A young, sensitive Brogan Ramsay was completely infatuated with the rich, flirty daughter of his employer. But Lydia was a spoiled princess and he was just the Irish gardener's son. She was a bit of a game player and manipulated a situation that ended up changing his family's entire life. 

Seven years later, he is angry, ruthless, and out for revenge. He is in charge of the game and all of the power. Lydia is now the one left in a bad situation...forced to ask for mercy for a chance to preserve her legacy. He sees the world in black and white and can only see payback.  But Lydia is resilient and determined to do what she has to in order to turn things around.

Everything is not always what it seems. Both have secrets and misinterpretations. Both suffered effects of that one night. And now their lives are intertwined again and their attraction lingers. But so does guilt, regret, anger,  a myriad of complications, and even danger.

This is the story of an intense love that was ruined by secrets and perceived betrayals. A second chance promises forgiveness and a chance to reconnect and move on, but is then followed by their worlds being rocked again. It is about true love, trust, faith, and forgiveness. These two were strong, likable characters whose feelings ran deep. But at alternative times each could be considered a villain. It is a thin line between love and hate, but much of their negative emotions stemmed from misconceptions, perceived betrayals, or omissions.

It focuses on the importance of true love, trust, forgiveness, and faith. But it is hard to do what is needed when plagued with guilt and anger. Brogan was such an intense, serious man. When he loved, he loved hard and was very protective. But he was easy to believe the worst in himself and punish himself for his actions and alternately push her away.  Lydia was loving and giving, but could also be steered easily towards believing the worst and had a tendency to retreat. These two both had times when they made mistakes, jumped to conclusions, and hurt each other. They were both strong-willed and at times impulsive. But nothing could stop the fact that their hearts were connected at a deep level and had always been, and their chemistry was powerful and intuitive. But sometimes they were both so very stubborn, self sacrificing, and unwilling to risk rejection.

But it is a matter of finding forgiveness, feeling worthy, and trusting that it is worth the fight. I adored Brogan's outgoing best friend, Fionn (spin off hero perhaps?) and his sister, Eileen. They cracked me up and were a breath of fresh air. There were a couple of antagonists that made me cringe.

I always expect great things when I open a Mia Sheridan book. She always pulls me into her stories and makes me fall for her complex characters. I feel their pain, heartbreak, betrayal, as well as their hope, love, and passion. She makes you become part of the story as if you are right there with the characters. She takes you on an emotional roller coaster with twists and turns. Ramsay was no exception, but it's story was also completely unique. There was a balance between the dark and light, self awareness and empathy, and hurt and forgiveness that had to occur in order to come to terms with the intense feelings and events that transpired. This was a beautiful, dramatic, second-chance, Prince and the Pauper type romance that completely touched my heart.

I was gifted a copy in exchange for an honest review. 

There is such a thin veil between love and hate.

Seven years ago, events lead to the firing of Brogan’s father and the Ramsay family’s downfall. Events masterminded by Lydia with an outcome Brogan is sure she anticipated, the years have only hardened Brogan’s hate for Lydia and her family. Now he’s masterminded his own plan for revenge.

But somewhere along the way he remembers the feelings from before the hatred and by the time he realizes he still loves the boss’s daughter, it’s too late to pull back his plans. They were set in motion long before Brogan and Lydia were face to face once again.

These two have an innocence in their teenage selves that isn’t often found. When both parties involved are so inexperienced, the games they play to try to catch the attention of another mean hurting someone innocent and intentions are misinterpreted.

“...maybe we’re all villains sometimes, each one of us. Maybe the thing that determined how quickly we became heroes was the grace we were extended, not only by others, but by ourselves.”

The journey these two found themselves on as they floundered through adulthood posed challenges galore. From Brogan’s plan to Lydia’s loyalty to her family, each made choices that would ultimately test their fledgling relationship more than it deserved. Neither recognized what was really happening between them, instead choosing to hold on to the mistrust that was erected between them for so many different reasons.

It was so easy to feel the hatred these two felt for each other, finding the love was a little trickier. And the line between the two even trickier still. I loved the balance of perspective, with both main characters alternating the narrative. Each character had their own views about what happened to cause their hatred, and watching them come to terms with their pasts showed just how complex these two characters were.

I loved the arc of the drama in the storyline. Between the pushes from Eileen and Fionn, Brogan’s sister and best friend, to the conflict added by Courtney’s presence in Brogan’s life, these two were so stubborn they missed what their friends around them could see. Stuart, Lydia’s brother, adds his own hatred to the mix and makes several choices that also steer Lydia and Brogan’s lives.

Once again, Mia Sheridan has confirmed why she is one of my favorite authors. Ramsay is the perfect love to hate story. It is chalk full of history, build up, emotion, and the dirty bits that muddle everything up for the characters.

I was gifted a copy in exchange for an honest review.