Melanie Harlow's Only Love ARC Review

Thank you so much, Melanie Harlow and Social Butterfly PR for the advance copy of Only Love, which is out today!

I am a huge fan of Melanie Harlow and the previous books in the One and Only trilogy. The stories of the Devine sisters and their men have been phenomenal, you have to pick all of them up.

Here is the synopsis: “A gorgeous former Marine with a tortured soul.

The beautiful, compassionate therapist living next door.

A meddlesome grandma determined to get them together.

I was expecting a proposal on my birthday, and I got dumped instead.

How could I have been so clueless?

Grams knew exactly how to distract me.

The “cute boy next door” who’s been helping her with yard work clearly needs a little therapy. Who better to call than her newly single therapist granddaughter?

She even fakes dementia to get me to visit, and now that I’m here she’s doing everything in her power to throw us together.

Not that I’m complaining. Ryan is the sexiest man I’ve ever met–I mean the full package, from the chiseled jaw to the massive shoulders to the rippling abs. (And yes, his package is full, and he knows exactly how to deliver it.) He makes me want to get out of my head and follow my heart. He makes me want to take chances I never thought I’d take.

He also makes me want to take my clothes off. A lot.

But he’s moody and challenging–one minute he’s an open book, and the next he’s completely closed off. He holds me like he’ll never let go, but insists he wants to be alone.

Some wounds are so deep, only love can heal them.

How can I convince him to let me try?”

My thoughts below as always will be spoiler free…

Characters: Stella may be my favourite of the sisters, it was so nice to be inside her head for once rather than viewing her from the outside. Ryan’s character was so well done. I am no expert on the after-effects of military service, but from my point of view having read many NA books that deal with this topic, Melanie did a great job. Grams is the scene stealer of this story though, for sure.
World/Setting: It had that wonderful small town feel, and I am super pumped for more stories set in this town coming next year.
Pacing: Always great pacing from Melanie.
Romance (yay or nay?): This was such a rewarding romance, as both characters deserved to have an overwhelming head-over-heels style relationship. Stella having spent the last two books in a dead end relationship made me as a reader champion her finally finding the one.

If you haven’t been convinced yet, check out this excerpt: “Ryan?”

Startled, I turned around to find Stella standing a few feet away on the grass, wearing a T-shirt and pajama pants, arms crossed over her chest. Her feet were bare, and her hair was loose around her shoulders and a little messy, like she’d already been asleep. Thinking about her in bed did things to my insides. “Hey. Did I wake you?”

“I was awake. My windows are open, and I heard something and thought I saw you through the window. What are you doing?”

“Uh, building you a swing. But it was supposed to be a surprise.” Now that she’d caught me at it, I was kind of embarrassed. What if she thought this was stupid?

“You built me a swing?” She came a little closer, and I realized she might not be able to see it in the dark. The moon was only a sliver tonight.

“Yeah.” I grabbed one of the ropes. “Right here.”

She stared at it. “Why?”

“I’m not entirely sure.”

Her eyes met mine, and my heart pumped harder.

“Want to try it?” I asked.

“Like right now?”

I moved behind it and held both ropes steady. “Come sit.”

She hesitated, and I thought maybe she was going to tell me to quit being weird and go home before she called the cops, but after a few silent seconds, she came toward me. Turned around. Lowered herself to the seat and closed her fingers around the ropes.

“Well?” I asked. “How does it feel? Like you’re a kid again?”

“This was very kind of you, but not necessary.” Her tone was stiffer than her posture.

“Stella.”

She didn’t answer.

“I’m sorry.”

“About what?”

“Last night.”

“You’re sorry about what we did?”

“I think I’m more sorry about what we didn’t do.”

Her head turned sharply, and she looked at me over one shoulder. “You sure know how to confuse a girl.”

“One of my many talents.”

She looked straight ahead again. “Tell me about some other ones. And give me a push.”

I smiled, even though she couldn’t see it, and gave her a little nudge. “I’m fast.”

“Oh really?”

“Yeah.” I gave her a little harder push.

“Track team in high school?”

“Tried. Didn’t take.”

“Why not?”

“They expected me to show up for practice.”

“Ah.” She straightened her legs and leaned back in the swing, her hair dangling behind her. “Tell me another one.”

I gave her another push. “I’m good with my hands.”

Her laugh floated back to me. “I have observed this about you already. Give me another one.”

I pushed her again, just so I could feel her hair brush against my hands. “I’m not afraid of anything.”

“No? Nothing?”

“Nothing I can think of.”

“Hmm.”

“Are you analyzing me now?”

“Kind of. I mean, you can’t say something like that to a therapist and expect her not to reflect on it a little bit, right?”

“And?”

“And what?”

“Do you think I’m a liar or a fool?”

“Neither,” she answered. “I think you mean what you say. I think you only lie when you have to, and even then, you hate it. And if I dug a little deeper—which I won’t, because my sisters have told me it’s annoying and intrusive—I think I might discover that it’s because above all, you value your honor. Your word.”

For a moment, I was too stunned to think or move or speak. Then I said, “I take it back.”

“Take what back?”

“What I said. That I’m not afraid of anything.”

“Oh? And what are you afraid of?”

She swung back toward me and I caught her around the waist. Put my lips to her ear. “Your ability to read my mind.”

Beneath my arms I could feel her chest expand and contract faster. “I’m sorry, Ryan. I know I shouldn’t say those—”

“Come home with me,” I said, my voice raw with something like thirst. I pressed my lips to her throat and breathed in her scent. I let one hand move toward her breast. I waited for an elbow to the ribcage, a cry for help, a slap across the face. Because if she could read my mind right now, she’d know exactly what I wanted to do to her—and it was a long, detailed list.

“Yes,” she whispered. “Yes.”

Such a phenomenal way to end the trilogy, I give Only Love five out of five stars.

You can pick up your own copy here:

AppleBooks: http://bit.ly/OnlyLoveMH

Amazon (*affiliate link*): https://amzn.to/2rcMQUB

Nook: http://bit.ly/2FbQ7Nz

Kobo: http://bit.ly/2yWa9Gu

Paperback: https://amzn.to/2Dacxwd

You can add Only Love to your Goodreads here: http://bit.ly/2y4EVve

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