I was supposed to be attending a friend's birthday party, not used as bait to lure out the elusive Holden Hayes. Holden was the last thing I needed. My life was already spiraling, a slow-moving head-on collision that you couldn’t swerve to avoid. In hindsight, so was his. Neither of us was looking for a relationship, but that is precisely what we found. An instant, all-consuming, soul-deep connection that few people ever find.
The problem was we both had pasts, ghosts that threatened to choke out all the light, and that’s exactly what they did. The night we crashed, we didn’t just break. We shattered. They say pain either hurts or changes you, but what about when it’s twisted? His pain was a penance, and mine was a shield. Both were dark and laced in fear, but our fate was set.
Sometimes love stories aren’t beautiful. They’re haunted.
L.A. Ferro has had a love for storytelling her entire life. For as long as she can remember she put herself to sleep plotting stories in her head. That thirst for a good tale led her to books where she became an avid reader.
The unapologetically dramatic characters, steamy scenes, and happily ever afters found inside the pages of romance novels irrevocably transformed her. The world of romance ran away with her heart, and she knew her passion for love would be her craft.
When she’s not trailing after one of her three crazy kids, she loves to construct messy ‘happily ever afters’ that take her readers on a journey full of angst, lust, and obsession with page-turning enchantment.
Chasing her literary dreams, she hopes to captivate her readers with the stories that have lived rent-free in her mind for years. As an avid reader, dominant alpha males and feisty heroines have always stolen her heart and she is optimistic her books will bring the same amount of heart and heat that inspired her.
My whole goal was to finish this book just so I could write a review on how stupid it was but I couldn’t even force myself.
Spineless, weak FMC who has sex with her ex from 5 years ago literally hours after she seems him again. Oh also while she’s in a relationship. 1 second with his magical dick and suddenly she’s back in love with him. Stupid, idiotic MMC who runs away from FMC for 5 years because reasons but then within seconds of seeing her again (coincidentally) decides she is his.
Words can describe how stupid this book is. Tiktok rec lets me down again.
Wow I just wanted to finish this book asap because WHAT IN THE WORLD WAS THIS??? The reason behind how the book got the title is super cringey and stupid - he wanted her to dig into why he acted the way he does. HUH??? The only thing I want to dig is a grave for myself after reading this book.
The two main characters are also both idiots and evidently deserve each other.
OH MY GOD!! I have no idea where to begin this book, THIS BOOK!!!! Oky Holden and Aria, wow the chemistry is off the charts , this book i would say was dark psychological romance with soo many twists and turns I can't even begin to go into. Holden this hotty made me love him and wanna punch him. He has his own demons and boy, I didn't see the twist coming. Aria may just be my favourite heroine ever,she grows and develops in such an incredible way. I felt totally connected to this character . This book has triggers so be warned but it was an incredible journey I really couldn't put this down I spent a whole afternoon reading it (Nearly burnt the dinner😂) . LA Ferro has done an incredible job with this story, I didnt know what to expect and she blew me away. I never give spoilers ever so let me just tell anyone reading this. If you like a book that will pull you in, lead you down a dark and emotional path, will surprise you, shock you, and is packed with spice, this book is for you.
Im so thankful to have received this ARC for DIG. This book was outstanding! The plot and story line had me hanging on every word! The love these two characters carry for each other was so strong and the way they always ended up back i. Each others lifes🥹 they go through so much both of them having a dark past when there truths finally come back it brings them even closer.
This book made me as a reader look at myself and past relationships and see if I needed to set myself free from trauma and self expectations and also stop projecting my trauma on to those I love. When a book makes you look at yourself and you question your ways, means it's a good book.
I might start by saying this was very high school drama for me. I really struggled to like the MMC in fact he was actually a massive douche and nearly everything that came out of his mouth was awful! He was such a self involved jealous possessive wombat that wanted everything for himself without thinking about her feelings/insecurities at all. I don’t mind a possessive man but jealousy is not a turn on. She couldn’t even have banter or friendship with his best mate without him getting jealous and wanting a punch on. Like put your damn ego away! It was constant fighting makeup, fighting again, makeup. Every second word he called her was Pretty Girl.
The split/break up annoyed me, which is why it’s so high school to me. Maybe it just brought back too many of my own jealous boyfriend in high school memories. They were two adults who needed to put their adult pants on and have an actual conversation.
They are meant to be in their 20s in the start of this however both lived with their parents still and sneak around at night etc. Spice level is about a 4 but some of the scenes felt unrealistic, e.g. (and one of the reasons I could never warm up to Holden - MMC) she’d never had an orgasm before but he gave her her first one from ‘finger banging’ while she was on top in the back of his truck, this was after forcing her to remove her clothes while she felt completely vulnerable, uncomfortable and insecure about being seen naked for the first time, they were out in public, she was not allowed to cover up and feel comfortable because it was ‘his right’ as her boyfriend to see what was his and she had no right to deny him this. Yes you read that right.
I struggled to keep up between the fight scenes and sex scenes, there’s even a scene where they start fighting while having sex which completely kills the mood and it’s because of MMC being a douche yet again. I feel he was always invalidating her feelings. Lol with a name like Holden that’s probably why (Ford girl here haha) but overall about a 3 star.
Don’t get me wrong I loved the authors writing style and would happily read her work again. It was easy to read and well described. I feel it’s just as much a skill to make me as a reader dislike a character as it is to like/love a character. There is no rule book that states you have to love all of the characters to like a book. Not all characters need to be liked. It is still a strong emotion and it takes work to get that emotion so a huge well done to this author and I’ll be looking out for more books from her.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Why can’t I get into this book?! UGH. These opening chapters are not grabbing my attention. I don’t know if it’s the writing or the description/unfolding of these characters and the storyline. Yawn. I’m sorry. BookTok recommended failed
L.A. Ferro... I wasn't ready for this one. This book blew me away. I didn't think it was possible for so much raw emotion and sizzling spice to be packed into 378 pages, but you did that and so much more. I think my heart is still bleeding all over Chapter 13 &14, the plot twists that came after floored me. (Seriously, mouth gaped wide open!) This book is both raw and emotionally dark and so damn profound. Holden & Aria burned up the pages with their intense love & need for one another (seriously, the heat level is out of this world) and at the same time they frustrated the hell at of me. This book will get you in all the feels, it will grip you, twist you, and tear your heart out only to put all the pieces back together at the end and make you whole again, leaving you with a book hangover. I can't say enough about this amazing & talented author. I feel like 5 ⭐️'s just doesn't do this book or this author justice! This was a masterpiece and I can't wait to read what else she puts out into the world for us to enjoy.
This book literally consumed me! It reached down deep and pulled a lot of emotions out of me. I’m the one to read darker than dark romance… but this was dark on a whole different level. Emotionally dark… making the reader feel for all the characters. So much happened in this one book… after finishing it, it felt like I’ve finished two!
Holden and Aria have their own issues separately and together. Their back and forth made me want to throw my phone a couple of times. If it wasn’t miscommunication… it was a mixture of their own self loathing, self doubt and inner demons. This book was REAL and RAW and super EMOTIONAL!
The amount of characters in this book I’m really hoping L.A. has plans for sequel… I would love to see a book for Conner and maybe even Spencer! So much potential and also how different each character was, it could go into different sides of this world/universe.
Aria & Holden both share a traumatic past. & while Holden remembers his clear as day, Aria suffers dissociative amnesia & can’t remember the event that triggers her demons.
While I’m the biggest a sucker for a good second chance, Insta-love isn’t a trope I usually find appealing- however, this one was done right!
This felt like every trope was halfway thrown into one story plot without a larger thought for the overall plot. I did read it as a standalone so maybe if I read all of the books it would be better. Also we have a massively red flag possive mmc, a traumatized fmc. Through in an eating disorder, sexual assault, touch her and you die, second chance, pregnancy, sports romance and mafiaish sprinkles that is this book. Way too much going on.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
O m gee ! This was a spicy book with a plot . There was twists and turns I didn’t see coming along with great Spice . I want Holden as my book boyfriend.
LA Ferro knows how to write amazing tension. I was really loving this book but I removed a star because the ending just felt a bit weird. Still a really good book and I love Holden and Aria together. I love that they got a happy ending but I feel like some major trauma got dumped at the end making me feel like the ending was weird.
Edit: I keep thinking about this book so I give it 5 stars now 😅😂
First book by this author and I have to say I couldn’t put it down. I literally read it in one day. There’s some drama, suspense, trauma healing, and spice. Holden and aria definitely had push and pull type of relationship while dealing insecurities and stuff. Definitely recommend. But please check triggers there some sensitive topics.
This book was a hot mess. I wanted to DNF it early on but I made myself keep reading. 😏
Aria was just super dramatic and flaky. She was always running away from her problems and Holden. In the beginning I understood her anxiety and the need to step out of places to get some air but I laughed when she was at a baseball game saying she needed some air. How much more air do you need being out in the freaking open? 🤷🏻♀️ The author clearly wanted the readers to know how desired she was by the random (and very constant) male attention, cat calling. etc. She was the type the author wrote as the girl who is gorgeous but doesn’t know that she is. 🤨. She didn’t know what she wanted in life when it came to school, a future career and love. She was turned on one moment and ready to jump Holden and then she was pushing him away. She’d tell him she wants to see him only to be like “I don’t plan on reaching out to him because it’s better this way” bleh. 🤦🏻♀️
Holden couldn’t make up his mind. He wanted to meet up with her then decided maybe he shouldn’t. Says he’s not ready or looking for a relationship only to tell Aria the night after they first met that she belongs to him. Then he fights for her and makes her take a chance on him only for him to let the demons from his past take over his rational thinking and pushes Aria away. Make up your melons dude, he was just as flaky as Aria.
Later on in the book there’s some plot twist that did nothing for the book, didn’t even peak my interest or had me like “whoa what?!” It just confused me and made me want to hurry up and finish the book. Like I said, the book was a hot mess.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Thank you to the author for the ARC of this book. People this book was emotionally dark and twisted, it made me feel a whole bunch of stuff. Man this book had so many layers and you have to be in the right headspace to read it, but it’s so good, please check trigger warnings. Each character had so many issues from their past to deal with, and you can’t help but to relate even if you haven’t went through what they went through. The twists and turns this book took had me a few times, where I was just not expecting it. Lastly the spice was immaculate, the mouth on Holden, damn.
This book was a bigger hot mess than the main characters.
There were inconsistencies everywhere. The pacing was rushed. The amount of tropes in one book is crazy - the whole plot just ended up really disjointed. It just….wasn’t good at all.
This book took me on a rollercoaster of emotions. Both characters had something traumatic that happened to them before they met, and neither really knew how to cope in healthy ways, but the way they wanted to be there for each other was so sweet.
This book had so many swoon worthy moments. Holden melted my heart when he spoke to Aria. I love that he wanted her to see herself the way he saw her. Wouldn’t allow her to think poorly of herself and helped her get through darker moments.
I would recommend looking at trigger warnings prior to picking this up, there are darker themes that may upset people. There were a few times where I just felt so gutted for the characters, but I felt as though they were able to work through their issues and come out on the other side stronger.
I was happy to see that Aria gained more confidence throughout the book. She knew her worth and refused to accept anything less, loved that vibe!!
Can’t wait to continue through the series, I’m excited to get to Connor’s story!!
Personally i liked the book. i had tiny issues with it like how the girl has a mental disorder but it doesn't go in depth about it that much. I went into this book expecting something just to realise i misread the tiktok i saw about it. it's a second chance romance, i don't love this trope much but i didn't feel like it was that good in that book. The FMC gets back with MC way to quickly for my liking that's just my opinion i like it when there is fights and little bit of toxicity. I also liked how they are connected by their past even though the girl doesn't remember it. I also loved the side characters i feel like Conner needs his own book!
"Just promise you won’t stop fighting for me. I need you to dig. When I’m not the man I was yesterday, dig. DIG until you uncover the better parts of me, the parts that belong to you.
"You won’t. I’m here. Just promise you won’t stop fighting for me. I need you to dig. When I’m not the man I was yesterday, dig. DIG until you uncover the better parts of me, the parts that belong to you."
This man is book boyfriend dream goals. He is far from perfect but his love and devotion to Aria just makes me melt. Aria is the perfect puzzle piece to complete Holden. These two have instant chemistry almost like fate is pulling them together. This book will have you in all the feels. Aria and Holden’s love is messy, complicated, filled with drama. They each have their own past trauma that is holding them back. You’ll cry, laugh at their crazy banter, your heart might break but I think there could be happiness for these characters if they just dig and work on their issues. This book captivated me from the first chapter all way to the end— it was really hard to put down!!
"Just promise you won’t stop fighting for me. I need you to dig. When I’m not the man I was yesterday, dig. DIG until you uncover the better parts of me, the parts that belong to you”
Read this book in 3 days, it was hard for me to put down. The heartbreaking events that brought them together in their separate journey, and the way their fates were always intertwined sucked me into their love story and broke my heart. The issues and situations in this book were a little dark but are also very relatable especially in this day and age.
Aria first meets Holden at her coworker/friends 21st birthday party. Holden was the last thing she needed with her life already spiraling, a slow-moving head-on collision that she couldn’t swerve to avoid. Neither of them were looking for a relationship, but that is precisely what they found.The problem is that they both had pasts, ghosts that threatened to choke out all the light.
I loved this story. I can currently relate to so much of what Aria is going though and the thoughts that she has. This book felt like therapy for me and I loved every minute of it! Not to mention that Holden is a fucking babe, he’s 🥵 and he and cook what more could a girl ask for
🛑Please check your trigger warnings
***********potential spoilers************** My favourite quotes:
“Life's too short to spend it wasting your time with someone who doesn't light you up inside."
"Just promise you won’t stop fighting for me. I need you to dig. When I’m not the man I was yesterday, dig. DIG until you uncover the better parts of me, the parts that belong to you.
Parts that hit extra hard or made me think:
“These days, I can't figure out what's the sickness, what's my heart, and what's just me, and it fucking sucks.”
I'm tired of watching this life pass me by. I don't want to be a slave to my past anymore. I need to let go.
“We all have something that eats away at our sanity, that threatens to choke out the people we strive to be.”
“How can I explain I’ve thought about suicide, and contemplated it, but never had an impulse to act on it? Sometimes, when we are in a dark place, our thoughts wander and take us to places we didn’t know existed within ourselves, but for whatever reason, that’s all they’ll ever be: thoughts.”
“Numb. That's how I feel. There’s no other way to describe the pain, emptiness, confusion, and loss that have settled upon me.”
“Somewhere through all of this, I’ve found my worth. Maybe I had to break so that I was forced to pick up the pieces and slowly put them back together one by one and examine all the parts of me I wanted to keep, all the parts of me that are strong, resilient, and fierce. The parts of me I used to love.”
“You need to dig deep and find the strength within you to choose better, to want more, and to love yourself.”
“We are given one body in this life, and I'm learning to fuel mine and treat her like a temple. I've found my inner peace and self-love. I found me again.”
Omg i don't know where to start with this book, it was amazing and a must read.
The emotions in this book will have you so invested in the book until the end
Aria has worked hard since she got her job in a law firm, she ended her relationship with her then boyfriend. But he will not let go.
She has always felt like she was sick but not really knowing when it started.
When she is asked to go to a birthday party to bring out Holden she's not too sure as she does not want to start anything with anyone because of her ghosts.
Holden as his own darkness and ghost but when he see a pic of her he cant stop himself from meeting her,
Things move fast for them both and Aria can't help but to keep running because of her darkness.
but when doubt and their past collide can they make it or will they let their past tear them apart