Hate to Want You

I've been reading a ton of historical romance lately as I made my way through Sarah MacLean's backlog. So it was a nice change of pace to pick up a contemporary romance. I've been hearing great things about Alisha Rai for a while, and this book did not disappoint. It was sexy and angsty and everything I want when I pick up a romance.

The story follows Livvy and Nicholas. They dated once upon a time and seemed destined for marriage. Until bad blood between their families trickled down and forced them to break up. They've been meeting in secret once a year to have sex. But when Livvy decides to break the pattern and stop showing up, everything else changes too.

I loved the second chance at love trope. The history between the two characters made every ache hurt that much more and every cute moment that much sweeter. There's a lot of pain that the two need to overcome to find their way back to each other, not to mention the judgement of their respective families. But that just had me cheering for them all the harder. Their journey towards each other requires both of them to learn how to stand up for themselves and chase what they really want. Also the sex scenes were some of the best I've ever read.

I'm also hooked on all the side characters in this book. Rai sprinkles in so many mysteries that I just have to know the answers to. What has Jackson been up to for the past decade? How dire are Sadia's financial straits? What is going on with Eve? I guess I'll just have to pick up the rest of the series. I've never been this eager for the next book in a romance series before.

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