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rlbooks8 's review for:
100 Lifetimes of Us
by Maggie Gates
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
3.5 stars rounded up
Miles (H) made this book so enjoyable with his golden retriever energy and caring nature. Annie (h) was a super introvert and ball of anxiety who overthought everything. She really needed a cheerleader to open her eyes to her strengths and successes, which hello Miles! I appreciated how her anxiety was represented on page, while I also struggled a bit with it and really wish that therapy was mentioned. Annie’s a pie shop owner with a double life as a bestselling romance author and she's been receiving semi-threatening packages from an unknown person. Miles is the bodyguard hired to protect her and he shakes her world up, while also falling head over heels for her. He's the book boyfriend fantasy delivered who earned his spot on my favorite heroes shelf. Annie also grows and turned into a stronger character by the end, which I'm always a fan of. This book isn't perfect (no book is, I don't care what anyone says), but it has tons of quotable lines and scenes and had a huge smile on my face for much of it. The suspense does ramp up substantially close to the end and the humor disappears briefly, before our characters get their fulfilling HEA.
Written in first person, dual POV (plus a couple chapters from the villain’s POV). No ow/om drama (though the H does get jealous over a perceived interested om), and neither are virgins (H is a reformed manwhore from his UFC days that's only briefly mentioned and h did have a disappointing sex life where she couldn’t orgasm - she was too in her head and needed patience and removal of pressure, which the H provides, but I know some friends dislike this trope).
Miles brings such awesome wonders as outfits of swim trunks and crocs to professional situations, making Annie a fanny pack (he calls an Annie Pack) filled with things she needs as she attends book signings, has a slew of adorable nicknames for her, and is a shining light throughout. I loved him y'all, I realize that's clear. Annie was very cerebral and harder to get a handle on until she opened up more. She does come out of her shell at times, like when she's reconnecting with friends or when she's put on her author armor and is pretending to be that identity. The book was a little too meta when it came to romance books and the author lifestyle, though this might be a personal preference of mine. Some of the conversations Annie had with author friends or romance readers felt a little contrived. I'm also pretty certain that several of Annie's fans that show up, were also characters in this author's prior books, which was a little awkward imo.
Miles does have his more serious moments, including sometimes in the bedroom, though he also encourages having fun there. This book is pretty steamy and Miles helps Annie get out of her head during those scenes. There's a small amount of kink here and there (she crawls to him, he ties her up, toys are used). I did feel their emotional intimacy was established before the physical since they were in forced proximity and it was obvious that they cared for and trusted each other. I was bummed that a couple of the first scenes involving kissing and making out ended abruptly.
Most of the side characters were fun and added superbly to the vibe of the story. Annie's assistant was also hard to get a handle on and some elements of her personality and past are hinted at, so maybe she's getting her own book in the future. Miles's family were awesome and I did love his coworkers. I believe they're getting set up for their own books, because they were on page a lot with hints at potential love interests amongst them.
The book was too long for me so the pacing was affected. It does pick up when the suspense and danger do though. I also had some nitpicking about some of the protection details. The procedures weren't always consistent and some of what happens for the big final conflict left me a little confused.
The climax is a lot with some triggers and I was glued to the pages until our characters were safe again. I did like that the author doesn't immediately jump to the epilogue, but rather had some transition. I again wished that therapy was mentioned. But Annie and Miles had each other and all sorts of support around them. The epilogue is very much a HEA and a hilariously sweet one that gave me back my laughter and heart eyes. This was a bit uneven overall, but I really had a fantastic time with it.
Trigger warning:
Miles (H) made this book so enjoyable with his golden retriever energy and caring nature. Annie (h) was a super introvert and ball of anxiety who overthought everything. She really needed a cheerleader to open her eyes to her strengths and successes, which hello Miles! I appreciated how her anxiety was represented on page, while I also struggled a bit with it and really wish that therapy was mentioned. Annie’s a pie shop owner with a double life as a bestselling romance author and she's been receiving semi-threatening packages from an unknown person. Miles is the bodyguard hired to protect her and he shakes her world up, while also falling head over heels for her. He's the book boyfriend fantasy delivered who earned his spot on my favorite heroes shelf. Annie also grows and turned into a stronger character by the end, which I'm always a fan of. This book isn't perfect (no book is, I don't care what anyone says), but it has tons of quotable lines and scenes and had a huge smile on my face for much of it. The suspense does ramp up substantially close to the end and the humor disappears briefly, before our characters get their fulfilling HEA.
Written in first person, dual POV (plus a couple chapters from the villain’s POV). No ow/om drama (though the H does get jealous over a perceived interested om), and neither are virgins (H is a reformed manwhore from his UFC days that's only briefly mentioned and h did have a disappointing sex life where she couldn’t orgasm - she was too in her head and needed patience and removal of pressure, which the H provides, but I know some friends dislike this trope).
Miles brings such awesome wonders as outfits of swim trunks and crocs to professional situations, making Annie a fanny pack (he calls an Annie Pack) filled with things she needs as she attends book signings, has a slew of adorable nicknames for her, and is a shining light throughout. I loved him y'all, I realize that's clear. Annie was very cerebral and harder to get a handle on until she opened up more. She does come out of her shell at times, like when she's reconnecting with friends or when she's put on her author armor and is pretending to be that identity. The book was a little too meta when it came to romance books and the author lifestyle, though this might be a personal preference of mine. Some of the conversations Annie had with author friends or romance readers felt a little contrived. I'm also pretty certain that several of Annie's fans that show up, were also characters in this author's prior books, which was a little awkward imo.
Miles does have his more serious moments, including sometimes in the bedroom, though he also encourages having fun there. This book is pretty steamy and Miles helps Annie get out of her head during those scenes. There's a small amount of kink here and there (she crawls to him, he ties her up, toys are used). I did feel their emotional intimacy was established before the physical since they were in forced proximity and it was obvious that they cared for and trusted each other. I was bummed that a couple of the first scenes involving kissing and making out ended abruptly.
Most of the side characters were fun and added superbly to the vibe of the story. Annie's assistant was also hard to get a handle on and some elements of her personality and past are hinted at, so maybe she's getting her own book in the future. Miles's family were awesome and I did love his coworkers. I believe they're getting set up for their own books, because they were on page a lot with hints at potential love interests amongst them.
The book was too long for me so the pacing was affected. It does pick up when the suspense and danger do though. I also had some nitpicking about some of the protection details. The procedures weren't always consistent and some of what happens for the big final conflict left me a little confused.
The climax is a lot with some triggers and I was glued to the pages until our characters were safe again. I did like that the author doesn't immediately jump to the epilogue, but rather had some transition. I again wished that therapy was mentioned. But Annie and Miles had each other and all sorts of support around them. The epilogue is very much a HEA and a hilariously sweet one that gave me back my laughter and heart eyes. This was a bit uneven overall, but I really had a fantastic time with it.
Trigger warning:
Spoiler
mental health including on page panic attacks, threats, vague references to domestic abuse (not main characters), kidnapping, physical assault, death on page (not main characters), unwanted press attention
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Kidnapping, Stalking
Moderate: Mental illness