A review by lifeinthebooklane
The Girl and Her Ren by Pepper Winters

5.0

It was written in the stars and scribed in the galaxies, and nothing on earth could change that.

Soul crushing, simply soul crushing with its painfully, beautifully written tale of a love that is eternal. The is not only the best duet of 2018, it's my favourite duet ever.

If you read no other book this year, you need to read this one. Though in order to fully understand this you first need to read book #1 of The Ribbon Duet.

...every year I fought to keep her safe, I was ultimately protecting every dream I'd ever had.

The Girl and Her Ren is the much anticipated follow up to The Boy and His Ribbon. It is more than a contemporary romance, it is a story of Della Ribbon and Ren Wild, two souls entwined for eternity. It's a story that has me sobbing all over again as I write this review. It's a story that touched not only my heart but also my soul. It's a story that will stay with me for a very long time, perhaps forever.

This is one heck of a read, both in content and in length. I admit I had to consume this in chunks, I quite simply could not manage it in one go. I needed time for my mind to digest and come to terms with the angst, trials, heartache and hope of this story. I needed space let their love sink into my consciousness and prepare myself for the next obstacle they would face.

My past, present and future. The only path I could have taken. It wasn't a choice anymore, It had never been a choice.

Somewhere around the 50% mark I had a sneaking suspicion of how the book would end. With 4+ hours of reading left, I did something I haven't done in years and flipped ahead to the last couple of chapters. I found an ending that was both everything and nothing like I wanted, needed or expected. I then resumed the story from where I had left it and continued to journey with Della and Ren on their all consuming journey of love.

Della and Ren, whilst not perfect, are perfect for each other. Della continued to show the strength and unfailing love that Ren needed. Ren continued to be the quiet, gentle and protective man who would do anything to keep his Little Ribbon safe from harm. And now I'm crying again. Which is silly because at the heart this is quite simply the most wonderful and heartwarming love story. It's just that their path is far from smooth or easy.

My release ripped howls from my chest, vows from my heart, and promises from my soul.

Finally I just want to implore you to read this duet. It doesn't matter what your usual preferred genre is, this is a book that transcends genres. This is a story so breathtaking in it's construction that it should, it must, be top of your TBR list.