Best Served Cold: A Billionaire Fake Engagement, Revenge Romance

Savannah's Best #2

by Maya Alden

He's after revenge. She's collateral damage.

I'm Noah Carter, and this is my confession.

My story is one of vengeance that twisted into a love I never saw coming. My target? Baron Hunt, the man whose ruthlessness shattered my family.

The plan was seduce his daughter Stella to force her father's hand, making him pay for his past transgressions. She became an unwitting pawn in a game of retribution that was supposed to end with my victory.

Instead, I realized that the heart doesn't follow the rules of revenge.

A plan to topple an enemy transformed into a fight for my own survival.

Stella, betrayed and heartbroken by my deception, became the mirror reflecting the cost of my vendetta—reminding me that in the quest for justice, I had lost sight of who I was.

Best Served Cold

✔️ Billionaire romance
✔️ Brutal revenge
✔️ Fake engagement
✔️ Forced proximity
✔️ Other woman drama
✔️ Angst, drama, groveling
✔️ No cheating
✔️ Complete standalone

Best Served Cold is a billionaire fake engagement, revenge romance with a heroine who goes from sweet to sassy because of her experiences, and a hero who goes from wanting retribution to falling in love. It is a complete standalone and part of the Savannah's Best series.

Genres: Second Chance, Romance, Contemporary, Contemporary Romance, Enemies To Lovers, Forced Proximity, Fake Dating

336 pages, Paperback

Published July 22, 2024

About the author

A top 20 Amazon Bestselling Author, Maya Alden pens angsty contemporary romances.

Reviews

[Capt. · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am now convinced that this author is a raging misogynist.

Who the hell sets up a story where the MMC recorded them having sex then using said sex tape to blackmail the FMC’s father for revenge and GAVE THE FATHER THE COPY OF SEX TAPE in which said tape GOT SPREAD IN THE INTERNET.

What’s more is that the recording only shows the FMC’s face and body and not the disgusting garbage MMC. Like?? That’s not okay even if it’s for revenge. That is too much, too humiliating, too unforgivable.

Of fucking course you can expect that the FMC forgave the abominable waste of space because of body betraying syndrome. No amount of grovel could satisfy me to give that vile, repugnant man a chance. HE WON IN EVERY TERM IN THIS, he f-cking got everything.

Only a freak would write this kind of stories. A woman ending up with a man who is in every word cruel, emotionally and mentally spiteful and a nasty trash is NOT ROMANTIC nor is this book a romance.

[Vintage · Rating 2 out of 5]

Problematic book for me as it's listed as a romance.

A revenge plot gone very, very bad as the usual with a romance hero/villain, the true victim is collateral damage aka the heroine. After a several month seduction, the hero films the heroine having sex. No, he doesn't film them having sex because he's very careful to make sure he isn't identifiable as the heroine points out later. He shows the tape to her father who immediately strikes out...at the heroine. The hero gets his deal, the father gets the tape while the heroine loses everything: her rotten family, her partnership, the house she renovated, the garden she created and nourished her soul, and her trust in people. She devolves.

If the hero hated the heroine or thought she was remotely involved it might have been more understandable, but the hero knows how horrible he's being, in fact vomits at the thought of it, but hands the video over anyway. The video itself isn't just sex, but a graphic scene with the heroine calling herself "his whore" and "his slut". It made any subsequent sex scenes stomach churning when she calls herself that again.

Again and again, the heroine is betrayed, humiliated and debased while more than one evil doer gets away with no retribution. The evil OW gets her hands on it and publishes the video and gets off scot free although distributing porn as well as revenge porn is a felony. Heroine's half brother who tipped off the OW doesn't get a full acceptance on his apology for being mean and throwing her under the bus all their lives, the hero wallows in self-pity and gets frustrated the heroine can't see how bad he feels, boo hoo.

The heroine devolves into a shadow of herself, but does finally get a backbone of sorts when she gets cranky but it's not enough when her life is destroyed and the man who destroyed her life puts her life back together the way he wants it, not what she wants. The portrayal of her slow decline was well done and gets the extra star. And the ending is incredibly abrupt, boom.

I signed up for the epilogue but haven't received it, but from what I've read on FB it just confirms that the evil OW and the equally awful father get off without any real consequences. In real life, revenge porn can result in prison. Also makes me question what kind of an idiot the hero is. He pats himself in the back about being a great big business man but can't protect the heroine? I know, I know, if the video wasn't released we would have no book, but let's call a spade a spade.

Once a tape is out there, it's out. Out there for colleagues, friends, family, acquaintances, her future children to see. No coming back from the damage the H caused.

There are plenty of readers who will love the angst of the debasement of a pathetic heroine who loses control of her life through no fault of her own, but by the love of her life, but I have a stomach ache because of it.

[Katherine]

I am going to need to pick up a sappy and sweet book to cool the rage this book incited in me. This is the most deplorable MMC I have ever read. This man violated Stella in such a horrendous way. She lost everything, but he won her back in the end simply by invading her space and emotionally wearing her down.

Does he face legal consequences? Nope
Does he face financial consequences? Nope
Does he face social consequences? Nope
What did he ever lose? Absolutely nothing

In fact, he became even more wealthy by his actions. He was able to take over her share of her investment in the business she ran and he bought her home from under her when she needed to give back her dad’s loan for her investment because it was her fault Noah used the sex tape he filmed without her consent to blackmail her dad. These actions only served for him to continue to violate her space despite being made to feel like it was him unconsciously showing he actually loved her. Barf.

Then, when the video does get out, it’s up to Stella to put forth all the effort and humiliation into making sure his actions don’t create further fall out for her dad, brother, Noah’s ex f-k buddy, and her garbage ex-business partner.

Noah takes ZERO accountability for his actions and passes his guilt off as being a martyr to emotionally strong arm Stella into just getting over it. In fact, everyone does. They all need her to get over her trauma because it makes them feel some kind of way, but what do any of them do to really get into the trenches to help her out of the pit of despair she’s in? Nothing. Literally not a single person who caused her trauma paid any sort of repercussion.

F—k this book. Noah should be in prison.

[Hillary · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was promised a grovel to HEA and instead was served a toxic and shitty “romance”.

I should’ve stopped after chapter one. There was no redeeming Noah in my eyes, and I ended the book with the same opinion. This man used and abused Stella. And his “groveling” was just a heaping pile of shit. All he did was talk about how much HE was hurting. What HE had gone through. And when he was presented with opportunities to actually help her (i.e., confessing what he did to save her the humiliation), he decided his “helping her” would be to just further bury her beneath responsibility to family in her life who treated her like shit and put her in yet another humiliating position…only publicly this time. I at no point forgave this man, and I do not trust Maya Alden as an author moving forward if this is her idea of a romance.

And the way this author wrote Stella. WOW, she HATED this heroine. She beat the shit out of her metaphorically, and then she made her a doormat to boot. Not only was she abused by her family as a child, emotionally manipulated by her family as an adult, absolutely violated by the man she loved, forced to give up her home and co-ownership of the company she helped build….she was then constantly shit on by the OW drama then made to place herself in yet another humiliating position (by the man who started all this in the first place) to protect her “friend’s” company and her abusive father’s reputation. Stella EVER forgiving the men in her life just fucking astounds me.

Then there’s Stella’s and Noah’s “friends”. Nina emotionally blackmailing Stella and prioritizing their business over her friend is disgusting. Stella’s friends making jokes about the sex tape is humiliating and horrifying. Royal and Neveah BARELY being angry at Noah was INFURIATING. I ended this book thoroughly hating almost everybody, and I cannot fathom how people can root for them.

[currently being delulu · Rating 1 out of 5]

Pls stop recommending this as a grovel book? He did not grovel at all was there betrayal yes absolutely did he ever actually do anything for her? No


And I’m sorry but if you actually Consider that garbage of a human a hero aka the heroines abuser then I don’t know what to tell you or the author I think she’s under the assumption she writes “ swoony hot alpha southern bad boys” …… someone should clue in the wanna be Southern savanna poet that a loser is still a loser even if he’s attractive and wears a suit to work to make himself feel bigger than he actually is
look’s aren’t everything honey clearly neither are brains since her hero didn’t seem to have any either not sure if the author wrote him to be a moron on purpose or if she actually thought someone would think this guy is a genius? I honestly don’t know some of these authors genuinely think their the next Edgar Allan Poe so..


Personally I think the author wanted the heroine to suffer idk maybe she had some kind of kink or fantasies she’s trying to bring to life with her work but it was very obvious she had no real intention of the heroine getting a win outside of the hero I guess maybe in her mind it made sense that the heroine was still attracted to the hero despite him lying to her and using her in a sex tape he recorded of her that ofc didn’t show his face just hers that she ofc didn’t know abt and he showed her dad to get to him when the dad didn’t really give a shit …. Again we’re bringing it back to that whole moron thing he wanted revenge against her dad but nothing happened to her dad? Literally her life blew up not his so I don’t understand what the hero thought he did?

…. Like it honestly kinda got embarrassing I wanted to contact the author and genuinely ask her did she understand the plot she was writing or just winging it?

And also what woman in her right mind is still gonna be jealous and turned on by a man who used her and filmed her without her knowledge to show her dad Video of her sex tape ???? Like I just don’t think the author is really all there in the head maybe? Idk she sounds kinda stupid



My HEA would be the heroine not ending up w the man who basically SA her in the way without her permission or consent and violated her but it’s okay bc she’s getting wet for him and weak in the knees … please this woman obviously was just pulling shit out of her ass bc if I ever see This author in real life i’d slap her across the face for writing that shit


I don’t say this abt ppl really I’m not that person but this hit a nerve for me bc of something I’ve dealt w in RL and I hated the way it was handled in this book it’s safe to say I was triggered in a way by the hero and the fact that she ended up w her assaulter and that this woman truly never had one decent man in her life they all just used and abused her uhg it makes me sick just thinking abt it 🤮

[Samantha (bookgramsaga reviews) · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (ARC review)

''Revenge has never tasted more bitter''

Safety warnings:
- No cheating
- OW drama
- Meaningless OM drama
- Blackmail
- S*x tape
- Depression/trauma
- Mention of attempted s*icide
- Loss of loved ones
- Parental neglect
- Mention of child abuse
- Mention of underage recording
- HEA

Stella ends up being betrayed and used after she sees a recording of herself having sex with the man who she had fallen in love with. Noah is seeking revenge after what Stella's father has done to his family and sadly Stella is his collateral damage to achieve that.

Things are never easy though, he instantly feels regret, remorse and disgust with himself and his plan, but the damage is done.

This book really focused on the grovel, Noah spends a good amount of this entire book either groveling to Stella or suffering alone. I love how he had nobody in his corner after his actions and even his best friend was appalled by his scheme.

There is a lot of OW drama, but we are told from the beginning from his POV what it all means so it's a one sided OW drama. His only thought and care is towards Stella. Even though he is a weak ass sometimes and he needs to get his shit together, he stays loyal despite what happened between them.

The OW drama is present throughout most of the book but nothing ever happens and if you think something does from Stella’s POV then you will read his and find out the truth and feel relieved.

There is a kiss during one scene where Stella sees it (they are not together) but in his POV you find out that the OW just does that out of nowhere cause she’s desperate to make the world believe they are together, and he cannot stop her or cause a scene because of her bitterness.

There are also small few days overlap with the OW when he seeks out Stella and starts his revenge plan but let’s be honest, he felt nothing for Stella as she was a target in the beginning. He admits he was with nobody else after that, and he stopped seeing the OW a few days after he met Stella.

Let’s be real, you will hate him in some instances in this book.

It's partially a rage read tbh, a lot of the things that happen make you want to just throw your kindle/book out the window.

Stella loses her shine and it's obvious to everyone around her. Noah's guilt eats at him and it's exactly what he deserves after what he put her through.

How everything gets resolved is not quick or brushed aside. There is no BBS in this book in my eyes. Stella has no trust in anyone, and it hinders her day-to-day life.

Stella obviously loved him before it all went down, and you could feel her pain after the betrayal, but it was Noah's suffering that made this book just a little bit sweeter. His utter disgust with himself is exactly how he should have felt and I'm glad we did not get him feeling remorse months later, but it was RIGHT AWAY.

A lot of other stuff happens in this book and it all just causes issues and drama.

You will get an extended epilogue after the book ends as it kind of ends abruptly but that extended scene gives you a good glimpse into their future.

There are a few side characters who I am hoping will get their own stories told but not sure it will happen!

[karman · Rating 1 out of 5]

Dnf at 40%. This book is truly horrid. I don’t even know where to start but I will say it starts off with the so called hero committing a literal crime (recording a s*x tape without her consent) and he does it in an evil and disgusting way in which he is not shown in the video. Right then and there I knew this book would be a one star (if I could rate it 0 I would). I’m thinking the author forgot this was a crime or just forgot how much of a violation this is. I’m wondering whether she thinks love conquers all because this is not one of the situations.


Overall, the hero is disgusting and it’s quite literally impossible to write a second chance romance when he commits such a terrible crime against the fmc right off the bat. I continued to skim the book after the beginning just to see how it plays out for the fmc and well it just gets worse because the tape is released because the mmc didn’t think to delete all copies even after he realized he had been an absolute piece of garbage. I also don’t understand why the author was trying to get us to sympathize with him and his backstory because none of it excuses anything, if anything it makes it worse because he saw what his sister went through and decided “oh let me do the exact same to an innocent woman”.

The other problem I have is that he did all this under the guise of revenge but the revenge was not even smart in the slightest. He ended up hurting someone who had no part in hurting his sister and his so called enemy was not hurt at all. It’s also so very idiotic that after three months of dating his “sweet Stella” (ugh) and somewhat falling in love with her, he couldn’t figure out that she doesn’t have a good relationship with her father. Even with all of his money and private investigators, he went through with a plan that was extremely dumb and had no impact. I also wished I could see his sisters reaction when she learned what he did (it might’ve happened but I stopped reading).

In a dream world she called the cops on him and he was arrested and convicted. In a dream world she also quit and moved to SAN Francisco and built a new home and slowly worked to open her own firm but alas this book was set in a nightmare.

[Raffaella · Rating 1 out of 5]

Hero shows heroine father a video of them while having sex because he wants revenge on her father. Her father doesn’t even blink but takes his rage on the heroine, reneging her. Heroine was collateral. I hated them both. She’s a loser, a weak codependent woman who can’t understand that when someone hurts you they are sh1t not you. And the hero is a disgusting man as usual for this author. Her life is basically destroyed and his ex hookup is jealous and let the video out. The heroine has to go to therapy and is depressed but hey, she can’t stop loving the hero. At this point I lost interest because I can’t feel any angst when someone is so stupid and passive. She should have sued them all. The hero, her sh1t of a father, the hero’s ex hoe. Everyone, there are laws for revenge porn. A woman won 7,5 millions from her ex husband. Another man got 18 years for recording and issuing his exes videos, so no, the heroines attitude was pathetic and dumb. And from a therapist to the author, you can forgive and let go of abuses and abusers but you. Never. Go. Back. To. Your. Abuser. Never ever. I hated how it was dealt, her trauma was basically healed with the hero’s magic pen that makes miracles possible and wow, in only one sitting! I stopped being interested when I saw that the heroine wasn’t taking her life back but she let the hero take it back for her, making her a passive and weak woman unable to react. It wasn’t any more angsty and I started scrolling my phone on the side ending up with an article about how Venice wood poles could support the city. Because I just couldn’t. Since I’m a very vengeful and unforgiving bitch that erases from her life all the people who hurt me even in small doses, I can’t absolutely understand how a woman who was used and treated like this could muster even a bit of attraction for such a revolting man that was the hero, and since she kicked her brother out of her life it would have been beautiful if she could have done the same with the worthless hero. Had it been me the book would have lasted three pages, that is after the hero showed her father the video of them. Just the time to take out of my bag my favorite uzi and unload it all on the hero.

[**Tessa** (semi hiatus) · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nope. Just nope.
No grovel. Irredeemable hero

Depressed heroine-totally understandable as his actions took everything from her- her partnership in her company, her home, and most of all-her dignity
He made up for nothing. He suddenly realizes he’s in love with her for no reason. Even after this he still spends time with OW who is ex FB. Has her over to his house at night, goes to parties with her just to not cause a scene. He won’t stop her from touching him or going out with her because he doesn’t want to “cause a scene”.?!?! Ffs cause a scene and show your h you are hers. But he can’t do that bc he isn’t hers

The pretend engagement felt like it was the only way the author could think of to force proximity therefore getting them back together.

Their first time schmexing again she has no qualms, no trauma- like he never recorded their last session and showed it to her daddy and then destroyed her. She went from a traumatized depressed woman who would never take him back to forgiving and f*cking him like a total 180 for no reason other than forced proximity

Again no grovel

Meh. this author is great at writing and writes a good gut punch but doesn’t know how to redeem her Heroes afterwards. And her heroines seem to be spineless. Also, BBS strikes again like who is gonna have BBS after what he did?!?!

Not for me. 🤮

[Koryne · Rating 4 out of 5]

okay okay okay i got some things to get off my chest.

1) im such a hypocrite because i gave Gabe’s book three stars for how mean he was but what Noah did was WAY worse and i liked this one more 🫣

2) why did the book end so suddenly and then you have to download a bonus chapter? i hated that.


NOW the whole time i read this (i started it this morning) i was sweaty and shaky because WOW noah was so fucked up in what he did. and i am a huge lover of when the h shuts down and is just super depressed and the H is all torn up about it but my 4 stars are for Stella and Stella alone.

I wish she would have moved to San Francisco and gotten with someone who didn’t use her to blackmail her father WHO DIDN’T EVEN GIVE A SHIT.

Noah should have spent his days alone and sad holed up in the house that Stella built…..but then it wouldn’t have been a romance i guess 🙄

and the ow drama 🤢🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄 eden was the worst but noah also didn’t really DO anything to make her stop. like yeah he would tell her they weren’t a thing and they never dated but he would still have her on his arm at events and shit and if she wasn’t so crazy, i would have felt a little bad for her. like the last time he had sex with her was DAYS before he met stella and he still wondered why she was hanging around? it was just annoying no especially when during their separation (which was the entire book) eden went over to his apartment at night and he said he couldn’t get hard and didn’t want to touch anyone but stella. but he was wondering why a girl who didn’t want him made him hard BUT A NAKED EDEN DIDN’T. like why did you even let her in….why was she naked…..someone should chop his dick off for breaking Stella the way he did AND STELLA DOESNT EVEN THINK SHE CAN TRUST A MAN AGAIN. ugh i was annoyed with him.

poor stella has never had anyone to love her or treat her right and she finally fell for noah and he does this 😭😭😭😭😭 but she was SO strong until the bbs in the last 20% which of course had to happen or else they wouldn’t have gotten back together so like that’s fine 😅

this was the perfect angst that i was in the mood for and i need dom and luna’s book for when i can stomach ow drama and second chance because what do you mean they were each other’s firsts and he currently has a girlfriend he’s not banging. my curiosity will be getting the better of me with that one 🫣

[‎‧₊˚✧ storm ✧˚₊‧ · Rating 1 out of 5]

I can’t do it anymore. Maybe if the author liked this heroine even just a little bit, I would have liked her more. But the heroine is too much of an idiot because why would she choose to have anything to do with this hero??? Didn’t like anyone else either - especially all the women who are supposed to be her friends but clearly don’t care that much about what the hero did to the heroine…and I just can’t anymore.

DNF @ 67%

(got past the halfway mark so it gets rated)

Everything I felt about this book is written so well in this review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Preeti ♥︎ Her Bookshelves · Rating 3 out of 5]

This 'Best' series has the most un-best Hs of all time!

The 'H' uses the h abominably - makes her fall in love with him and then makes a sex tape of them showing her face, (and body ofc) but not his! And then shows it to her father! I mean, ewwwww!
To avenge his sister - whose sex tape was made by the h's slime-ball of a father in the past, using the girl's bf of that time, to force the H's father to withdraw from a political race or such.
So, ofc the best way is to make a sex tape of the villain's daughter - visiting the same trauma on another innocent in this toxic dogfight.

Then, in his pov we see he kinda feels bad for her - but does nothing to alleviate her pain and trauma.
She clearly goes into depression - not caring about eating, losing weight, her looks etc.
She is a designer at Savannah Lace and as he's a new client, so they meet often.
Add in a b*tchy malicious wannabe ow and her misery is complete.
So, he doesn't want the ow - an ex but makes very halfhearted, even mixed-signal efforts at discouraging her. The h often sees them together on dates etc., getting touchy-feely.
So, apart from this ass-hattery of hurting the h even further, I found him a sissy who couldn't even lay down the terms clearly to the ow.

Things get worse, the sex tape goes public!
And I bl**dy hated that.
Just imagining something like that happen to a woman makes me so angry, while the
perpetrator/s remain anonymous and safe from public scrutiny - the H, her father, brother and the ow.
And they get no comeuppance at all!
I mean - he can do all this to an innocent woman but when it comes to punishing these ppl, he suddenly goes all sanctimonious and pacifist.

The h/H become fake engaged and the story gets too long ...

I, at first, felt very bad for the h and the tone is angsty, and then she gets angry which is also fine because she needs to stop blaming herself. And I hoped she'd fight back.
But soon, all her self-indulgence gets old and annoying.
And she doesn't really become stronger. Just whiny, repetitive and basically confused.
ETA - And her very blase and mostly unaffected reaction to the sex tape going public is also so un-relatable. I can not imagine her being almost friendly/forgiving with her half-brother who not only has watched this vid but also showed it to other ppl (the ow who distributed it.) Double ewwwww!
There was a lot of sharing already before it went public. H>father>brother>ow


Only time I applauded her was ---
"Noah, you took my dignity away. That sex was a violation."
"You were willing," I growled. No fucking way was she going to say I forced her.
"I was a willing participant in the sex but not the video," she told me. "Never that. You did that without my consent."

[Bev · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't know what this was, but I do know it wasn't what I want to read in a romance book. See, this repulsive monster Noah violated an innocent woman, destroyed her career, her self confidence, her self respect and caused her to lose her home as well as fall into deep depression, YET SHE FORGIVES HIM and .....
Wait for it .....
She freaking marries him! And, instead of him ending up in prison along with her father, brother and his side piece they all got away with it. Sheesh, the author really HAAAATES poor Stella.

To add insult to injury not only was the BBS barf-worthy, there was no freaking ending to the book unless you want to sign up to the author's newsletter! WTAF???

Disappointed doesn't even begin to cover how I'm feeling right now.

[iremucka · Rating 1 out of 5]

Kitabını kapağına göre yargılarsak çok ters köşede kaldım. Kapağa bakan bıcır bıcır bir şey sanır ama Reddit beni hayal kırıklığına uğrattı.. Hem de İLK KEZ. Maya Alden uzun zamandır sağda solda gördüğüm bir yazardı; konusu da hoşuma gidince atladım.

Konusu: DRAM arkadaşlar. 2025 ' in okuduğum en dram ve en kötü kitabı olabilir ve bu sayı az değil. 13' ü Bağlamak bile daha eğlenceliydi düşünün..

Adı üstünde "en iyi soğuk yenen" İNTİKAM. Noah Carter ailesinin başına gelenlerden Stella' nın babasını sorumlu tutmakta, gerçekten olanlar çok acı olsa Noah buna Stella ne alaka demiyor ve aynı acıyı onun başına getiriyor. Bu da Stella' yı kendine aşık edip SEKS KASEDİNİ Stella' nın babasına izletmek. Buralar spoiler değil çünkü ilk sayfada oluyor. Ay bu kapaklı minnoş kitap tayfasıdır, nasılsa düzelir derken olaylar bayır aşağı büyümeye devam ediyor, terslik üstüne terslik okurken.. Tatlı Stella oluyor sana uyuz Stella.

Olayların gelişimi harici uyuz Stella' yı okumak çok zevkli olsa da NOAH istediği her şeye çok ama çok az eforla kavuştu?! NO canım benim aradığım bu değil ay çok kötüydü. Maya Alden ban!

All time BAN! Bu kitabında DOM ile LUNA' yı merak etmiştim oysa ki henüz yazmamış. Ay yok yazmasın da..

Okumayın okumayın okumayın.....

[Claire · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a betrayal / grovel book, sort of. It's betrayal, and an underwritten, half-assed grovel. I've read a few of this author's books, and she is like the Shein of romance authors. She churns out books fast that are not high quality, they're flimsy, but they cater to popular betrayal / angst tropes.

This heroine had a horrible life where her family was mean to her for no reason, while she’s sweet and bends over backwards to be nice to them. The hero is a wealthy jerk corporate type who isn’t too smart, and keeps stringing along an OW (also for no reason). These characters and this scenario is copy-pasted from all of this author’s books. Her heroes and heroines have the same personalities. And hey, that works for some authors, like Suzanne Wright. But this author? No, it’s not working.

The hero lures the heroine into a relationship under false pretenses and makes a sex tape of them, in order to blackmail her dad (for revenge reasons, for something her dad did in the past). This happens in the first chapter. On one hand, this didn't work, because I wasn’t emotionally invested in them as a couple. On the other hand, this author’s books are “surface level, just read it for angst.” So, it was kind of fine to start the story with the betrayal, and spend the rest of the book on the fall-out.

This book went too far with making the fall-out SO bad, though. The hero essentially ruins the heroine’s life. (She loses her home and her position at her job). And not just on a material level, but she also has to go into therapy, and go on antidepressants! This was not properly addressed. We do get him feeling bad and trying to fix it. But the stuff he does to fix it is basic decency. He doesn’t truly suffer consequences. A good betrayal / grovel story evens out the scales. The hero needs to sacrifice something. And he needs to be personally inconvenienced, in a way that's as big as the way he inconvenienced the heroine. This book didn't do that.

I gave it more than 1 star because the writing wasn't great, but it also wasn't atrocious, it was fine. And the heroine did tell him to fuck off several times when he tried to apologize. I would have given this 1 star if she was a complete doormat. She was a slight step above being one. Not big enough, though. And, it did keep me turning pages, wanting to know how this would all shake out.

Like with all of these author’s books, it felt like she wrote herself into a corner and couldn’t think of an organic reason for the heroine to let the hero back into her bed. So, the heroine gives into him towards the end, not because he’s done enough to earn it, but just because the book was ending.

This book also does something I hated, which is, the heroine goes out of her way to do something to help HIM at the end. With a betrayal this enormous, the heroine shouldn’t lift a single finger for the hero, the story should be entirely focused on HIM helping her and fixing the way he wronged her. She also gets apologetic for continuing to remind him of his crime, which is BS. His crime was so huge, she should never apologize for being angry or petty about it. It left a bad taste in my mouth that this story acted like a woman being RIGHTFULLY angry about being wronged was "not classy."

I see some reviews saying that his crime was too big to get past – and I actually don’t agree with that. In the hands of a skilled author, the hero doing a big crime to the heroine can be interesting. It can sometimes work, to see how the story will turn that ship around and make us like him and their relationship. This author simply isn’t skilled enough to pull it off.

(For example, in my favorite grovel, in the Dukes of Ruin trilogy, the hero almost gets his heroine killed and also non cons her. That seems like a crime too big to come back from! But his grovel involves proving that he will die for her, kill for her, and he also allows her to make him suffer for a while. So, the grovel did match the crime and even out the scales). So, although THIS hero’s crime is huge in this book, he could have bounced back from it. For example, it comes up that he could maybe go to jail for the sex tape - he should have! Let him suffer real consequences! Let his life go off track, in a way that EXCEEDS the way that he sent the heroine’s life off-track! This book was unwilling to go there. But if it had, this story would have been a bit better, and more satisfying.

Also, I have no idea what this author's process is. But she released 20 books in 1 year – not novellas, but novels! The publication date on all 20 of her books is last year and this year. I do not support or condone authors who use ChatGPT or AI to “cheat” at writing faster. This author's work is some Shein, fast-fashion esque stuff. I'm not accusing her, I have no idea if she uses ChatGPT! Since all of her books have the same character personalities copy-pasted, I could buy that she writes each book in 2 weeks, without using a 3rd party to "assist" her. But, putting out over 20 books in 1 year is sus AF.

[dee☁️ · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just love seeing men sad and miserable😁

[Serialbookstarter:Marla · Rating 3 out of 5]

This opens with the H showing the fmc and her father a sex tape he made. It’s of the H and h . He made
It for revenge on the fmc’s senator father. The H is pretty brutal in his singleminded pursuit of revenge. The h is sweet and fell in love only to find out what a horrible person the H is. Anyways the sex tape calls a spiral down for the fmc and she loses everything…. Wait…. How is this revenge on the crooked senator? He doesn’t even care about his daughter. So the H did worse than the crooked senator to an innocent woman. I hope someone someday gives him his brand of justice. There was Definitely angst for the first half and then—- Suddenly…yeah I hate it when that happens… suddenly the H becomes a different person, grovels and they
Live hea.

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Grovel = Book starts off with a bang...a videotaped one...H shows h's dad a video of H & h together and intends to blackmail the h's dad. h was utterly humiliated and shamed, not to mention completely heartbroken. H works through most of the rest of the book to redeem himself. Through word and deed he works to make things right. After about a year, the h does forgive, but she is so strong and will NEVER forget what the H did which he acknowledges and accepts as his due.

Angst = OMG...I was so choked up by the sad life the h had not only growing up but also in the present. She had so many heartbreaks, so much disappointment, so ignored/disregarded by all around her, such a lack of love ever being shown to her, etc. As the reader, you truly feel it. Well done by this author. Every book I have read has been so juicy and well written.

h sees H with OW = h sees H kissing OW at a club and she quickly leaves as she is still heartbroken but also she chose to not subject herself to his presence.

OW/OM drama = a former FWB feels entitled to the H and is making it known to any and every one that the H will be proposing to her and is in a current full blown relationship with her (not true; H had not been with anyone since the moment he first started with the h, but the OW did kiss him which the h saw). OW got hold of H & h's video and put it out publicly. OW was mean and nasty to the h; h did stand up for herself, but it did not stop the OW from continuing in her campaign against h. OMs that caused issues were h's father and h's half-brother. OMF used his wealth to manipulate and force the h to do his bidding (date who he chose, attend events he chose, come to dinners, etc.). Once h got financially independent and she reached her heartbreak limit, she refused to accommodate her father any further. OMF shared H & h video with OMHB (just EEWWW!!!). OMHB then shared the video, unknowingly (he showed it but did not intentionally share it), with the OW who the put it out to the internet. h's step mother was also somewhat of an OW, but was more of a minor character. OWSM shenanigans were shared mostly from conversations of others with H about h's past and how OWSM treated the h which was of course horribly abusive.

I did receive an ARC of this book and was incredibly grateful as this has fast become a must read author for me. Her craft and imagination gets better every book.

Re-read/listen 07/2025 to audiobook.

[Kehli · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is probably THE WORST book I have ever tried to read. DNF 52% I don't know how I even got that far. Ugh. Gag me with a freakin spoon. The MMC. Wow, this is not someone we should be romanticizing. He was awful, showed ZERO responsibility for any of the MANY things he did to the FMC. Every time his POV came up it was all him talking about how he was so sad HE had made this new woman. How HE created her. How HE did this and now she was a shell of a woman. But yet she was still sooo beautiful. It was all about HIM and HIS guilt for what an awful person he was. I felt no empathy from him. Even later he just laid it all on her telling her how much HE had suffered since he ruined her life.
I'm so done with this book.
Please die MMC. please leave FMC alone so she can move away, go to therapy and hopefully find that there are people out there who actually care about her.

[Tmstprc · Rating 2 out of 5]

Why would she forgive or trust him again? It was an ugly, uncomfortable read and the author didn’t make me believe trust or forgiveness was possible.

[Serial Romance Librarian · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVED IT! Alden is one of those authors brave enough to really go there. I enjoyed every word of this angsty story. Oh, and the grovel…. SO GOOD. Alden is one of my one-click authors for sure.

[Aou · Rating 3 out of 5]

1 for H, 2 for h and 5 for the angst.

[Pinky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Trigger Warnings:Taking sex tape without FMC’s knowledge and sharing it to FMC’s father, revenge porn released to public, slut-shaming, blackmail, sex tape of minor, death of loved ones, alcoholism, parental death from car accident, death of parent from sepsis at childbirth, child abuse from parent, attempted suicide, depression, child neglect, starve child, mentions of graphic suicide ideas, suicide ideation, trauma, abusive ex

I want to read all the books in the series to get to the latest book, Best Kept Secret, since Mel is loving it. I read Best of Me and LOVED it. This book had such an angsty start and the writing was so fucking good. We started off with the betrayal and I felt so much anger and disgust towards the MMC Noah. The FMC Stella lost everything, seeing her slowly decline into depression was devastating. She kinda grew a backbone but she didn’t really have one against Noah, even though she claimed to, only sometimes. Whenever an MMC betrays the FMC, I want to see them suffer and grovel. But Noah barely suffered, he just felt a lil guilt. Even when his friend was disgusted with him, his reaction was disgusting.

“She doesn't have a lot of friends," I told him.
He nodded. "That's tough…going through what she is and having no one. That…."
"Royal, I did what I had to do. I can't change a damn thing now. Can you stop beating me up for it?" I slammed my hand on the table and saw a few heads turn toward us.”

I’ll go into detail in the spoilers but I was too pissed to enjoy it. The first half was 4.5 stars since the angst was so good, I cried for Stella. But the second half was 1 star, I hated it. I wish things went differently, so imma just give this 3 stars. I did love the side characters and family members. The writing was amazing but the plot pissed me off.


Stella has lived a lonely life with walls to prevent people from getting into her life. When Noah persists on getting to know her, she falls for him and he betrays her in the worst possible way. Now Stella has nothing but Noah seems to be everywhere she goes.

Now for spoilers


This takes place in Savannah, Stella was invited to Noah’s office and thought he was proposing. She has been dating him for 3 months and fell in love with him after he was persistent in getting to know her. When she got there, her father, the senator named Baron, was there. Noah shows her father a sex video he took of Stella without her knowledge where she says she is Noah’s whore. Stella felt so betrayed and sat there silently crying as her father got pissed off. Noah did this as revenge since Baron did the same to Noah’s sister Neveah. Neveah was 16 when Baron got a 17 year old to seduce her and take a sex video of her. He used the video to threaten Noah’s dad. Noah’s dad did what he could to protect his daughter by stepping down and Baron became senator. Noah’s dad became an alcoholic and died in a car accident. Neveah attempted suicide right after but was saved. Noah wanted Baron to feel the same way. So he seduced Stella and found that it was hard for her to let people in. They only had sex that night and it was nonstop. Noah knew everything about Stella before they started talking so he knew how to manipulate her into liking him. He set up the cameras, chose the video to show the dad which only showed Stella, then blackmailed the dad. He thought of Stella as collateral even if he felt a small tinge of guilt.


In the video, he tells Stella to call herself a slut and whore for him. Noah would call Stella “Sweet” since she was so kind and sweet. He knew she didn’t have many friends and made sure no one knew they were dating. He thought Stella and Baron were close since Baron helped Stella invest in the company called Savannah Lace where she was a partner. Stella was a landscaper who loved gardening. She bought the home of her dreams and renovated it exactly how she wanted it. Baron tells Stella to pay him back the money he lended her which surprises Noah. Stella said she loved Noah the night they had sex. He knew his sister fell into depression and almost killed herself but he hurt Stella anyway for revenge. Even when he thinks he is falling for her, he ruins her life. Despite knowing everything about her, they had a lot in common so their relationship was real. Noah wants Baron to give him a bridge project so Baron says yes. Once Baron leaves, Noah tells Stella to leave or he will have her removed. Stella had a bracelet from him, so she put it on his desk and left.


Noah’s friend Royal was pissed with Noah. Even though Noah claims to feel guilty, he doesn’t wanna admit it to Royal and insults Stella.

“Christ, Noah, what the fuck happened to you? You recorded yourself having sex with this woman, and showed it to her father. How far have you fallen? What did this woman ever do to you?"
"She gave excellent head, and she was something else in the sack." I felt bile rise inside me when I said that, tried to be casual about it.”

Stella has no money and has to pay her dad back, so she decides to sell her dream home. She loved her home for the garden, she was always there planting, even Noah knew this. Aurora let Stella stay at her condo and it was nice to see her happy with Gabe. Stella has to pull out as a partner from Savannah Lace and is demoted to an employee since she took her money share away to pay her dad back. Stella and Nina started the company together and Nina was sweet but they couldn’t keep her as a partner. I loved Luna in the last book for looking out for Aurora and loved her here too. Stella starts losing weight and barely sleeps. Noah hears that Stella is selling her house and bought it. Noah’s godmother is Nina and he realized if Stella pulls out as a partner, Nina will lose money. So he invested in the company and became a partner. Not only did he take a sex video of Stella and blackmail her dad, he bought her home, and he took her position as a partner at her company. Noah makes a speech in front of the company to announce he is a partner at Savannah Lace. Noah says he wants to be a silent partner. It has been months and he has done nothing for Stella so far. He feels guilty when he sees her but he did nothing to help her. I wish his regret was instant, like when he saw Stella crying he realized he fucked up. Instead, he just feels a little guilt seeing Stella not look like her normal self. He goes to her office to tell her he didn’t mean for things to go this way but Stella barely looks at him. I LOVED how the story was going since she shut him out and he missed seeing her sunshine self. I loved how she brushed him off and told him she had a meeting, telling him congratulations. But what I hated was Stella still loved Noah. Like bruh why do you still love him after he betrayed you like that? Luna started noticing that something went on between Stella and Noah and threatened Noah.

“I'm going to find out what the hell is goin' on," she warned me. "Stella doesn't have a lot of people in her life, but she has me. I'm keeping an eye on you, Carter.”

They go to an event and Noah is welcomed back to Savannah. He is seen with Eden, someone he used to fuck on and off before he met Stella. The only relief was that he didn’t fuck around after/when with Stella. Eden would kiss him and he would let her. But he would tell Eden they aren’t together and he doesn’t want her. Eden keeps threatening him with her rich parents and since Noah doesn’t wanna make a scene, he doesn’t push her away. Lev, Luna’s brother, hugs Stella, comforting her since she looks sad. Stella stopped wearing makeup and wears black all the time. Noah sees Stella with Lev and gets jealous despite being with Eden. Lev is best friends with a guy named Dom who Luna seems to have a hate-crush on, Dom is usually fucking around. Noah tries to talk to Stella but Eden follows. Noah says he has nothing to do with Eden but Stella wants him to leave her alone.


Stella slowly spirals into depression, the way it was described hit too close to home. Feeling no motivation to do the things you love, not wanting to get out of bed, feeling numb to the world. Nina offers Stella a job for a museum that Silas owns, but he is Eden’s brother. It’s a big project where Stella is supposed to help with their garden. Nina thought Stella would be excited but Stella gave her no reaction. Everyone is concerned for Stella but she shuts them out. Noah thinks about his sister’s suicide attempt and is scared Stella might do the same. He asks if she is okay and she lashes out at him. She laughs when he asks if she won’t do anything. What’s crazy to me is months pass by and Noah did nothing except telling Stella he didn’t mean for this to happen. Stella knew she needed therapy and called for a therapist.

It was an effort to get up, brush my teeth, take a shower, and find something to wear. Everything was a mountain to climb. Time would heal, I knew that. This wasn't my first or even my second rodeo, but while I healed, the pain of living was debilitating.

When Stella meets Silas, he asks if Stella can hook him up with Baron. Everyone goes to Stella for her dad when they aren’t close. She snaps at him and when Noah comes up to her, she is pissed. She says that Noah ruined her life while Baron’s life is fine. Noah realizes she is right but doesn’t do anything to fix it. He thought it’s better to avoid Stella since she doesn’t want him around. Stella presents her ideas for the garden museum but Eden tries to ruin the meeting. Nina defended Stella and told Eden to stop. Eden can tell Noah and Stella had something going on so she was pissed. When Stella is dragged to meet up with Aurora, Nova, and Luna, she is annoyed. Nova is Nina’s assistant, all three of them work with Stella. Lev and Dom show up and Luna and Dom bicker while people tell them to just fuck already. Stella started cussing since she was bitter with the world. Noah shows up and Stella leaves so he follows her. Stella tells him to leave her alone when he offers her a ride. Noah is relieved that Stella seems jealous of Eden which annoyed me since I wanted Stella not to care.


Stella was abused as a child by her parents. Her mom died at childbirth from sepsis and her dad never wanted her. He married Whitney who hated Stella and who had two kids, Baron who goes by JR, and Gage. Gage was a lil nicer but didn’t stand up for Stella while JR also abused Stella. When Stella was 15 and tried to go to a program, JR dented Baron’s car and lied that it was Stella. So Stella wasn’t able to go to the program. Noah feels bad but does nothing. Eden gets more pissed since Noah continues to reject her. He wants to be with Stella but Stella wants nothing to do with him. Eden threatens him, saying if he doesn’t get with her, she will get revenge. Stella doesn’t wanna work at Savannah Lace anymore. She has a friend in San Francisco and asks to help her find a job. Eden shows up at Stella’s home and asks her what she has to do with Noah. This pisses Stella off, she tells Nina she quits from the company and texts Noah about what Eden did. She then shuts off her phone and goes away to a bed and breakfast place for the weekend. Eden visited JR who was stupid enough to tell Eden about the sex tape. JR and Baron are close so Baron showed him the video so that they could use it as revenge against Noah someday. It was so fucking stupid. Eden secretly downloaded the video and leaked it to the world.


Stella is prepared to work for her two weeks before leaving. Noah says he’s sorry and starts calling her baby and Sweet while Nina asks if she is okay. Stella finds out about the leak and has a breakdown. This is where the story really went downhill for me. Noah was the reason the video existed but Noah acts like he’s Stella’s saviour. Like bitch please. He tells Stella they should fake being engaged and go on a talk show. Everyone starts slut-shaming Stella and people start pulling out of Savannah Lace and don’t wanna do business with Stella. Silas tries to get out of it but Noah threatens him since he knows Eden was behind it, he was able to track her IP address so he has proof. Noah got Stella a blue daisy ring which he bought during their three months together, he knew it was for her. They go to the talk show and act like a couple and I hated it. Stella says that what they do in their bedroom is private. Noah was protected since he could’ve gone to jail for revenge porn and blackmail.


He tells Stella that they need to live together to make this believable. Stella finds out he bought her house and feels angry. But Noah says he couldn’t let her sell the house since she loved it. So they stayed in separate rooms and acted like roommates but Stella was slowly warming up to Noah. When she has a breakdown, Noah holds her.

“I want to go to sleep and not wake up," she whimpered. "I just don't want to wake up anymore."
Fuck this. I settled into her bed, leaning against the headboard, and pulled her into my arms.
"Don't say that, Stella. You have so much to live for, Sweet. So much. Don't let me take that away from you."
"I have nothing." Her voice was ragged with pain. "Nothing. I don't know who I am anymore.”

I just couldn’t understand how Stella still loved this guy. When she broke down, they cuddled in bed together. Neveah was angry with Noah but she got over it and visits. Neveah tells Stella that when this happened to her at 16, she had a crush on the guy who did it. She says with therapy, she worked on herself. Stella was taking antidepressants and was going to therapy as well. Stella kept shutting Noah down when he tried to be with her. He keeps calling her “Sweet” or “Baby” and Stella tells him to stop. Royal helped Neveah during her traumatic teens and they have something going on. When they go to a party, Stella runs into an abusive ex. She dated him for 4 months and eventually left him. He tries to talk to Stella but Noah takes her away and threatens the ex, all of Stella’s friends come to help. JR shows up to Stella’s place to apologize for everything. Stella doesn’t give a fuck anymore, she reminds us constantly.


Stella tells Noah she plans to leave after things die down and go to San Francisco since she got a job there. Even though the pay is half of what she is making at Savannah Lace, she wants a fresh start. Noah tells Stella he doesn’t want her to leave and says he wants to court her. Stella is already softened up at this point so they go on a picnic. He kisses her and she lets him, she says she is scared and makes comments that he might be recording it but Noah says he isn’t. After this, Stella somehow starts trusting Noah. They go on more dates and act more coupley. I was annoyed and after another date, Stella trusted Noah enough to have sex. I’m not sure how she trusts the guy after everything she went through. To make it worse, he calls her “slut” in the middle and Stella was fine with it. She made a joke of him possibly recording her but Noah says he wouldn’t. I don’t know how she was good with him calling her that after he betrayed her. Noah claims that he likes dirty talking and it wasn’t for the cameras. He tries to gaslight her by saying that it was always about them but Stella reminds him that he was the one who set the cameras in the right angles to record her. Noah takes Stella on a boat and they are happy after their long day of fucking. Neveah stayed with Royal and something happened. When she came back, she wanted to get away from Royal and go back to Los Angeles. Once she leaves, Stella and Noah are practically together even though she still thinks about wanting to leave.


Later the cops are coming after Noah because the public found out that he recorded Stella without her permission. Stella’s stepmom Whitney was behind it since she was pissed with Noah for telling her and Baron to stop hurting Stella. Baron lost his job as a senator and started cheating openly on Whitney. Stella calls JR saying he owes her a favour and to help her get married to Noah. Married partners can’t testify against each other in court. It was all so stupid, Noah says that he wants Stella to have a nicer wedding but Stella asks why he keeps delaying it. They get married and say they love each other. Stella says she believes their vows so if they ever end things, it's because Noah is dead. I loved the beginning of this story since it was so angsty. But Noah didn’t do anything for MONTHS bro, he just sat there feeling guilty and sorry for himself to see Stella change. His “grovelling” was after the leak, I swear if the leak didn’t happen he wouldn’t have done shit. And he barely grovelled, he just took Stella to picnics and said he was sorry but also acted like he didn’t do anything when they confronted people who hurt Stella. He was called out and he had moments where he was self-aware, but he would just make a comment like “I’m not any better but they suck,” kinda thing. I feel like I would’ve liked this more if Noah felt regret the instant he showed the video. OR if he planned to do the revenge thing and never went through with it but Stella found the video. And I HATED how they continued with calling Stella a slut or whore during sex, it gave me the major ick since it was originally used in a way to hurt her, even if he claims he didn’t do it for the video. Stella forgave him so easily once they got engaged. I do love Stella’s friends, especially Luna, I can’t wait to see her story. I believe Nova’s story is next and she is Nina’s assistant so I’m curious.


Stay safe folks!

[Julie Pippert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Minor spoilers included. These do not spoil the entire plot or the specific ending, but I do reference things that happen during the story.

This book is a do read and is on my Good to Re-Read list. I am very careful with my ratings so five stars means this includes the essentials:

Great storytelling
Perfect plot pacing
Outstanding character development
Believable HEA with full resolution that I believe in

The story opens with an absolutely gut wrenching scene: she is discovering that the man she loves, the man she trusted, the man she was just intimate with has been using her for revenge and is currently humiliating her with a secret video she didn't consent to and he is showing it to her father.

From that point, Stella, our main female character, deteriorates rapidly. In the course of her deterioration, you come to understand her background and how current events are triggering and creating a perfect mental storm.

I appreciate how the author depicted depression. It's very raw and very honest and very authentic, especially to the character.

It would be easy to get frustrated with the secondary characters for not saving her, but that would be a trite plot point and would've taken away from her characters development. Instead they continue to be there with concerns and did what they could, which is also very honest to real life. I thought it was handled so well with both primary and secondary characters and the story.

It was extremely satisfying watching Stella's personal growth – deciding who she was and what her boundaries were and how she was going to live the rest of her life.

What Noah, the main male character, did is pretty irredeemable and unforgivable. What worked was developing his character well enough to understand that he is sitting in trauma and he is a hurt person who is hurting people. That's not an excuse, but it's a reason. During the course of the story, you see his growth and evolution, with enough redemption and amends that even I as the reader accepted him as the hero.

I was wondering how these two characters were going to come together for a happily ever after, and that was another gut wrenching turn of events.

Stella made Noah work for it, and it was not linear; she would forgive and then something would retrigger and then she would regress and then she would step forward. This is very honest and the way the two of them navigated that nonlinear path is what truly reinforced the HEA. She was not sure about forgiveness for most of the book.

It helped to have well-placed brief flashbacks of their relationship prior to the big betrayal. That gave you a sense of how they had connected and why she thought it was true love, and how he recognized his true feelings once he got over being completely oblivious.

No BBS by my definition. Their chemistry is strong but this is more driven by emotions.

If you like a book with a truly angsty plot (not gratuitous and not trauma porn) and extended redemption grovel, get this very emotional book skillfully written by Maya Alden.

It kept my attention engaged, I kept wanting to turn the page to see what happened next, and I'm already planning when I can go back and reread it to catch some of the things I may have read past too quickly. This is true experience and entertainment, just what you want out of a good book.

I definitely recommend it! Glad I got it as an ARC!

[Zubee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing book; so well written
Don't know how many times I cried when reading
Looking forward to reading the final copy in July
With this book, Maya Alden, for me, has become an auto-buy and I'll be going through her back list now and read the ones I haven't read yet

I received an ARC of this book; which does not influence my review
The book is just that well written 👏

[taz · Rating 1 out of 5]

idk how he came back from that. he deserves the electric chair 😒

[Maja · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stars: ⭐4.0⭐

Main characters:
- Stella: ❣️❣️❣️❣️
- Noah: ❣️❣️❣️❣️

POV: From Stella and Noah's POV, in the first person

Writing: ✍️✍️✍️✍️

Romance/tropes: Billionaire Romance, Revenge, Fake engagement, Forced proximity, OW drama, Betrayal

Chemistry: 🔥🔥🔥

Angst: 😱😱😱😱

OW/OM drama: Yes, OW drama (Eden)

Love triangle: No

Cheating: No

Triggers: S*x video (recording without permission), Mentios of suicide attempt (side character-off the page)

Funny moments: No

Sad/painful moments: Yes

HEA: Yes

Liked: good writing, painful moments for the h, OW drama, angst, groveling and good betrayal

Didn't like: /

Wish for: more OW drama and more drama with her step-brother and father (maybe a little bit action in there and "blood")

************************************************

I recived an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Thank you Maya ❤️ I really enjoyed and now I'm waiting for the next book in this series!

************************************************
-"Do you know when I found my father in your office? I thought you'd asked him if you could marry me?"
-"Then you showed the video.." her breath caught.
-"God, it hurt so much, Noah. It hurt so much."
I wanted to reach out to her. Pull her into my arms, hold her. But villains didn't get to play comforting heroes.
************************************************
-"Maybe...maybe I can help you heal you," he offered hoarsely.
I sniffled, pulling the tears I felt racing to my eyes back.
-"You have not been able to heal yourself from what my father did to your sister, for losing your father-how on earth will you heal me?"
He didn't seem to have an answer for that.
-"I'm so so-".
-"Stop with the apologies, Noah. They mean less than nothing. I'm leaving Savannah at the end of the year."
************************************************
I didn't have the right to burden her with my guilt, my pain for fucking up her life. She, on the other hand, didn't trust me. I stroked her cheek as I waited at a red light. Her eyes opened, and she looked at me.
-"I liked you very much, Stella. So much so that the revenge I so badly wanted...I was ready to give up."
-"But you wanted retribution more than you wanted me," she said sadly.
The light turned green, and I dropped my hand. -"Yes," I admitted.
-"I thought you were falling in love with me," she confessed, "that...never mind."
-"I was falling in love with you," I quickly said before she could raise her walls and push me away.
-"Liar," she mocked.
************************************************

[Kathleen Lemke (Kathy Page) · Rating 4 out of 5]

My rating: 4 stars

What I loved: I liked how the author made Stella’s(h) reaction from the betrayal realistic. Her shutting down after what Noah(H) did had me crying.

What I didn’t like: I wanted the father to pay for how he treated Stella. Him making tons of money and cheating is not him getting his comeuppance. I also would have liked to have read Stella talking to her younger brother afterwards.

***Major Spoilers/ Details/Triggers: Betrayal by H, h abused by step mother and treated poorly by her dad and half brothers, depression, ow drama. It’s starts off with the h at the H’s workplace with her father. H and h have been dating for 3 months. H is showing the h’s father a sex tape of him and the h. He did this to get revenge because the h’s father had the H’s sister seduced and video having sex when she was 16 to blackmail their father from running for District Attorney. The father proceeded to get drunk and killed himself. H decided to do the same to the father by seducing his daughter(the h) and video them. H tells the father if he doesn’t stop blocking him from getting the project he will show everyone the video. The father gets mad and tells the h that he wants the money he gave her back that she used to help open her business with her friend. h is devastated because she thought the H loved her but instead video them while having sex call herself a slut and a whore. h has a hard time letting people in because of how horrible her family treated her. H starts to feel bad but keeps telling himself that it was only fair. h sells her half of the business and her house to pay her father back. h goes into depression. H buys the h’s part of the business and her house. The poor h is stuck having to see the H at work and also sees him with ow. Ow thinks the H is going to marry her and tells the h that the H and her have been together for a while. H realizes he made a mistake especially seeing the h loosing weight and no longer being the sweet person that she is and starts to make things right. When the tape is leaked to the press, the H comes up with a plan to help the h. They find out that the ow leaked it after the h’s brother showed it to her. Ow was mad that the H told her that he would never marry her. H and h works things out and they get their HEA with them married. Extra bonus scene with the h having a baby girl.

Final thoughts: I enjoyed this book. Loved the betrayal and how everything worked out for the H and h. I really want to read Luna and Dom’s book.

[Jacquelyn Jones · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is so maddening I can't fully explain it or it will take all week.
Listen to all the bad reviews.
I only came to mention the worst parts for me: "I still loved him after all he did to me" is the dumbest viewpoint ever. The h fully realizes that the man she fell in love with was an act. How come every time a Mc is betrayed by a side character or villain, they react appropriately but when it's another MC, they just somehow can't stop loving them? That doesn't make sense, she literally found out it was all a lie and that she had been in love with a facade. To me, it reads as a cheap writing trick: body betrayal syndrome AND heart betrayal syndrome.
Add to that that the 'grovel' is just him being extra pushy and the book is ruined. It's not a grovel if he has already forgiven himself and actually thinks he deserves to be with her again. It's not a sincere ask for forgiveness when what hes really asking for is the whole relationship back. Grovelling is supposed to be about making amends to the person you wronged, not just getting your way bc you changed your mind about the revenge.

One of the all time worst second chance books ever. One of those "the author put all the imagination into the premise and betrayal but had no real idea how to write a good reconciliation" books that we seem to get so many of in this era of editorless publishing.

[Seffra · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars

** I received an ARC from the author but this is my honest review**

I loved the set-up of this book, I loved how he could really see what he did to her mentally. I also loved how strong Stella was…until she wasn’t. She gave in too quickly and moved past what happened to her in no time at all.

While I do think the grovel was good and I felt the phantom chest pains, I wish we had more hesitation on Stella’s part. I needed the angst to have some substance.