For Zoey Odell, the definition of family is her two best friends, Maya and Addy. So when Maya makes the decision to leave her abusive husband, Zoey is only too happy to lavish her with support and a temporary home. Unfortunately, taking in her best friend also means seeing more of that no good do-gooder, Kellen Bradley. For Kellen, the definition of family has just been shattered. After finding out that his brother is an abusive monster, he can’t help but question himself and his parents. The one thing he knows for certain is that he’ll do anything to take care of his sister-in-law and her children. For them, he would walk into gunfire, pass through the flames of hell…even go head-to-head with Zoey Odell. Zoey has no intention of letting him in, but Kellen is done taking her crap. Life has just gotten real and he’s more than ready to shed his nice-guy image. When he finally stands up to her, Zoey starts seeing him in a new light. As the attraction turns mutual, she finds it more and more difficult to hide behind her carefully formed walls. And Kellen is finding himself more and more driven to tear those walls down.
Did I like this book?
Eeeeep, um, not as much as I expected to, unfortunately. I really enjoyed my previous read by Carter Ashby, so I was expecting great things from this title. I think most of my problems stemmed from Zoey. Whenever there's an unlikeable heroine involved, an author has to work extra hard to get the reader behind the romance, and in this case, I just wasn't buying into it. Zoey treated Kellen horribly in the beginning, and even though we become privy to her reasoning and she undergoes some major growth, I still had a hard time warming up to her.
Kellen is also not the typical male lead you expect to find in a New Adult read. He is one of those "nice guys", and reading his thoughts made me realize there's a reason for the saying, "Nice guys always finish last." Kellen is so nice that he tends to be a pushover, and being the people pleaser I am, I did feel an instant connection with him. The problem was, even though Kellen goes through some major character growth and eventually stands up to Zoey, I still didn't want him to end up with her.
The other character who didn't sit well with me was Zoe's mom. I felt that she was just...too much, I guess. She was so spiteful, selfish, and yucky that again, I wasn't buying it. Totally over the top!
The other character who didn't sit well with me was Zoe's mom. I felt that she was just...too much, I guess. She was so spiteful, selfish, and yucky that again, I wasn't buying it. Totally over the top!
Will you like this book?
You might. This might be one of those it's-not-you-it's-me situations, and I'm really hoping that that's the case.
Will I read more by this author?
I have the next book in this series on my TBR and I am looking forward to it. I think that Zoe and I were just not meant to be, and hopefully I will have an easier time connecting with Maya in "Maya and the Tough Guy".
My rating: 2.5 stars
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