If Top Gun had a soulful, small-town, slow-burn lovechild with deep emotional layers and just the right amount of sass and sweetness, it would be Come Back to Me by G.A. Mazurke.
From the very first page, I was hooked by the intimacy of the letters between Cody and Tee—two strangers who find solace in words during one of the darkest periods of Cody’s life. Their bond, built through anonymous letters while Cody was deployed, is raw, honest, and profoundly moving. It’s a beautiful reminder of how love can blossom not through grand gestures, but through vulnerability and connection.
Cody, a broken veteran turned town marshal, carries the weight of war and regret like a second skin. His journey from letting Tee go to discovering her as his sister-in-law’s best friend—now his roommate—is filled with tension, longing, and the kind of delicious torment only the best grumpy-sunshine romances deliver. And knowing Cody flew the same aircraft from Top Gun? That just elevated his character for me tenfold. I felt like I was right there with him in the cockpit—fearless, wounded, and fighting to come home in every sense of the word.
Then there’s Tee. Oh, Tee. She’s quirky, endearing, chaotic in the most beautiful way, and achingly real. A musician with a soft heart and a stubborn streak, she radiates a kind of eccentric charm that hides a deeper loneliness. Her character felt like a love letter to everyone who’s ever felt misunderstood—even by those who love them. G.A. Mazurke captured that nuance perfectly. Tee is messy, loud, awkward, and absolutely unforgettable.
Their dynamic? Electric. From fake undating to slow-building trust and that soul-punch of hurt/comfort, it’s impossible not to root for them. There’s angst, there’s grovel (yes, Cody—you better), and there’s a love story that doesn’t just tug at your heartstrings—it yanks them with every word.
I also loved the sense of community, the subtle suspense, and the emotional weight of healing after trauma. It’s not just a romance—it’s about finding your way back to yourself, and letting someone walk beside you when you do.
Come Back to Me is a beautifully crafted story full of heart, humor, and hope. It’s for the quiet romantics who believe in second chances, the damaged hearts who dream of being truly seen, and for anyone who knows the power of a letter signed only with love. I laughed, I teared up, I swooned—and I would absolutely recommend this to anyone who needs a reminder that love can find you, even when you’re at your most broken.