A review by kyras_reads
Catch the Sun by Jennifer Hartmann

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

5.0

Wow… I didn’t expect this story to be so deep and kind of dark. I thought this was going to be a sweet, light read but I should have known better. This author is the queen of trauma and building a beautiful backstory for her characters that provides so much depth… and this was SO good. 

Max and Ella are definitely on my list of favorite characters from her books. I think they’ll take a seat right next to Oliver and Sydney, my other friends to lovers couple from her books. Their romance was such a joy to experience. Even though they might not have been on the same page a lot of the time, they both knew that they were meant for one another and the level of patience displayed by both of them (okay, mostly Max) was almost more than I could stand.

I was not expecting a lot of that… from her brothers incarceration, to her drowning, to her assault/almost death, to her brother being home, to then a murder… I didn’t have any nails left at the end of this book! 

This story took so many turns I was on the edge of my seat for a lot of it. These two went through so much trauma and so much growth in such a short time. I enjoyed every single page. 

That HEA ending after she crushed my spirit temporarily by separating them?! PERFECTION! I always have to remind myself to trust the process because there has never once been an ending that left me unsatisfied.

And bonus… our favorite FMC is a die hard Dr Pepper lover?! Love to see it! 

Tropes:
Childhood Friends to Lovers
Angsty
First Love… First Everything 
Small Town

Spice: 🌶️🌶️
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