3.5 Stars

This was a wonderful and very emotional friends to lovers romance that will make you believe in fate, soul mates and new beginnings.

Both Kennedy and Jax are such broken characters, each of them trying to escape the demons of their past with the burden of guilt and shame weighing heavily on their shoulders. Kennedy has just come out of an emotionally abusive marriage and she ends up in a town where she finds her long lost childhood friend Jax. It almost seemed kismet. Only Jax is not the sweet boy she remembers. He's the town's black sheep. The quiet, brooding man that always seems grumpy and is quite happy being a loner.

Jax and Kennedy are pulled together and they fall into a natural friendship that brings healing to both of their souls. Kennedy is a woman who lost so much self esteem during her destructive marriage and I loved how patient Jax was with her. He allowed her to heal in her own time and he became a beam of strength and support for her. Their friendship progresses into love but I did wish it happened a bit sooner in the story. It also didn't read like a slow burn romance to me for the simple fact that there didn't seem to be any sexual tension between the charcters until fairly late in the book.

There are parts of the book with flashbacks of their younger selves where they meet at camp. I did find these moments sweet and cute. However, I felt like these were also missed moments for more romance because they were too young to experience a real first love.

The writing, as is the norm with Brittainy Cherry is flawless, with real tangible emotional connections to these characters. I did feel like I needed more "romantic love" in this love story but how amazing was this story of healing, hope and courage.

3.5 Stars
Contemporary Romance
POV: Dual
Heat Level: Mild
HEA: Yes




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