Tropes/Themes:
-MF contemporary romance
-Age gap (6 years)
-Brother’s best friend
-Forbidden/taboo (they’ve been raised together as siblings since her birth)
-Soooooo much angst
-eMoTiOnAl DaMaGe
-Standalone
I think I’ve said this at the top of all of my Jennifer Hartmann reviews to date, but I’m not exactly sure who I would recommend this book. I know this isn’t going to be everyone’s cup of tea for a variety of reasons. All I know for sure is that it worked for me. I absolutely loved this book. I think it may even be my favorite JH book to date.
After Brant loses both of his parents in a horrifically traumatic incident, he’s taken in by his best friend’s family and raised as their own. June, Brant’s best friend’s sister, was literally born the same day Brant’s parents died. Brant has been by June’s side literally since birth and they were raised as siblings together. Needless to say, their relationship dynamic is very unconventional and will make you uncomfortable at times. I genuinely could see why some people may not be able to get on board with their romance. While of course there were moments where it made me uncomfortable or made me question how these two could ever end up together, the journey to their HEA was just so poignant and beautiful to me. I really enjoyed how JH was able to depict so many different portrayals of love and connection. Love (whether it be romantic, familial, or platonic) isn’t always easy or simple. Sometimes it’s destined to be gritty, painful, and transformative.
There’s no sugarcoating it though, this was an incredibly painful and emotional read (which should be no surprise if you’ve read from JH before). Just when I thought this book couldn’t hurt me more, I’d turn the page and JH would rub salt into my open wound. JH has such a gift for writing intricate characters and raw human experiences. Due to the heavy content, you’ll definitely want to make sure you’re in a good headspace before diving into this one. I’ve included a list of some content warnings below, but be sure to do your own research before diving in because I’m sure I missed something). I’ll be honest, I listened to this audiobook while I was in the middle of moving. I was physically and emotionally exhausted, so when a *certain part* hit in the middle of the book I literally just sat on my empty living room floor and sobbed. 10/10 would recommend.
While I could ramble about this book for hours, I’ll end this by saying that you’ll probably enjoy this book if you’ve enjoyed JH before.
CWs for traumatic loss of (multiple) loved ones, domestic violence, murder-suicide, bullying, PTSD, flashbacks, asthma, first responder side characters. Additional warnings withheld due to spoilers
Story: 4/5
Audiobook: 5/5 (narrated by Neill Thorne & Stefanie Kay)
Length 16h22min