Beneath the Stars

Sugarlake #1

by Emily McIntire

From Sunday Times bestselling author Emily McIntire comes an angsty second chance romance and the first interconnected standalone in the Sugarlake series.

Alina Carson meets Chase Adams when she's eleven years old, after he moves in down the street carrying nothing but a chip on his shoulder and dimples in his cheeks.

Immediately she falls, loving him before she even knows what loving is. But becoming best friends with Chase's little sister means that he's off-limits, no matter how much their connection screams for something more.

Chase never cared much for following the rules. Abandoned by everyone who was supposed to love him, he's broken and insecure, choosing to push others away before they have a chance to hurt him. But there's something about the girl with golden hair, and before he can stop himself, he's sneaking through her window, whispering his deepest secrets beneath her glow 'n stick stars.

As time goes on and they get older, he decides to give their love a chance, no matter what anyone else thinks. But old habits die hard, and when tragedy strikes, Chase is back to doing what he does best.

Ruining everything.

Chase disappears, and years pass, leaving Alina with no choice but to pick up her broken pieces and move on. Until one day, he's back. All grown up and taking over his family's business.

When Alina and Chase are thrown together and forced to work in the same building, old feelings resurface, and Alina quickly realizes that Chase is on a mission, determined to right the wrongs of his past.

Starting with her.

****

*Beneath the Stars is the first interconnected standalone in the Sugarlake series. It contains mature content. Full list of TW can be found on author's website.*

Genres: Romance, Second Chance, Contemporary Romance, Friends To Lovers, Contemporary, Audiobook, Second Chance Romance

466 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2020

About the author

Emily McIntire is a #1 New York Times and #1 Sunday Times bestselling author whose stories serve steam, slow burns, and seriously questionable morals. Her books have been translated in over a dozen languages, and span across several sub-genres within romance.

A stage IV breast cancer thriver, you can find Emily enjoying free time with her family, getting lost in a good book, or redecorating her house depending on her mood.


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Reviews

[kendyl ʚ♡⃛ɞ (hiatus)]

dnf @ 34%
first things first…this is my first dnf😩i’m so proud!
chase’s journals were my 13th reason.
i absolutely hated these characters.
the writing was not good…i found myself skimming the book.
in my mind…alina and jax are living happily ever after🤭🤭
maybe i’ll come back and finish this book someday and give a full rant review…we’ll see.
i wanted to remove this book from all my shelves on gr completely, but it said it would erase my review😠so let’s just ignore this on my “to read” shelf :D

EXCUSE ME WHAT!?! JAX HAS HIS OWN BOOK WITH A GIRL WHO’S NOT ALINA!? i’m suing. UGHHH NOW I KIND WANNA CONTINUE CUZ I LOVE JAX. chase is just so insufferable that i can’t continue this book. he’s a bag of shit. when i decide to continue with this series…i’ll skim read the rest of this awful book and give a good rant review for you guys and hope that the rest of the series is better.
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old updates:

update: besties😭so my plan was to devour this entire book today right, but my bf surprised me with tickets to a hawaiian/reggae festival/concert😩😩😩gonna go see so many hawaiian/reggae artists perform🥹🥹

ahhhh i’ve been wanting to read this series before emily’s never after series and these books got new covers🤭i’m obsessed so i may or may not have bought the entire series at once🫣🫣i know absolutely nothing about this series, but they look so beautiful on my shelves!<3

emily…our breast cancer warrior🥺she’s so incredibly strong and absolutely beautiful<3 i read “be still my heart” by her and sav r miller…i absolutely loved it (10/10 recommend reading that book) so i can’t wait to read all of emily’s books🤭🤭

[Iris · Rating 1 out of 5]

So... I read to the end, couldn't help myself. I continue ranting in the comment section with spoilers. Just want to let everyone know what they can expect if they decide to read this 🥴

I usually never DNF. If I'm gonna start a book, I'm gonna try to finish even if I end up hating it so I'll probably pick this up again later, way later, but for now

I hated this hero, he was a beta imo and not the nice guys you want to root for, more like the weak guys you want to castrate
But I actually kinda liked the heroine, she wasn't a complete doormat so if I do pick this up again, it'll be for her.


Safety: No technical "cheating" but cheating to me all the same, he was definitely not loyal. All the OW drama is what made me stop.

This book follows them through the years as they get older staring at 11 for the h and the H is 13, so two years apart.

They both feel a connection but H pushes her away cause he doesn't think he's good enough for her so of course while they're growing up together and being best friends, he's sleeping around..

Cause I've never read this before...
(my eyes were in serious danger of rolling all the way back and staying there because of this H)

So H has been sleeping around, h knows this too

I'm not naive— I know he sleeps around. I've smelled the perfume lingering on his clothes as he lays in my bed and tells me he's no good.

When h was 15, both MCs were at a bonfire and she sees OW slip hand into H's jeans so h gets pissed and turns to OM and invites him to leave the party so she can lose her virginity to him (THANK GOD, see I like this kind of h)

So then she turns 16, H is 18 now
h goes on a date, H watches, gets mad and thus, finally stops being a lil pussy (still thinks he's a weak little boy tho) and decides to finally make a move out of jealousy. & they sleep together for the first time. And, let me include this lovely lil excerpt of him getting mad she's not a virgin

"Chase, I'm not a virgin."

My body jerks off the bed. Goldi falls to the side from the sudden movement. "Who the fuck with?"

"No! You don't get to ask me that! I'm not over here asking for your list of a thousand hussies."

See, again, I kinda like her

And now, they're together.

H has a sister, Lily, who h is supposedly best friends with too but that's not really the case & the sister has drug problems, she was not supportive of their relationship. She was jealous h was gonna take away big bro from her and even calls h "bumpkin trash." Kind of a non-issue (at least to the point from which I read up to) when it comes to OW problems bc they still stay together but she's a big part in the overall plot so I thought I'd mention it anyways.

So, H is 18 and he graduates and goes to college before h, plenty of OW drama ensues.

H has a classmate named Lindsey that causes all the problems (but I'm not just blaming her, the H was the real problem too)

OW knows H has girlfriend but plans to break them up and H gives her all the opportunity to do so (see, weak little boy)

Goldi’s staring in Lindsay’s direction. I reach out to search for her hand, lacing our fingers together, and rubbing the back of it with my thumb. Guilt for not giving her warning about Lindsay crawls up my throat. “Yeah, Lindsay and I have been chilling recently. I told her she could kick it this weekend, get to know you guys.”

Lindsay’s eyes glint, watching us. “Chase, tell them about the spider fiasco at my place.”
Chase’s body tenses, his lips leaving my skin as he straightens in his chair. “They don’t want to hear stupid shit like that.”
I cock my head at him. “I’d like to hear it.”
He sucks his teeth, looking at me. “There was a spider at her place. She was scared of it, and it was hiding in her bathroom. I found the fucker and killed it.” He shrugs.
Lindsay laughs. “Oh, don’t be so modest.” She turns her eyes on me. “It was a giant wolf spider! The thing was hanging out in my bathroom, and I was too terrified to even go in there. I called Chase, and like usual, he came right over.”
She smiles at him. “By the time he got there, the spider was nowhere to be found. I was a panicked mess. But Chase stayed with me all weekend until he finally was able to find the damn thing and kill it.” She puts her hands over her heart. “My hero.”

My stomach drops. I slowly nod my head at her story. “All weekend, huh? And when was this?”
“Oh, about three weeks ago, right Chase?”
Chase shifts, clearly uncomfortable, and a forgotten gash reopens across my heart.

Three weeks ago, the toddler dance class I teach had a recital. It was the first one I choreographed, and I was so excited for everyone to see all the hard work I’d put into their routine. I begged Chase to come home for it. But he didn’t, saying he wasn’t able to get off work. Nausea swirls in my stomach at the knowledge he was with her.
Did he lie to me?
I don’t think Chase would cheat on me, but him putting Lindsay before me hurts almost as bad.

“Were you ever gonna tell me, Chase?”
“Tell you what?”
I run my hand through my hair, my foot tapping. “Oh, I don’t know. How about we start with the fact you’ve been tellin’ me you’re workin’ when you’re really spendin’ your nights in another girl’s apartment.”
He releases me, sitting back. He sighs, looking down at his hands. “I did work that weekend.”
“That’s not the point!”
“Goldi, you have to know Lindsay’s just a friend. You do know that, don’t you?” He scoots closer, reaching for my hand.
I jerk it out of the way. “She doesn’t want to just be your friend.”
“She’s in a fucked-up place right now and needs someone to lean on. That’s all.”

“How nice that you have him to help,” he says, dryly.
Irritation slams into me. “Yep. You have Lindsay, and I have Jax. Havin’ friends is the best, ain’t it?”
“That’s not fair.”
“What’s not fair is you bein’ glued to a girl that I’ve told you repeatedly makes me uncomfortable.”
“And I’ve told you there’s nothing for you to worry about.”
“You haven’t told me anything, other than she’s in a bad place and ‘needs’ you.”
“She does.”
“Well, so do I, Chase.”

See, stupid weak little boy. The OW is annoying, but aren't they all? that's their purpose in most of these romance books so I can actually excuse her. What I can't excuse is weak H's who don't put their supposed love of their life first, ugh. OW are only a problem if men aren't stupid and can't keep it in their pants.

And THEN, it gets worst.

h's mom dies while H is too busy with OW.
While h's mom is dying and she is trying to get a hold of H, he was hanging around OW and gave her the opportunity to take a photo of them in bed with OW wearing nothing but the H's shirt and posting it on facebook which the h sees while her mother is dying.
Nothing physical actually happened but still

“Chase, what’s wrong?” Lindsay pushes back the covers, sitting up in my bed, stretching her arms above her head. Shock filters through me as I notice she’s wearing nothing but my shirt.
Mistaking my wide eyes for something it isn’t, she smirks. “Looks good on me, doesn’t it?” She sweeps her hands down her body.

I remember her leaving yesterday afternoon. Obviously, once I fell asleep, she decided to show back up. I am seriously regretting leaving my front door unlocked.

My mouth parts in shock. “You posted this so Goldi would see?”
She smirks. “A girl can hope.”
“Are you out of your goddamn mind?”
“Look, It’s tiring having to play the damsel in distress all the time to get your attention, Chase. What happened to you, anyway? You have a serious hero complex.”

h breaks up with H, as she should and so they're done for now but it's a second-chance romance so obvs they're not done but at this point, I couldn't see them making each other happy.

They broke up when h was 18, H was 20

So fast forward in the chapters, H is 22 he starts seeing a shrink and starts to journal, I mention this because we see plenty of his journal entries and they're...putting it mildly... tmi. The entries I'd rather not read start at age 25:

I fucked a woman tonight. It felt good. I mean, obviously. It was fucking sex. And this girl fuck, woman. She sucked my cock like a Hoover.

I really thought this one would be different, you know? We had things in common. Liked the same movies and shit like that. And I swear, I tried so hard to be invested. But every time she laughed, I compared it to the sound of Goldi’s. Every time she touched me, I waited for the sizzle to burn through my veins, but was left feeling cold. And when I came inside her, I had to close my eyes and imagine it was Goldi’s tight pussy. FUUUUCK. It’s like I can’t even function normally for a damn day. Maybe I’m destined to hate myself forever because my brain couldn’t stop being a little bitch for two seconds and ended up losing the other half of my soul.
Jesus, I hope nobody ever finds this notebook.

Yeah...I finally agree with the H on something, I wish I never found this book.

During this chapter at age 25, we find out he's going on his first date ever

“I have a date tonight.”
“Are you nervous?” he asks.”
“I feel like I should be, right? I’m twenty-five and I’ve never gone on an actual date.” The guilt knocks, trying to work its way inside as I realize I never even took Goldi on a fucking date.

The date he went on was with OW named Marissa, they continue to date for three years. He's a weak little boy to her too

I’ve picked up a lot of girls in the past five years, always for a quick thrill and a release of tension. A nice, warm hole for my cock to disappear in for a while. But I’ve never given them the time of day beyond that. Not until Marissa.

We’ve been together for the past three years, but I’ve been honest with her from the get-go about keeping things casual. I’m not interested in a serious relationship. I care about her, but it wouldn’t be fair to promise something I’m not sure I can give.

Marissa surprised me last night, saying she had something “special” to give me. I was a little annoyed she showed up unannounced, but who am I to turn down a gorgeous woman if she wants to give me the gift of anal. I’m a mere mortal man.

She agreed at first, but I suppose it’s natural that after a certain amount of time, she’d start to want more. Maybe if I hadn’t met my soul mate when I was thirteen, and lost her when I was twenty, I would be able to feel for Marissa the way I suspect she’s starting to feel for me. But, I don’t. And it isn’t fair to Marissa for me to pretend otherwise. I’ve tried to let her loose, urged her to meet someone who can give her everything she wants. But she sticks around, showing up and putting her pussy on a platter. So for now, I’ll give her the parts of me I can.

See? Weak little boy pig.

Saving grace? h was not celibate either. She found OM too, nothing serious but

The smile is still on my face the next day when I show up at Logan’s. It’s been a week since we’ve met up and I’ve gotten used to the type of relief he provides. Our time together quiets the voices that beat down on my soul. It’s a nice reprieve. One I’m taking full advantage of.

“Dang, my ears are numb.” I giggle, rolling over in Logan’s bed, high from the orgasm he just gave me.”

He crawls onto the bed, leaning down to bite my neck. It’s nice what we have. No emotions, no strings. No exclusivity. It’s the perfect arrangement, and I dread the day some girl sweeps him off his feet, and he ends our tryst.

Yay for orgasms not from weak little boys!

Also, there's another OM named Jax, who's been there from the beginning who also likes her but he's a bit of a ho too.
But honestly, I'd rather him than the H at this point. At least he was there for her when h's mom died.

So yeah.... I stopped reading after this because H was planning to come back into town and I did not want to read their reunion bc after just walking away from her at the funeral, not even explaining the photo where it looks like he cheated on her, I don't expect a good grovel.





Now onto the next.... can someone please recommend a book with an H I can actually believe in

[Emily McIntire]

Way back in 2020, when I was just a small town girl living in a lonely world, these two characters dropped in my head.

Their names were Chase and Alina and they would NOT shut the hell up, so (after a psychic reading and a lot of internal prodding) I decided to sit down and write their story.

They—and their group of friends—turned into a four book series of interconnected standalones that changed the trajectory of my life forever.

And now they’ve found a new home in North America with Bloom Books! 🥹

I'm so thrilled to announce that Bloom Book has acquired the North American rights to the Sugarlake series!

If you’ve read these before, the new editions have new and extended scenes plus have been re-edited. The same stories you've loved, but almost like you get to read it for the first time all over again!

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐡 𝐀𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐁𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐦 𝐫𝐞-𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐒𝐮𝐠𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐚𝐤𝐞?

👉🏼 Re-edited content with new & extended scenes + bonus character profiles! 

👉🏼 New covers!

👉🏼 All the same angst, steam, and romance from the originals

👉🏼 Oh and did I mention, save your proof of pre-orders because there WILL be a pre-order incentive!

IN STORE DATES (North America Only):

✨ Beneath the Stars 𝟭/𝟭𝟰/𝟮𝟱

🏀 Beneath the Stands 𝟮/𝟭𝟭/𝟮𝟱

🏎️ Beneath the Hood 𝟯/𝟭𝟴/𝟮𝟱

⚡️ Beneath the Surface 𝟰/𝟭𝟱/𝟮𝟱



*𝘚𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘧 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘳𝘦-𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘸𝘢𝘺!*

ᴀʟʟ ᴄᴏᴠᴇʀs/sᴛᴏʀɪᴇs ᴡɪʟʟ ʙᴇ ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇᴅ ɪɴ ᴀʟʟ ᴛᴇʀʀɪᴛᴏʀɪᴇs, ʜᴏᴡᴇᴠᴇʀ ᴘʀᴇ﹣ᴏʀᴅᴇʀs, ɪɴᴄᴇɴᴛɪᴠᴇs, ɪɴ sᴛᴏʀᴇ ᴅᴀᴛᴇs ᴀʀᴇ ᴏɴʟʏ ғᴏʀ ɴᴏʀᴛʜ ᴀᴍᴇʀɪᴄᴀɴ ᴛᴇʀʀɪᴛᴏʀɪᴇs

Pro-Tip: Use code BLOOM25 on Barnes & Noble for 25% off your pre-order!

𝘾𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙙𝙚𝙨𝙞𝙜𝙣 𝙗𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙮 𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙙 @andra.mdesigns

💫 Pre-order 👉🏼 https://www.emilymcintire.com/sugarlake

ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ɪɴᴅɪᴇ ᴠᴇʀsɪᴏɴs﹖ ɢʀᴀʙ ᴛʜᴇᴍ ᴡʜɪʟᴇ ʏᴏᴜ ᴄᴀɴ﹗ ᴛʜᴇʏ ᴡɪʟʟ sᴛᴀʀᴛ ɢᴏɪɴɢ ᴏᴜᴛ ᴏғ ᴘʀɪɴᴛ ᴏɴ 10/22/2024

[KaylaJane · Rating 1 out of 5]

Can someone please explain to me how this can be marketed as a "romance" when you have the two main characters in this story f**k OP throughout the entire shitty story???

If I wanted to read porn, I would choose something labeled "porn". So FU & 🖕 to this crap!


UPDATE: I wrote this review 2 yrs ago because it is one reader's OPINION but for some reason people who have nothing better to do and want to act like spoiled/immature bullies think they have the right to come into my review and attack me because I didn't like it or share their opinion? LOL.

I do not understand what gives anyone the right to attack someone who doesn't share their opinion. I am not here to debate it or have anyone try to change my mind. I don't need to be told what I should or should not read. If you don't agree with it, then move on and stay away from my review.

I will flag, delete comments & block anyone who comes into this and any other review of mine to spread abuse.

MY review- MY opinion - RESPECT it!.

[jess · Rating 1 out of 5]

would rather have my cat throw up all over my bed than read this stupid shit ever again 😍😍😍

[Elizabeth]

Spoilers
.😂
.😂
.😂
.😂
.😂

Ok i have an excerpt below that just....it made me lmao

Nothing says romance like informing your readers that the hero of the book is having anal sex with a person who is not the heroine. Its casual but they have been together three years...riiiiighhhht. he is a mere mortal idiot tbh. This author needs to take some writing classes or find a new career, sorry to be harsh but cmon 🤷‍♀️


"I’ve picked up a lot of girls in the past five years, always for a quick thrill and a release of tension. A nice, warm hole for my cock to disappear in for a while. But I’ve never given them the time of day beyond that. Not until Marissa.We’ve been together for the past three years, but I’ve been honest with her from the get-go about keeping things casual. I’m not interested in a serious relationship. I care about her, but it wouldn’t be fair to promise something I’m not sure I can give.Marissa surprised me last night, saying she had something “special” to give me. I was a little annoyed she showed up unannounced, but who am I to turn down a gorgeous woman if she wants to give me the gift of anal. I’m a mere mortal man"

[Elisa ♡ · Rating 1 out of 5]

tropes: best friend's brother

DNF at 33%

i rarely give one star to a book, but this one it deserves. i love watching tik tok, and after seeing this author's tik tok i decided to give her book a chance.
the book starts and we find out that they are going to work together, then we go back to when she was 11. I'm gonna tell you something, I HATE reading about the past, the past is the past, you can't change the past so just give us a summary of what happened and move on!
i said to myself I would get until 50% but after I read this line I just couldn't continue:

'' I've picked up a lot of girls in the past five years, always for a quick thrill and a release of tension. A nice, warm hole for my cock to disappear in for a while.''

i don't know about you, but I like my heroes to be better than this! and the girl was stupid too. i know she was a teen but that doesn't excuse her from accepting being treated like trash.

[Karina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This had me hooked from the first page.
One of the best books I’ve read this year . It had the right amount of angst (which was a lot). I cried, I laughed, I cried some more. I completely recommend reading this one, you won’t regret it. I’m anxiously waiting for the next !

[~839 book boyfriends~ · Rating 2 out of 5]

HATED THE HERO, KINDA LIKED THE HEROINE!??

one of the things i absolutelyyy HATE in friends to lovers books is when one of the mcs almost everytime the “hero”
thinks he’s not worth the fl and fucks literally every woman in the vicinity
i wish i was kidding but i am not bc we are reminded multiple times of how the ml’s dick is very well acquainted with every moving thing in town🤮🤮🤮

BUT i was very very veryyy happy to find out the fl did not wait for the ml and got sick of seeing him make out with ow and finally slept with another guy and lost her v card to him which btw enraged our little fuckboy🥱🤧

now when they FINALLY get in a relationship they don’t really have sex bc she’s not like the ow✨ and he wants to take it slow with her….🙄🙄🙄

there is a 3 year separation where it seems like the H cheated on her and her mom dies!??
and the H does absolutely NOTHING to make things right with the h
I MEAN WHAT?????
if you did nothing wrong why the hell would you not try to prove to your partner that you were in fact not unfaithful?????🙄🫤

anywaysss the H “tries” to move on and is in a serious relationship with an ow who he treats like utter crap…..😵‍💫
the fl is now in a casual relationship with a guy who is btw able to give her orgasms and is good in bed which made me beyonddd happy!
this should not be a rarity in the freaking romance genre but alas it is😑😑😑

their relationship was the worst, i don’t think the little bag of STDs even liked the fl…

the only reason i liked the fmc was bc
A) she didn’t save herself for the H😌😌
B) she enjoyed a casual relationship during the separation and did not freeze in time waiting for the asshole
the only reason this could be a two star read…🥹🥹

other than that everything was crapppp🤮
kindly do not waste your time on this or do idgaf

[Sonia]

She’s his one and only but he sleeps with anything that moves 🙄

At least she had her own share of fun times… nothing compared to him though 😐.

Sigh. Iris has all the spoilers.

Not. For. Me

[aeryn rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

4⭐️

"The sole reason for my existence is to know you. In this life, in the next...it doesn't matter."

This was so messy, chaotic, and toxic...and I loved it. I've been reading quite a few second-chance romances lately and it's safe to say that this was not a disappointment.

I really enjoyed the characters in this book. We go through a linear timeline of when Alina, the FMC, is a child and encounters her first love and, well, everything to when she's in her late 20's. Even from the very beginning she was such a light in a dark world. She is battling against so many things between friendship, love, and family and it shows throughout the book just how STRONG this woman is. Chase is along that same wavelength. As a child, he was super immature and made many mistakes. But going through his life into his late 20's as well was such a journey. I have never, EVER read of a man that loved as fiercely as he did with Alina.

I'll live the rest of my life crazy, as long as I get to be crazy for her.

This book I would say is 99% character driven, so the plot is basically going through Chase and Alina's lives and their hardships. I'm not gonna lie, the beginning of the book wasn't my favorite. I think that was because of the way that Chase was treating Alina when they were teenagers. Their relationship was so toxic and it was hard to root for them...

Then I thought to myself..."Aeryn, you didn't care for it because the same thing happened to YOU when you were a teenager, except you never got your happy ending like they did." And it struck. Hard. In real life, I was Alina as she was in this book. I related to her relationship and family struggles just as she had gone through. The things Alina and Chase went through were raw and real. Yes, the beginning could be a bit annoying cause you're sitting there screaming OH MY GOD WOULD YOU JUST ACT LIKE AN ADULT? Then you realize these are children falling in love and making mistakes just as we had when we were younger.

Overall, this really gave Joey and Aoife vibes from Boys of Tommen. The struggle of addiction and love and family were very very similar and I think that's another reason why I liked it so much. While writing this review, I realize that a lot of people aren't going to like this as I did. They'll interpret the toxic relationship and family issues their own way and THAT'S OKAY! The relatability to Alina really shaped how I viewed this book so please keep in mind this book will not be for everyone as it was for me!! 💙

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I'm currently on a romance kick since I'm in the middle of way too many fantasy books 😭💙✨

[Antonella · Rating 3 out of 5]

A solid debut novel that needs more work!

pro

* pace

* page-turner

* use of therapy

* sex positive

* I want to read the book no.2


con

* lack of character development
- Lily is just like that switched and became problematic
- Alina stays the same thought the book, the problem is she was 11 at the beginning and 26 later
- Chase is the only one that shows somewhat of a change but still is pretty shitty boyfriend; he is supposed to be mature but that mess for three years with Marissa, I don't think so

* OW/OM drama

* lack of groveling and overall the way the resolved miscommunication issue

* messy ending



if you love angsty new adult with childhood sweethearts, you might like this

[Jessica ❥Chatterbooks Book Blog❥ · Rating 5 out of 5]

RTC

[Aya ☕︎ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a lot to unpack...... That's waaaay deeper than I'd guessed it to be. So once I know what to write I'll be back and edit my review

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚𝖀𝖕𝖉𝖆𝖙𝖊 ˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆

Okay, I think it's time......
First thing first, I really don't like high school romance if it's not Korean drama iykyk
Second thing second, I think the previous cover is more suitable for the content of this book (I'm all for discreet covers btw)
Now for the actual review, Chase and Alina, they have soooo much miscommunication I sometimes wanted to punch a hole in the wall. I don't think this book is for everyone so please check the trigger warning cuz it's really triggering. There are drugs, toxic relationships, the death of a parent, lost friendships, and cheating (misunderstanding). There's so much character development for both of the main characters, mainly the ML I'm so happy he learned to prioritize the FL by the end of the book. I still don't know how to write everything I'm feeling, if I have something else to say I'll re-edit 🫣

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚𝕮𝖑𝖔𝖘𝖊𝖉 𝕯𝖔𝖔𝖗 𝕸𝖔𝖉𝖎𝖋𝖎𝖈𝖆𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓𝖘˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆

SKIP CHAPTER: 11, 25, 26, 41, 42, 43, 48, 53

Find my review on Instagram

[MarvelUsReads · Rating 4 out of 5]

An inseverable bond which defied all odds. Beneath The Stars is a slow burn small town love story that evolved through tragedy, mistakes, anger, and healing. An outspoken heroine meets a broken hero, and despite their youth they forge a strong bond. As we follow their journey into adulthood mistakes are made, pain and tragedy occur, inevitably severing their connection. Although life takes Alina and Chase down separate paths, fate reunites them, quickly forcing Alina to acknowledge that the one person that can make her whole again, is the same one that broke her. Through the introduction of multiple secondary characters throughout the story, McIntire provides readers not only with the opportunity to form attachments, but also leaves them open to the possibility of future journeys as well.

*Please note that we won this book, but it in no way influenced our review. *

[Anna Valsa · Rating 2 out of 5]

So much talent in writing this author...
But why all these clichés?! She didn't stay true to her characters.
From the beginning of the book they claim they love each other but the only thing they do is hurt one another. Especially the H.
Even at 60% they have sex with other people.
Are you expect me to believe their romance?
I didn't.

[Sadhika · Rating 1 out of 5]

oh god i don't even know how to explain my thoughts on this book

i saw the author talking about this book on instagram and from what she was showing, i thought yeah this seems like my kind of shit ??? childhood friends to lovers and second chance romance? i was all in.

then, i actually read the story ...

so we have the heroine:
alina ➵ she isn't terrible nor is she a complete doormat and honestly? i actually liked her in this book. well, i liked pretty much ANYONE than the hero in this book so that doesn't really make a huge difference. but anyway, she knows what she wants, and that's chase (H). she grows close to him and basically becomes his therapist when he's feeling low and somewhere along his occasional visits to her bedroom at night, she falls for him. she's had a hard time as the book progresses, and sometimes she reacts to situations perfectly and sometimes ... i'm clawing at my hair because of trusting she is of chase. ESPECIALLY when it came to ow drama. there was jax, he was a mutual friend of both, alina and chase, but after chase messed up with alina, jax warned him to stay away from her. and jax? yeah i fucking LOVE jax. like he was who alina needed and he genuinely cared about her. but obv i didn't get any hopes up because chase and alina had to end up together but i'd rather ... jax and alina.

chase ➵ no no no just no. i can see the author tried to make a brooding, asshole hero who doesn't care about anything and has a shitty past but just no. those are usually my favourite kind of heroes but this? he was a complete pig in this story. the ow/om drama was way too much and that's fine but reading chase just walking all over alina? not. good. and when they reunite years later, he's still in love with her and barely tries explaining his actions over why they broke up. he's a man-ho and ugh . i can't stand him.

overall, this was NOT it for me.

[Malene · Rating 2 out of 5]

Childhood friends to lovers and second chance are some of my favorite tropes. So I went into Beneath the Stars with some expectations. Sadly they weren’t met.
These characters weren’t the brightest. They either played the blame game or took crap from the people they loved. It took 90% of the story for Alina, her brother Eli and their dad to man up.

Alina’s first love Chase was also soft not being able to put his foot down at certain and important times. It was just frustrating instead of it forcing or doing anything good for the plot. There wasn’t much chemistry between him and Alina. Felt more like friends then lovers. Chase did though redeem himself a little when he returned home.
I know his younger sister Lily have her own book but how her story was started and explored was just weird as was Alina’s brother Eli and her bff Becca. Not much was shared until the last moment not leaving me interested at all to read their books.
Alina’s best friend Jax was another matter. He got time and story so maybe in the future I’ll check his book out.
A disappointment to say the least.

[Sandy (Sandy.Reads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

After reading this book, I’m so excited to dive into the rest of the series! I never read the backs of books, so I went in blind—but I will say there are some heavy topics in this story. However, it’s absolutely worth the read.

Alina is such an easy character to root for. She’s constantly trying to make the best choices, not just for herself but for those around her. That said, there were moments when her decisions frustrated me, though I completely understood why she jumped to the conclusions she did. She definitely earned her HEA.

Then there’s Chase—the reckless, bad-decision-making boy next door who is completely enamored with her. He’s the opposite of Alina in so many ways, but his past explains a lot of his anger and self-destruction. Watching his growth throughout the book was one of my favorite aspects of the story, and by the end, he felt like the perfect match for her.

I can’t wait to continue this series! If you’re planning to pick this one up, definitely check the trigger warnings beforehand.

[Mojo_Mama · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wow. So much undeserved ugliness.

The rabid hate from some safe readers has become toxic.

You don’t see angst hoes bitching up fluffy bunny reads with one stars. Trying to determine what authors write to fit their narrow perspective. 1950s much?

I laughed at the review that called this porn.
There’s aren’t any serious sex scenes till last 30%. And a lot is implied.

I laughed at the review that blamed all the OP.
It’s a train wreck. What the actual fuck were you expecting? The h finally has an active sex life and you still complain.

The H has been seriously maligned.

[Jena]

Self note
Not safe. Read Iris review.

Not technically cheating but the H is a manwhore throughout the entire book, all the while thinking how much he loves the h😂.
He’s constantly fucking ow.
She’s pining. Until she gets fed up and does the same.
They break up and both are fucking OP.

The H in a 3yr relationship with ow.
The h is in a friends with benefit relationship.
I might read it just because the h is having orgasms with Om.

But when they see each other again, they’re still fucking op.
🤷🏻‍♀️

[Ellie]

Jesus.
DNF @ 16%.

I literally cannot stomach any more sex scenes that are so graphic and filled with gutter-talk I feel I need to scrub myself down with a sand stone under scalding water.
🤮🤮

This book was pretty good and I was into it, but the writer ruined it for me with the segue into porn. Honestly, why do they think we all want to read this trash? There's enough of it out there already. How about using your supposed 'writing talent' to create something outstanding rather than spouting a load of shite.

To the discard pile for this...pile - along with its writer. I've seen enough mediocre, rancid storylines.

[Sam Barker · Rating 2 out of 5]

in all honesty, she should’ve castrated that man

[Randi (randi_reads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beneath the Stars is a wonderful, angsty second chance romance between Alina (AKA Goldi) and Chase. They meet as kids when Chase and his sister, Lily, move to Sugarlake. An immediate connection is made between the two of them. They start a relationship and try to continue it when Chase goes away to college, but stupid mistakes and misunderstandings ruin it. Chase is a broken boy, coming from a mother who he believes didn't love him. He doesn't believe he is good enough for Alina.

The beginning of this story has parts that will break your heart when reading, especially Chase's chapters. The later part of the story when they are adults will break your heart for Alina and what she goes through. I loved the secondary character of Jax. I hope we get to read his story! I am definitely looking forward to Alina's brother, Eli, and Becca's story next.

[Emily · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m so over doormat Female leads.
So over it.
So Chase is the love of her life. Yet he’s been ignoring her off and on for years. And I mean years. Even on the day her mother died. And he comes back and she still falls in his lap. And of course the guy is a whore in the meantime. Sleeping around “bc Im a guy” and has a 3 year relationship. And he’s so hot 2 girls go psycho jealous for him. Ridiculous.
Her dad is an asshole for years, brother is an asshole for years. Then she forgives them after one conversation. And then!!!! The only good character in the book. Jax. Has been there for years and she treats him like a fuck doormat! The weakest link, is mean to the best one in the book. Smh.

[Camryn O'Conner · Rating 2 out of 5]

i fear that was a train wreck i couldn’t look away from

[Kendall (worst reading slump of my life) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was traumatic

Some things to expect inside:
~ First person
~ Dual POV
~ Second chance romance
~ Lots of crying
~ 🌶️🌶️.5/5 spice rating


The beginning of this book shocked me to say the least. The pretty little cover does not match the vibes of the inside of the book. It was absolutely heartbreaking in a way I can't even describe with words, it's something you have to read for yourself to get that feeling. Even though there were only two POV’s, I felt like I was reading through so many people's eyes. It was so well written, the emotions were overwhelming and I was sooooo ready to give this 5 stars just from part 1 alone.

The last half of the book completely lost momentum for me. There were random conflicts that really had no business being in there, and everything just felt so lumped together to make it as drama filled as possible. The random jealousy and anger over past relationships they had with other people was annoying and made no sense either.

I absolutely loved the way the timeline worked. Usually authors jump back and forth from past to present, but I love that this one went in order and we got to grow up with these characters and we lived their whole life with them.

The amount of depth that went into these characters were just amazing, though I do feel like more care went into their past rather than their present selves. Alina deserves the world and more and her story absolutely broke my heart over and over. She could never catch a break, even as an adult, and she always had the world on her shoulders. Constantly putting other people first no matter what the situation or what she was feeling. Chase was a good character, but my least favorite of the two. His character development was amazing and I’m glad that his character turned out the way it did because let me be so real, he PISSED ME TF OFF BAD in the beginning. I wanted to slap him silly because what was this boy doing? Honestly.

[Sav R. Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a 5 star read from the very first page. That's all there is to it. One of the absolute BEST books I've ever read. The angst, chemistry, heartbreak, and love just bleed from the pages.

A poignant, breathtaking story of love, loss, heartache, and redemption, McIntire does an absolutely amazing job of captivating the reader by thrusting them into the lives of Alina and Chase.

Alina is a character you are immediately drawn to; her sweet disposition and friendly attitude are what draws Chase and his sister Lily, new kids in Sugarlake, to her in the first place. From there, friendship and first love blossoms, and while each character experiences their own personal demons, the bond between Chase and Alina never really severs.

We see growth, especially with our broken hero, and we see strength. Perseverance. Love. So, so much love. I don't think I'll ever recover from the way Chase gives Alina his heart, and the way she keeps it safe.

McIntire did an amazing job of fleshing out these characters, bringing them to life (and making me wish Chase was my boyfriend), giving them real flaws and helping them work through them. This is such a raw, emotional story that it's left me with a serious book hangover. Beautiful debut.

I cannot wait for the next book in the series.

I received an ARC copy of this book and am voluntarily posting my review.

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can’t with this one. It irritated me beyond. The characters lacked development. The plot needed more substance. This story wasn’t a romance between the MCs when they spent more time in relationships with other people throughout. Very unsatisfactory.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

***AUDIOBOOK***

3 STARS

It was a good read, not my favorite tropes - second chance, childhood romance to adult romance, small town.

I did enjoy the double narration. It was a well done audiobook.

I’ll definitely pick up more especially with that ending and brother’s best friend .