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You Broke Me First
He's everything I'm not.
He's into sports, and I'm into books and art.
He's popular with girls falling at his feet. I've never been kissed.
We have zero in common, yet I've been in love with him since the first grade.
Until I made the mistake of tutoring him.
He made me feel special.
I wasn't.
He destroyed me.
Now four years later he's back and he'll stop at nothing to get me back.
He's into sports, and I'm into books and art.
He's popular with girls falling at his feet. I've never been kissed.
We have zero in common, yet I've been in love with him since the first grade.
Until I made the mistake of tutoring him.
He made me feel special.
I wasn't.
He destroyed me.
Now four years later he's back and he'll stop at nothing to get me back.
408 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 24, 2022
571 people are currently reading
541 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 92 reviews
May 2, 2024
I had a bit of a bone to pick with this one...Let's be real, in real life, no one would EVER become besties with the person who tormented you for YEARS and was involved in the most humiliating, painful and vicious attack that involved assassinating not only your character but your reputation and definitely your self esteem. No apology could ever make up for that.
Angst = h is the "nerd" and H is the "jock" in need of a tutor in not only high school but also in college. The first get together in high school and H targets h due to a bet. That goes as well as you can expect when the H's videos of her in intimate times gets leaked to the entire school. Classy. Again in college, H needs a tutor and just who so happens to be "THE" only one that is capable of being his tutor...h of course. h refuses and gets blackmailed to be H's tutor with the same videos from high school. Nice. So they eventually reconcile in college and everything is rainbows and sunshine....until h gets opportunity for her career that is amazing. H tells h if she leaves he is done.
Ok, PAUSE...WTF??? So if h takes opportunity to advance her career in a field that is known to be hostile to females and very hard to break into, H is done with her? Like ok bro...so when you get drafted in the NFL and have to go where the team is, that's ok, but to allow the h the same agency is relationship suicide? H loves the h, but not enough to have a long distance relationship for four months??? Weak jellyfish...or maybe snowflake fits better.
All h did was fall in love and trust in the wrong guy who was, IMO, a weak jellyfish incapable of fighting for the woman he claimed to love so much. Failed to fight for h in high school, college and later in life as well. h constantly had to be the reasonable one who made the sacrifices to stroke H's ego and ruffled feathers. (In case anyone was curious and has not picked up on it yet, I was NOT a fan of the H and found him to be nothing but a man child constantly throwing tantrums and making no compromises, but expecting the h to always be the one to cave.)
Grovel = yes there was a grovel....mainly done by the h. You read that right. The h does most of the grovel. She apologizes for leaving him in college. She apologizes for coming back into his life when they are adults. It is grating on my nerves that she apologies for anything when he should have been the one to grovel and beg at her feet. Does he do any grovel? Minimal compares to his actions that caused so much pain to the h. The videos being released in high school? Yeah, not his fault, others did it. So he's sorry it happened, but blames others because he would have never sent them out. Poor guy, he is the victim just like she was, so of course, his crime was not so bad. *insert eye roll*
Did H grovel for the ultimatum he gave to h while in college? Weak one, he realizes later that she was not breaking up with only wanting to go long distance in their relationship. But does not try and contact her, does not go after her and if she did not get assigned to do an interview with him, he NEVER would have went after her. But yeah, weak jellyfish said the h is the love of his life and soulmate, but she has to do all the work every time to be with him and he just lays back in his entitlement. So yeah, he is remorseful he gave that ultimatum but did nothing to recover their relationship. (he knew where the h was and what she was doing as he was obsessively checking her out online, but again, he had no intention and made no effort to try and reach out to h)
When adults and both in their careers, h gets assigned to do an interview with H. H was total a$$ to h about it (more later) but he caves and the interview leads to them being all loved up again. When h gets offered promotion which comes with having to leave the H, at least that time, H was willing to compromise and willing to do LDR. And H apologizes to h that this is what he should have done when in college. That's his grovel for what he did in college. UUUUUGGGGHHHH! Of course, h gives up promotion so she can stay with H. *insert eye roll*
OW/OM drama = OW1 in high school was bully to h most of her life. OW1 was responsible for getting access to H's phone and then leaking out the video to the entire high school. So what is her comeuppance? OW1 and h become friends in college and later in life bffs (this made me view the h as a complete doormat).
OW2 is the agent for H who keeps coming after the h aggressively and threatening h. Comeuppance? h realizes that OW2 is reacting out of jealousy, so she has a conversation where she sets OW2 straight on what their respective roles are in H's life and then is friendly to OW2. (again making friends with OW2, WTF?)
OM1 was bff of H who assisted in the retrieval and distribution of the video of h in high school. Later in college, he blackmails h with a different intimate video so that h will tutor H. Comeuppance? H punches OM1 and gets him kicked off the college football team. (was that enough? *shoulder shrug*)
OM2 was h's boyfriend/hook up in college who also happened to be H's football coach. Turns out he knew of the intimate videos and it was his idea to use the videos to blackmail the h in to tutoring the H. When h stands up to him after she finds out the OM2 is not only married but his wife is also expecting baby #3, OM2 assaults h physically. He gets stopped by H. Comeuppance? H forces OM2 to resign. That's it. Any repercussion for the assault? Nope. Anyone have the decency to let his pregnant wife know about her philandering husband? Nope. So unsatisfying.
Cheating = a lot of this is dependent on your belief in what you think could be cheating. In high school, when H is pursuing h, he gets BJ from girl at a party then goes to see h. They had not been together as yet, but we know his intent is to get with h.
In college, h, at least in her perception (OM2 who, unbeknownst to h, is married thus making h the OW in his marriage and a cheater), has a boyfriend when she and the H kiss.
In adult life, H has h temporarily move in with him while she conducts the interview. He has h waiting for him for a few hours one night, H misses time that had been set aside to do interview, comes home later and goes to bed. We find out later that H went over to OW2 and had a couple hours of intimate time with OW2, knowing that h was sitting around waiting on him. h did not know until much later but she felt that she had no right to be mad because they were not together then....So is that cheating? Again H knew he was still in love with h, but he hooks up with OW2 to prove to himself that he is over h. Also, H knew that h would have to interact with OW2 since OW2 was his agent as well. Of course, h has it thrown in her face that OW2 and H have had frequent hook ups (yet h still makes friendly overtures to OW2, because gosh darn it, who wouldn't want the H, and golly gee, it's not the OW2's fault that H loves h *vomit in mouth*). Again, do you see it as cheating? I do, but I also don't. It's a gray area for me.
The book frustrated me and angered me, but isn't that what good book should do? Despite all I wrote above, I did gobble up this book and would recommend to others, with the caveat to not be surprised by how much you might get frustrated.
Angst = h is the "nerd" and H is the "jock" in need of a tutor in not only high school but also in college. The first get together in high school and H targets h due to a bet. That goes as well as you can expect when the H's videos of her in intimate times gets leaked to the entire school. Classy. Again in college, H needs a tutor and just who so happens to be "THE" only one that is capable of being his tutor...h of course. h refuses and gets blackmailed to be H's tutor with the same videos from high school. Nice. So they eventually reconcile in college and everything is rainbows and sunshine....until h gets opportunity for her career that is amazing. H tells h if she leaves he is done.
Ok, PAUSE...WTF??? So if h takes opportunity to advance her career in a field that is known to be hostile to females and very hard to break into, H is done with her? Like ok bro...so when you get drafted in the NFL and have to go where the team is, that's ok, but to allow the h the same agency is relationship suicide? H loves the h, but not enough to have a long distance relationship for four months??? Weak jellyfish...or maybe snowflake fits better.
All h did was fall in love and trust in the wrong guy who was, IMO, a weak jellyfish incapable of fighting for the woman he claimed to love so much. Failed to fight for h in high school, college and later in life as well. h constantly had to be the reasonable one who made the sacrifices to stroke H's ego and ruffled feathers. (In case anyone was curious and has not picked up on it yet, I was NOT a fan of the H and found him to be nothing but a man child constantly throwing tantrums and making no compromises, but expecting the h to always be the one to cave.)
Grovel = yes there was a grovel....mainly done by the h. You read that right. The h does most of the grovel. She apologizes for leaving him in college. She apologizes for coming back into his life when they are adults. It is grating on my nerves that she apologies for anything when he should have been the one to grovel and beg at her feet. Does he do any grovel? Minimal compares to his actions that caused so much pain to the h. The videos being released in high school? Yeah, not his fault, others did it. So he's sorry it happened, but blames others because he would have never sent them out. Poor guy, he is the victim just like she was, so of course, his crime was not so bad. *insert eye roll*
Did H grovel for the ultimatum he gave to h while in college? Weak one, he realizes later that she was not breaking up with only wanting to go long distance in their relationship. But does not try and contact her, does not go after her and if she did not get assigned to do an interview with him, he NEVER would have went after her. But yeah, weak jellyfish said the h is the love of his life and soulmate, but she has to do all the work every time to be with him and he just lays back in his entitlement. So yeah, he is remorseful he gave that ultimatum but did nothing to recover their relationship. (he knew where the h was and what she was doing as he was obsessively checking her out online, but again, he had no intention and made no effort to try and reach out to h)
When adults and both in their careers, h gets assigned to do an interview with H. H was total a$$ to h about it (more later) but he caves and the interview leads to them being all loved up again. When h gets offered promotion which comes with having to leave the H, at least that time, H was willing to compromise and willing to do LDR. And H apologizes to h that this is what he should have done when in college. That's his grovel for what he did in college. UUUUUGGGGHHHH! Of course, h gives up promotion so she can stay with H. *insert eye roll*
OW/OM drama = OW1 in high school was bully to h most of her life. OW1 was responsible for getting access to H's phone and then leaking out the video to the entire high school. So what is her comeuppance? OW1 and h become friends in college and later in life bffs (this made me view the h as a complete doormat).
OW2 is the agent for H who keeps coming after the h aggressively and threatening h. Comeuppance? h realizes that OW2 is reacting out of jealousy, so she has a conversation where she sets OW2 straight on what their respective roles are in H's life and then is friendly to OW2. (again making friends with OW2, WTF?)
OM1 was bff of H who assisted in the retrieval and distribution of the video of h in high school. Later in college, he blackmails h with a different intimate video so that h will tutor H. Comeuppance? H punches OM1 and gets him kicked off the college football team. (was that enough? *shoulder shrug*)
OM2 was h's boyfriend/hook up in college who also happened to be H's football coach. Turns out he knew of the intimate videos and it was his idea to use the videos to blackmail the h in to tutoring the H. When h stands up to him after she finds out the OM2 is not only married but his wife is also expecting baby #3, OM2 assaults h physically. He gets stopped by H. Comeuppance? H forces OM2 to resign. That's it. Any repercussion for the assault? Nope. Anyone have the decency to let his pregnant wife know about her philandering husband? Nope. So unsatisfying.
Cheating = a lot of this is dependent on your belief in what you think could be cheating. In high school, when H is pursuing h, he gets BJ from girl at a party then goes to see h. They had not been together as yet, but we know his intent is to get with h.
In college, h, at least in her perception (OM2 who, unbeknownst to h, is married thus making h the OW in his marriage and a cheater), has a boyfriend when she and the H kiss.
In adult life, H has h temporarily move in with him while she conducts the interview. He has h waiting for him for a few hours one night, H misses time that had been set aside to do interview, comes home later and goes to bed. We find out later that H went over to OW2 and had a couple hours of intimate time with OW2, knowing that h was sitting around waiting on him. h did not know until much later but she felt that she had no right to be mad because they were not together then....So is that cheating? Again H knew he was still in love with h, but he hooks up with OW2 to prove to himself that he is over h. Also, H knew that h would have to interact with OW2 since OW2 was his agent as well. Of course, h has it thrown in her face that OW2 and H have had frequent hook ups (yet h still makes friendly overtures to OW2, because gosh darn it, who wouldn't want the H, and golly gee, it's not the OW2's fault that H loves h *vomit in mouth*). Again, do you see it as cheating? I do, but I also don't. It's a gray area for me.
The book frustrated me and angered me, but isn't that what good book should do? Despite all I wrote above, I did gobble up this book and would recommend to others, with the caveat to not be surprised by how much you might get frustrated.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 19, 2024
It felt like I was reading this for days. I wonder if this was written after the author had gained some popularity and she was trying to get as many tokens as she could with this one. The three different timelines made it so tedious and it felt like I was just never getting anywhere. The drama wasn’t even enjoyable because they also resolved it so quickly anyways and then we’d just get a bunch of random mundane scenes again.
Overall: 1:5
Overall: 1:5
September 27, 2024
Tags: betrayal, boring-yaawn, catches-him-in-the-act, college-romance, cruel-cruel-hero, hero-hurts-heroine, heroine-leaves, heroine-waitress-bartender, high-school, hurtful-words-overheard, jocks, manwhore-philanderer, mean-mean-girls, om-cheats-on-heroine, om_drama, over-the-years, ow-drama, read, virgin-heroine
March 7, 2024
Showed promise but fell flat.
**Major spoilers**
I started this review on page 144. To be honest I’ve struggled so far. The beginning I liked, but felt rushed. One minute she was tutoring him and then after a couple of interactions Addison was sharing things with him she hadn’t shared with anyone else. It just felt contrived.
The catalyst for me writing a review only a third of the way into a book is plot holes. The thing I hate most in books is where a character gets written that they’ve changed their hair and is no longer recognisable. It was also a bit of a plot hole that no one else told Maddox that Addison went to the same college, even though they were all part of the same crowd (Addison is the tutor for all of Maddox’s team mate. She was too much in his world to stay hidden from him for four whole years!!) It was implausible the Maddox was looking right her and didn’t recognise her. Even though it was explained he was looking past her and not looking “at” her, in one scene when he was looking at her face enough to see her smile and nope…nothing…still no recognition, it had only been four years not twenty! It was completely unbelievable and I nearly dnfed at this point as it was so ridiculous.
Maddox said he’d grown in four years, but as soon as Addison made a decision for herself and for her career he acted like a toddler throwing his toys out the pram. Ffs grow up. It really annoyed me. He always said he wouldn’t put a woman before his own career, but yet he expected her to literally give up hers. He didn’t chase her or do anything to keep her in his life. He said two years later he should never have made her choose between her career or him….so why not go after her then? I don’t mind breakups for an actual reason, but letting her go so easily when he’d literally never given anything up for her since the day they met was selfishly ridiculous. Addison just forgave him so easily, each time. Yes she had to leave, but he was cruel and never once fought for her.
For a reader you want to actually find something you like about a character to root for them, we need something to grasp onto, but Maddox was just as blind (literally) as he was stupid!
The ending was wrapped up nicely, but once again it was Addison sacrificing everything for Maddox. Their relationship only ever worked because she was put in front of him, first tutoring and then her job. He only made the effort when she was standing in front of him available…. not ONCE did he fight for her. Not only that, one sentence of explanation and all was forgiven. Addison just accepted his shallow apologies and reasonings without any push back, no real heart to heart or depth of emotion. I don’t need down on his knees grovel as such, but he broke her heart and like I said he never once fought for her and she swept her heartache under the rug. Yes she made decisions, but they were adult decisions and he reacted like a bratty child. I get he was hurt, but where was his fight for her?
I just needed more push back and more rawness to really see their story through.
Overall the writing was ok. It was the decisions for the characters and some of the plot that had me shaking my head. Tricky one, as it really had potential.
**Major spoilers**
I started this review on page 144. To be honest I’ve struggled so far. The beginning I liked, but felt rushed. One minute she was tutoring him and then after a couple of interactions Addison was sharing things with him she hadn’t shared with anyone else. It just felt contrived.
The catalyst for me writing a review only a third of the way into a book is plot holes. The thing I hate most in books is where a character gets written that they’ve changed their hair and is no longer recognisable. It was also a bit of a plot hole that no one else told Maddox that Addison went to the same college, even though they were all part of the same crowd (Addison is the tutor for all of Maddox’s team mate. She was too much in his world to stay hidden from him for four whole years!!) It was implausible the Maddox was looking right her and didn’t recognise her. Even though it was explained he was looking past her and not looking “at” her, in one scene when he was looking at her face enough to see her smile and nope…nothing…still no recognition, it had only been four years not twenty! It was completely unbelievable and I nearly dnfed at this point as it was so ridiculous.
Maddox said he’d grown in four years, but as soon as Addison made a decision for herself and for her career he acted like a toddler throwing his toys out the pram. Ffs grow up. It really annoyed me. He always said he wouldn’t put a woman before his own career, but yet he expected her to literally give up hers. He didn’t chase her or do anything to keep her in his life. He said two years later he should never have made her choose between her career or him….so why not go after her then? I don’t mind breakups for an actual reason, but letting her go so easily when he’d literally never given anything up for her since the day they met was selfishly ridiculous. Addison just forgave him so easily, each time. Yes she had to leave, but he was cruel and never once fought for her.
For a reader you want to actually find something you like about a character to root for them, we need something to grasp onto, but Maddox was just as blind (literally) as he was stupid!
The ending was wrapped up nicely, but once again it was Addison sacrificing everything for Maddox. Their relationship only ever worked because she was put in front of him, first tutoring and then her job. He only made the effort when she was standing in front of him available…. not ONCE did he fight for her. Not only that, one sentence of explanation and all was forgiven. Addison just accepted his shallow apologies and reasonings without any push back, no real heart to heart or depth of emotion. I don’t need down on his knees grovel as such, but he broke her heart and like I said he never once fought for her and she swept her heartache under the rug. Yes she made decisions, but they were adult decisions and he reacted like a bratty child. I get he was hurt, but where was his fight for her?
I just needed more push back and more rawness to really see their story through.
Overall the writing was ok. It was the decisions for the characters and some of the plot that had me shaking my head. Tricky one, as it really had potential.
November 29, 2024
Better than I expected
I thought this was going to be a little little trashy fast paced story, but it definitely wasn’t.
Although the breakups were very dramatic and kind of unnecessary, especially that second one, but I understand.
I’m also glad people aren’t running from their problems and not talking it out!
I thought this was going to be a little little trashy fast paced story, but it definitely wasn’t.
Although the breakups were very dramatic and kind of unnecessary, especially that second one, but I understand.
I’m also glad people aren’t running from their problems and not talking it out!
December 24, 2023
What happened in college really put me off. The coach should have had more consequences.
Maddox was to blame for their second break up as well. If it had been the other way around and he had to choose between his career and Addy, he would have chosen football. Two years later, his hypocritical immature ass is still angry with her for it.
The whole Casey thing was also off-putting. Literally had Addy in his home alone while he was out fucking his publicist or whatever she was. Then it was all tied up in a pretty bow because she found her old t-shirt, and Casey decided to be the bigger person? Maddox used her, and he should have at least apologized for that.
Did Addy ever open her mom's envelope? Did I miss that somewhere?
How did Maddy and Karly become friends after everything that happened in high school? Where is Karly now that Maddy and Addy are besties? Does Karly have a story with Chaz somewhere? Where did she get her tech skills?
Maddox was to blame for their second break up as well. If it had been the other way around and he had to choose between his career and Addy, he would have chosen football. Two years later, his hypocritical immature ass is still angry with her for it.
The whole Casey thing was also off-putting. Literally had Addy in his home alone while he was out fucking his publicist or whatever she was. Then it was all tied up in a pretty bow because she found her old t-shirt, and Casey decided to be the bigger person? Maddox used her, and he should have at least apologized for that.
Did Addy ever open her mom's envelope? Did I miss that somewhere?
How did Maddy and Karly become friends after everything that happened in high school? Where is Karly now that Maddy and Addy are besties? Does Karly have a story with Chaz somewhere? Where did she get her tech skills?
December 5, 2023
Kindle Vella is just the newest pay for chapter reading app that allows mediocre and less than mediocre authors to over charge outrageous prices for mediocre stories. Some may assume that because it’s Amazon that there is an unspoken level of quality….theres not.
This book has 86 or 87 chapters and is less than 390 pages which means each chapter is less than 5 pages. Y’all got ripped of.
There is nothing new about this storyline and only a well seasoned author could MAYBE pull off. MS is not one of those authors.
This book has 86 or 87 chapters and is less than 390 pages which means each chapter is less than 5 pages. Y’all got ripped of.
There is nothing new about this storyline and only a well seasoned author could MAYBE pull off. MS is not one of those authors.
April 29, 2024
It just felt very repetitive... like there wasn't
🌶🌶
🌶🌶
December 18, 2023
mistakes we make
I love how they got their second chance with each other after all the heart ache from both sides. First it was immaturity from him, and then for her it was her lack of trust on their relationship. They were able to overcome their issues to have a HEA.
I love how they got their second chance with each other after all the heart ache from both sides. First it was immaturity from him, and then for her it was her lack of trust on their relationship. They were able to overcome their issues to have a HEA.
February 16, 2024
I wanted something angsty, and this was angsty. I really liked the idea of the story, but the execution was not quite there. There was a lot of drama but it was resolved so quickly and easily, when you wanted it to be drawn out. What was drawn out was the length of the story. For being 300 something pages it felt like it was double that.
Maddox and Addys relationship felt more physical than anything (they never had time to develop their relationship. It’s like they immediately broke up every time they got back together). Speaking of getting back together, there was no groveling or begging. Idk man, if someone leaked my nudes it would take a LOT of begging and groveling to consider taking them back but not for addy I guess.
Characters were mentioned and then forgot about. Peoples relationships to other didn’t quite make sense to me. I feel like Maddox’s sisters death was just an added tidbit to make his past seem traumatic but she was only mentioned twice and you don’t know how old or even how she died. It was just kinda…thrown in there.
I don’t understand why some people did what they did? And some of the things they did just didn’t make sense. But I did really enjoy Maddox’s passiveness and jealous and his willingness to immediately choose violence when it came to Addy. Favorite part of the story
I thought the 2nd breakup was kinda stupid and wasn’t really necessary. Maddox was being immature. I don’t like how fast their relationship moved (especially considering they were never in a relationship for very long at a time). The timeline for the epilogue should’ve been more than 6 weeks later 🙃
Would I recommend this? No. Do I regret reading it? Also no
Maddox and Addys relationship felt more physical than anything (they never had time to develop their relationship. It’s like they immediately broke up every time they got back together). Speaking of getting back together, there was no groveling or begging. Idk man, if someone leaked my nudes it would take a LOT of begging and groveling to consider taking them back but not for addy I guess.
Characters were mentioned and then forgot about. Peoples relationships to other didn’t quite make sense to me. I feel like Maddox’s sisters death was just an added tidbit to make his past seem traumatic but she was only mentioned twice and you don’t know how old or even how she died. It was just kinda…thrown in there.
I don’t understand why some people did what they did? And some of the things they did just didn’t make sense. But I did really enjoy Maddox’s passiveness and jealous and his willingness to immediately choose violence when it came to Addy. Favorite part of the story
I thought the 2nd breakup was kinda stupid and wasn’t really necessary. Maddox was being immature. I don’t like how fast their relationship moved (especially considering they were never in a relationship for very long at a time). The timeline for the epilogue should’ve been more than 6 weeks later 🙃
Would I recommend this? No. Do I regret reading it? Also no
August 25, 2025
This bitch is so desperate and starved for attention, she falls right into the hands of every man who only has ill intentions towards her. Should remove this book from the romance category and add it to brain dead fmcs. DNF and I wish I didn’t even fucking start it. What a complete moron.
May 19, 2024
Boring. ZZZzzzzzz
July 25, 2024
⭐️4.5 🔥3.5/5 🌶️ 2.5/5
Hated the random time jump. It completely caught me off guard, but that is literally only complaint. I cut half a star for the abrupt shift. Otherwise, it was a fantastic read.
Hated the random time jump. It completely caught me off guard, but that is literally only complaint. I cut half a star for the abrupt shift. Otherwise, it was a fantastic read.
May 31, 2025
Whew, these two emotionally exhausted me. Side note, I absolutely love Maddox.
Spice 🌶🌶
Spice 🌶🌶
July 14, 2023
This is a really good story. I've finished the first season/book and am now moving on two part two which features a side character from the first part.
In the first part we watch/read as Addison and Maddox keep crossing paths throughout their lives. First when they are in high school, then in college, then years later when they are both adults following their own careers. It's a great story. It tears at your heart and make you cheer for the couple when things go their way. I thouroughly enjoyed the journey and look forward to reading Madison tale as well.
In the first part we watch/read as Addison and Maddox keep crossing paths throughout their lives. First when they are in high school, then in college, then years later when they are both adults following their own careers. It's a great story. It tears at your heart and make you cheer for the couple when things go their way. I thouroughly enjoyed the journey and look forward to reading Madison tale as well.
March 20, 2025
It was cute but they definitely spent more time apart then they did together, so it was a little hard to buy their love and that it lasted for years during the two separations they had.
Tropes:
-Highschool/College/After
-Opposites: Jock/popular H and nerdy/reserved h
-She's his tutor
-Bet
-Public humiliation betrayal
-Grovel
-Second chance
-Sports romance
-She falls first, he falls harder
-Both not celibate during separation
Summary & spoilers:
Tropes:
-Highschool/College/After
-Opposites: Jock/popular H and nerdy/reserved h
-She's his tutor
-Bet
-Public humiliation betrayal
-Grovel
-Second chance
-Sports romance
-She falls first, he falls harder
-Both not celibate during separation
Summary & spoilers:
December 24, 2023
has potential
Lots of time jumps. Characters were immature but there is a good story there. I just wish there was more to the story/the in between. There's details that could've been ironed out more. It felt rushed.
Lots of time jumps. Characters were immature but there is a good story there. I just wish there was more to the story/the in between. There's details that could've been ironed out more. It felt rushed.
January 5, 2024
I liked the book except he is so in love with her and has sex with someone the night she comes to town with him. It is his agent, once she finds out she is OK with that. I'm sorry but my husband would not still be working with someone he had sex with.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 20, 2023
Maddox was a horrible person who didn’t deserve Addy. She was an idiot doormat. Too much going on in this one. It had potential.
March 7, 2024
This went on for so long.
The story was cute, but it took forever.
The story was cute, but it took forever.
November 29, 2025
Summary: This is an enemies to lovers romance.
Additional tropes:
✅ Second Chance
✅ Other woman drama
Detailed spoilers/trigger warnings (if any) and final thoughts can be found below.
The first part of this book takes place four years ago. Addison has been asked to tutor the MMC, Maddox, because if he does not bring his grades up, he will not be allowed to play in the upcoming football game. When some of his teammates find out who will be tutoring him, they make a bet with him with salacious terms. Initially, the MMC is all on board to do whatever it takes to win this bet. As time passes, his feelings toward the FMC changes, and he actually starts to like her, to the point where he decides he does not want to go forward with the bet anymore.
In the meantime, his frequent hook up causes a lot of problems for the FMC. When the video of some of the intimate moments with the MMC comes out, the FMC is done and does not want to see or talk to anyone anymore, and moves forward with graduating early to leave the town and go away to college.
Four years pass, and although the MMC now goes to the same college as the FMC, she has done everything she can to avoid him. When he finds himself in the same position of failing classes with a threat of not being able to play, his coach, whom the FMC is secretly dating, asks her to tutor him. Initially, she says no. It isn’t until she is blackmailed by one of the guys who knew her from high school that she agrees to tutor Maddox. Her appearance has changed to the point where he initially doesn’t recognize her, until he does. Now that he knows who she is, he is determined to do whatever it takes to earn her trust and win her back.
He is adamant regarding his innocence surrounding the release of the video in high school. Something about him speaks truth and honesty to her and she allows herself space to get close to him again. Just as that happens, a once in a lifetime opportunity presents itself and when the MMC finds out she will be taking it he is hurt and angry.
Once again, time passes and the characters have had no contact until her job forces her to pursue him for a story. A story that has them spending a lot of time together. With so much past hurt and trust issues, can the couple finally have the happy ending they want?
⚠️SPOILERS/SPICE/DETAILED TRIGGERS⚠️
🌶️: 2/5
Final thoughts: I am a sucker for a story where the MMC pursues something regarding the FMC because of a bet. I think it adds so much angst to the story because you already know the devastation the FMC is gonna feel when she finds out about it. I love that when everything came out she decided in that instant what she needed to do next for herself. She moved on, she was seemingly in a good place with her education and being settled until of course she wasn’t. The one part of the book that I really did not enjoy was the constant blackmailing. Like at one point, she was being blackmailed by three different people. And I just thought that was a little too much.
This was a trust the process moment for sure. Because I had to believe that at some point either she was going to just say do whatever you want, I’m done being blackmailed or she was going to make some other type of move to be rid of this situation. I really wanted to see some comeuppance for those involved. And there was a little which was very briefly mentioned but I was fine with at least knowing it happened.
Overall, I liked both characters. And as much as I like other woman drama which we got in the first part, I loved the growth of Maddie and the fact that her and Addison ended up close friends, and that it was real and genuine made me happy for the FMC.
Additional tropes:
✅ Second Chance
✅ Other woman drama
Detailed spoilers/trigger warnings (if any) and final thoughts can be found below.
The first part of this book takes place four years ago. Addison has been asked to tutor the MMC, Maddox, because if he does not bring his grades up, he will not be allowed to play in the upcoming football game. When some of his teammates find out who will be tutoring him, they make a bet with him with salacious terms. Initially, the MMC is all on board to do whatever it takes to win this bet. As time passes, his feelings toward the FMC changes, and he actually starts to like her, to the point where he decides he does not want to go forward with the bet anymore.
In the meantime, his frequent hook up causes a lot of problems for the FMC. When the video of some of the intimate moments with the MMC comes out, the FMC is done and does not want to see or talk to anyone anymore, and moves forward with graduating early to leave the town and go away to college.
Four years pass, and although the MMC now goes to the same college as the FMC, she has done everything she can to avoid him. When he finds himself in the same position of failing classes with a threat of not being able to play, his coach, whom the FMC is secretly dating, asks her to tutor him. Initially, she says no. It isn’t until she is blackmailed by one of the guys who knew her from high school that she agrees to tutor Maddox. Her appearance has changed to the point where he initially doesn’t recognize her, until he does. Now that he knows who she is, he is determined to do whatever it takes to earn her trust and win her back.
He is adamant regarding his innocence surrounding the release of the video in high school. Something about him speaks truth and honesty to her and she allows herself space to get close to him again. Just as that happens, a once in a lifetime opportunity presents itself and when the MMC finds out she will be taking it he is hurt and angry.
Once again, time passes and the characters have had no contact until her job forces her to pursue him for a story. A story that has them spending a lot of time together. With so much past hurt and trust issues, can the couple finally have the happy ending they want?
⚠️SPOILERS/SPICE/DETAILED TRIGGERS⚠️
🌶️: 2/5
Final thoughts: I am a sucker for a story where the MMC pursues something regarding the FMC because of a bet. I think it adds so much angst to the story because you already know the devastation the FMC is gonna feel when she finds out about it. I love that when everything came out she decided in that instant what she needed to do next for herself. She moved on, she was seemingly in a good place with her education and being settled until of course she wasn’t. The one part of the book that I really did not enjoy was the constant blackmailing. Like at one point, she was being blackmailed by three different people. And I just thought that was a little too much.
This was a trust the process moment for sure. Because I had to believe that at some point either she was going to just say do whatever you want, I’m done being blackmailed or she was going to make some other type of move to be rid of this situation. I really wanted to see some comeuppance for those involved. And there was a little which was very briefly mentioned but I was fine with at least knowing it happened.
Overall, I liked both characters. And as much as I like other woman drama which we got in the first part, I loved the growth of Maddie and the fact that her and Addison ended up close friends, and that it was real and genuine made me happy for the FMC.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 4, 2024
This was a very good book IF we ignore some of the points here . Maddox' s love for her was admirable in the second part of the book like in college and after that . However his reaction to Addy choosing her good future wasn't .It was somewhat toxic and I expected better of him than those words after what happened between them in school and his promise of being better and mature in college . Talking about h she was in love with H in school, then she wasnt serious for him in college and that was understable but I guess she shouldn't have lead him on . After the college she was in love again but it only came back when she had to face him . Not at all before that . I guess she needed to make efforts in that part herself too and not Only H. Just being understanding is not enough effort I guess. The main flaw in this was that the actual problems were handled very very easily and unseriously . Like the video problem . Bruhhh for a girl with a past of being molested and then afraid of even a little tight clothes that video thing was terrifying. Even for a normal girl it is . It's humiliation and disrespect at the highest levels . I dont think I would have healed such easily like her, more than that would have tried the same thing with the same person again . I can't. I wouldn't. I will seriously never be able to .Just checking for phone was not enough what if he called someone to record without me knowing? I would constantly be afraid . I didnt do anything wrong so I wouldn't have tried to hide but also cant remain that unaffected with the video thing and people who saw that and certainly wiuld not give them power over myself I guess there was need for a little legal actions there. I felt that particular part of the plot was very shallow , from her fear to the way they handled it. Then also at the end , the decision of h didn't sit well with me but I got satisfied when she found a good job in Florida too. Ajso how intimate they were during their lives , which should have been professional and decent cause for both it was a job was very unrealistic and inappropriate. I guess in real life not many people will support a public inspirational figure couple being that intimate on international media. There should have been a more decent habdling of showing fans the love and chemistry between them . I was actually annoyed and angered by the ridiculousness of that part , given the reputation problem of Maddox and dream job of Addy's conditions.
If you ignore all this ( which shouldn't be like this) and avoid the flaws , Maddox protection and possession for h was very cute and the way be said everyone to lower down their voices while speaking to her is what made me gave 1 more star. Their chemistry and push and pull was very enjoyable if the reason would have been more simpler and not something that intense.
If you ignore all this ( which shouldn't be like this) and avoid the flaws , Maddox protection and possession for h was very cute and the way be said everyone to lower down their voices while speaking to her is what made me gave 1 more star. Their chemistry and push and pull was very enjoyable if the reason would have been more simpler and not something that intense.
February 25, 2024
This is a second chance romance novel between Maddox and Addy. Also, a third chance... and a fourth chance... I'll warn you now, this book has a lot of push and pull in it. It's almost ridiculous. All the same, I kept reading on and finished it.
I hated that Maddox was such a sleazebag and a jerk in high school, but I also understand it helped to set the story up and the characters. There are parts of the book that I thought were going to be a bit predictable, but they ended up not being QUITE what I expected. They still usually turned out how I suspected they would, but with a bit of a twist each time. For a while, I actually kept cheating a bit and flipping ahead to see when things I assumed would happen, may happen, but forced myself to be patient and go back to where I left off! Even doing that, it didn't ruin any surprises because even when things are resolved, little bits of extra details are revealed throughout the book.
One part I still don't understand happened about halfway in the book. (MINOR SPOILER AHEAD) I had already suspected after Asher and Maddox were caught fighting on the field back in high school that a particular person was responsible for making Addy decide on leaving. What I didn't understand was the why. Again, there's a little bit of a twist in how this particular incident occurred, but I still couldn't find reason why the one person did it. I completed the book, and besides just being a plain jerk, I don't see any motive for it.
When they're all in university, Addy is blackmailed with something from high school that happened four years prior. What I don't understand here is why Addy didn't do anything about it. She could have told someone or have gone to administration to report the person for blackmailing her, or even gone to the police. I get using it for the storyline, but I found it a tiny bit weak. The way it gets resolved probably explains why the author wrote it the way she did, though, since it helps a bit with character development, I suppose.
There are a few small things that could use some editing (to / too being used in the wrong place a few times, to name one example), but it isn't too bad.
All in all, it was a bit of a cute read. If you don't mind a player who seems to remain a player throughout most of the book, the push and pull that I mentioned, and something that drags on maybe a bit more than it needs to, you'll probably enjoy this!
I hated that Maddox was such a sleazebag and a jerk in high school, but I also understand it helped to set the story up and the characters. There are parts of the book that I thought were going to be a bit predictable, but they ended up not being QUITE what I expected. They still usually turned out how I suspected they would, but with a bit of a twist each time. For a while, I actually kept cheating a bit and flipping ahead to see when things I assumed would happen, may happen, but forced myself to be patient and go back to where I left off! Even doing that, it didn't ruin any surprises because even when things are resolved, little bits of extra details are revealed throughout the book.
One part I still don't understand happened about halfway in the book. (MINOR SPOILER AHEAD) I had already suspected after Asher and Maddox were caught fighting on the field back in high school that a particular person was responsible for making Addy decide on leaving. What I didn't understand was the why. Again, there's a little bit of a twist in how this particular incident occurred, but I still couldn't find reason why the one person did it. I completed the book, and besides just being a plain jerk, I don't see any motive for it.
When they're all in university, Addy is blackmailed with something from high school that happened four years prior. What I don't understand here is why Addy didn't do anything about it. She could have told someone or have gone to administration to report the person for blackmailing her, or even gone to the police. I get using it for the storyline, but I found it a tiny bit weak. The way it gets resolved probably explains why the author wrote it the way she did, though, since it helps a bit with character development, I suppose.
There are a few small things that could use some editing (to / too being used in the wrong place a few times, to name one example), but it isn't too bad.
All in all, it was a bit of a cute read. If you don't mind a player who seems to remain a player throughout most of the book, the push and pull that I mentioned, and something that drags on maybe a bit more than it needs to, you'll probably enjoy this!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 14, 2023
DNF, but not because I didn’t enjoy the story. At the present time this book is only available via Kindle Vella and this was my first attempt to read a Kindle Vella story and wow!, It can get expensive! So after maxing out my 200 free tokens offered by Kindle/ Amazon I figured it was going to cost me $20.00-ish to finish. I’ll wait for the book to come out on KU to finish.
The story is similar to She’s All That from the 90’s and After. Addy is a sweet, introverted self-described dork, and Maddox is a self righteous, pompous popular football player who catches the attention of all the girls in high school. He takes a bet involving spending time with Addy and he learns quickly that there is more to her than meets the eye. She falls for him, he falls too but decided that his future in football means more than she does and he hurts her bad. Fast forward three years….and I ran out of tokens.
Found some typos while reading, but still enjoyed the story. I am looking forward to continuing the story when it makes its way to KU.
The story is similar to She’s All That from the 90’s and After. Addy is a sweet, introverted self-described dork, and Maddox is a self righteous, pompous popular football player who catches the attention of all the girls in high school. He takes a bet involving spending time with Addy and he learns quickly that there is more to her than meets the eye. She falls for him, he falls too but decided that his future in football means more than she does and he hurts her bad. Fast forward three years….and I ran out of tokens.
Found some typos while reading, but still enjoyed the story. I am looking forward to continuing the story when it makes its way to KU.
December 13, 2023
This is the story of Addison and Maddox. She is is a geek and he is popular. He makes a bet which surprise surprise he regrets when he falls in love with Addy but it all blows up in his face. We then meet them in college where unbeknownst to him they attend the same one but she has changed her appearance and he doesn't really notice people - looks through them. They reconcile but there are trust issues so we get a further 2 year separation before the big HEA!
I enjoyed this book but I would have liked to have seen or heard a little more about their time apart. About how they each tried to move on and how they felt etc. The timeline was a bit odd for me as we are told in the 2 years he goes off the rails (scandals), tries to repair his reputation, supposedly had a long term girlfriend and also manages to sleep with his manager - I couldn't quite work out how he managed that all in such a short timescale! I do think they would have had more questions about the time apart.
A good read overall!
I enjoyed this book but I would have liked to have seen or heard a little more about their time apart. About how they each tried to move on and how they felt etc. The timeline was a bit odd for me as we are told in the 2 years he goes off the rails (scandals), tries to repair his reputation, supposedly had a long term girlfriend and also manages to sleep with his manager - I couldn't quite work out how he managed that all in such a short timescale! I do think they would have had more questions about the time apart.
A good read overall!
December 16, 2023
Mixed feelings/3 1/2 stars
On the plus side this book had great editing and an ok storyline. I liked most of the characters, but felt like they never really left high school. My feelings about this book are tangled in the story contents. Addison's mom was a nonfunctional alcoholic yet she threw back shots and got wasted a lot. Maddox was an idiot as a teen, but didn't seem to grow past that. The Maddy thing really baffled me, she had no problem causing pain for the couple, never admitted she was why it happened, even in college, until her time seemed to run out, them was all, "I'ved changed!" How does the mean girl and Addison's best friends become friends ? What happened to the mothers ashes? I like an HEA like the next person, but skimmed the last few chapters to find this one.
On the plus side this book had great editing and an ok storyline. I liked most of the characters, but felt like they never really left high school. My feelings about this book are tangled in the story contents. Addison's mom was a nonfunctional alcoholic yet she threw back shots and got wasted a lot. Maddox was an idiot as a teen, but didn't seem to grow past that. The Maddy thing really baffled me, she had no problem causing pain for the couple, never admitted she was why it happened, even in college, until her time seemed to run out, them was all, "I'ved changed!" How does the mean girl and Addison's best friends become friends ? What happened to the mothers ashes? I like an HEA like the next person, but skimmed the last few chapters to find this one.
March 16, 2025
A new level of angst...
This book is just amazing. When I finished it, I immediately started it over again. It has gone on my short list of all time favorites.
I just recently came across this author when one of her books was recommended in a FB group. ( that one was great too) I love love her writing and character development. The MC have great chemistry. She is now my new queen of angst. I was choked up during so much of this story. I could not put it down. At all. I actually stayed up reading until 7am just to finish!
I can't wait to continue reading everything she has written!
This book is just amazing. When I finished it, I immediately started it over again. It has gone on my short list of all time favorites.
I just recently came across this author when one of her books was recommended in a FB group. ( that one was great too) I love love her writing and character development. The MC have great chemistry. She is now my new queen of angst. I was choked up during so much of this story. I could not put it down. At all. I actually stayed up reading until 7am just to finish!
I can't wait to continue reading everything she has written!
June 28, 2024
Overall Score 3.5 Stars
Good read technically the writing was great 4 to 4.5 stars. My only issue was the way drawn out, back and forth between the main characters. I get the time span aspect, however to go from a page with a hard no to two to three pages later with a yes all in kinda gave me whiplash. Really could have been streamlined with some roads not taken in the story. Hopefully this review makes sense, don’t want to give spoilers or specifics. Good story overall, just needed another edit.
Good read technically the writing was great 4 to 4.5 stars. My only issue was the way drawn out, back and forth between the main characters. I get the time span aspect, however to go from a page with a hard no to two to three pages later with a yes all in kinda gave me whiplash. Really could have been streamlined with some roads not taken in the story. Hopefully this review makes sense, don’t want to give spoilers or specifics. Good story overall, just needed another edit.
July 16, 2024
DNF 47%
Firstly, 3 main characters have similar names:
- Maddox
- Madison (nickname Maddy)
- Addison (nicknamed Addy)
This should have been the first sign that there would be no creativity in sight.
Absolutely, predictable plot but you expect some element of predictability going into a story like this. However, writers typically make up for the predictable story line with good writing. This was not the case here. I couldn't even be bothered to read past the 47% mark. Even if the plot got more interesting at a later stage, the writing was as terrible as this was boring.
Firstly, 3 main characters have similar names:
- Maddox
- Madison (nickname Maddy)
- Addison (nicknamed Addy)
This should have been the first sign that there would be no creativity in sight.
Absolutely, predictable plot but you expect some element of predictability going into a story like this. However, writers typically make up for the predictable story line with good writing. This was not the case here. I couldn't even be bothered to read past the 47% mark. Even if the plot got more interesting at a later stage, the writing was as terrible as this was boring.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 20, 2024
4.65 stars
I had very different opinions all throughout this book😂😭
You follow Maddox and Addy throughout three different seasons of their lives. High school, College, Adulthood. Every stage is crazier than the last, truly. I will say, they were very good about running away from their problems and it was frustrating but the love that they held through it all was so sweet. And Maddox was soooooo hot (and and out of the bedroom😉). He seriously knew how to woo a girl (just look at me🥵). Anyways, I did enjoy this big but it’s heavy on the miscommunication trope so don’t think otherwise.
I had very different opinions all throughout this book😂😭
You follow Maddox and Addy throughout three different seasons of their lives. High school, College, Adulthood. Every stage is crazier than the last, truly. I will say, they were very good about running away from their problems and it was frustrating but the love that they held through it all was so sweet. And Maddox was soooooo hot (and and out of the bedroom😉). He seriously knew how to woo a girl (just look at me🥵). Anyways, I did enjoy this big but it’s heavy on the miscommunication trope so don’t think otherwise.
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