Okay. I started this book on 12/30/20, and I did not finish it before the new year. I DID, however, finish it on 1/1/21. I can, without a doubt, say that this is one of the best books I have read in 2020 and 2021!
Why you should read this book:
➜ A romance that will make you fall in love more than once throughout the story.
➜ A paranormal aspect that won’t spook you, although it might creep you out when you really think about it.
➜ A story that will grip you from the very start.
Oh my goodness, this book was WONDERFUL! I don’t tend to lean toward romance novels. I’ll read them, and I usually enjoy them, but if you scroll through my full list of book reviews, they are heavy in thrillers and historical fiction, and somewhat light in romance. I like it as a genre, but I don’t gravitate towards it. So, I pick up Colleen Hoover’s books tentatively because people always say they are romance novels. I read a review recently where the reviewer mentioned paranormal, and I was like, WAIT-WHAT?
This is exactly what happened when I finally picked up Verity at the end of 2019/beginning of 2020. And that is absolutely one of my favorite books. So, anyway – I DID pick this one up, and then I couldn’t put it down! Hoover writes with some sort of magical ability that creates these stories and characters that you become utterly invested in.
The characters, Layla and Leeds are lovely, and you connect to them as quickly as they connect to each other. The story is written in present-day as well as flashbacks. So, we get a disjointed account of what happened leading up to the present. I love when stories do that because it leaves so much for the reader to guess at as the story unravels!
There is this wonderful paranormal element that will have you absolutely hooked, and I don’t want to give a ton away here, but it’s not really spooky or creepy. . . think of it like Casper the friendly ghost – maybe? But if you enjoy stories with relationship building, this one is perfect for you!
Overall, this is going into my favorites-forever collection of books. I cannot believe I have to keep being convinced to read Hoover’s books. I think that I really enjoy when she veers off a bit from her normal genre. At the end of this book, she has an author note where she writes about sidestepping into this unfamiliar genre. I applaud her for doing this, she’s killing it, and I hope she never stops!
To Read or Not To Read:
I would recommend