his shit off because it's not fair that Shannon has to live like this.

Joey and Johnny had bonded in the book, and Shannon knew from the very beginning that she should have stayed away from him. Shannon doesn't need to be getting herself involved with Johnny who (in my opinion) thinks he is boss and can tell everyone what to do. Johnny at the beginning of the book had told everyone that Shannon was off limits because she was young but yet the whole book- as he started to realize he was catching feelings for her, was being so possessive when he wasn't in a relationship with her. I honestly felt like this book was strung out and some parts were repeating over and over again. It wasn't until Gibson, and everyone started to realize how Johnny was suffering from not being able to stay away from Shannon. Yes Johnny realized he had feelings but he started to turn into a hypocrite (in my opinion) because he didn't want other people talking to her and thought that violence was always the key. Gibson had snuck Shannon's file from the secretary's office so Johnny could get answers to why Shannon is acting the way she does.

For all you ladies who think Johnny is so heroic- blows my mind that people think this, and I would never be with an possessive, stuck up, spoiled, rich asshole who thinks he runs the show. Johnny is in college drives a Audi and in all honesty thinks everyone will bow down and kiss his ass when things don't go his way. His anger issues is stupid and there are more adult ways to handle situations without violence in the key. I don't feel sorry for him when his coaches pulled him out of training on the field because he wasn't playing up to his potential and holding his line. He went to all his doctors appointments after he had surgery on his groin area, but he chose to lie to the doctors and not rest proper like he should have done, he decided to show up to trainings when he was told not to. Doctors told him specific instructions and he chose not to follow them so he can suffer for his actions.... why should everyone feel sorry for him when he did this to himself?

I DO NOT like Johnny at all. Claire did show some friendship towards Shannon but my question to her family is if she knew the childhood that Shannon goes through, why did they not do a damn thing to help her? Claire also has a brother Hughie who also plays Rugby and that is the only reason why Claire knows so much about Johnny. Lizzie was not the best friend to keep around Shannon because she was missing school, fighting with her boyfriend all the time, and had a big mouth. I felt like this book was putting myself into a slump most of the time and the fact that it took me 3 buddy reads to finish this... I am not going to recommend this to anyone and how this book is getting 5 stars pisses me off more than anything. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK.

Book was a complete waste of my time, characters were fucking stupid, and for almost 600 pages of garbage yeah fuck that. I can read better than this. (view spoiler)[ (hide spoiler)] (hide spoiler)]

Average Star Rating On Goodreads: 3.8 stars ⭐
Series: No. This book is a standalone.
Editions: Hardcover, Paperback, Ebook, Kindle, Audiobook etc.
Published Date: April 16th, 2019
Trigger Warnings ⚠️: Emotional Abuse, Domestic Abuse, Physical Abuse, Mental Illness, Suicidal Thoughts, Sexual Content, Toxic Relationship, Sexual Assault, Bullying, Panic Attacks/Disorder, Alcohol, Child Abuse, Grief, Gaslighting.

My Star Rating: 1 star
I read the paperback version and it was 266 pages.
Sneak Peak:

Marianne and Connell have been going back and fourth about their feelings for each other. Connell doesn't want everyone in the school knowing that he has feelings for Marianne because she is a little weird. Marianne also comes from a abusive household and since Connell is on the football team he needs to keep a good reputation. Will these two be able to pursue a relationship without thinking or caring what others will say?

My personal review is down below! (DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK YET.) 💖

(view spoiler)[

I am absolutely disappointed in this book. I had high hopes that this was going to be a simple romance but nothing like I expected of course. Marianne and Connell have been back and fourth after they have pretty much declared they have feelings for each other. I didn't like that the book went back and fourth between them.

Marianne comes from an abusive household. Alan (her brother) gets the abusive traits from their dad and thinks he can be in charge of Marianne when she is her own grown woman and can make choices for herself. In high school Connell is very popular and is on the football team. Everyone hates Marianne in high school because she is awkward and ugly. Both Marianne and Connell have done their very best to keep their secret hidden from others finding out. During the whole book, they never dated because Marianne thought she was too good for him and in college the excuse was she had become popular and dated other people to purposely piss Connell off. Yes they were pretty much friends with benefits the whole book and Marianne let's say this now has NO BACKBONE. She could have been with Connell from the very beginning who cared about her tremendously.... but no she chose guys like Gareth, Jamie, and Lukas. (Don't even get me started on these people.)

The connection was always there between them, but I honestly think both of them were scared because they cared more about what others would think of their relationship. Marianne struggles with anxiety and she has known all her life that she is very good when it comes to Politics. She goes to college at Trinity and is majoring Politics pretty much. Connell makes a huge mistake by signing on and accepting going to the same college as her because he hopes they would make it official in college. It doesn't become official ever in the book, and Marianne is now popular and Connell has no friends and is a loner. Marianne has to introduce him to all her friends and Connell has showed up at every party with her but she chooses to blow him off even more. Throughout the book, Connell regrets his decisions and suffers from severe depression. Niall (his college roommate) has took him to see a therapist but of course during this time, Rob has committed suicide and Connell has memories with him even though he wasn't the greatest friend to keep around. Eric and Rob made fun of people all the time and found it funny to pick on others and Connell was protective of Marianne.

Connell had finally moved on in the book and found a girlfriend named Helen. They had dated and she was told that they were friends with benefits during on time. Helen and Marianne do not like each other and Helen doesn't understand Connell's thought process about why and what he was doing. There has been numerous times where he has thought of Marianne and misses her but Helen is now pissed because he is "thinking" of another woman. I did find this book childish because Marianne had all the time in the world to make her move on Connell but never did. Now that Connell has moved on and found someone he loves Marianne is pissed off and cuts connection several times because she is jealous. Marianne graduates Trinity and moves to Sweden to continue living their, but she meets Lukas who is a sickening man. Marianne has no self esteem and will do anything a man tells her to do. She gets with abusive guys who like to beat her and no one understands why she does this. (view spoiler)[ (hide spoiler)] (hide spoiler)]

Average Star Rating On Goodreads: 4.1 stars ⭐
Series: No. This book is a standalone.
Editions: Paperback, Kindle, Hardcover, Audiobook, etc.
Published Date: May 10th, 2022
Trigger Warnings ⚠️: Death of Parent, Infidelity, Sexual Content, Grief, Panic Attacks/Disorder, Cancer, Toxic Relationship.

My Star Rating: 2 stars
I read the paperback version and it was 320 pages.
Sneak Peak:

Persephone has had the biggest crush on Sam Florek for the longest time. Every summer her family goes to the lake house and she looks forward to going every year but she finds out that Sam has been keeping the biggest secret from her and she is not going to like it when she finds out. Sam and Charlie's mom have passed away and Sam has moved back to help and she now has to attend the funeral but hasn't talked to the Florek boys in years. Will she be able to handle herself and what will happen when the feelings get more and more intense? Read the book to find out!

My personal reviews is down below! (DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK YET.) 💖

(view spoiler)[

Persephone Fraser has had the biggest crush on Sam Florek for the longest time. Persephone had been spending her time with Sam only during the Summer's as she was spending time in her parents cottage by the lake. Percy's favorite place is the cottage and she looks forward to her summer's being spent on the lake until one summer she finds out that Sam has been keeping a huge secret from her. Sam tells the truth that he will be going away from the summer because he signed up for a class that he thought would be beneficial for his degree as a Doctor. These two have so many memories as teenagers but what really starts the story off is when she gets a call from Charlie saying that Sue has passed away and they would like her to come back for the funeral.

I will say the book was kind of confusing as it went from past to present, but at first I thought Charlie was a complete asshole and was more like the player type since his teenage years consisted of multiple relationships with girls. Sam in my opinion loved Persephone but was really trying to plan things out since they never saw each other during the year. Percy's parents lived in the city or Toronto and it would have been hard for them to pursue a relationship without seeing each other. She knew that it would have been a bad idea to come back to Barry's Bay for the funeral, but her whole plan was to talk to Sam and figure out where things left off between the two of them. She was expecting everything to go smoothly but that was not the plan. Sam had been going to school and traveling back and fourth to help take care of his mother who was sick. Charlie didn't really come to help besides when the funeral came closer and was present and during their teenage years Charlie was Percy's first kiss.

Throughout the book you will see who the characters are and who really shows. I lost all respect for Sam when he was sharing the news about him leaving that summer for his class. But I understood that this would also help him since he was wanting to become a Doctor for the longest time. Percy lost all my respect when she knew she wasn't doing the right thing when she messed with Charlie behind Sam's back. If she really loved Sam like she said she does, then she wouldn't have had sex with Charlie. Sam has all right to be upset with Percy but I don't think now that they are grown up and have been separated from a while that they should be married.

I overall honestly feel like all the characters were very childish and I couldn't pick who was more of a mature role model because of their actions. You can plan on being disappointed in this book, I felt like the decisions that were made from the characters were rushed. I don't know if I would read this again to be honest, just because I was pushing myself to see if the ending was better. The ending was not better for me, and Percy and Sam are both at fault in this. None of the characters can point fingers at anyone but it was very rushed once again, and a little cheesy not going to lie. (view spoiler)[ (hide spoiler)] (hide spoiler)]

Average Star Rating On Goodreads: 4.0 stars ⭐
Series: Yes. This is book 1 of the Chestnut Springs Series.
Editions: Kindle, Paperback, Audible, etc.
Published Date: June 24th, 2022
Trigger Warnings ⚠️: Sexual Content, Injury/Injury Detail, Medical Content, Adult/minor relationship, Toxic Relationship, Death Of A Parent, Emotional Abuse.

My Star Rating: 5 stars
I read the paperback version and it was 400 pages.
Sneak Peak:

Rhett is a professional bullrider and lives in a small town of Chestnut Springs. Summer was hired to babysit Rhett because he just lost his biggest sponsorship. Summer works for her dads company and they will be spending alot of time together as she is just fresh out of law school and Rhett knows this is his childhood crush.

My personal review is down below! (DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK YET.) 💖

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If you have not jumped on Elsie Silver's books YOU NEED TO!! I absolutely fell in love with this book and I am so sad it's over. I am balling right now as I write this review to be honest. So let's get to it!

Rhett Eaton is a small town country professional bull rider. He lives in a small town of Chestnut Springs and obviously his career makes him very happy and he has a wild side to him which also makes him a ladies man. The rules that Summer was given is to babysit Rhett since he had just lost one of his biggest sponsor. They both will be spending the next few weeks together as Summer works for her dad's company named Hamilton Elite. Summer is also fresh out of law school and she is thrown into this job knowing Rhett Eaton was her childhood crush. She knows this will be very difficult to keep things professional but she knows she can do this and is doing her dad a favor by agreeing to the job. He can't afford to be getting in trouble and his sponsors getting word that he is doing bad things either. Rhett doesn't agree that he needs a babysitter and pays his agent very well.

Throughout the book, you will learn that Rhett Eaton has two other brothers and Harvey (his father) has raised him to be a gentleman. Rhett's mother passed away after she had given birth to their youngest sister. Rhett's brothers as well as his dad has been waiting for the day to come when Rhett finally grows up and shows some responsibility. The one thing you will learn is that Rhett goes out bull riding to bring in money so his father can save their ranch farm from being taken out from under them. Cade has taken over the farm as their father can't do manual farm labor anymore due to aging. Cade Eaton has been divorced and has a little boy named Luke who becomes obsessed with Summer. Cade now runs the ranch farm and deals with the responsibility of what needs done at home. He could have help from his brother Rhett but that day has not came yet..... Beau is the oldest of the Eaton brother's and is in the military. He has also just gotten back from deployment and will be back at home from a few months. Summer's first day comes and she is not a country girl at all at the beginning of the book. Summer also has a story of her own childhood. Kip ended up fighting to get rights for Summer and their step mom totally ruined the family between Kip, and the girls. Summer also has a older sister named Winter Valentine. Before Rhett came into the picture, Summer had been in a relationship with Rob who was her surgeon when she had her heart surgery at a younger age.

Also throughout the book, Rhett and Summer get along better as they share their childhoods with each other. Rhett at first is not approving of this baby sitting but throughout the book ends up falling in love with her once he finds out that he also did rodeo before she had gotten sick with heart issues and was forced to quit. Rhett knows this is a huge no to mix professionalism with personal. Both of them have tried to maintain and keep their hands off each other but towards the middle of the book is when things start to actually pick up. Summer ends up becoming a country girl once she sees the beautiful land Rhett has grown up on, and the house is just as stunning as the land and view is. Summer cares what others think of her and she learns that Rhett is the total opposite and will not give a shit what others think of him. He lives his life the way he wants and he tries to get her to understand that you only have one shot in life. Don't do things to please others if that's not what you want to do!

Moral of the story is... Summer starts to realize that their conversations become more and more meaningful and their time be more and more valuable as it comes closer to her last day being gone once he wins the World Championship Bull Riding prize. Now it will be her choice and his choice to continue to have a relationship if it's meant to be. As the both end up confessing their feelings towards each other, Kip (Summer's dad) ends up having a heart attack and Winter is forced to call and break the news. Summer is obviously a daddy's girl and will be by her side during hard time for him just like he was there for her when she was having heart issues.

What will her father think when he finds out the truth that Summer and Rhett are more than just friends and she fucked up by mixing professionalism with personal relationships? Will her father approve and will she become closer to her sister? THERE IS A SECRET THAT I'M NOT SHARING AND IF YOU WANT TO KNOW YOU HAVE TO READ THE BOOK!

This will throw you emotional tears during some parts so be sure to have tissues by you while you read. Towards the end of the book it starts to get spicy between Rhett and Summer so just a heads up their is some spice and sexy moments.
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Average Star Rating On Goodreads: 3.7 stars ⭐
Series: Yes. This is book 1 of If He Had Been With Me series.
Editions: Paperback, Kindle, Ebook, Hardcover, Audiobook etc.
Published Date: April 1st, 2013
Trigger Warnings ⚠️: Suicide Attempt, Death, Car Accident, Mental Illness, Pregnancy, Grief, Self Harm, Alcohol, Sexual Content, Suicide Thoughts, Suicide.

My Star Rating: 1 star
I read the paperback version of this and it was 336 pages.
Sneak Peak:

So it took me a while to push though this and I knew I wasn't going to like this because of the characters. Jamie is nothing but your typically player and treats Autumn like an asshole, Autumn is no better and can't make up her damn mind who she wants to be with. The whole book it's back and fourth of I wish him, I wish that... etc. Jamie always got mad when Finny tried to flirt with Autumn but he literally had sex the night before prom with another chick and expects Autumn to be okay with this. Autumn also has no backbone and will not stick up for herself.

My personal review is down below! (DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK YET.) 💖

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The first time I read this book, I DNF (did not finish) at 66%. I absolutely hated this book from the very start and I knew I wasn't going to give this book a high rating either. Jamie is nothing but a complete player, and asshole. Autumn drove me absolutely insane this whole book as she couldn't make up her damn mind who she wanted to be with... Finny or Jamie. Well that decision ended when she made her move and broke it off with Jamie because not only did Jamie have sex with Sasha the night before prom..... but he ended up getting feelings for Sasha.

Autumn and Finny used to be best friends but grew apart as they grew older in age. Autumn was in a relationship with Jamie for the longest time and it was a VERY toxic relationship. The whole time during her relationship with Jamie she kept wondering what it would be like to seriously be committed to Finny. Autumn had multiple chances throughout the book to make her move but she didn't want to let alone couldn't find the nerve to break it off with Jamie. The whole group of friends were terrible influences on each other. Brooke ended up cheated on Noah, Jamie ended up cheating with Autumn, Autumn ended up cheating on Jamie with Finny the whole time. This whole book was a complete waste of my time and I didn't find this book sad at all.

Jamie, Autumn, Brooke, Noah, and Alex are all immature and I had no respect for either of them. Sasha and Autumn literally at the beginning of the book competed against each other to get Jamie's attention... like common on who does this..... Finny has now became popular at school and Autumn and Finny have grown apart since they have gone their separate ways. Their mother's always figured they would end up together but didn't want to force this upon the two of them. There was times where they had a "silent treatment." and would not even speak to each other during family dinners. Just because they lived next door to each other doesn't mean they hang out together all the time. Everyone suspected and asked "Why aren't' you dating him or her." No one understood the concept of people grow apart and forcing relationships is not going to work.

Finny ended up going to medical school in New York, and Autumn ended up wanting to major in creative writing so she could become her own author of books. Jamie was NOTHING but an asshole to Autumn and didn't support her during anything she did. All he wanted from her was sex, and had promised her they would always end up together and in fact would be married. They didn't go to the same college, and throughout the whole book, I was really wishing they would just break up with each other but the moment they did I was happy. I could go on and on about this book and how toxic it was. I am not re-reading this again and I am happy for myself for finishing this but absolute worst book. I don't see why this book is getting 5 stars and I hated all the characters and could not sync with EITHER of them. There is alot of different characteristics going on here and I found it very confusing to keep track of how Autumn treated herself and how she figured out what she needed to do. It's her fault she was depressed because she didn't have backbone to make her own choices. She is a grown adult and still couldn't make choices for herself and would let Jamie walk all over her.

Best known as NOT enjoyable at all. I HATED this book with a passion and I hope for the sake of anyone who reads this... Just plan on being disappointed. There literally was no plot 60% of the book and felt like I was re reading the same chapters over and over and over again. The characters were extremely unlovable and everyone acted like a child.... The group between Autumn's friends was honestly nothing but embarrassment. I wanted to jump in this book multiple times and slap the shit out of these characters..... I am so glad I'm finished with this book.

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Average Star Rating On Goodreads: 3.7 stars ⭐
Series: No. This book is a standalone.
Editions: Hardcover, Paperback, Kindle, Ebook, Mass Market Paperback, Audible, etc.
Trigger Warnings⚠️: Kidnapping, Cancer, Drug Use, Gun Violence, Murder, Child Abuse, Confinement, Stalking, Addiction, Suicidal Thoughts.

My Star Rating: 5 stars
I read the Mass Market paperback and it was 397 pages.
Sneak Peak:

If you do not handle any of those trigger warnings this book is not for you. The ending is what totally shocked me and made me give this book 5 stars! Rachel Neil is going through a divorce and is a teacher at the elementary school. Her daughter Kylie gets kidnapped at the bus stop and Rachel gets a call from a unknown number saying her daughter is safe and alive but she has to keep the chain going and if she breaks it- her daughter Kylie will be killed. Rachel also found out her cancer came back and is trying everything she can to get her daughter back.

My personal review is down below! (DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK.) 💖

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I am going to say this to everyone right now, if you do plan on reading this you might want to look at the trigger warnings for this. If you do not handle kidnapping, murder, or suffer from anxiety or PTSD then I would not read this.

The ending I was totally shocked about and made me give this book the 5 star! I am going to try and not spoil this for anyone but let's see how this goes.....

Rachel Neil is currently going through a divorce and is a teacher at the elementary school. Rachel also has a 13 year old daughter named Kylie who gets kidnapped at the bus stop and Rachel gets a unknown call letting her know that in order to get her daughter back safe and alive she is going to have to do these things. Rachel knows she has NO CHOICE but to kidnap someone else's kid and keep "The Chain" going by also following the rules. This is not just a kidnapping but Rachel is also been informed that the rules are very strict and if she messes up at all during the process of keeping this going, the unknown caller HAS TO KILL KYLIE. Rules are:

1. No law enforcement involved. (police officers, FBI agents, detectives, etc.)
2. You have to pay the ransom amount and but the money in the Bitcoin account.
3. You have to inform The Chain once you have found your suspect and are warned that you are watched while doing this whole process.

Rachel also has found out her cancer has came back in the middle of all this kidnapping show. She know has to hurry and find a solution to this before her ex husband Marty ends up finding out the truth of what happened to Kylie. Rachel has also lied to the school saying she has caught a flu bug but she knows she can't be honest and speak about this to ANYONE, or else she can get in major trouble for it and her whole family will be killed. There is a whole back story of "The Chain" and this started in 2013 when Rachel had done her research after research and figured that this was a serious act and once she was a part of this, it would NEVER END. Throughout the whole story, Rachel is worried sick about her daughter and she is also trying to keep her victim safe and sound but she has to break some rules in order to be successful at hiding her victim. Rachel ends up kidnapping Amelia Dunleavy which also she now has to stress about keeping an eye on her victim so she doesn't escape.

Page after page I was wanting to know what had happened but even though Kylie has arrived safe and sound, she also can't speak of this to ANYONE and is now suffering terrible anxiety and is wetting her bed at night because of all the nightmares. Rachel has tried to get her daughter help but the one rule Kylie has been told not to speak about is holding her back from living her life without being scared. Marty is a police officer and questions Rachel why Kylie has been acting strange and she has lied to him to cover her ass of not getting arrested for kidnapping. As you read the book, you will see how this play out and who stays alive and who is dead.... but one thing is for sure... watch out who you trust and Rachel needs to be a better parent to her daughter.

Pete comes in the story and has helped Rachel out tremendously by helping her get her daughter Kylie back. Pete and Rachel have gone through countless nights of sleep and Pete has been discharged from the Marines because he has been caught doing illegal heroin. He has tried to stop cold turkey but he realizes that instead of pain killers, he takes his drugs everyday and can't even pass a drug test since he has been discharged. Pete and Rachel end up catching feelings for each other and Pete is very protective of Kylie as well and treats her like she is his own daughter. Marty and Pete are brothers and Rachel knows that this probably won't end well with Marty when he finds out they have a secret relationship hidden for a while. Rachel has told Pete she can't stay at the house until he has passed his drug tests and can't be doing that around Kylie. Keep in mind Kylie is a very smart girl and has been trying to find ways to escape has she has been locked in the basement of someone's house.

Kylie is only 13 years old. Once Kylie is home safe and sound she tells her mom that while she was kidnapped they had smacked her in the face and found out the names of the people she was with is Heather and Jared. Rachel has tried to explain to her daughter what she had to do was right or else she would have been killed. Kylie is slowly understanding how things work as she is seeing her mom's victim sitting in the basement of a house she had broken into. She can't say anything to her own father about her ways and what's going on.

Will Rachel and Pete end up getting caught doing the things they did or not? Read the book to find out?!

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Average Star Rating On Goodreads: 4.1 stars ⭐
Series: Yes. This is book 1 of the series Where love Meets Destiny.
Editions: Ebook, Kindle, Paperback, Hardcover, Audio CD, etc.
Trigger Warnings ⚠️: Death Of A Parent, Sexual Content, Gun Violence, Car Accident, Sexual Assault, Rape, Grief, Domestic Abuse, Murder, Child Abuse.

My Star Rating: 5 stars
I read the paperback version and it was 400 pages.
Sneak Peak:

If you haven't read this book you need to! This is one of my favorites! Bree had moved from her hometown of Cincinnati, Ohio after her dad had been murdered and was looking for a fresh place to start. Bree will never forget the day it happened and will remember that for a while. Well she moved to Pelion, Maine and bought a nice little cottage home but needed to get situated and find a job soon. She didn't move to find relationships either but she finds Archer Hale really good looking and she can't help herself.

My personal review is down below! (DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK.) 💖

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Y'all if you haven't read this book, stop what you are doing and order this now! This buddy read with Lexi really brought out the book more and made me enjoy this!

Bree had moved from her hometown of Cincinnati, Ohio after her dad had been murdered. She needed a fresh start and completely new people that would make her life better that didn't know about her past. Bree had told herself that she would NEVER forget the day that messed her up and would always miss her dad. Bree had moved to Pelion, Maine to start fresh and she needed a lot of help if she was going to make it and stay here permanently. She had found a nice little cottage by the lake, and she needed to find a job soon so she could pay her rent. She moved in and told herself that she was not going to focus on men or relationships but what happens when she runs into the man in town who's name happens to be Archer Hale.

Anne was Bree's neighbor and had told stories after stories about what she thought but she didn't understand his childhood and all the trauma he went through. His mom had died in the car accident when he was 7 years old and his dad was Marcus Hale who was a absolute piece of shit. Archer never thought he would be able to become a normal human again and he fell in love with Bree as they started to hit it off and neither of them thought this was going to feel right. Archer had never been off his property since he was 7 years old but had gone to town for a few things. Bree had learned his past and his childhood, and Bree had thought Archer new things and encouraged him to go out and have a life like a normal person.

Travis and Archer are cousins. Travis knows Bree is off limits but won't stop getting in the way of Bree and Archer's relationship. Travis is a police officer and thinks he should have all the women falling for him but he gets butt hurt when Bree friend zones him and chooses Archer. Archer has also learned that opening up and trusting someone you love and that is willing to help you goes along way. After never having someone to talk to and not being able to have family to rely on... Bree was his main focus slowly but surely. Archer learned things he didn't know he could do until he found the right person which was Bree!

The way their relationship goes throughout the book is absolutely emotional and I will say some part of the book will make you tear up but I would hands down re-read this! I am glad Archer had also forced himself away from town to gather his thoughts and see what he needed to do to better himself. Bree felt like she was dying without him but once she realized he could go out and do normal things like go to a coffee shop, go to restaurant. etc.... she ended up realizing that people need fresh starts and time to themselves. Archer literally came back with a brand new idea that he was going to try and run the town and he knew he had people who would support him throughout this. Victoria Hale is an absolute bitch and thinks she has all the power in the world when she treats everyone like crap.

I am not spoiling anything for anyone about what happened but I am telling you right now that you need to read this and find out what happens. You will end up falling IN LOVE with Archer and Bree's relationship.

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