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4.06 AVERAGE
4.06 AVERAGE
Loved this book, such a great compelling story I couldn't put it down! Though we don't know Jo's full story yet you can tell that she's been through some tough times and she is now trying to live a little. I love her sass and the way she is trying to embrace everything that is happening. I also love her acceptance of all the guys and their issues. The dynamics of the guys is great and I can't wait for the next book as I am loving where this story is going.
the tension
I am flying thru this series.
The secretive past from Jo
The multiple men and their personalities.
I love them all for different reasons. I can’t wait to see where this goes.
I am flying thru this series.
The secretive past from Jo
The multiple men and their personalities.
I love them all for different reasons. I can’t wait to see where this goes.
"Don’t let the fear you carry become so heavy you don’t live."
BOOK: Too Safe
AUTHOR: Abby Millsaps
TYPE: Series; #1 in 'Boys of Lake Chapel'.
POV: First Person - Multiple
GENRE: Contemporary Romance
RATING: 1.7/5 Stars
MCs: Josephine, Locke, Kylian, Kendrick, & Decker
INITIAL REACTION: I really didn't like this book. The reasoning behind her staying their captive was weak as hell. All the MCs felt obnoxious to me baring maybe Kylian. The only reason I continued through was sheer stubbornness to not add another book to my DNF list. By the time I hit the cliffhanger at the end, I was hooked enough to want closure.
Full review at [b:Too Far|199459667|Too Far (Boys of Lake Chapel #3)|Abby Millsaps|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1700584155l/199459667._SY75_.jpg|203913637].
Spice: 4 peppers
April 2024: I rearead this beauty via audiobook with the Read Indie With Me group (@readindiewithme on Instagram) and WOW! The narrators were fantastic, especially the female narrator. So good!
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To say I devoured, inhaled, consumed this book is an understatement. Perhaps it consumed me. New favorite author to add to my list? Absolutely! Abby Millsaps is an absolute hidden gem that people should read immediately!
Why choose/Reverse harem romance is one of my favorites, and yet it’s also the one subgenre of romance that has to be done in a specific way for me to be utterly obsessed with it. I want the guys to be super close, so that there’s no drama or jealousy among the group. I want to get to know them all, and for them to have distinctive personalities to that they don’t seem all like the same guy multiplied by four of five. I want the protagonist to have a special connection with them singularly but also as a group. Bonus, I want to fall in love with them all. Easy right? *hides away* Well, this book ticked all of these boxes and then some.
The contemporary setting did nothing to hinder my enjoyment of the reverse harem trope, and I say this because I know some people prefer it in fantasy. I for one have mostly read it in fantasy, but not for any particular reason. I was excited to jump into this book especially because of the contemporary setting, and who knows, this might also be part of the reason why I read this so quickly. That, and the characters, who were simply wonderful. Decker Crusade and his boys were a tight-knit group of insanely hot and incredible guys, each with their own quirks and reasons to love them. Their dynamics with Jospehine are fantastic and choosing a favorite is quite literally impossible, though Kendrik is the one we still need to get to know a little better as he’s the one who hasn’t entirely warmed up to our dear Josephine/Joey/Jo/Hot Girl/Ohio/siren. (Yes, I love all the nicknames.) Speaking of Joey, she’s a wonderful protagonist with a lot of baggage and history that we’ve yet to fully uncover. All I know is that my heart breaks for her. I also really loved Hunter, her friend, and I wouldn’t say no to have an entirely new book or series for her because she’s that awesome.
I’m looking forward to inhaling the second book the moment it comes out at the end of September because I need the boys. And also that ending! Did I scream into my pillow? Of course I did.
Thank you to the author for gifting me a copy. Opinions are my own.
April 2024: I rearead this beauty via audiobook with the Read Indie With Me group (@readindiewithme on Instagram) and WOW! The narrators were fantastic, especially the female narrator. So good!
---
To say I devoured, inhaled, consumed this book is an understatement. Perhaps it consumed me. New favorite author to add to my list? Absolutely! Abby Millsaps is an absolute hidden gem that people should read immediately!
Why choose/Reverse harem romance is one of my favorites, and yet it’s also the one subgenre of romance that has to be done in a specific way for me to be utterly obsessed with it. I want the guys to be super close, so that there’s no drama or jealousy among the group. I want to get to know them all, and for them to have distinctive personalities to that they don’t seem all like the same guy multiplied by four of five. I want the protagonist to have a special connection with them singularly but also as a group. Bonus, I want to fall in love with them all. Easy right? *hides away* Well, this book ticked all of these boxes and then some.
The contemporary setting did nothing to hinder my enjoyment of the reverse harem trope, and I say this because I know some people prefer it in fantasy. I for one have mostly read it in fantasy, but not for any particular reason. I was excited to jump into this book especially because of the contemporary setting, and who knows, this might also be part of the reason why I read this so quickly. That, and the characters, who were simply wonderful. Decker Crusade and his boys were a tight-knit group of insanely hot and incredible guys, each with their own quirks and reasons to love them. Their dynamics with Jospehine are fantastic and choosing a favorite is quite literally impossible, though Kendrik is the one we still need to get to know a little better as he’s the one who hasn’t entirely warmed up to our dear Josephine/Joey/Jo/Hot Girl/Ohio/siren. (Yes, I love all the nicknames.) Speaking of Joey, she’s a wonderful protagonist with a lot of baggage and history that we’ve yet to fully uncover. All I know is that my heart breaks for her. I also really loved Hunter, her friend, and I wouldn’t say no to have an entirely new book or series for her because she’s that awesome.
I’m looking forward to inhaling the second book the moment it comes out at the end of September because I need the boys. And also that ending! Did I scream into my pillow? Of course I did.
Thank you to the author for gifting me a copy. Opinions are my own.
Spice rating: 4 peppers
TW: references to past trauma (sexual assault)
TOO SAFE is a college sports romance starring 4 hot football players and the new girl in town. It combines all of my favorite tropes: forced proximity, some enemies to lovers, a nerd who is a beast in the bedroom, a tattooed god of a man who is good with his...you get the idea, a relatable heroine, humor, a dash of slow burn, found family, a protective alpha... The combinations with Josephine and her boys were endless. And you guessed it, this is a reverse harem! I'd yet to come across a reverse harem in a contemporary romance that fully convinced me. Well, this book has me CONVINCED. All caps. It consumed me.
Apart from the romance--which was obviously my favorite thing--there were many other factors that contributed to my obsession with this book. First of all, the characters themselves. These are relatable people, with real problems and real fears. Josephine is an assault survivor, and I think the author did a great job showing on the one side, a young woman determined to have a fresh start, owning her desires and her physicality, and on the other her inner demons, her fears and anxieties. This sort of duality was present in all of the main characters. No one is as they seem, and there are layers upon delicious layers to explore, and important topics to absorb (such as neurodiversity and chronic illnesses). Special mention also to the amazingly positive female friendship, which is something I love to see!
Undoubtedly though, the romance was THE highlight of the book. Josephine had an incredible chemistry with all of the boys, and I was falling for them at the same pace and with the same intensity she was. My spice lovers will also be happy to hear that the spicy moments in this book are moderately frequent, and you do NOT have to wait long for them! As far as favorites go... it's hard to choose. But let's just say that Decker Crusade was the one that surprised me most of all among all of them.
Cliffhanger is brutal, so be prepared to catch your jaw when it inevitably dislodges from your face. Luckily book 2 is only a month away!
Thank you to the author for gifting me a copy. Opinions are my own.
TW: references to past trauma (sexual assault)
TOO SAFE is a college sports romance starring 4 hot football players and the new girl in town. It combines all of my favorite tropes: forced proximity, some enemies to lovers, a nerd who is a beast in the bedroom, a tattooed god of a man who is good with his...you get the idea, a relatable heroine, humor, a dash of slow burn, found family, a protective alpha... The combinations with Josephine and her boys were endless. And you guessed it, this is a reverse harem! I'd yet to come across a reverse harem in a contemporary romance that fully convinced me. Well, this book has me CONVINCED. All caps. It consumed me.
Apart from the romance--which was obviously my favorite thing--there were many other factors that contributed to my obsession with this book. First of all, the characters themselves. These are relatable people, with real problems and real fears. Josephine is an assault survivor, and I think the author did a great job showing on the one side, a young woman determined to have a fresh start, owning her desires and her physicality, and on the other her inner demons, her fears and anxieties. This sort of duality was present in all of the main characters. No one is as they seem, and there are layers upon delicious layers to explore, and important topics to absorb (such as neurodiversity and chronic illnesses). Special mention also to the amazingly positive female friendship, which is something I love to see!
Undoubtedly though, the romance was THE highlight of the book. Josephine had an incredible chemistry with all of the boys, and I was falling for them at the same pace and with the same intensity she was. My spice lovers will also be happy to hear that the spicy moments in this book are moderately frequent, and you do NOT have to wait long for them! As far as favorites go... it's hard to choose. But let's just say that Decker Crusade was the one that surprised me most of all among all of them.
Cliffhanger is brutal, so be prepared to catch your jaw when it inevitably dislodges from your face. Luckily book 2 is only a month away!
Thank you to the author for gifting me a copy. Opinions are my own.
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
funny
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
My journey with Abby’s books started with the Boys of South Chapel series which started after this series was published. I decided to read this series while waiting for the final book in that series to release. There is quite a bit of character crossover between the two series. This book is everything I’ve come to expect in an Abby Millsaps book. There’s angst, tension, drama, and suspense. And slice. Mets not forget the spice!Abby knows how to write cliffhangers.
Cats! That ending has me rushing to throw some words together so I can move on! This kind of reminded me of The WITSEC series (also why choose and has 4 brothers). However, we don't quite have all the details on the FMC's history yet with this one. I'm 100% invested and will likely fly through the next one, too.
Too Safe is a why choose, sports romance that really took me for a roller coaster ride!! It was so god damn entertaining and had me on my toes the entire way.
Decker, Locke, Kylian, and Kendrick kidnap Josephine after she witnesses something she wasn’t supposed to. And my girl Jo is a bad ass!! I ab obsessed with her!
This book is just insane and my god the cliffhanger?! Thank god I hopped right into book 2 because I think I would have went CRAZY without it.
It’s giving Friday Night Lights if it was a why choose series lol.
Decker, Locke, Kylian, and Kendrick kidnap Josephine after she witnesses something she wasn’t supposed to. And my girl Jo is a bad ass!! I ab obsessed with her!
This book is just insane and my god the cliffhanger?! Thank god I hopped right into book 2 because I think I would have went CRAZY without it.
It’s giving Friday Night Lights if it was a why choose series lol.