Kicking Dreams

by L. Duarte

Back to when I paired my dolls and walked them down an imaginary aisle, I had a dream. With my husband by my side and the scent of petunias filling the air, we would rock ourselves on a wicker swing, watching the sun dip below the mountains. The laughter of our two—or five children filling the air as they chased and caught fireflies. Yes, the dream was simple but it was mine. Then, I met him. We married, not for love, but because he won me in a hand of poker. Alluring, mysterious, and sinfully handsome, I was drawn into his web despite all of his darkness. I fell in love and thought it would be enough. I should have known better.

Genres: Marriage Of Convenience, Romance, Contemporary, Contemporary Romance

Unknown Binding

About the author

I have found that there is only one thing better than reading, and that is writing. I am always torn between the two. I am also frequently torn between chocolate and coffee. However, I emphatically do not like the month of February, lies, and flies. For me, bravery is defined by the courage to do what we fear the most. I live in Connecticut with my husband and two children. Drop a few lines. I would love to hear from you.

Reviews

[Carol [Goodreads Addict] · Rating 4 out of 5]

RATING 3.5 STARS

Kicking Dreams is a stand alone novel by L. Duarte. I’ve read three of this author’s books in the past and loved them like crazy. This one, though, is completely different and for reasons I will explain, I struggled a bit with it.

Evangeline will be eighteen years old in three days when her presence is requested in her father’s office along with a man she has never met. Evangeline has led a very sheltered life. She is an only child and was home schooled. Her father has a gambling problem and a drinking problem and a very bad temper. He was pretty much non-existent in her upbringing. She was raised by the woman that runs the household and loves her deeply.



Just like any young girl, Evangeline has always dreamed that one day she would meet her own night in shining armor and fall madly in love and be swept off her feet. She would have a beautiful wedding and live happily ever after. But as she sat in that office, she learned that her father had bet her in a poker game and lost. That the man sitting next to her wanted to marry her and in exchange, he would not share the information he held of her father’s illegal activities which would send him to prison.



Aaron Walker has built an empire and wants for nothing except revenge. He has been forming his plan ever since he lost his parents when he was a teenager. He will get his revenge and it starts here, with marrying Evangeline. Aaron is a cold man. He has closed off his heart and feels no emotion. But when his lips met his new wife’s at their wedding ceremony, he felt something, something he wasn’t prepared for, something he didn’t want.



Aaron whisks Evangeline away to New York to start her new life. He basically drops her off and disappears and she’s left to navigate this new life on her own. Thankfully, Aaron’s adorable cousin comes to her rescue and helps her to acclimate to a way of life she never imagined. She even begins to love New York, especially Central Park. Evangeline is completely innocent and naïve to the world. She’s one of those that sees the good in everyone and everything and people can’t help but to love her. She accepts this new life without hesitation to keep her father out of prison, even though he has never shown her affection. When her new husband kissed her at their wedding, the electricity she felt was a shock. She sees this closed off man as a challenge. She will break through his walls somehow, that is, if he would ever come back so she can get to know him.

Even with the limited time Evangeline was able to spend with Aaron, she began to see little glimpses of the man behind the mask so to speak. She began to develop feelings for him. And then a funny thing happened. Evangeline began to fall in love with her husband. Was there any hope that he might ever return her feelings? Or could she love him enough for the two of them.

“His arms were the only place I belonged.”



Okay, first, Evangeline was adorable, but her innocence and naivety were over the top. Still, you couldn’t help but to love her. I struggled with Aaron. He was a pretty despicable man. I don’t have triggers in books but he still bothered me. He does redeem himself later in the book as Evangeline breaks through his walls, though.

If you do have triggers regarding cheating, then consider this a warning. Even though this is a marriage of convenience, Aaron does sleep with other women.

I also would have liked an epilogue. The book does come to an enjoyable ending but I would have liked to know how they dealt with her father and would have liked a glimpse into their future.

I did enjoy the book. I just struggled with certain things as I stated. But, if you enjoy a story of a heroine who can bring out the best in everyone, even a man who at first seems to have no redeeming qualities, then you will definitely enjoy this.

For more about this book and so many more, come and visit me at Carol's Crazy Bookish World.
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[Nikki ღ Navareus · Rating 2 out of 5]

This story took me a little while to get sucked into it. Evangeline’s young age and naiveness made her quite the doormat to everyone in her life. I was outraged in her behalf with how her father treated her. (And seriously, who would sacrifice their freedom just to keep her prick father who treated her so despicably, out of jail?) Aaron treating her so horrifically from the beginning finally drew me into this story. Aaron was an enormous asshole to Evangeline from the first meeting through most of the rest of this story. I actually dig the asshole hero vibe, so the cheating incidents didn't bother me. While I LOVE asshole heroes in stories, that kind of goes hand in hand with a really epic grovel for forgiveness. This story lacked that completely and kept me from warming up to Aaron. I would have probably rated this 3 Stars if there was the sufficient grovel in this story.

This story had many irritating elements to it too. While Evangeline strived to get a backbone, she kind of missed the mark for me. She still felt like a total doormat by the ending. Oh, and Evangeline's pretend brother Nathan was an unforgivable dick in this story. His lame excuse for how he cut her out of his life was pathetic. The ending was OTT unbelievable. I can't help but think that if Nana had given up her secret back when Aaron first showed up, this would have dampened Evangeline's desire to save Daddy Dearest's ass.

What did I LOVE in this story? Leticia. She was the one true redeeming factor in this story. I loved everything about her and how she treated Evangeline. While this story left me feeling disappointed, if Leticia's story comes out, I'm definitely diving into that one.

[Lu Bielefeld · Rating 1 out of 5]

1 ⭐- Ugh! Didn't like it or triggers or pet peeve!
========================================

Hero disrespects and abuses psychologically. He has sex with other women practically in her face. Horrible.
He has neither a lovable character. She is a deluded fool who sees the world in pink lenses.

images of him displayed the stereotypical long-legged blonde adorning his side. Which made me feel slightly inferior and insecure now that we were to be married and I would be the one spotted next to him.

He wagered his daughter to a stranger whom he had only met a few times before, at a club for illegal gambling nonetheless.

“I do,” I said, putting the ring Janet, my secretary, had bought for the occasion on Evangeline’s finger.

Her voice faltered as her shaking fingers weakly placed the platinum ring I was not planning to wear on my finger.

In the beauty department, she was average at best.

Even I had standards. I was no child molester. And Evangeline was most definitely a child-bride.

Roughly, he shoved me inside the car.

“Part of my job is to make sure the passengers of The Messenger feel welcomed. Prior to a flight, I stock the fridge with personal favorites. It requires some research, but I find it pleases, ah—um, Mr. Walker.”

“Enjoy your meal,” Jaqueline said with a sugary voice, her eyes lingering a bit too long on Aaron.

“Though I’m your lawful husband, the only time we will interact as such is when I fuck you or when we’re at social events.”

Your childish manner is idiotic enough without you opening your mouth and making a greater fool of yourself.”

I heard Aaron telling Jaqueline to meet him in the bedroom.

From behind me, Aaron ruefully shoved me inside the vehicle.

I liked my women, well, to be grown women, not children. And a child was what Evangeline was.

My friend Google provided me with endless images of Aaron, each picture with a different woman at his side.

Aaron had an eclectic taste for women. There was a diversity of companions, Asian, Hispanic, White, African American, etc.

“Beatriz, this is not the time.” “When is the time, Aaron? When you come to my bed? How dare you go behind my back and get married,” she said with scorn.

Was Beatriz my husband’s mistress? A soap opera couldn’t be any more dramatic.

“This hideous dress makes you look twelve.”

His eyes dripped contempt. And anger, and hatred, and revulsion.

Humiliated and confused, I dashed up the stairs and into the bedroom.

I hadn’t heard from him since the day after I met his family, over six months ago. The word “weird” didn’t begin to cover our relationship.

“Five years for us to remain married. Not for me to stay away from my family,” I protested. “A deal is a deal,” he said as way of ending the conversation.

“I am glad you are not as slow and dull as you appear.” And as if he hadn’t just threatened me, he swiveled the tumbler with unnerving casualness, the ice crackling against the glass.

“Not happening,” he finally said. His fingers wrapped around my wrist removing my hand from his face.

He grabbed my hand and brought it close to his face, examining the angry red marks that were certainly going to turn into bruises.

“You think too highly of yourself. You don’t have the power to affect me, or upset me.”

“Newsflash for you, making you moan was just a way to lift some of the boredom of having to put up with your naïve and childish ways.”

His voice husky and seductive, traveled through the opened door and reached me. “Half an hour. Don’t be tardy.” A throaty laugh roared from his throat. “Of course, I will have my wicked way with you,” he said.

With the lamp from the nightstand casting a dim light, shadows enveloped the room. I heard a moan. A female moan. My eyes snapped to my bed. I had not known pain… real, wretched pain until that moment. Aaron sat at the edge of the bed, with Beatriz standing in between his thighs. With his arms wrapped around her, he glanced my way, his gaze meeting mine.

“Would you like to join us, or you just want to watch?” His voice was sluggish, and his lips curled up in a menacing smile.

Never before had I called Beatriz—or any other woman to my home. Beatriz lived in one of the suites of Hayden, the hotel I owned. I had always sought her there. Never at my home.

“I’ve been your sex slave for two years now, Aaron.” She attempted to squirm out of my hands.

I recalled the pain in her eyes when she saw me with Beatriz.

Aaron wrapped his hand around my elbow with a grip vice and in silence, dragged me to the elevator.

“It’s a tad too late, Aaron. I’m no longer interested in being friends with you. I’ll honor our five-year agreement. And then, I hope to God never to see you again.”

My plan was simple. After crowning her with jewelry, I would take her to Maestros for a romantic dinner. Paparazzi would, of course, witness every moment of the encounter. And by tomorrow pictures of Beatriz and me would blast the front page of every tabloid of the city.

[Jac K · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this up on KU because I love the “unwanted arranged marriage/ wife that is treated like crap” trope, but this one missed the mark for me. Kicking Dreams is the story of Aaron Walker and Evangeline. The blurb sets it up, Aaron wins sheltered, barely legal Evangeline in a poker game. The two enter into a 5-yr arranged marriage where Aaron proceeds to either treat her like shit or completely avoid her.

On paper, this checks many of my boxes…
✅ Arranged marriage
✅ Revenge
✅ Total asshole H
✅ OW drama (including sexing up the flight attendant after the wedding)

Unfortunately, it also checked many boxes of things that annoy me…
❌ Flimsy revenge plan
❌ No groveling from total asshole H
❌ Childlike virgin h (twirling, daydreaming, Lucky Charm eating)
❌ No confrontation or angst from OW drama
❌ Slow plot with repetitive dialogue (like card/hand analogies)

For these types of reads to work I need two things… the h to have some backbone and the H to do some damage control… and we get neither. Evangeline was quite pathetic; she barely pushes back and NEVER in response to the big things. ( = no feels) Aaron was all over the place… and not in a good way. It’s like the author couldn’t decide how to portray him, so we end up with this total jackass that just poof gets a completely different personality mid-book. ( = no feels) Not to mention he’s a dark womanizing stud but talks like a baby during his fever dream… And what was up with the prancing?? Sexy asshole and prancing do not go together. He pranced across a room, pranced behind a tree, pranced towards her… and my absolute favorite…. He pranced my way like a predator. 😂



Bottom Line- Not terrible, but I needed more… especially push back from Evangeline and some comeuppance for the baddie. It also ended rather abruptly; an epilogue would've helped secure the HEA.

[Wendy'sThoughts · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Nourishing The Seeds of Love Stars
* * * 1/2 Spoiler Free
There once was a boy who was loved by his mother... she showed him joy, caring, and happiness. He treasured her and when she was sad, he felt it to his core. One day, he saw her crying and rushed to see what he could do to make her happy again. She told him the way to live your life was to leave a spot in your heart open to forgive...to be able to go there when confronted with the ugly. She made him promise her he would...

Then something horrific happened...his distant father fought with his loving mother and then she was gone in a flash...his mother no more.... then his father, too. The boy was sent to live with his cousins and there he found some comfort...but the driving force in his young life...the desire planted by his father's last words was to revenge the reason for his mother's death.

On a farm, steeped in a tradition from the past, lived a girl who was isolated from everything by her father. He was a gambler, a drunk, and someone who thought of his daughter as a bargaining chip. The only loving person this girl had was Nana, a woman tied to past ways, yet strong in the understanding of who she was, what her values were and how important her love for this child was. Nana's grandson was the girl's best friend and together they played and grew up on this land.

We meet these two people when the girl is on the brink of turning 18. Evangeline has developed into a beautiful young woman. Her heart is true, full of the ideals of how things can be good, no matter what. She has had the simple dream of marriage, children and the comfort of a loving partner to share it. She may have been homeschooled, naive and hopeful...but she also had an innate ability to see the true aura of others...and she believed in overcoming the obstacles others may have presented.

Aaron Walker has grown into a man driven. He was devoted to being successful, able to control his existence and to never lose his focus on the long-term goal of destroying the man who was responsible for the death of his mother. This man may not have pulled the trigger but his name was burned into his heart as the one who took her away.

For years Aaron waited and watched for his opportunity to lay the trap for this man. By becoming wealthy beyond belief, he had the means to do whatever was necessary. His target played exactly into his hands by being who he was...a crook, gambler of no merit and a drunk.

The time had come...The man's daughter was turning 18 and soon everything Aaron had worked for was going to take place.

Evangeline was summoned into her father's office. She had the feeling of something wasn't right. There standing in the office was a man much older than her. His presence was dark, strong and intense. He was as handsome as any of the romance cover models she had seen. His dark hair begged to have her hand stroke it away from his face.

She was instructed by her father to sit in the chair in front of the desk and then her father proceeded to have a startling conversation with this man as if she wasn't even there. The father was informed by this stranger he was there to collect his winnings from the poker game the father had lost.

HER!

Yes, her cruel father bet her on his last hand in the game and Aaron won her. Aaron then dictated how they were to be married and if the father didn't agree, Aaron would turn over all of the documentation he had accumulated to put him in jail for stealing from his daughter's trust fund.

As they talked as if she wasn't there...Evangeline inserted herself and protested. Over-ruled by her father...and by the fact she couldn't allow her father to go to jail no matter how distant he had been...Evangeline decided to assert herself and insisted on having a wedding ceremony at her home the way she had always wanted.

This pushback caused Aaron to take a moment and acknowledge to himself maybe this young woman actually had some spirit and a quick mind. It humored him and he allowed her this concession as well as another which played into his grand plan.

What Aaron hadn't planned on was the feeling and overwhelming emotion he had when these two kissed at the end of their wedding ceremony. It was life-changing for Aaron because it threatened his control. He resolved not to allow himself to fall into any traps... no feelings, no caring... only revenge was allowed.

Evangeline also felt the same magic Aaron had. Little did her husband know, that kiss was the first she had ever had. It planted a seed of hope for her. Although she had been told by Aaron not to expect anything like a real marriage from him, deep down she thought maybe there might be a possibility to break down the walls of this man she married.

This is an unusual love story. We are taken on a journey where there are many bumps in the road. We experience Evangeline's growth as a more mature and aware person of the world around her. She is given a helping hand by Aaron's younger cousin. This gives our gal a new bestie to have her guide her through all of the life experience a sheltered person would need. We also witness how Evangeline tries to open Aaron's eyes to how wonderful life can be... that there is more to life than work and being closed off. She slowly works her way into Aaron's heart even though he continually pushes her away.

Aaron is not an easy character to warm too. He has so much pain from his past, it has blinded him to what is in front of him. He fights continually the feelings he is having for this woman. Many of his actions are cruel and difficult to forgive. Yet he does have a "Come to Jesus" moment and falls hard for our gal. Once this takes place, all his love and devotion is front and center. Evangeline's pure love for him opens his heart to see and accept what she is offering him. This brings back all of the sweetness he had as a boy... the man is able to be who he was supposed to be.

This was a fantasy love story for me as I decided to accept the premise, reasonings, and actions of the characters. It had heart and the wishes for a Happily Ever After.

A gifted copy was provided by author/publisher for an honest review.

For more Reviews, Free E-books and Giveaways

[Debbie "Buried in Her TBR Pile" · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars

I liked this one. In the beginning, I truly thought the H irredeemable. And while he turned around because of the h, I think the awful things he did to h and in front of her were glossed over - I could not forget them in the end - others may have another take. He was a HUGE jerk - even though h describes him as good-looking, she was very naive where he was concerned.

I had never heard of or read this author before until I read reviews and thought to read when I saw it available on KU. The author can write - a proofreader is needed though. While I was able to finish, I did stumble over words and phraseology. Not as bad as some books, but it did have me re-reading sentences to understand meaning - this is why I am unsure of my rating.

Warning - lots of triggers and trainwrecky.

[Tianna✸loves books✸ · Rating 1 out of 5]

I lost when he is with his just married wife in a plane and he fucks another woman.

Yuck.
Yuck.
Disgusting

[Mojo_Mama · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars

This was a thinly veiled Regency Romance complete with a revenge-scheme MOC, an innocent and virginal heroine, a mistress with exotic name, a manwhore-deluxe rake with a painful past caking his heart of gold in ice, plenty of cheating in view of h, though no sex scenes w/ OW, also, no sex scenes with H/h until 75%, and, finally, evil parents/guardian setting the whole dastardly plot in motion cuz reasons.

Eye-fucking-roll...

I really wanted more for this book and, sadly, my time. I think I need a new hobby :/

I could have loved this had it been fleshed out. So many details are glossed over and the end happens at a frenetic pace...this had the potential for 4 stars.

[Carol (StarAngel's Reviews) Allen · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC provided by author in exchange for an honest review.

This review is based on content, as this is not a final copy.

So far, this is ranging between 3.75 and a 4 Star read...I'm still going over the book in my heart and head.

Full review to come soon!

[❤️Melanie G.📖💛 · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG...So Excited, L. Duarte sent me an ARC of this book for an honest review, Thank you very much!!

Review to come closer to release date. Just a hint - a definite must read!!

[J · Rating 3 out of 5]

** H married barely legal h for revenge against her father who may have had something to do with his parents death. H cheated right in front of h on airplane ride with stewardess right after wedding. Though I didn't like that scene (no details, just him asking her to meet in bedroom), i sorta forgave H since not yet emotionally involved - yes I know they are married but due to the circumstance but did not forgive 2nd scene way further in the marriage where he brought his mistress home to spite h.
Overall, I did still enjoy book, the angst, the little mystery surrounding parents, surrounding H's secret room and most of all loved h's relationship with the housekeeper/pseudo parent, how much they loved each other.
H very cold and was hot and cold throughout and the h was very naive I found considering internet, TV etc she was home schooled but still was a little hard to believe, still enjoyable.
They did not sleep together until well into the book also - overall HEA was believable.

[Valeen Robertson (Live Thru Books Blog) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Evangeline is an almost 18-year-old girl when she finds she's to be married off to a man many years her senior, all to save her cold, loveless father's stupid gambling ass. She volunteers to marry this man she doesn't know, all to save a man who is supposed to love her, but doesn't show a shred of heart toward her. Um yeah...

And that's where this story lost me, IN THE VERY BEGINNING! And it never really got me back. I didn't end up hating it, so I can't rate it lower than 3 stars, but I didn't like it. Evangeline, while sweet, is so ott naive and sheltered that it drove me batty. Not to say that she deserved the horrible way her father and her "husband" treated her, because she most certainly did not. Not at all. And yet, she withstood it all with this huge heart that I just cannot for the life of me, connect with. If it were me, I'd be railing. Railing against saving a father who didn't love me. Railing against my cold, unfeeling asshole of a husband who used me for revenge. Who cheated on me constantly with other women. Who didn't recognize my existence until so late in the story that it was almost pointless. Gah. I am really annoyed just thinking about this story, and it probably shows in this review.

Still, there are some good things about it. Evangeline, while seriously naive and child-like, at least is a good person with a huge heart. Perhaps too huge, but still. And Aaron finally comes around, sorta kinda, but not really, and redeems his stupid self, although far too late. So that's why 3 stars and not 2 that my annoyed self wants to give this story.

ARC via Hidden Gems Books for an honest review.

Full review posted on Live Through Books Blog.

[Tracy *To the point Reviews* · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh...

This story is a lot like Sparrow by LJ Shen. However, the hero has an axe to grind with the heroine's dad and there's a whole lot of backstory that comes out right at the end that turns the tables on his whole revenge scheme.

It was not a bad read. I was just disapointed by how the whole story began with her being so full of naive beauty. Her way of thinking was unique. But as the story progressed, she loses that essence and ends up sounding desperately silly. (In my opinion)

And the hero has a few shining moments. But they seemed so few that it made his previous acts of cruelty non redeemable for me.

All in all, an average read for me.

[Elly · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars

I LOVE unrequited love stories. And I would have given this story a higher rating but one BIG thing I disliked, H slept with others. Literally on the flight home to NYC after exchanging vows with the h, he asks the flight attendant to meet him in the bedroom. RIGHT IN FRONT OF HIS NEW BRIDE! =/ Super disrespectful and I couldn't get over it.

[shms · Rating 2 out of 5]

My second book in as many days with a cruel hero trope. The marriage of young naive h to the cruel H is part of the H's revenge on the h's father. Orginal isn't it? It plays out over couple of years and so when the H decides to be nice there isn't an immediate resolution but takes place over many months. So the hea didn't seem out of left field and we saw the growth of the h and the H. The 'cheating' aspect didn't really bother me largely because other than the one bedroom scene its mainly dealt with off page at a point where they don't really have a relationship. Still I skimmed a lot at the end because it was toooooooooo looooooooong.

[C · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have enjoyed all L Duarte books and this is a good addition. Some 5 star feels in parts.

[Doris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dear Luciana, thank you for providing this ARC. I really liked Evangelines and Aarons journey, so I read it in one go :)

„My life continued to be a disarray of new things, and the old and the new me often collided against one another on a loud bang that left bereft and lost.“

Evangeline is the pawn in a game between two men. Aaron Walker won her in a poker game with her father and insists on a wedding. She’s 18, he’s 32 and has a good reason for this scheme. They are as different as day and night. Not only because of the age gap but also because of their approach to life. So they navigate through their new daily routine, while Aaron tries to fulfill a promise and to take revenge. But neither of them plan on emotions.

I must confess, that I didn’t know what to think of their story at first. I’m not really into books about arranged marriages or age gaps. But because I know Lucianas style and her talent for beautiful stories I was open-minded.

Evangeline (one of my favorite names!) is a young naive girl, who was sheltered from the rest of the world. She’s homeschooled and have no friends beside her Nana and their grandson Nathan. Maybe I missed it, but I don’t know, why her father protected her so much, even if he didn’t care about her that much. She has special gifts and a wonderful, unbiased way of looking at things.

I love my heroines sassy and feisty, not so naive. But I admired Evangelines transformation to a strong, wonderful woman. She had to adjust, but she managed that with ease. I see her as this beautiful girl that found peace and beauty even in a polluted big city. And her riddles! ♥ And I loved to read about her friendship with Leticia, who was a great friend!

Aaron’s her opposite. Stoical and controlled, he smiles rarely. As a kid he witnessed what love could do to someone and dissociated from such emotions since then. Everyting is planned for his revenge, but he didn’t expected Evangeline. The feelings she awakened in him … I understand him and his actions to the extent, even though I wanted to slap him every time he hurt Evangeline.

I know there had to be a bump in their relationship but the drama at the end has been solved so quickly that I thought it was unnecessary and the ending itself abrupt. But otherwise I had a pretty good time while reading.

„Kicking Dreams“ was the perfect book for a lazy saturday afternoon.

„Are you for real?“

[Sowmya · Rating 3 out of 5]

𝟐.𝟓 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐬⭐

Well I went into this story expecting a fully boring annoying story after reading a few reviews, but damn me, I didn't think I'll finish this book by earning one of my favorite dreamy heroes. Yes, Aaron Walker was one fine specimen with his menacing tendency in the beginning to a swoonworthy romantic hero by the end. I know there are some haters for his character, but I loved him, sue me!

𝑳𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒄𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒎𝒆. 𝑰 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒃𝒆 𝒊𝒕𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒑𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒓 𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒍 𝑰 𝒕𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝒎𝒚 𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒕 𝒃𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉.

We have Evangeline, a naive virgin 18yr old girl traded in marriage to a 32yr old super wealthy, intimidating handsome hunk of a business tycoon Aaron Walker, as h's father lost a hand of poker to our H. So the story is about how they evolve their relationship and how love make someone overcome their fears & hidden wounds and how you can be vulnerable in love.

Kicking Dreams doesn't have any special plot or something, we have seen this same kinda storyline in many books nowadays with arranged marriage trope where our heroine was different than all the OW and changes our Hero's perspective and make him fall in love, then suddenly there will be some trouble in paradise due to an affair or OW or family drama or some other villainous kind, and finally everything's solved, forgotten and forgiven & tada! A HEA.
Here too some slight drama happens due to our MC's parents indiscretion and our hero deeply affected by their actions & hence shaped his lifestyle based on those wounds for seeking revenge.

Now coming to the characters of this book,
➡️ Evangeline was this too innocent, too forgiving, empathetic person with some weird quirks, loved everyone around her & who doesn't know how to hold a grudge. So yeah she's the standard heroine we generally see in most of the classic romance novels. I can't say I liked her very much, there were some moments where I could connect with her, but mostly she's just boring, doing everything & changing herself in order to please the hero. Now if I didn't like my heroine of the book, then it's just a big red flag.

➡️ Aaron, our 32yr old smart and hot looking billionaire hero who have a tragic childhood & who doesn't let emotions control him or lead his actions and also doesn't get close with anyone until Evangeline. Yes, he slept with other women after marrying Evangeline (it's not shown in the book just mentioned), ignored or avoided her for basically an year, but after he came to realization of his growing feelings for her, he was seriously endearing. I loved reading about him of how he tried to fight his newly developed feelings for the h, since he never felt this way about anyone other than our h and how he finally accepted his love for her and how romantic & vulnerable he was. I just loved him!

𝑴𝒚 𝑳𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒘𝒂𝒚 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒚 𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒆, 𝒎𝒚 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆, 𝒎𝒚 𝒔𝒐𝒖𝒍. 𝑾𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒕𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒏𝒏𝒐𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆, 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒚 𝒆𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔. 𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒑𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒓, 𝒑𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒎𝒆. 𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒑𝒊𝒔𝒆𝒅, 𝑰 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒎𝒂𝒅𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒆, 𝒕𝒐𝒐.

“𝑵𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒔 𝒐𝒓 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒃𝒆 𝒘𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒃𝒆𝒕𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒖𝒔, 𝑪𝒐𝒓𝒂𝒛𝒐𝒏.” 𝑰 𝒘𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝒎𝒚 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒂𝒊𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒘 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒚 𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒔𝒕. “𝑰 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒐𝒅𝒂𝒚, 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒚𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒅𝒂𝒚. 𝑰 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒎𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕, 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝑰 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂 𝒉𝒂𝒍𝒇 𝒂𝒏 𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒂𝒈𝒐. 𝑻𝒐𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒘 𝑰’𝒍𝒍 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒕𝒐𝒅𝒂𝒚. 𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒕 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒚 𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒍 𝑰 𝒅𝒓𝒂𝒘 𝒎𝒚 𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒕 𝒃𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉.”


➡️ the secondary characters like Nana, Leticia and Nathan were a good addition. I think I really liked Nana's personality of how loving, brave, and held her pride as she's a servant who came from the line of slaves of color like her ancestors. I think it would have been wonderful if we saw her character more in the story but whatever role she played it was satisfactory.

The writing was really good but what I struggled with was the whole arranged marriage plot occurred in order for our hero to seek revenge, but that entire thing was watered down by silly plot twist.
The chemistry between the MCs was good, I won't say it's angsty, just slight drama toward the ending and that's it.
Overall it's an okay book, if you are a new reader of this genre then I think one can say it's an enjoyable read, but if you're like me who read so many similar books like these then it's just meh, you can give it a try to pass time. 😉

[Treasa · Rating 5 out of 5]

A HARD HITTING EMOTIONAL IMPACT!❤
I was clawing at the pages that infested me with despair taking an ugly hold consuming a part of my heart I did not want to give to the ugly painful words that kept bleeding through at a turn of a page that I could not resist feeling deflated I burrowed on looking and hoping for any sign of joy to bleed through because at times I truly had no idea how I would make it to the end when this amazing story refused to let me go! It had me hooked drowning like a fish with no way out! A page turning rollercoaster ride of gutt-wrenching twists with an impact that keeps sending you spiraling down even the slightest peek of enjoyment gets ripped out of your grasp spending you tumbling pulling at the pages for a gleam of happiness to fill the pages again! Betrayal, deceit, blackmail, cheating, intense, edgy, moving, raw, smirky, sad, gutt-wrenching, heartwarming and enjoyable! An incredible storyline that grabs you right from the start refusing to let you go pushing and pulling you through the hard hitting punches and passionate binding chemistry that makes it all worth every burning ulcer inflicted on you! (note several editing issues but if you are willing to look past them the rest of the words will bleed through hitting you straight to your core demanding a place in your heart and without hesitation you surrender the key and welcome it in!) One heck of an emotionally gripping must read that at times was a tuff pill to swallow!

[Ronel Olver · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok Book - very long and somewhat disappointing.

This is the first book I have read by this author and I found the book lacking. This is a very long book, 43 chapters long, and the characters do not develop as much as I would have liked. I was left hanging at the end, the book does have a satisfactory ending. I am trying not to leave any spoilers.

Aaron is a true beast and a total jerk but not as much as Evangeline's father, who is horrible and offensive person, at least one starts out not liking the father and end up despising him at the end. This is probably the only character that develops. The father gets off scot-free and Aaron does not redeem himself and at the end I still could not warm up to him.

The heroine Evangeline is 18, sheltered and has never left the farm not even for school when she is forced to marry Aaron. She moves to New York to live with Aaron, who leaves her alone to fend for herself with some guidance with his young cousin. She does grow up a bit, falls in love with Aaron and basically believes everything he says and forgives him for everything. She still protects the father that sold her to marriage to save himself. I felt she could have developed into a much stronger woman one that could take care of herself and be proud of herself.

I received a free ARC copy in exchange for my honest review.

[Brianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book I've read by this author, and honestly I have mixed feelings. I know the premise of this book is to show the "Hero" in a negative light, show his need for revenge, and how far he's willing to go to get there. He weds a very young but legal pawn in his scheme, and makes her carefully crafted dreams about love tumble ruthlessly to the ground with each of his "indiscretions" and cruel words. His go to is to wound her irreparably, and yet she continues to think him redeemable and that there's "something" under the surface. The book is enjoyable, and I liked the ending, but there were things that bothered me. I would definitely read more by this author, because the writing is good, the story was interesting, and the characters were well developed.

[Mandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Evangeline is almost 18-year-old when she finds she's to be married to a man older than her all to save her father. He has no love for her so I don't know why she did it. She volunteers to marry this man, all to save a man who is supposed to love her, but doesn't.
Evangeline was sweet but was naive and sheltered badly. She doesnt deserve the treatment her father and her new hubby showed her. Not at all. And yet, she withstood it all. The husband who used her for revenge. Cheated constantly with other women. Who didn't recognize her existence until so late in the story that it was almost pointless. Aaron finally comes around way later in the book so that's why I gave 4 stars.

" I recieved an ARC Copy of this book."

[Ana Laura]

I just can not believe this book was written in 2018 !!! A reproduction of pathetic sexist patterns !? Is this a good book? Is this creativity? No, this is a SAD JOKE. Have you ever felt embarrassed by someone else who is doing something ridiculous? This is the feeling I felt for Mrs. Duarte after reading this book. Really if this book were a work of mine I would lock the keys so nobody would know the kind of trash that goes through my head. To publish something like this is like shooting himself in the foot with the clear intention of sabotaging her own career. If this is the author's goal, she is on the right track!

[Bprice · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not bad, but not so great!

This author isn't bad, but she's in need of a good editor. The story line wasn't bad, but definitely needed work! I'll never understand why any writer thinks he, or she can do this alone. I nearly gave up on this read...even though I always finish any book I start. I have to say that I don't think I'll be reading anything else by this author until she gets an editor. Sorry, but there are just too many books out there, to waste my time on one that's...well, defective!

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

I quite enjoyed the book at the beginning and was going to give it a 4.5, but halfway through, it lost a star for me. Evangeline is forced into a marriage because her father lost her in a bet. Unfortunately, Aaron wants her for more reasons than just a bet. Cue revenge music. Evangeline, like her age suggests, is quite naive and childish sometimes, which was at odds with how she behaves. Aaron just didn't seem to know himself despite his age. I did enjoy the raw emotions that I felt when they were first in the marriage, but it lost me again towards Aaron's harebrained plotting.

[Patricia Baxes · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book actually gave me a headache. I don’t think I’ve ever been so glad to finish a book. The book ran really long (40+ chapters); the characters lacked that certain something that drives you to continue flipping pages; and the HEA lacked something. Perhaps an epilogue would have resulted in better closure. I applaud the author for bringing the story to our attention, but it just wasn’t for me. (I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy of this book and was glad when I reached the end.)

[Jessica · Rating 1 out of 5]

So bad AND boring

The writing is so bad. “His face was in a paddle of his own throw up.” Many more typos and misused words throughout book. The dialogue was so bad and if I had to hear the heroine talk about her Nana’s biscuits one more time I was gonna lose it. There was no real angst imo just boring telling of the story rather than showing and way too much inner monologue. I skimmed most of the book, tg it was free. #mustmiss

[Tab · Rating 1 out of 5]

When you make the so-called hero this big of an asshole and then have little grovel - the book is a huge disappointment. Add in a sunny, naive and ultimately doormat-like heroine and the disappointment turns to either disgust or apathy. I also just can't with the paternity situation near the end. I think the authors writing isn't awful but the execution - yikes.

[Athena Que Será, Será · Rating 1 out of 5]

Tags: age-gaaap, boring-yaawn, catches-him-in-the-act, cheating-hero, cruel-cruel-hero, damaged-broken_hero, doormat_heroine, hero-has-mistress, hero-hurts-heroine, manwhore-philanderer, marriage-forced, no-grovelling, older-hero-younger-heroine, ow-drama, read, rich-hero, teen-heroine-barely-legal, unlikable-hero, unlikable-heroine, virgin-heroine, waste-of-time, weak-heroine

[Book · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another daft heroine.

Here’s another weak heroine who accepts sh*tty treatment from the H because...love... I understand heroines who begin as naive, gutless Pollyannas. However, it would be great if they didn’t stay that way.