So, I’m back to high school romance again. I seem to have a soft spot for this sub-genre.
In this story we’ve got two very similar MCs. Both have recently moved to the school and both have seriously messed up family backgrounds.
Blaise DeVroe recently discovered the guy who raised him is not his father. It turns out his mum’s new boyfriend is actually his biological dad and has two children who are the same age as him. Of course, there’s loads of tension between him and his new siblings. He also carries a large bag of guilt because he hid from his mum that his non-bio dad, as he calls him, physically abused him as a kid. He has a huge chip on his shoulder and treats everyone with disdain.
Aspen Monson has a distant family. Her parents are absorbed in their work and almost forget she exists. Her eldest brother is almost a stranger, and her other brother, her only friend, died in a car accident. She a loner and she likes it that way.
So they’ve both got a lot going on for them. He’s gorgeous and popular, while she’s practically invisible, despite being gorgeous too. He’s a total jerk, but he also pulls others up on their jerk-like behaviour. So, a bit contradictory in terms of characterisation, but even so, they were still likeable. I connected easily with Aspen because she was so uncomfortable in social situations. She has a serious case of foot-in-mouth syndrome, and I really empathised with her.
There’s also lots of character connections linked to other books. This is a stand alone, but it may be helpful to read the others. I’ll admit, I’m not really the intended audience for this book. I didn’t get a lot of the references to fighting crews, but I’m not an American teenager who feels the need for protection and comradeship within such a group.
In the first half, the pace and tension was really good. The build up between them is sweet, but once they get it on, it gets very hot and steamy. At first I didn’t want to put it down, but by the final third it changed. Once they got together, and had their heart to heart about their families, the plot became a bit dull. Sure, they sorted out their issues and got their HEA, but it dragged on a bit too long.
Plot: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Feels: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Heat: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
