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The Summer Fall #1
Sabrina September is a Liar
An emotional second-chance romance story about the strength of love, life-changing friendships, and forgiveness.
Sometimes perfect love finds you at the most imperfect time. At least that was what she'd spent nine years, eight months, and six days telling herself. But when it comes to her true feelings, Sabrina September is a prolific liar. Their love had arrived at the perfect time, but fear was a destructive force in matters of the heart.
Ten years ago, she arrived in Japan, broken, and desperately searching for a way back to herself. But in between the wonder of summer in a new city, vending machine curry, and new best friends, she found Max Harris. In his arms, she discovered the one place in the world she felt safe enough to tell the truth.
But real and terrifying obstacles shattered their happy ending before it even began.
Now, a decade later, Sabrina takes a massive leap of faith and moves to North Carolina. If you asked her family, she was there to complete her PH.D. If you asked her heart, she was there to get him back.
Join Sabrina and Max in a world where summer is for losing your heart to love, and fall is for fighting to get it back.
Fans of Love and Other Words will love this steamy second-chance romance.
Told across a dual timeline, split between then and now, romance author Nikki Lincoln, weaves loss, love, and the ache of past mistakes.
Sabrina September Is A Liar is a full-length contemporary romance with a guaranteed (but hard-won) Happily Ever After, profanities, and explicit scenes. This book contains mature content that may not be suitable for all audiences. For all content warnings, visit the author's website.
Sometimes perfect love finds you at the most imperfect time. At least that was what she'd spent nine years, eight months, and six days telling herself. But when it comes to her true feelings, Sabrina September is a prolific liar. Their love had arrived at the perfect time, but fear was a destructive force in matters of the heart.
Ten years ago, she arrived in Japan, broken, and desperately searching for a way back to herself. But in between the wonder of summer in a new city, vending machine curry, and new best friends, she found Max Harris. In his arms, she discovered the one place in the world she felt safe enough to tell the truth.
But real and terrifying obstacles shattered their happy ending before it even began.
Now, a decade later, Sabrina takes a massive leap of faith and moves to North Carolina. If you asked her family, she was there to complete her PH.D. If you asked her heart, she was there to get him back.
Join Sabrina and Max in a world where summer is for losing your heart to love, and fall is for fighting to get it back.
Fans of Love and Other Words will love this steamy second-chance romance.
Told across a dual timeline, split between then and now, romance author Nikki Lincoln, weaves loss, love, and the ache of past mistakes.
Sabrina September Is A Liar is a full-length contemporary romance with a guaranteed (but hard-won) Happily Ever After, profanities, and explicit scenes. This book contains mature content that may not be suitable for all audiences. For all content warnings, visit the author's website.
370 pages, ebook
First published April 28, 2023
56 people are currently reading
738 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 112 reviews
June 14, 2023
Read it with Kindle Unlimited: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B...
For a full list of Triggers: https://itsnikkilincoln.com/sabrina-s...
This book has been so cathartic for me. I never knew writing could serve as a bandage for old trauma but this process was absolutely a bit of that. Sabrina is so wonderfully flawed. She loves so deeply but struggles so much to let go of her fear, sometimes this has self-destructive consequences. Max is a total golden retriever. He is the love interest all women deserve irl. Kind, seductive, honest. I adore him. I hope anyone who reads my book enjoys it. I poured a lot of love into this baby.
For a full list of Triggers: https://itsnikkilincoln.com/sabrina-s...
This book has been so cathartic for me. I never knew writing could serve as a bandage for old trauma but this process was absolutely a bit of that. Sabrina is so wonderfully flawed. She loves so deeply but struggles so much to let go of her fear, sometimes this has self-destructive consequences. Max is a total golden retriever. He is the love interest all women deserve irl. Kind, seductive, honest. I adore him. I hope anyone who reads my book enjoys it. I poured a lot of love into this baby.
February 23, 2023
This is a phenomenal debut novel.
I loved the heroine’s strong sense of self and the hero’s reluctant, immediate I-can’t-live-without-her pining. The couple’s instant connection is intense, yet believable, and their love story unfolds with a poignant tenderness that brought tears to my eyes.
The things I loved the most:
1. Max. Especially Daddy Max and Sweet Max. A hero who bears the burden of the world on his shoulders. A hero who loves so hard and cares so much he forgets he deserves grace too. A hero who’s not afraid to ask for what he wants- even though he’s convinced he doesn’t deserve it.
2. Sabrina. My heart broke for the brutal way the world forced her to grow up. For the sacrifice she was required to make and the long road back to being while she was forced to travel alone.
3. A true second chance love story about finding love at the wrong place and time and spending your life trying to recapture the way it made you feel. Sabrina and Max have always been ready for each other, but they weren’t ready for the ways the world wanted them to doubt the truth of what they had. Their second chance is about forgiveness and redemption and belonging.
A wonderful love story about forging your own path and finding the one person that gives you the strength to climb mountains.
I loved the heroine’s strong sense of self and the hero’s reluctant, immediate I-can’t-live-without-her pining. The couple’s instant connection is intense, yet believable, and their love story unfolds with a poignant tenderness that brought tears to my eyes.
The things I loved the most:
1. Max. Especially Daddy Max and Sweet Max. A hero who bears the burden of the world on his shoulders. A hero who loves so hard and cares so much he forgets he deserves grace too. A hero who’s not afraid to ask for what he wants- even though he’s convinced he doesn’t deserve it.
2. Sabrina. My heart broke for the brutal way the world forced her to grow up. For the sacrifice she was required to make and the long road back to being while she was forced to travel alone.
3. A true second chance love story about finding love at the wrong place and time and spending your life trying to recapture the way it made you feel. Sabrina and Max have always been ready for each other, but they weren’t ready for the ways the world wanted them to doubt the truth of what they had. Their second chance is about forgiveness and redemption and belonging.
A wonderful love story about forging your own path and finding the one person that gives you the strength to climb mountains.
May 3, 2023
absolutely I’m in love
This books was the beautiful debut I was looking for. I had two amazing debut reads this month and this one takes the top spot. Adored the chemistry. The growth of the characters and just the charming and beautiful writing style. Cannot wait for Tori!!
This books was the beautiful debut I was looking for. I had two amazing debut reads this month and this one takes the top spot. Adored the chemistry. The growth of the characters and just the charming and beautiful writing style. Cannot wait for Tori!!
May 7, 2023
Huge thank you to the author for providing me with an early copy of this book!
Gosh dang it I love romance and what a pleasure this was to read *sighs in single-ness*
Trigger warning for sexual assault
First of all, we do love a South African romance writer and the biggest round of applause for this DEBUT because the SKILLS!!!! Truly did not feel like this was Nikki's first book and I am shooketh.
A moment of appreciation for the cover also, because WOWZA IS SHE GORG!!!!
And this book was just so lovely. I was thoroughly impressed by the writing, Bri's emotions seeped off the page and she was so vulnerable, which not many authors can get right. Truly so talented <3<3<3
Also, I thought the army workplace setting would bore me but I was so so so intrigued by everything and I loved that we got to learn about that lifestyle, have it not just be a romanticised and dramatised sub-plot for the characters.
I absolutely loved the dual timeline narrative to this, it worked SO WELL and I generally am not a fan. But I would find myself loving one timeline, only to skip back and then be sad only to realise the other timeline was just as well-developed as the other and would be sad when it skipped again. You see the dilemma? But I was so thrilled that it worked so well and that I landed up loving it so much. And also stunning job at the dual POV, also done superbly *insert heart eyes*
The romance was,,, ugh so sweet and I could tell how much care went into their relationship. I so appreciated how well the characters handled each other's struggles, and the author treated rape really carefully, which I loved. Bri and Max's story was ugh a gut-punch, but I loved them and rooted for them and !!!!!
Great smut too *wink wink*
This book was just an absolute gem and I am so excited to see what else Nikki writes. If you're looking for a heartwrenching second-chance romance with emotional writing, dual timelines and a good slice of smut, this book will hit all the spots! So very excited for the next book and you all need to read so we can sigh in happiness together!!!!!!
Gosh dang it I love romance and what a pleasure this was to read *sighs in single-ness*
Trigger warning for sexual assault
First of all, we do love a South African romance writer and the biggest round of applause for this DEBUT because the SKILLS!!!! Truly did not feel like this was Nikki's first book and I am shooketh.
A moment of appreciation for the cover also, because WOWZA IS SHE GORG!!!!
And this book was just so lovely. I was thoroughly impressed by the writing, Bri's emotions seeped off the page and she was so vulnerable, which not many authors can get right. Truly so talented <3<3<3
Also, I thought the army workplace setting would bore me but I was so so so intrigued by everything and I loved that we got to learn about that lifestyle, have it not just be a romanticised and dramatised sub-plot for the characters.
I absolutely loved the dual timeline narrative to this, it worked SO WELL and I generally am not a fan. But I would find myself loving one timeline, only to skip back and then be sad only to realise the other timeline was just as well-developed as the other and would be sad when it skipped again. You see the dilemma? But I was so thrilled that it worked so well and that I landed up loving it so much. And also stunning job at the dual POV, also done superbly *insert heart eyes*
The romance was,,, ugh so sweet and I could tell how much care went into their relationship. I so appreciated how well the characters handled each other's struggles, and the author treated rape really carefully, which I loved. Bri and Max's story was ugh a gut-punch, but I loved them and rooted for them and !!!!!
Great smut too *wink wink*
This book was just an absolute gem and I am so excited to see what else Nikki writes. If you're looking for a heartwrenching second-chance romance with emotional writing, dual timelines and a good slice of smut, this book will hit all the spots! So very excited for the next book and you all need to read so we can sigh in happiness together!!!!!!
October 2, 2023
Sabrina September is a Liar is a second-chance romance about a couple, Sabrina and Max, that met in Japan ten years ago. The story is told in both the past, where we're introduced to Sabrina and Max's love story, and the present. In present day, Sabrina and Max both end up living in North Carolina and find their way back to one another and their happily ever after.
Things I liked:
I was fully engaged once the book finally got to the love story. The characters were mostly well-developed. I loved that Sabrina was a survivor and that she always placed the blame for what she went through on her attacker. The spice was the absolute best part of this book.
Things I didn't like:
Reading other reviews, I am clearly the only person that feels this way, but I didn't find Sabrina to be very likeable in the context of a relationship. She was easy to root for as a main character, she was not easy to root for as one half of a relationship. She treated Max poorly more than once, often lacked accountability and wasn't communicative. These are not indications of personal growth. What Sabrina did to Max was horrible and I found it very strange that the author wrote Max as the extremely apologetic character when they reunited when it should have been Sabrina.
The 10 year gap made no logical sense to me whatsoever. It felt like it was thrown in strictly for the purpose of making this a second chance romance. I think a much shorter gap would have accomplished the same goal.
This book was too long for no reason and started off EXTREMELY slow. Sabrina and Max's love story didn't really begin until a THIRD of the book in.
I'm not sure I would read Tori and Tyler's story because I imagine a lot of the same things I didn't like in this one would be repeated in that story.
Thank you to Nikki Lincoln and BookSirens for the opportunity to read this e-ARC. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Things I liked:
I was fully engaged once the book finally got to the love story. The characters were mostly well-developed. I loved that Sabrina was a survivor and that she always placed the blame for what she went through on her attacker. The spice was the absolute best part of this book.
Things I didn't like:
Reading other reviews, I am clearly the only person that feels this way, but I didn't find Sabrina to be very likeable in the context of a relationship. She was easy to root for as a main character, she was not easy to root for as one half of a relationship. She treated Max poorly more than once, often lacked accountability and wasn't communicative. These are not indications of personal growth. What Sabrina did to Max was horrible and I found it very strange that the author wrote Max as the extremely apologetic character when they reunited when it should have been Sabrina.
The 10 year gap made no logical sense to me whatsoever. It felt like it was thrown in strictly for the purpose of making this a second chance romance. I think a much shorter gap would have accomplished the same goal.
This book was too long for no reason and started off EXTREMELY slow. Sabrina and Max's love story didn't really begin until a THIRD of the book in.
I'm not sure I would read Tori and Tyler's story because I imagine a lot of the same things I didn't like in this one would be repeated in that story.
Thank you to Nikki Lincoln and BookSirens for the opportunity to read this e-ARC. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
May 1, 2023
I don’t think I can put into words how much I loved this book. Shattered my heart and made me cry so much but at the end I found myself smiling hardddd. My first book by Nikki Lincoln and I know it wont be my last💜💜
“In my heart, I knew I'd never stop fighting for him. He felt like this train I was too late to catch, and I was sprinting down the platform, waving my hands, screaming for the conductor to take notice. But the faster I ran, the further away it moved, he moved. Even though all of this felt so overwhelmingly true today, I knew I'd never stop fighting for him.”🥲
“In my heart, I knew I'd never stop fighting for him. He felt like this train I was too late to catch, and I was sprinting down the platform, waving my hands, screaming for the conductor to take notice. But the faster I ran, the further away it moved, he moved. Even though all of this felt so overwhelmingly true today, I knew I'd never stop fighting for him.”🥲
February 17, 2023
I was nervous about reading this book because of the military aspect since my husband is in the Marine Corp but I loved it! I laughed, smiled, and cried! I wish I could erase it from my memory just so I could read it again for the first time! I'm so excited for Tori's story.
September 17, 2023
Absolutely loved this book. All the progress that Sabrina and Max had to fight through. The author did an amazing job depicting how both of them were feeling at any given time. 100% recommend to everyone!
July 18, 2023
I really loved this book. I used to read a LOT of spicy spice but over the years, I've drifted. This was a great step back into the genre. Bri is likeable, relatable and smart. I was rooting for her from the very beginning. I also loved how confident she was - a welcome change from many plus-size characters. Honestly, we need more brown characters and I was so happy to read Bri and Max's points of view. Also, while we're at it... can we take a moment for Max? I loved his no-nonsense feelings for Bri. He was loud and proud about it!
Ahhh, Nikki, I am so excited for book 2. It's been amazing watching your writing journey (hi, from Twitter and Instagram!) and it's just really awesome to see local authors killing it!
Ahhh, Nikki, I am so excited for book 2. It's been amazing watching your writing journey (hi, from Twitter and Instagram!) and it's just really awesome to see local authors killing it!
February 27, 2023
Got this as an ARC and I'm so thankful for this opportunity. This story was funny, spicy, and emotional. Omg the tears I cried. I loved these characters and was fully invested from the first chapter. I could not put it down. Had wonderful duel POV but also timelines- I was hooked on both timelines and couldn't get enough. Such a good read!!!
May 21, 2023
What a debut novel!
Nikki you had me longing for more of Max and Bri’s story with your cleverly intwined dual timeline. I loved the way this love story played out and had my heart in my throat more than once.
And the spice? Lawdy, the spice was HOT and oh so perfect!
Now all I need is to know how Tori and Ty’s story plays out!
Nikki you had me longing for more of Max and Bri’s story with your cleverly intwined dual timeline. I loved the way this love story played out and had my heart in my throat more than once.
And the spice? Lawdy, the spice was HOT and oh so perfect!
Now all I need is to know how Tori and Ty’s story plays out!
May 6, 2023
This book felt like art imitating life. I found myself wondering if Nikki Lincoln was watching my last visit to the US because her description in the opening paragraph was so very familiar. My heart ached for Sabrina because I know exactly how she feels and I hold out hope for a new love rather than a second chance reunion, though that would be wonderful too.
This really is a wonderful book and I'm glad I decided, on a whim, to read it.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily
This really is a wonderful book and I'm glad I decided, on a whim, to read it.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily
March 22, 2023
I received this book as an ARC but this is my honest review. This book started out slow, which made me worried as well as the chapters changing from past to present. But damnnnn the story got me hooked. I just wanted to know what caused all of this to happen. I cried, I laughed and now I want my own Max. Also Tori is bloody amazing and so funny! This book was so good. I can’t wait for the next story on Tori and Tyler
October 3, 2023
This book was perfect. Perfect amount of spice, perfect amount of love, hate, ugly crying, plot twist and a dash of HEA. Everything - it had everything. Read it so quickly and can’t wait to follow tori on her adventure!! Pick it up and read it, you won’t be upset!
September 27, 2023
I HATE second chance romances BUT
I genuinely dislike second chance romances but this did everything for me. To the black FMC & MMC to the whirlwind romance to the HEA??? I LIVE. Tackles hard issues on domestic violence, grief, PTSD & trauma. Ms. Nikki Lincoln you might’ve just made a very big skeptic into a believer of Second Chances.
-KK
I genuinely dislike second chance romances but this did everything for me. To the black FMC & MMC to the whirlwind romance to the HEA??? I LIVE. Tackles hard issues on domestic violence, grief, PTSD & trauma. Ms. Nikki Lincoln you might’ve just made a very big skeptic into a believer of Second Chances.
-KK
March 15, 2023
This book was AMAZING. I flew through it faster than I have ever flown through a book. The plot is amazing and I cannot wait for other people to experience it!
September 7, 2023
What a beautiful and touching story. I laughed, I cried, I felt the full range of human emotions reading this novel. I haven’t felt this much in so long. I loved everything about this book — the development of the stories, the interlaced timelines, the profound relationships and friendships. The story quickly enticed me, making it hard to put the book down. I highly recommend this enthralling book!!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5
August 23, 2023
Hooked from beginning to end!
Nikki is fiercely talented. I was incredibly immersed in every scene as the story unfolded. I felt the joy, the pain, the headache, and the tension at the build of the raunchy scenes. As a fellow South African and curvy girl, the themes of body positivity and self-love gave me all the feels. So proud of you, Nikki. I can't wait to read how Tori's story unfolds.
Nikki is fiercely talented. I was incredibly immersed in every scene as the story unfolded. I felt the joy, the pain, the headache, and the tension at the build of the raunchy scenes. As a fellow South African and curvy girl, the themes of body positivity and self-love gave me all the feels. So proud of you, Nikki. I can't wait to read how Tori's story unfolds.
March 2, 2023
I enjoyed this slow-burn romance, the FMC and MMC, had great depth to their own stories, and who doesn't want HEAs?
Thank you Nikki for the opportunity to be an Arc reader and I hope you choose me to arc read your next book, you are a breath of fresh air I didn't think that I needed
Thank you Nikki for the opportunity to be an Arc reader and I hope you choose me to arc read your next book, you are a breath of fresh air I didn't think that I needed
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 20, 2023
This book is so good. It’s a second chance romance about finding love at the wrong place, wrong time and then years later getting the chance again.
It wasn’t easy for Sabrina or Max. Their second chance was hard won.
This book will break your heart and then put it back together again.
It wasn’t easy for Sabrina or Max. Their second chance was hard won.
This book will break your heart and then put it back together again.
May 5, 2023
DEFINITELY RECOMMEND THIS BOOK! I was given this book as part of a book tour on Instagram for my honest opinion.
If you are a fan of dual timelines and different POVs, this book is for you. It starts off with Sabrina's point of view, 10 years ago when she first lands in Japan.
During a night out with her best friend Tori, Sabrina (or Bri) is dared to kiss a guy. This guy turns out to be Max, who has been eyeing Sabrina since he met her. What begins as a dare turns into a whirlwind romance, with both of them falling hard and fast.
Fast forward 10 years, they are separated and Bri is going to the US to complete her Ph.D. Is she really going to North Carolina for her degree or is she trying to rekindle the flame between her and Max?
So I really really appreciated Bri's growth. We meet her as a 22 year old insecure, unsure of herself, lost and broken GIRL and by the end of the book she's this confident, smart, sure of herself WOMAN. I liked the relationship between her and Max, but also the realistic friendship between her and Tori.
This book does have some very intense sensual scenes, as well as triggers with miscarriage and domestic violence (check out the author's website for the complete list).
I definitely recommend reading this one! There's a second book coming out that I CANNOT wait to read! The way this one ended will make you want to read the second!
If you are a fan of dual timelines and different POVs, this book is for you. It starts off with Sabrina's point of view, 10 years ago when she first lands in Japan.
During a night out with her best friend Tori, Sabrina (or Bri) is dared to kiss a guy. This guy turns out to be Max, who has been eyeing Sabrina since he met her. What begins as a dare turns into a whirlwind romance, with both of them falling hard and fast.
Fast forward 10 years, they are separated and Bri is going to the US to complete her Ph.D. Is she really going to North Carolina for her degree or is she trying to rekindle the flame between her and Max?
So I really really appreciated Bri's growth. We meet her as a 22 year old insecure, unsure of herself, lost and broken GIRL and by the end of the book she's this confident, smart, sure of herself WOMAN. I liked the relationship between her and Max, but also the realistic friendship between her and Tori.
This book does have some very intense sensual scenes, as well as triggers with miscarriage and domestic violence (check out the author's website for the complete list).
I definitely recommend reading this one! There's a second book coming out that I CANNOT wait to read! The way this one ended will make you want to read the second!
March 27, 2024
I feel bad for my rating but I did not enjoy this book. I read this as an ARC for a reviewing page, so spoilers ahead. There was a lot of gramatical errors and that could just be the ebook arc setup. But the plot line was also very messy. Like at first I was like ok I get it this is gonna be a cutesy romance and max is a sweetie. But before we get to the actual romance it jumps forward to the future and I’m so confused on how we arrived here. It was two much to not only have dual timeline, but also dual pov, that just made it so jumbled. I feel like the setup of going back and forth between then and now could have been written so differently to make it flow better. There were also a lot of plot points that made no sense to me why they were being included. Like you have all this going on with Sabrina and max and then you jump to Tori and all her issues? And there is like zero resolve for them? And the book closes with oh we gotta figure out what to do with her? The biggest issue I had with this book is how flippant bri is with her trauma. TRIGGER. for me, I would not be able to joke about being r*ped with a guy I had known for two days. Like that would be a very sensitive subject for me and I would not throw that fact out so easily. It would also be very hard for me to get into a relationship again. Which is was for her for six years, but then all of a sudden she meets max and it’s like none of the stuff that affected her before even existed. So that was written poorly. For the majority of the book I was on bri’s side. I get why she didn’t tell max she was pregnant. But then I don’t get why she told him and sent divorce papers in the same box. That was stupid and not cool and honestly a bitchy thing to do. I was on his side after that. Like you do not divorce someone while they are deployed that is so shitty. So yeah. Idk I feel like this could have been written so much better and there were just too many ideas on the paper and some should have been nixed.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 28, 2023
I cannot tell you how excited I was to read this book. Local (South African) romance author; COUNT ME IN. I’ve said this to the author, and I’ll say this to anyone who is willing to listen: Nikki Lincoln is the queen of writing great smut.
Sabrina September is a Liar is a dual POV, dual timeline romance told from the perspective of the FMC, Sabrina, and MMC, Max. In the current TL, Sabrina is conducting research in a lab based on a military base in North Carolina. Sabrina has a history with a military man, and a lot of what she sees reminds her of her love and loss. We’re taken through the journey of Sabrina’s past in Japan, where she meets Max, the love of her life, and the events that occurred over the last decade that brought her to North Carolina.
This book is packed full of drama, fun moments, melancholy and trauma. I would say please pay attention to the trigger warnings as the book deals with sexual and physical assault, violence, PTSD, death and a range of traumas I may have missed. What I love is that Nikki addresses each of these topics with the respect that they deserve. The weight of any decision and experience is something that you feel in your gut, and there are moments that will have you grabbing your tissues.
That being said, my favourite part of this story is the plot-twists (there are multiple) and that you are truly rooting for Sabrina and Max to find their way to each other. These characters have substantial depth, which is why you feel for them and with them. While I had some issues with the pacing and continuity in a few chapters, I kept rooting for the two characters to finally open up to each other, when circumstances were against them. I can’t wait to read Tori’s story following the end of this one.
This s a fantastic debut novel by Nikki Lincoln and I can’t wait to see what the rest of the series looks like
Sabrina September is a Liar is a dual POV, dual timeline romance told from the perspective of the FMC, Sabrina, and MMC, Max. In the current TL, Sabrina is conducting research in a lab based on a military base in North Carolina. Sabrina has a history with a military man, and a lot of what she sees reminds her of her love and loss. We’re taken through the journey of Sabrina’s past in Japan, where she meets Max, the love of her life, and the events that occurred over the last decade that brought her to North Carolina.
This book is packed full of drama, fun moments, melancholy and trauma. I would say please pay attention to the trigger warnings as the book deals with sexual and physical assault, violence, PTSD, death and a range of traumas I may have missed. What I love is that Nikki addresses each of these topics with the respect that they deserve. The weight of any decision and experience is something that you feel in your gut, and there are moments that will have you grabbing your tissues.
That being said, my favourite part of this story is the plot-twists (there are multiple) and that you are truly rooting for Sabrina and Max to find their way to each other. These characters have substantial depth, which is why you feel for them and with them. While I had some issues with the pacing and continuity in a few chapters, I kept rooting for the two characters to finally open up to each other, when circumstances were against them. I can’t wait to read Tori’s story following the end of this one.
This s a fantastic debut novel by Nikki Lincoln and I can’t wait to see what the rest of the series looks like
April 28, 2023
“Hey….Hey yourself” I just want to thank Nikki Lincoln for giving me the honor of being an ARC reader for this amazing debut novel. I loved this book so much. It was beautiful and heartbreaking and so steamy. It delved so well into the dynamics of trying to maintain a loving relationship while navigating the demands of military life. Max and Sabrina each held a place in my heart and watching how they each dealt with Max getting deployed, the separate struggles they endured, and how they eventually wound up coming back together was just so great. I’m so excited to see where the story goes next with Tori and Ty. I’m hoping I get to be an ARC reader for that as well.
March 22, 2023
“Hey” “Hey Yourself”
I received this book as an ARC and I am so thankful for that opportunity it was an absolute privilege this book did NOT disappoint.
It took me a bit to get into it but once I did holy heck was it a whirlwind of emotions.
I can’t express my love for this book and the characters!
It was beautifully written and the characters were genuine,fun and loveable.
You’re drawn into the book. Feeling the love, pain heartbreak, humour and happiness.
All I can say is everyone needs a max in there lives And a Tori.
While the time jumps where a little confusing for me; constantly needing to remind myself which is happening in which time line. I LOVED the book and honestly wish I could erase it from memory so I can go back and reread it again.
I received this book as an ARC and I am so thankful for that opportunity it was an absolute privilege this book did NOT disappoint.
It took me a bit to get into it but once I did holy heck was it a whirlwind of emotions.
I can’t express my love for this book and the characters!
It was beautifully written and the characters were genuine,fun and loveable.
You’re drawn into the book. Feeling the love, pain heartbreak, humour and happiness.
All I can say is everyone needs a max in there lives And a Tori.
While the time jumps where a little confusing for me; constantly needing to remind myself which is happening in which time line. I LOVED the book and honestly wish I could erase it from memory so I can go back and reread it again.
May 6, 2023
This book had so much potential, but was unnecessarily long to the point that it got confusing. Too many characters & the two timelines were barely ever connected. The typos were also a big deal for me.
May 17, 2023
“I love how perfectly you fit into all the parts of me I always felt were missing. I love knowing that no parts of me were ever missing, that it was just you that was missing all along."
Blurb:
Sometimes perfect love finds you at the most imperfect time. At least that was what she'd spent nine years, eight months, and six days telling herself. But when it comes to her true feelings, Sabrina September is a prolific liar. Their love had arrived at the perfect time, but fear was a destructive force in matters of the heart. Ten years ago, she arrived in Japan, broken, and desperately searching for a way back to herself. But in between the wonder of summer in a new city, vending machine curry, and new best friends, she found Max Harris. In his arms, she discovered the one place in the world she felt safe enough to tell the truth.
But real and terrifying obstacles shattered their happy ending before it even began. Now, a decade later, Sabrina takes a massive leap of faith and moves to North Carolina. If you asked her family, she was there to complete her PH.D. If you asked her heart, she was there to get him back.
Thoughts:
First, let me start off by saying I’m not much of a spicy contemporary romance reader. I prefer more of the dark, pitch black and taboo reading but this book, OMG I devoured it. I love reading new genres and tropes. I’m so glad I did with this one!!! The writing style of Author Nikki Lincoln was extremely amazing! How she set everything up with the going back and forth through the past and present without skipping a beat was incredible. The plot on this book was so freaking good! It show how two people struggle to overcome their past trauma to be happy in the future. It shows you what is meant to be will be! It gives you hope. It is a slow burn read but when it happens it does not disappoint. No matter how hard you try you cannot help but want to pull your hair out at times. Yet root for them! This is a cute read and it does have some trigger so please make sure you check them. If you haven’t read this book please do!!! You will not be disappointed.
“I never stopped loving you. Not for one second. I want you to know that I never stopped imagining a future with you.”
“There is no starting over, because there was never.”
Plot: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🔥🔥🔥🔥
As always PLEASE check your TRIGGER WARNINGS!
Blurb:
Sometimes perfect love finds you at the most imperfect time. At least that was what she'd spent nine years, eight months, and six days telling herself. But when it comes to her true feelings, Sabrina September is a prolific liar. Their love had arrived at the perfect time, but fear was a destructive force in matters of the heart. Ten years ago, she arrived in Japan, broken, and desperately searching for a way back to herself. But in between the wonder of summer in a new city, vending machine curry, and new best friends, she found Max Harris. In his arms, she discovered the one place in the world she felt safe enough to tell the truth.
But real and terrifying obstacles shattered their happy ending before it even began. Now, a decade later, Sabrina takes a massive leap of faith and moves to North Carolina. If you asked her family, she was there to complete her PH.D. If you asked her heart, she was there to get him back.
Thoughts:
First, let me start off by saying I’m not much of a spicy contemporary romance reader. I prefer more of the dark, pitch black and taboo reading but this book, OMG I devoured it. I love reading new genres and tropes. I’m so glad I did with this one!!! The writing style of Author Nikki Lincoln was extremely amazing! How she set everything up with the going back and forth through the past and present without skipping a beat was incredible. The plot on this book was so freaking good! It show how two people struggle to overcome their past trauma to be happy in the future. It shows you what is meant to be will be! It gives you hope. It is a slow burn read but when it happens it does not disappoint. No matter how hard you try you cannot help but want to pull your hair out at times. Yet root for them! This is a cute read and it does have some trigger so please make sure you check them. If you haven’t read this book please do!!! You will not be disappointed.
“I never stopped loving you. Not for one second. I want you to know that I never stopped imagining a future with you.”
“There is no starting over, because there was never.”
Plot: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🔥🔥🔥🔥
As always PLEASE check your TRIGGER WARNINGS!
April 28, 2023
Beautifully Written
Sabrina leaves her family, home, and everything she has ever known in South Africa to move to Japan to work as a teacher. As she sits in the airport having a major breakdown, a kind man hands her a tissue before continuing on his way. A year later, she unknowingly runs into the same man once again at the nearby Navy base where she learns that he is a marine and thus begins the beautiful, broken, and redeeming love story of Sabrina and Max. Taking place over a ten year spread, the book is written In dual POV with a dual timeline as their story is interspersed between the years they met vs the present time.
Nikki Lincoln’s debut book is nothing less than magnificent. She wove a beautiful story that is moving, real and at every turn shows the intricacies of loving and the lines that are sewn together to make that love. The beauty of this story is that love, however grand it is, exists because there is the mending of brokenness. For these two, the road to that love was built, broken, and repaired across thousands of miles, over millions of seconds and would only be complete when they both realized the value of each other’s fears, brokenness, and insecurities. It took running away from each other, weeping through loneliness, and surviving self doubt and pain for them to realize that the road may have looked tattered and rocky from where they were standing but when they turned around and looked behind, the passage was set exactly the way it was meant to be. If they would have tried any moment before that, they would have torn another valley that they were unable to traverse. Their love was written as it should have been and mending the cracks made the love that they had for each other stronger, as it was the glue that kept their tracks on the same path. Max candidly and beautifully says “There Is no starting over because there was never an end.” That was not a lie.
Sabrina leaves her family, home, and everything she has ever known in South Africa to move to Japan to work as a teacher. As she sits in the airport having a major breakdown, a kind man hands her a tissue before continuing on his way. A year later, she unknowingly runs into the same man once again at the nearby Navy base where she learns that he is a marine and thus begins the beautiful, broken, and redeeming love story of Sabrina and Max. Taking place over a ten year spread, the book is written In dual POV with a dual timeline as their story is interspersed between the years they met vs the present time.
Nikki Lincoln’s debut book is nothing less than magnificent. She wove a beautiful story that is moving, real and at every turn shows the intricacies of loving and the lines that are sewn together to make that love. The beauty of this story is that love, however grand it is, exists because there is the mending of brokenness. For these two, the road to that love was built, broken, and repaired across thousands of miles, over millions of seconds and would only be complete when they both realized the value of each other’s fears, brokenness, and insecurities. It took running away from each other, weeping through loneliness, and surviving self doubt and pain for them to realize that the road may have looked tattered and rocky from where they were standing but when they turned around and looked behind, the passage was set exactly the way it was meant to be. If they would have tried any moment before that, they would have torn another valley that they were unable to traverse. Their love was written as it should have been and mending the cracks made the love that they had for each other stronger, as it was the glue that kept their tracks on the same path. Max candidly and beautifully says “There Is no starting over because there was never an end.” That was not a lie.
March 26, 2023
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I kept having to remind myself that this is Nikki's debut novel. Nikki, I was in awe the whole way through.
I am not going to give too many spoilers away, as I would like my review to encourage others to read it going in blindly.
I knew that I would love this book before I even started it. Nikki and I have very similar taste in books and it was so lovely to read a book that combined all of my favourites, Second chance love, a main character who is so relatable, a strong female friendship, told by both characters perspectives, and a Spotify playlist full of really great songs. And something that I don't get to read very often - A book by a South African author.
The way the book is written is very clever too. You are waiting for this epic love story to begin knowing that it has ended but you cannot put it down. My heart was being broken over and over again.
Thank you Nikki, for giving me the opportunity to read Sabrina's story. I loved the references to South Africa and the coloured culture. Thank you for bringing parts of the story to the world.
I am here for the next book, #teamTORI&TYLER
I am not going to give too many spoilers away, as I would like my review to encourage others to read it going in blindly.
I knew that I would love this book before I even started it. Nikki and I have very similar taste in books and it was so lovely to read a book that combined all of my favourites, Second chance love, a main character who is so relatable, a strong female friendship, told by both characters perspectives, and a Spotify playlist full of really great songs. And something that I don't get to read very often - A book by a South African author.
The way the book is written is very clever too. You are waiting for this epic love story to begin knowing that it has ended but you cannot put it down. My heart was being broken over and over again.
Thank you Nikki, for giving me the opportunity to read Sabrina's story. I loved the references to South Africa and the coloured culture. Thank you for bringing parts of the story to the world.
I am here for the next book, #teamTORI&TYLER
February 21, 2023
Okay, this is gonna be a mega review. Brace yourselves. I finished this booked over two loadshedding sessions in two evenings. Just me, the looming dark, and this astonishing work of fiction. I want to point out that I’ve never actually met Nikki Lincoln in person. Would I like to? Yes. Do I need to in order to know that this is a superb book? No, not at all.
I have been absolutely privileged to read this book as a draft in its infancy, and now as an ARC. It’s evolution between those two stages has been a beautiful thing to behold. Since my brain mainly works in point form, I’m going to make a list of all the things I liked about this book:
- Seamless blending of time jumps, different POVs and teasers for the next book (absolutely salivating at the thought).
- The characters were so well-rounded and real, as were all their interactions. It wasn’t all beautiful, flowery love scenes. They argued and fought and made fun of each other.
- Absolutely loved Max’s POV and his whole relationship with Tyler. Every heterosexual man I know uses humour to navigate their emotions and this was captured so perfectly.
- Tori. Ah, Tori. Where can I get me a Tori? Gem of a friend, but also a real solid character who has a lot going on. Magnificent.
- Spice. I don’t need to elaborate. That beach scene 😍😍😍
- Genuinely hilarious. I laughed out loud so many times. If I didn’t live alone this would be embarrassing, laughing alone in the dark.
In summary: Well done Nikki Lincoln!!! This is absolutely brilliant. You’ve created the antidote to loadshedding 😂. You deserve all the success that is no doubt coming your way 🙌🏼❤️💗
I have been absolutely privileged to read this book as a draft in its infancy, and now as an ARC. It’s evolution between those two stages has been a beautiful thing to behold. Since my brain mainly works in point form, I’m going to make a list of all the things I liked about this book:
- Seamless blending of time jumps, different POVs and teasers for the next book (absolutely salivating at the thought).
- The characters were so well-rounded and real, as were all their interactions. It wasn’t all beautiful, flowery love scenes. They argued and fought and made fun of each other.
- Absolutely loved Max’s POV and his whole relationship with Tyler. Every heterosexual man I know uses humour to navigate their emotions and this was captured so perfectly.
- Tori. Ah, Tori. Where can I get me a Tori? Gem of a friend, but also a real solid character who has a lot going on. Magnificent.
- Spice. I don’t need to elaborate. That beach scene 😍😍😍
- Genuinely hilarious. I laughed out loud so many times. If I didn’t live alone this would be embarrassing, laughing alone in the dark.
In summary: Well done Nikki Lincoln!!! This is absolutely brilliant. You’ve created the antidote to loadshedding 😂. You deserve all the success that is no doubt coming your way 🙌🏼❤️💗
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