I’m going to be very up front with you. This review is going to contain spoilers because I don’t think I could write it without them. Also, I was very disappointed at the inclusion of a Harry Potter reference in a book published in 2025. It’s made me question whether or not to continue reading this author and kept me from bumping up my rating, which I would normally do when a book is a “half-star” between ratings for me.

Ok, now into the story.  We know cheating happens, because it’s included in the synopsis, so that may have colored my first impressions of Rick, but he was just smarmy the entire way through the book. He has absolutely no redeeming qualities, and it’s the way that he treats Beth that really pissed me off.

Jana is actually the hero of the story for me. I feel like most of the book focuses on Beth and we only get shorter insights from Jana’s POV, but she is the character that I most connected with and most championed. She had integrity, compassion, and a great sense of self. Yes, she did beat herself up over her past, but she didn’t allow it to hold her back and she worked hard to go after what she wanted, on her own. She reacted to the situations in the story rationally.

The other characters who are flawless are Dex and Kai . They are fantastic friends and great sounding boards.

Ok, onto the last two characters that I will be discussing. Of the two, Teddy is the least problematic, but still has a few things that irritated me. First, two instant loves in his life? In my experience, that seems a little unbelievable. Secondly, yes, Beth did not initially tell him (or Jana) about Galaxy, but he readily admits that he would have done the same if the positions were reversed. His refusal to initially forgive her, long after Jana already had, is just really hypocritical.

And finally we come to Beth. I had a lot of problems with Beth. Yes, she had a rough childhood and wanted to protect her brother, but she never grew up. She let her brother gaslight and abuse her generosity, and she never called him on it because he struggled as a kid. And her initial reaction to the idea of her brother dating a single mother was repulsive, no matter whether she was a receptionist or a medical biller. That to me, was worse than her not telling Jana about Galaxy and what she’d seen (she also should have said something to Galaxy in my opinion). I understand that she was afraid of losing her relationship with Teddy as well as her friendship with Jana, but friends don’t treat each other that way.

There were parts of this story that I did really enjoy. The kids were awesome, as was Beth’s aunt. I liked that Beth finally started doing things for herself once she woke up to what Rick was doing. And I 100% predicted and support Jana’s new relationship at the end of the book. In fact, everything that happened at the end was great.

While this book was not necessarily for me, I have enjoyed other books by this author in the past.

Disclaimer: I received an eARC through HTP Book Tours and NetGalley in exchange for a spotlight post and review consideration. All thoughts and opinions are my own. 

Please visit the spotlight post for an excerpt.