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hopelessromanticbookworm's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
“Fear don’t count if you really want something.”
(This book is 0.5 in the Winston Brothers series but Book 4 in the Knitting in the City series.)
This story is about a woman named Ashley who comes home and finds out that her mum is dying of cancer. She has 6 hilarious, sexy and protective brothers and a Viking looking family friend who melts her butter.
It’s an emotional rollercoaster of emotions as this book starts off with the feelings of enemies to lovers, grief, uncertainty to be loved, acceptance and forgiveness. It shows how family always stick together no matter the circumstances. But it also give the lesson that you shouldn’t be hard on yourself and that everyone deserves happiness.
The brothers were all hilarious and you can expect how they were when their only sister started romancing. But they also showed their protective and caring nature when they were worried about her not looking after herself, while caring for their mother.
Ashley’s knitting group (which you will be reintroduced to if you have read the knitting series) were hilarious too. Their moments and “advice” and how they stick together and basically ”convince” you to tell them your worries, is what you expect from a great friendship group….also there is some moments that her friends can share TMI 😂
The storytelling of this delicate situation and how Penny Reid incorporated a romance mixed in with it, was incredibly done. I never imagined reading a romance book with such a moving and emotional storyline, that gets you rooting for a HEA ending x
(This book is 0.5 in the Winston Brothers series but Book 4 in the Knitting in the City series.)
This story is about a woman named Ashley who comes home and finds out that her mum is dying of cancer. She has 6 hilarious, sexy and protective brothers and a Viking looking family friend who melts her butter.
It’s an emotional rollercoaster of emotions as this book starts off with the feelings of enemies to lovers, grief, uncertainty to be loved, acceptance and forgiveness. It shows how family always stick together no matter the circumstances. But it also give the lesson that you shouldn’t be hard on yourself and that everyone deserves happiness.
The brothers were all hilarious and you can expect how they were when their only sister started romancing. But they also showed their protective and caring nature when they were worried about her not looking after herself, while caring for their mother.
Ashley’s knitting group (which you will be reintroduced to if you have read the knitting series) were hilarious too. Their moments and “advice” and how they stick together and basically ”convince” you to tell them your worries, is what you expect from a great friendship group….also there is some moments that her friends can share TMI 😂
The storytelling of this delicate situation and how Penny Reid incorporated a romance mixed in with it, was incredibly done. I never imagined reading a romance book with such a moving and emotional storyline, that gets you rooting for a HEA ending x
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Grief, Death, and Cancer
Minor: Suicide, Domestic abuse, and Gaslighting
ammbooks's review against another edition
4.0
cute and well written. Poignant - the passing of a parent is always hard. I liked how she handled the passage of time.
lifeand100books's review against another edition
5.0
This book will speak to your soul on a beautiful level. Drew is......I'm not sure how to describe him at all that would do him justice. He is a beautiful human. This book warmed my soul in ways books often don't.
trazelle's review against another edition
5.0
Loved the story! Drew is so sweet and caring. Ashley's brothers are downright hilarious and I'm so looking forward to when I start their series!
I listened to the audiobook version and I was irked by the narrator. It's the same narrator as the previous book. She did a great job on that one, but she changed all the voices for this book. Ashley's voice made her sound much older and Sandra sounded like a valley girl.
I listened to the audiobook version and I was irked by the narrator. It's the same narrator as the previous book. She did a great job on that one, but she changed all the voices for this book. Ashley's voice made her sound much older and Sandra sounded like a valley girl.
smalltownbookmom's review against another edition
3.0
Nice to finally get to Drew and Ashley's story. Not the strongest in the series (imo) but still solid and full of the quirky Winston brothers' antics.
meowmeowkitty_reader's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Deals with death and dying. More sad than anticipating with this series but also very sweet
simplyxkate's review against another edition
3.0
I think after 4 books in the Knitting in the City series, I'm over the knitting girls. For these books being touted as "smart romances", all of the girls have been pretty dumb when it comes to their love lives (except maybe Sandra in book 3).
I had wanted to get to Ashley's book because of the Winston Brothers, whom I freaking love, and now that I've read it, I don't think I can do it anymore. Much like the other books in this series, there is a lot of telling without much showing. Ashley meets Drew, they share a series of looks and pretentious lines from poetry and then suddenly they're in love but neither of them will come out and say it to the other. I didn't feel the chemistry between them and we didn't learn much about Drew other than he's a brooding Viking poet. I need more than that to get into a story.
Also the girls are all starting to blend together because they're all basically the same character. Their antics are becoming more unrealistic as the books go on and I just don't want to read about yarn anymore.
I had wanted to get to Ashley's book because of the Winston Brothers, whom I freaking love, and now that I've read it, I don't think I can do it anymore. Much like the other books in this series, there is a lot of telling without much showing. Ashley meets Drew, they share a series of looks and pretentious lines from poetry and then suddenly they're in love but neither of them will come out and say it to the other. I didn't feel the chemistry between them and we didn't learn much about Drew other than he's a brooding Viking poet. I need more than that to get into a story.
Also the girls are all starting to blend together because they're all basically the same character. Their antics are becoming more unrealistic as the books go on and I just don't want to read about yarn anymore.
theamyleblanc's review against another edition
3.0
I'd probably give this 3.5 stars if I could.
It's good. It's entertaining and romantic and deep and emotional and a lot of things I look for in a romance. It's lighter on the steam and spice than I expected but that worked for this story and the path it took.
It's a bit repetitive. Sometimes that repetition is poetic and cool but sometimes it's annoying (or worse, comes off as lazy).
I saw a lot of myself in Ashley so her story was a pleasure to read and experience. I'd recommend this to any romance fans!
It's good. It's entertaining and romantic and deep and emotional and a lot of things I look for in a romance. It's lighter on the steam and spice than I expected but that worked for this story and the path it took.
It's a bit repetitive. Sometimes that repetition is poetic and cool but sometimes it's annoying (or worse, comes off as lazy).
I saw a lot of myself in Ashley so her story was a pleasure to read and experience. I'd recommend this to any romance fans!
mccorbin's review against another edition
5.0
I honestly, in my small-minded self, thought that I was going to love each character the same. That I was going to love their stories the same. And this was all because Penny Reid writes on only one level…excellence. And I found that I was wrong.
Yes, Penny Reid still writes on only one level…excellence – I am not wrong about that. I am wrong about the fact that I finally found a favorite couple and a favorite story; Ashley and Drew. I wasn’t expecting them to be my favorite but it swiftly happened and now I am completely at loss with my emotions.
Ashley left Tennessee years ago because of her father, because of her brothers, and because she didn’t want to marry a mountain man. She made a life for herself in Chicago, she found a knitting group, and she made a home. But now she is returning because her mother is sick and needs her (go ahead, start crying now because you won’t stop.) When she returns, she finds that her brothers have grown up, gotten jobs, and do not hold her down and spit in her mouth anymore but she is still weary of them. And her brothers have also brought another threat, Drew. Very quiet, very stoic, very giving but never taking, very handsome and knowledgeable kind of guy. I was smitten. I was smitten the first scene that he was in and I was hooked on to him for the rest of the book. And while this new threat, Drew, revs into Ashley’s life within the first pages and you slowly get to see the growth of his character, who he truly is, how he truly feels, and the beauty that surrounds him, you really do not get him until the last few chapters. You get glimpses of his poetic words and feelings but never really get the whole package until the end and all that wait is totally worth it
.
But this story isn’t about just Ashley and Drew. It is about Ashley and her brothers; the bond that was broken and how it starts to reform. It is about Ashley and her mother; the everlasting bond that is secure in life and death. And it is just about Ashley and how she grows from all these experiences.
I loved the two main characters. I loved the story behind them. I loved the brothers. I loved her momma. I loved that my heart broke into thousands of pieces because I felt the loss that Ashley felt. I loved the small little bits of wisdom that Bethany left Ashley during her lucid times. I loved the quick scenes that Ashley had with each brother and how she realized that they were not as bad as she thought, in fact, they were just boys when she left but now they were men who loved her. And I loved our meddling knitting group and the constant need to meddle.
Oh, and of course Penny provides an excerpt from one of my all time favorite books - North & South by Elizabeth Gaskell. It is one of my favorite scenes in Gaskell's book and the movie and one of my favorite scenes in Penny's book. If you haven't read North & South, please do. It is most wonderful (how about that…a book review inside of a book review.) And now that I think about it, Mr. Thornton (from North & South) is very much like Drew. Never verbal with his wants and love but communicates through his eyes and actions. *multiple deep sighs*
The best book in the series so far by my account. I can’t wait to start the next…
Yes, Penny Reid still writes on only one level…excellence – I am not wrong about that. I am wrong about the fact that I finally found a favorite couple and a favorite story; Ashley and Drew. I wasn’t expecting them to be my favorite but it swiftly happened and now I am completely at loss with my emotions.
Ashley left Tennessee years ago because of her father, because of her brothers, and because she didn’t want to marry a mountain man. She made a life for herself in Chicago, she found a knitting group, and she made a home. But now she is returning because her mother is sick and needs her (go ahead, start crying now because you won’t stop.) When she returns, she finds that her brothers have grown up, gotten jobs, and do not hold her down and spit in her mouth anymore but she is still weary of them. And her brothers have also brought another threat, Drew. Very quiet, very stoic, very giving but never taking, very handsome and knowledgeable kind of guy. I was smitten. I was smitten the first scene that he was in and I was hooked on to him for the rest of the book. And while this new threat, Drew, revs into Ashley’s life within the first pages and you slowly get to see the growth of his character, who he truly is, how he truly feels, and the beauty that surrounds him, you really do not get him until the last few chapters. You get glimpses of his poetic words and feelings but never really get the whole package until the end and all that wait is totally worth it
.
But this story isn’t about just Ashley and Drew. It is about Ashley and her brothers; the bond that was broken and how it starts to reform. It is about Ashley and her mother; the everlasting bond that is secure in life and death. And it is just about Ashley and how she grows from all these experiences.
I loved the two main characters. I loved the story behind them. I loved the brothers. I loved her momma. I loved that my heart broke into thousands of pieces because I felt the loss that Ashley felt. I loved the small little bits of wisdom that Bethany left Ashley during her lucid times. I loved the quick scenes that Ashley had with each brother and how she realized that they were not as bad as she thought, in fact, they were just boys when she left but now they were men who loved her. And I loved our meddling knitting group and the constant need to meddle.
Oh, and of course Penny provides an excerpt from one of my all time favorite books - North & South by Elizabeth Gaskell. It is one of my favorite scenes in Gaskell's book and the movie and one of my favorite scenes in Penny's book. If you haven't read North & South, please do. It is most wonderful (how about that…a book review inside of a book review.) And now that I think about it, Mr. Thornton (from North & South) is very much like Drew. Never verbal with his wants and love but communicates through his eyes and actions. *multiple deep sighs*
The best book in the series so far by my account. I can’t wait to start the next…