Reviews

A Little Too Late by Sarina Bowen

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pinkausten's review

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emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

hanlouise's review

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funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

deni_the_bookworm's review

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emotional inspiring fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

I love a good small town romance!!
--
After ten years, Reed comes back to his hometown since his father decided to sell the family ski resort.
They never had a great relationship but the most unexpected part of Reed's trip? His college ex girlfriend, Ava, as the manager of the resort.
He was coward when he left her but she is his soulmate, so feeling resurface quickly. However, will Ava forgive him after so many years and accept his apology?
--

I wanted to start this series for so long because small romances are my favorite and the last book is written by Devney Perry, the queen of this trope.

I don't usually like second chance romances but this one was good. However I don't think I would have forgiven Reed because he messed up big time and there wasn't enough groveling for what he did.

I think the book was more about the plot and Reed dealing with his past trauma, father and brothers.
It's a good start but I hope the next ones are better.

bee_thebibliophile's review

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4.0

A new multi-author series from Sarina Bowen, Rebecca Yarros and Devney Perry? I couldn’t wait to start this one and dive into the new world of Madigan Mountain.

Reed Madigan left the Madigan Mountain ski resort behind years ago and never looked back. Now that his father’s selling the place, he finds his way back to see what can be done to stop the sale. He finds way more than he expected when he gets back, including his college sweetheart and a renewed love for the resort itself. Reed’s known at his venture capitalist firm as the Ice King, but being back at Madigan Mountain has thawed him and made him realize he’s been closing himself off to all emotions for the past ten years to avoid getting even more hurt.

Ava Aichers ended up at Madigan Mountain after her breakup with Reed ten years ago when she was looking to mend her broken heart and maybe learn more about Reed in the process. She essentially runs the resort now, working closely with Reed’s father and assisting with the preparation for the sale. She’s been lonely all these years but found a community that she loves and is determined to keep her distance from Reed and focus on securing her promotion from the potential new resort owners.

Even though they’re surprised to see each other, the chemistry and connection between Reed and Ava is immediate. They never got real closure when Reed left Ava behind and even though they’ve both been hurting, they find it easy to pick things back up. I loved that Reed took responsibility for his actions so readily and that Ava was so open to letting him back in after everything. They work together to figure out what the new potential owners are up to and find a way back together while also securing Madigan Mountain's future. This had the potential to be so angsty but was delightfully low on angst and high on conversation, admitting fault and figuring out a way to move forward - something that’s SO refreshing to read!

This was a great introduction to the Madigan family and the ski resort and I can’t wait to see where the stories go from here! Excited for Weston’s story next and I’m hoping we’ll get plenty of Reed and Ava cameos along the way!

ellafaereads's review

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emotional hopeful lighthearted slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

scmp73's review

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emotional funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

This is the first book in a series by several authors, and I was excited to give it a go. I’m the kind of person that wants and needs to read books in order, even if they’re considered standalones within a series. I love Devney Perry, so I really wanted to get to the third book. My only criticism of the writing was the way the flashback scenes were written and formatted. It felt very strange to me and sometimes took me out of the story.

This was a decent introduction to this series and the Madigan brothers. I love a second chance romance, and I think Reed and Ava were okay together. They resume their relationship/feelings incredibly quickly, which didn’t sit right with me. Reed really did Ava wrong in college, and she should have demanded more of an apology/groveling than she did.

My main thought throughout the whole book was that everyone needed therapy. So much therapy! Reed had A LOT of trauma he needed to work through when it came to his brothers and his father. The way they treated each other was so awful, and I don’t think he should have pursued Ava until he worked through that. He also needed to work through the issues he and Ava faced when they first broke up.

Reed broke up with Ava after she had a miscarriage while they were in college.

To me, that’s something that isn’t easily forgivable, and I feel like Ava didn’t make him grovel enough. He needed to do a lot more than he did to earn her trust and forgiveness.

Ava was fine. She was somewhat forgettable to me, and I can’t really put my finger on what I didn’t like about her. I wish she stood up for herself more with Reed and the potential resort buyers. I feel like she could have been such a strong, badass character, but she fell flat for me.

Overall, I’ll continue with the series and hope the brothers learn to not be such shitty people to each other.