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A review by trish_beautifulchaosreviews
Irreversibly Broken by J.L. Stray
5.0
First off, I did not realize this was part of a duet. Imagine my surprise at the ending! Now I am impatiently awaiting part two. I'm only slightly grumpy at this unexpected turn of events; the book is gritty and real. The characters are dealing with baggage, feelings, and office politics. Mike and Danielle are very realistic in handling their relationship, and honestly, you feel like you want to smack them both at times.
In some books, their relationship would be considered a pretty big age gap, that was not an issue in their story. It ended up being a bit of a joke between the two of them. I enjoyed that joking aspect of their relationship, and I liked that Mike was not perfect in the looks department. He didn't have six-pack abs. Oh, it's nice to picture the ideal bodies of men in romance novels, but it's not reality. Mike does have other issues that we still don't know about and has driven a wedge in his relationship with Danielle.
Danielle has her share of the fault in this relationship. She seems to go hot and cold--totally human. However, their last misadventure seemed to break things beyond compare. Their most significant issue is hiding behind the walls they have constructed to protect themselves. And they are not on the same timetable apparently. So for the reader who wants these two to work their mess out, it's doubly frustrating they can't seem to get it right. So this reader is left bleeding for both of these characters as the book comes to a close. Doggone it! How long must I wait now to find out?
This book takes an honest look at building relationships and how it doesn't always go smoothly. I know I will get my HEA at the end, but the joy in that will be much nicer knowing that Mike and Danielle have to work on themselves in order to make their HEA work.
In some books, their relationship would be considered a pretty big age gap, that was not an issue in their story. It ended up being a bit of a joke between the two of them. I enjoyed that joking aspect of their relationship, and I liked that Mike was not perfect in the looks department. He didn't have six-pack abs. Oh, it's nice to picture the ideal bodies of men in romance novels, but it's not reality. Mike does have other issues that we still don't know about and has driven a wedge in his relationship with Danielle.
Danielle has her share of the fault in this relationship. She seems to go hot and cold--totally human. However, their last misadventure seemed to break things beyond compare. Their most significant issue is hiding behind the walls they have constructed to protect themselves. And they are not on the same timetable apparently. So for the reader who wants these two to work their mess out, it's doubly frustrating they can't seem to get it right. So this reader is left bleeding for both of these characters as the book comes to a close. Doggone it! How long must I wait now to find out?
This book takes an honest look at building relationships and how it doesn't always go smoothly. I know I will get my HEA at the end, but the joy in that will be much nicer knowing that Mike and Danielle have to work on themselves in order to make their HEA work.