Blog Tour and Giveaway: When You Are Mine: Kennedy Ryan
The Bennett Series book 1
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Forever is a heartbeat away . . .
Kerris Moreton knows how to make things work. Bounced from foster home to foster home as a kid, she adapted; when opportunity arose, she thrived. Now, about to open her own business and accept a marriage proposal, Kerris is ready to build the life she's always wanted. The only thing missing? A passionate connection with her would-be fiancé, Cam. Kerris wants to believe that sparks are overrated-until Walsh Bennett lights her up like the Fourth of July.
. . . but what about love?
As one of the East Coast's most eligible bachelors, Walsh enjoys financial independence, fulfilling work with his family's nonprofit, and plenty of female attention. But lately he's been distracted by the one woman he can't have. Lovely to look at and even sweeter to know, Kerris is the soul mate Walsh never thought he would find. The problem is, his best friend found her first . . .
I knew it going in to this story: this is both a cliffhanger AND a love triangle. Both are plot points I generally steer away from. Or at least wait until I’m ready for it. I was in no way ready for the stark emotions this would leave me feeling.
I was halfway through reading, wondering if I could keep going with the way things were between Kerris and Walsh. For a year, they more or less avoid each other in order to keep from doing anything to ruin the friendship between Walsh and Cam, and Kerris and Cam’s relationship. And these intense feelings from both Kerris and Walsh seemed to spring up instantly upon meeting, and for Walsh it happened before he even knew who Kerris was.
There was so much avoidance and pain that I just couldn’t see myself finishing this book. But I did. Because things changed. Things I don’t want to go into for fear of dropping too many spoilers, but huge things happened...and not just with Kerris and Walsh. The next time I looked up, I was turning the last page wiping the tears away.
I am struggling to write this without spoilers. Take out the triangle and I would be all about loving this book fully. Even with the triangle, I liked it a lot. More than I anticipated.
There was so much tension and chemistry between Walsh and Kerris who both work so hard to ignore it and continue with her plan (Kerris) and not reck his friendship (Walsh) that it’s surprising they were able to keep things under wraps as well as they did. I think that’s one of the redeeming things about this particular love triangle for me. They knew the feelings were there, but they both tried to avoid any temptation for a long time.
Cam seemed to be oblivious to the chemistry between Walsh and Kerris. Right up until he couldn’t ignore it anymore. While I felt bad for him through much of the book, his reaction left me no longer feeling any compassion towards him. Not that he was hurt, because that was understandable. But rather than taking a step back, or leaving the room, he manhandled Kerris and forced her to have sex with him.
But Walsh’s mother? I loved her. While she wasn’t in a good deal of the book because Walsh was avoiding home, the waves she set in motion towards the end of the book will carry the energy into the next installment of this story. She turned what would have otherwise been a lackluster read for me, into a read that caused tears to flow freely and my kids to be put to bed late because I lost all track of time.
While I spent part of the book thinking this was a good book, but maybe not a series I would continue reading, after the end I’m rethinking that idea, wondering how the chips are all going to fall after the major events at the end of the book. There is no resolution for anyone at the end of this book. It is a cliffhanger in the purest sense of the word. This first book did a great job of introducing the characters and setting up the situation in which they find themselves, while leaving several hanging threads for the next book.
I was gifted a copy for an honest review.
I was gifted a copy for an honest review.
Kennedy Ryan
Kennedy Ryan grew up in North Carolina, but loves living in Atlanta with her husband (tall – check, dark – check – handsome – check), and her handful of a son. Though she knew, like writers often do, that she was supposed to tell stories, the road to fulfillment has been paved with “some of everything” jobs that kept her family eating and living indoors. With her degree in Journalism from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Go Tar Heels!), she has focused on writing for non-profit organizations and even doing some non-fiction ghost writing. Only in the last few years did she start telling stories again.
In addition to being a devoted wife and mom, she’s also a passionate advocate for families living with Autism. Her son was diagnosed at the age of two, and she has made it her mission to help as many families as possible find the resources and services they need. 25% of her royalties will go toward her national charitable partner Talk About Curing Autism and Myles-A-Part, her foundation serving Georgia families.
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