Blog Tour: Reason to Believe: Rebecca Yarros
Reason to Believe
Rebecca Yarros
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Release Date April 26, 2022
“I’ll take them!”
That’s what I tell the social worker when my pre-k student and his baby brother need an emergency foster placement. I’ll do anything to keep the brothers from being split up. But my apartment’s flooded and there’s only one house I can take them to on such short notice…his.
Knox Daniels, my older brother’s best friend, offers his new place without hesitation. He’s not moving back to our tiny town until next month—that’s when all our hotshot firefighters are returning for their one and only chance to rebuild our fathers’ fallen, iconic crew.
It doesn’t matter that I’ve been silently in love with Knox since we were kids. It can’t matter that we pretend that reckless prom night kiss never happened. It won’t matter that my feelings for him could destroy his lifelong friendship with my brother and threaten the certification of their hotshot crew. Because I’ll be out of his house long before he gets back.
Except Knox just walked in…a month early. And the icing on this awkward cake? He’s gorgeous as always and I’m covered in baby puke. He takes one look at the boys and tells me we can make this work—
We can temporarily fake a relationship to keep them from being separated by the system.
Suddenly, everything matters.
Graphics from Author's Facebook page
OOH-WEE!! I'm such a sucker for a satisfying Brother's Best Friend storyline, and Reason to Believe did not disappoint!! I'm so glad I decided to give Ms. Yarros another chance; otherwise, I would have missed this gem.
I can't wait for you to meet the characters from the small town of Legacy: Knox, Harper, Liam, Mr. Sir Pukes A lot aka James, Ryker, Bash, Emerson, River, and Avery.
Speaking of Knox, I have a book boyfriend type and he checked all the marks. I fell head over heels for this delicious, fractured man, who's trust issues almost cost him the one thing in the world he wanted most. Add to the fact he's a firefighter and a great dad--double yum!! Ladies, Knoxville is totally swoonworthy, even when he's being a complete idiot.
Here, let me show you just one of the many things he said that made my heart pitter patter:
Speaking of Knox, I have a book boyfriend type and he checked all the marks. I fell head over heels for this delicious, fractured man, who's trust issues almost cost him the one thing in the world he wanted most. Add to the fact he's a firefighter and a great dad--double yum!! Ladies, Knoxville is totally swoonworthy, even when he's being a complete idiot.
Here, let me show you just one of the many things he said that made my heart pitter patter:
“I care, and the first time I slide inside you and fulfill every single fantasy I’ve ever had isn’t going to be outside our house in broad daylight. It’s going to be in a bed. A very big bed. My bed, preferably. And I’m going to have hours to make you come again and again. That isn’t happening until we have this—what we are together—figured out, because I refuse to feel anything but you. Only you, Harper. No guilt, no lies, just what we are together. No. Fucking. Truck.”
Knox. Knox. Knox. *sigh*
Knox. Knox. Knox. *sigh*
Harper's a breath of fresh air! The definition of sweet and sassy. An all around kickass heroine, who took no bs. She had a heart of gold, knew exactly what she wanted, and was the furthest thing from a TSTL type character. That's not to say Harper didn't have her own weakness and issues. But those moments were overlooked when she'd sacrifice for the boys, let Knox know how important he was, and when she'd put Ryker in his place. Looking back, I think I may have loved her character a tad bit more than Knox's.
Together, Knox and Harper were chaotic, and I adored the hell out of them for that reason. It made their endgame much more rewarding. This duo was a fun mix of lightheartedness and angst. For me, they were the quintessential balance of push and pull. Yarros couldn't have found a more perfect storm. If any two characters were made for each other...
Together, Knox and Harper were chaotic, and I adored the hell out of them for that reason. It made their endgame much more rewarding. This duo was a fun mix of lightheartedness and angst. For me, they were the quintessential balance of push and pull. Yarros couldn't have found a more perfect storm. If any two characters were made for each other...
I will admit, Reason to Believe was your classic brother’s best friend. You know, the one where the best friend is never good enough in the eyes of the brother. And then, the best friend agonizes over it and pushes the love of his life away for far too long to save his friendship. The one where the brother is usually always a Grade A Douchewaffle. The one where the brother oversteps boundaries, and boy did Ryker meddle and abuse those boundaries. Ry was most definitely a Grade A Douchewaffle. At one point, I thought if the author takes this where I think she's going I am out of here. Thank god, she didn't. Ryker was a ridiculously over-the-top handful. That man needed a few hard, open handed slaps. Yet, I still loved him and hope like hell he gets his own story. Too bad none of his friends have sister, he needs a dose of his own medicine. LOL.
Harper, Knox, and Ryker are so typical of this trope but I frantically ate them up. I couldn't get enough of this book. So much so, I refused to accept when it was over. I kept trying to turn the page, hoping it was just a cruel joke. I didn't want the end of Harper and Knoxville, even though I knew it was 1am and needed sleep.
If you're looking for a sweet, emotional, deep attachment, forbidden, small-town/brother's best friend romance look no further, Reason to Believe has all that and more.
And just a little FYI, there are two novellas in the Legacy series, but you don't need to read them to understand this one. However, once you finish with Knox and Harpy, you'll want to.
Enjoy!!
Harper Anders has been in love with Knoxville Daniels since she was a kid. And he has had a mutual crush but was always off-limits since he is her brother's best friend and he is serious about the bro-code. Knox never felt good enough for her anyway and cares too much about his best friend and their family to upset them so for years he has been away or avoided her. They have a host of friends that have had similar experiences losing parents due to the Legacy Mountain Fire and now this new generation is resurrecting the fire station and coming home.
Harper is now a teacher and when a young student and his baby brother need foster placement she volunteers herself and gets permission to use Knox's empty newly built home. But he comes home faster than she expects and right into her new chaos. Now these two are caring for two young boys and find themselves willing to do just about anything to help them and keep them together...even if they have to sacrifice their own feelings and sanity. Playing house is dangerous since they are not supposed to act on their unresolved feelings and attraction since the issues keeping them apart are not likely to change.
Harper is now a teacher and when a young student and his baby brother need foster placement she volunteers herself and gets permission to use Knox's empty newly built home. But he comes home faster than she expects and right into her new chaos. Now these two are caring for two young boys and find themselves willing to do just about anything to help them and keep them together...even if they have to sacrifice their own feelings and sanity. Playing house is dangerous since they are not supposed to act on their unresolved feelings and attraction since the issues keeping them apart are not likely to change.
These two are such a hot mess! It’s obvious they are meant to be together but they get in their own way and oh-my-gosh, so does her overprotective brother, Ryker! He frustrated me so much and I wanted to shake him! Bless Knox's heart but he is such a broken boy and has such a faulty view of his own worth and love. He is so afraid to trust his heart and risk getting hurt, and his communication skills definitely get him in trouble. Harper is caring and thoughtful, but she’s also stubborn, sensitive, and can avoid hard topics. They both have abandonment and trust issues and fear of loss, so it’s a precarious balance. It is an emotional rollercoaster as they bounce between forbidden, fake, real, and complicated. My heart just broke for them at some points, but there are also some parts that are inspiring and sweet.
This is an angsty, emotional, forbidden, best-friend's-little-sister, fake marriage, unexpected-foster-parents, second chance romance. The Legacy landscape and background with the fire crew and hotshots are interesting and there is a sense of friendship and community. I hope that we see her brother Ryker get a book and maybe some of the others. This can be read as a standalone. I did not read the first two novellas, but now I’m actually kind of interested in their stories since those characters did pop up in this one.
Harper Anders couldn’t think of anything other than helping her pre-k student and his brother when she learned they needed an emergency foster placement. But coming up with a plan for how to take care of them means she has to ask a favor of her brother’s best friend, Knox, and she does her best to keep clear of him. It shouldn’t be hard though, the foster placement is for a week, and Knox isn’t due in town for at least that. She is driven, sweet and strong. She has had a crush on Knox since they were kids, but the sold shoulder she has gotten from him over the years has her keeping her feelings to herself.
Knox Daniels’s life is fighting fires. He lost his dad to a fire, the same fire that claimed the lives of Harper and Ryker’s dad and several other townspeople, and his mom left when he was just a boy. Raised by his gram, he doesn’t let many people get close to him so he doesn’t have to feel their loss when they leave. But Harper has always been different, even though her brother made her off limits years ago. When she needs help giving the Clark boys a safe place to stay while the social workers search for their dad, Knox can’t stand by.
I loved these two from their first kiss, and when her brother made Harper off limits to Knox, I knew they were in for a wild ride to find a life together, because Ryker’s friendship meant everything to Knox and he did not take that vow lightly. But the strong draw between Harper and Knox meant that the angst had to be high with as strong as they both felt about their own convictions.
They put a lot of stress into their relationship very quickly -- married within the first week they are living under the same roof. But under the guise of protecting the children they were trying to care for, the true feelings behind the words was easily hidden. As they navigate raising 2 young children dealing with grief, Knox and Harper test the waters of what could be if they stop pretending and let themselves be the husband and wife the town thinks they are.
There are a lot of character introductions in this book, but though all the characters are new, it didn’t detract from Harper and Knox’s story. This town lost a lot when their hotshot crew was almost entirely killed in one fire, but now that the children of that crew is trying to resurrect the team, they have something to pull them together again. This was a great introduction to several of the crew members and the entire team gained a lot of trust through this story.
This book hit the top of my reading list at the perfect time. Everything about this book was exactly what I needed to read this weekend and checked all the right boxes - brother’s best friend, fake (but also real) marriage, small town with a tragic history, and so much more. This is a series I will be looking forward to reading for some time -- and I plan to go back and finish reading the 2 prequel novellas - Point of Origin and Ignite.
Legacy Series
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These are stand-alone prequel novellas and do not have to be read first.
Ignite
Rebecca Yarros
Rebecca Yarros is the Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestselling author of over fifteen novels, including Great and Precious Things and The Last Letter. “A gifted storyteller” (Kirkus), she is also the recipient of the Colorado Romance Writer’s Award of Excellence for Eyes Turned Skyward from her Flight and Glory series.
Rebecca loves military heroes and has been blissfully married to hers for almost twenty years. She’s the mother of six children, ranging from kindergarten to law school, and is currently surviving the teenage years with three of her four hockey-playing sons. When she’s not writing, you can find her at the hockey rink or sneaking in some guitar time while guzzling coffee. She and her family live in Colorado with their stubborn English bulldogs, two feisty chinchillas, and a Maine Coon kitten named Artemis, who rules them all.
Having fostered then adopted their youngest daughter who is nonverbal and on the autism spectrum, Rebecca is passionate about helping children in the foster system through her nonprofit, One October, which she co-founded with her husband in 2019. To learn more about their mission to better the lives of kids in foster care, visit www.oneoctober.org.
To catch up on Rebecca’s latest releases and upcoming novels, including The Things We Leave Unfinished, which just received a starred review from Publishers Weekly, visit www.RebeccaYarros.com.
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