Thank you so much to Forever and Netgalley for providing an advanced copy of this. All thoughts and opinions are still my own.

Picking up an Abby Jimenez book is essentially a guaranteed 5 star read. And that was definitely the case here.

Like with every other Abby Jimenez book, this packs an emotional punch. The heroine came from a neglectful childhood that resulted in her being in foster care. And she struggles with her relationship with her mother to this day.

And the hero is going through his own family trauma (incarceration & death of a father) while gaining custody of his younger siblings.

But while both of these backdrops are extremely heavy, Jimenez, as always, handles them with flawless care.

I love that she always seems to feature unconventional family dynamics in a way that doesn't feel like trauma for the sake of trauma. And always captures the emotional nuance that comes from those situations.

Plus the balance between that, the friendship between the heroine and her foster sister, and the relationship was somehow perfect.

While this is part of a series, these can absolutely be read alone or out of order. You get small glimpses of previous characters, but they are in no way imperative to the plot.

I think my favorite part of this entire book however was the heroine's growth and journey through this book. And the hero's ability to give her the space to do so. This is not a case of love cures all. Difficult decisions are made and lots of space to heal are needed.

If by some chance this author still isn't on your radar, rectify that immediately.