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London Hearts #1
The Other Brother
April and James can't be together. He's a musician destined for life on the road ... and her ex-fiancé's brother. They could never work ... but what happens when they simply can't stay apart?
The Other Brother is the captivating debut romance novel from BookTok sensation Tierney Page (@tierneyreads) and it will leave you wanting more ... and more!
April thinks she has life a home of her own, a job she loves, and a fiancé, Lucas, who adores her ... Except it turns out he's hiding something that she simply can't forgive.
Heartbroken, April retreats from the world, only surfacing when her best friends Gemma and Anna demand that she not stay at home and mope. Which is how Lucas's brother, James - bass player with up-and-coming London band Atlas Veil - ends up coming back into April's life. And it turns out he might have always had a thing for her ...
James is gorgeous and sexy, and April is close to finding him irresistible. But everyone knows musicians can't settle down. They want the limelight, and fans, and world tours. And James's band is on an upward trajectory. So there are powerful reasons for April to not follow where her heart is telling her to go. But they don't even come close to the most powerful reason of James is Lucas's brother.
So maybe they can't be together. Rather, they shouldn't be together. But desire doesn't look for excuses, and nor does the heart. With James's band on a deadline with destiny, will April run out of time to discover if the other brother is, in fact, the brother who's meant for her?
Tropes
- Ex-fiancé's brother
- Forbidden love
- Musician MMC
- Spice
- Banter
- Found family
- Slow burn
The Other Brother is the captivating debut romance novel from BookTok sensation Tierney Page (@tierneyreads) and it will leave you wanting more ... and more!
April thinks she has life a home of her own, a job she loves, and a fiancé, Lucas, who adores her ... Except it turns out he's hiding something that she simply can't forgive.
Heartbroken, April retreats from the world, only surfacing when her best friends Gemma and Anna demand that she not stay at home and mope. Which is how Lucas's brother, James - bass player with up-and-coming London band Atlas Veil - ends up coming back into April's life. And it turns out he might have always had a thing for her ...
James is gorgeous and sexy, and April is close to finding him irresistible. But everyone knows musicians can't settle down. They want the limelight, and fans, and world tours. And James's band is on an upward trajectory. So there are powerful reasons for April to not follow where her heart is telling her to go. But they don't even come close to the most powerful reason of James is Lucas's brother.
So maybe they can't be together. Rather, they shouldn't be together. But desire doesn't look for excuses, and nor does the heart. With James's band on a deadline with destiny, will April run out of time to discover if the other brother is, in fact, the brother who's meant for her?
Tropes
- Ex-fiancé's brother
- Forbidden love
- Musician MMC
- Spice
- Banter
- Found family
- Slow burn
348 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 15, 2025
3782 people are currently reading
23584 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,852 reviews
January 14, 2025
THERE IS NO WAY THIS IS A DEBUT.
5/5 ⭐️
THE TENSION GAHHHHHHH.
—ex’s brother
—he’s in a band (aka he’s f—g hot as hell)
—debut romance by Tierney Page
I will include my favorite quote that had me laughing so hard:
“I’d rather sh-t in my hands and clap, thanks, George.”
5/5 ⭐️
THE TENSION GAHHHHHHH.
—ex’s brother
—he’s in a band (aka he’s f—g hot as hell)
—debut romance by Tierney Page
I will include my favorite quote that had me laughing so hard:
“I’d rather sh-t in my hands and clap, thanks, George.”
January 31, 2025
Now I’ll start by saying that I’m a big fan of Tierney and her content on booktok and booksta. I have followed for ages and often check her account for recommendations. I was excited for this release but sadly it fell very short for me.
The premise sounded promising but the story ultimately lacked depth and character development. I didn’t care about any of them during and I don’t remember anything now I’ve finished. For a book that’s centred around a forbidden romance, the romance doesn’t feel that forbidden. There isn’t any turmoil or drama as both of them are single when they finally get together. The dramatic reveal of them being together falls flat and is resolved far too easily.
The spice is awkward and I skipped a lot of it. It reads like the book reviews with gratuitous phrases added in for shock value. Now I like a very smutty book, but I didn’t care for the spice here. Perhaps because I didn’t get a single flutter from the MC? The lack of character depth meant I couldn’t connect with him or lust after him or want him through the pages. I didn’t get why the FC did either!
This books feels like somebody in Tierney’s team suggested she write a book to capitalise on her success. If the book was under someone else’s name would it have had such an immediately positive response? That’s the issue when the line is blurred between content creator and author and is why I feel so conflicted.
The premise sounded promising but the story ultimately lacked depth and character development. I didn’t care about any of them during and I don’t remember anything now I’ve finished. For a book that’s centred around a forbidden romance, the romance doesn’t feel that forbidden. There isn’t any turmoil or drama as both of them are single when they finally get together. The dramatic reveal of them being together falls flat and is resolved far too easily.
The spice is awkward and I skipped a lot of it. It reads like the book reviews with gratuitous phrases added in for shock value. Now I like a very smutty book, but I didn’t care for the spice here. Perhaps because I didn’t get a single flutter from the MC? The lack of character depth meant I couldn’t connect with him or lust after him or want him through the pages. I didn’t get why the FC did either!
This books feels like somebody in Tierney’s team suggested she write a book to capitalise on her success. If the book was under someone else’s name would it have had such an immediately positive response? That’s the issue when the line is blurred between content creator and author and is why I feel so conflicted.
January 24, 2025
I read this in a day!! Not only was it well written with great spice, IT WAS SOOOO FUNNY! 😂 Gemma had be cackling sooo many times with her crazy stories and the “retreat” scene was perfection 😂 I am so glad I got an early copy of this. I am so excited to see what else Tierney has in store for us ♥️♥️
May 7, 2025
I had to DNF. I just couldn’t get on board. I wanted to love it but I was so bored and frustrated with the FMC that I just wanted to smack her. I imagine it ends exactly as I expect it to. I got to 75%.
January 15, 2025
I'm trying really hard to be constructive with this review.
April's character lacked consistency. At times, she seemed quite formal, and then her vocabulary wouldn't align.
The first 20% focuses on the FMC with her ex, and I appreciate story building, but it made it hard to envision April with James.
Lucas and April had better chemistry tbh.
Editors didn't do a great job as there were significant errors with structure which copy and line editing should have identified.
I love supporting new authors, and I'd definitely give her second book a shot, but a reader does not make a writer, and that was apparent here.
I find her videos hilarious and will still watch, but shock factor can only go so far.
April's character lacked consistency. At times, she seemed quite formal, and then her vocabulary wouldn't align.
The first 20% focuses on the FMC with her ex, and I appreciate story building, but it made it hard to envision April with James.
Lucas and April had better chemistry tbh.
Editors didn't do a great job as there were significant errors with structure which copy and line editing should have identified.
I love supporting new authors, and I'd definitely give her second book a shot, but a reader does not make a writer, and that was apparent here.
I find her videos hilarious and will still watch, but shock factor can only go so far.
October 31, 2025
⭐️ 3 ⭐️ I love Tierneys’ content and have been following her on Instagram for some time. She’s so spunky, wild and free, I absolutely love that about her. She just comes off as that one person who’s got your back when you’re feeling low. Going into this book, I knew she’d bring in some laughs and hot spice. So in some way, this was a mindless, juicy, fast read for me—perfect for cold October nights.
Her personality really shined in this book. The best part were the girlfriends who always provided top notch comedic relief & the cat. For a debut, it was quite forbidden and a slow build up of “slow burn”. There were a lot of good parts and conversation between characters but a lot of things didn’t work for me.
Inconsistency in writing, insta-lust, smutty writing that just didn’t stop as we got closer to the end. No real depth or character development. Romance needs to be built on something, does it not?
This is not a work of art. It’s there as a palate cleanser. It’s there to spice up your life. Will I be reading her second book? You betcha.
Her personality really shined in this book. The best part were the girlfriends who always provided top notch comedic relief & the cat. For a debut, it was quite forbidden and a slow build up of “slow burn”. There were a lot of good parts and conversation between characters but a lot of things didn’t work for me.
Inconsistency in writing, insta-lust, smutty writing that just didn’t stop as we got closer to the end. No real depth or character development. Romance needs to be built on something, does it not?
This is not a work of art. It’s there as a palate cleanser. It’s there to spice up your life. Will I be reading her second book? You betcha.
January 22, 2025
The fact this is a DEBUT is mind blowing. The writing is perfect and I love that she used British English. There's both plot and spice and growth between the characters ♥️. I can't wait for more books from her .🤌🏾
July 2, 2025
This was not the book for me
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I was told to read this
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I was told to read this
January 30, 2025
This was such an incredible debut!!! Tierney absolutely ate and left no crumbs!! Not only swooney and so sweet but hot AF!!! Who doesn’t love a ex fiancés brother trope, truly couldn’t be juicier!!
January 21, 2025
3.5⭐️
This book was a good time, it pulled me out of a slump and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I couldn’t recommend it enough as a pallet cleanser, Tierney did such a good job! I know just how hard she worked on this and I hope she’s as proud of herself as I am of her ❤️
Lots I liked and lots I wanted more of!
What I liked:
— The writing didn’t make me want to throw myself down the stairs, it flowed well and is admirable for a debut. The character descriptions didn’t feel too heavy or clunky, I know some people won’t like that but the detail was just right for me.
— British rep was decent, we wear trainers and joggers, we say mate and bloody. Tierney did her research and clearly has a British heart 🇬🇧
— It was never not going to be funny was it, the author is hilarious, we know this. The retreat with Gary and Rose sent me, especially set IN HEREFORD, yeah T I see you 👀😭🤣
— The set up for other books about other characters. GIVE US GEMMA.
— Basil. Shit wherever you like mate
— The spice. I liked it when they rode. The end.
What I wanted more of:
— More detail on Lucas and April’s relationship, it didn’t feel fleshed out enough for me. She was supposed to marry this man and yet at the engagement party, we don’t hear about how he proposed, much about their life together, when they want to get married etc, not even in her inner monologue. I didn’t understand what this man meant to her, considering that all she wanted was a deep all consuming love like what her parents had. So when they broke up, it didn’t feel groundbreaking to me? It didn’t feel pivotal to her, to April.
— The breakup scene felt brief. It was all over very quickly, again considering she was supposed to marry this man.
— One minute she tells us how much she loves Lucas and can’t wait to marry him, the next she’s checking out James
— Show me a woman who is cheated on, either emotionally or physically and doesn’t ask questions and doesn’t want the truth, again from the man she thought she’d spend the rest of her life with. Why did you do it? How long has it been going on for? Did you ever meet any of these women irl? It didn’t feel believable that she’d walk away and be happy to never know the truth just because it wouldn’t change anything.
— More character depth for April and James, I felt like I didn’t know them as well as what I wanted to. Who they were are people, what drives them, what they want, what they’re afraid of and their flaws. Pain makes characters interesting and relatable and neither of them had any meaningful internal struggle. A breakup for April isn’t enough, it’s what the breakup signifies to her and means for her life which wasn’t explored enough. And James was just tooooo perfect 😅
— More relationship development between April and James. The time jumps didn’t work for me.
— More drama, tension angst because I’m greedy
All in all, I thought this was cracking for a debut and I’m looking forward to seeing what our girl does next 🥰
This book was a good time, it pulled me out of a slump and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I couldn’t recommend it enough as a pallet cleanser, Tierney did such a good job! I know just how hard she worked on this and I hope she’s as proud of herself as I am of her ❤️
Lots I liked and lots I wanted more of!
What I liked:
— The writing didn’t make me want to throw myself down the stairs, it flowed well and is admirable for a debut. The character descriptions didn’t feel too heavy or clunky, I know some people won’t like that but the detail was just right for me.
— British rep was decent, we wear trainers and joggers, we say mate and bloody. Tierney did her research and clearly has a British heart 🇬🇧
— It was never not going to be funny was it, the author is hilarious, we know this. The retreat with Gary and Rose sent me, especially set IN HEREFORD, yeah T I see you 👀😭🤣
— The set up for other books about other characters. GIVE US GEMMA.
— Basil. Shit wherever you like mate
— The spice. I liked it when they rode. The end.
What I wanted more of:
— More detail on Lucas and April’s relationship, it didn’t feel fleshed out enough for me. She was supposed to marry this man and yet at the engagement party, we don’t hear about how he proposed, much about their life together, when they want to get married etc, not even in her inner monologue. I didn’t understand what this man meant to her, considering that all she wanted was a deep all consuming love like what her parents had. So when they broke up, it didn’t feel groundbreaking to me? It didn’t feel pivotal to her, to April.
— The breakup scene felt brief. It was all over very quickly, again considering she was supposed to marry this man.
— One minute she tells us how much she loves Lucas and can’t wait to marry him, the next she’s checking out James
— Show me a woman who is cheated on, either emotionally or physically and doesn’t ask questions and doesn’t want the truth, again from the man she thought she’d spend the rest of her life with. Why did you do it? How long has it been going on for? Did you ever meet any of these women irl? It didn’t feel believable that she’d walk away and be happy to never know the truth just because it wouldn’t change anything.
— More character depth for April and James, I felt like I didn’t know them as well as what I wanted to. Who they were are people, what drives them, what they want, what they’re afraid of and their flaws. Pain makes characters interesting and relatable and neither of them had any meaningful internal struggle. A breakup for April isn’t enough, it’s what the breakup signifies to her and means for her life which wasn’t explored enough. And James was just tooooo perfect 😅
— More relationship development between April and James. The time jumps didn’t work for me.
— More drama, tension angst because I’m greedy
All in all, I thought this was cracking for a debut and I’m looking forward to seeing what our girl does next 🥰
June 24, 2025
Honestly...I really struggled with this book. A good portion of the book is April and James interacting with their group of friends. Don't get me wrong I enjoyed their group of friends. They had more chemistry with their friends then they did with each other. Half the time I wanted to know more about Gemma's life than April's. When the main character's would interact, it was short or full of spice. I wouldn't consider this book a slow burn. But there were some tender moments I did enjoy.
I want to thank Netgalley for the E-book copy in exchange for an honest review.
I want to thank Netgalley for the E-book copy in exchange for an honest review.
January 29, 2025
DFN’d at 40%. I tried to like this, I really did. I had high hopes for Tierney’s book as I’m a big fan of her content and her wicked sense of humour. But, there were so many things wrong with this I don’t even know where to start 🫣cliched, overly predictable, characters with no depth, weird dialogue, clunky…to name a few. I think this could have done with a lot more workshopping before being released. I worry that she wasn’t given good advice or enough (honest) constructive criticism by her team, which is a real shame.
January 21, 2025
Whoever said this book is good, lied.
So much inconsistency in the plot and characters’ actions.
The writing itself wasn’t bad but it wasn’t especially good either. Rather mediocre, but because of very poor execution of… every aspect of this book, my rating is 2.5 and that’s being generous.
Check my reading activity but at some point I stopped with the updates, I just wanted to finish this book so I could move on to the next one.
All the characters were lacking defined personalities.
In the first chapter April and Lucas are happy and in love and there are NO HINTS about Lucas being shady. He is handsome, but then 10 chapters it’s mentioned that he is not in fact so handsome. There is a sex scene in chapter 2 (chapter 2?! srsly? TikTok requirement for smut much?) Lucas is making April feel good but 10 min later he’s supposedly “cheating”. It was also not defined well enough if he was really cheating or what. One chapter they are picture perfect (without giving any bad vibes) but next chapter he’s the monster.
And April - she is madly in love in Lucas but then suddenly not? And thirsting over James? One chapter April’s and James’s pull to each other is something new, but in next chapter it’s mention as if they were always leaning to each other. It was so inconsistent, as if the author couldn’t decide on the plot and was just writing what came to mind at the moment.
Gemma’s dates would be hilarious, but because of all the little (and not so little) missing parts of the plot, I couldn’t really enjoy the funny parts.
There is quite a lot of spicy scenes, but they don’t feel relevant to the plot much. 80% of the scenes felt like writing them solely for booktok readers.
No idea why the cat or ceramics were part of the plot. Another example of little details that could mean something and be well developed but just weren’t.
And the ending. Suddenly we get so much coverage of James’s audition as if it was one of the most important parts of the whole story.
The ending - I don’t know what it was supposed to be. Just for the Christmas vibes and the spice I guess?
I wasn’t hurting or very frustrated reading it, it was mostly just boring. There should be a point to the story an author is presenting but say there was no such thing in this book, add to it characters lacking any personalities and a lot of inconsistency and you just have a boring story that cannot be fixed with spicy scenes, that’s not a solution.
Oh, and was it really a forbidden romance?…
Ugh and the british english? What the hell was that?! English is not my first language, I read mostly American or Canadian authors but I’ve read a couple books in English written by British authors and I think something went very wrong with British English part of the writing. I was getting such ick with every “very British” word or phrase. It felt very very forced and kinda… exaggerated?
Just no.
I read it because of someone I follow recommended it as a 5⭐️ read but now I wonder if maybe I should stop following recommendations of this reviewer…
So much inconsistency in the plot and characters’ actions.
The writing itself wasn’t bad but it wasn’t especially good either. Rather mediocre, but because of very poor execution of… every aspect of this book, my rating is 2.5 and that’s being generous.
Check my reading activity but at some point I stopped with the updates, I just wanted to finish this book so I could move on to the next one.
All the characters were lacking defined personalities.
In the first chapter April and Lucas are happy and in love and there are NO HINTS about Lucas being shady. He is handsome, but then 10 chapters it’s mentioned that he is not in fact so handsome. There is a sex scene in chapter 2 (chapter 2?! srsly? TikTok requirement for smut much?) Lucas is making April feel good but 10 min later he’s supposedly “cheating”. It was also not defined well enough if he was really cheating or what. One chapter they are picture perfect (without giving any bad vibes) but next chapter he’s the monster.
And April - she is madly in love in Lucas but then suddenly not? And thirsting over James? One chapter April’s and James’s pull to each other is something new, but in next chapter it’s mention as if they were always leaning to each other. It was so inconsistent, as if the author couldn’t decide on the plot and was just writing what came to mind at the moment.
Gemma’s dates would be hilarious, but because of all the little (and not so little) missing parts of the plot, I couldn’t really enjoy the funny parts.
There is quite a lot of spicy scenes, but they don’t feel relevant to the plot much. 80% of the scenes felt like writing them solely for booktok readers.
No idea why the cat or ceramics were part of the plot. Another example of little details that could mean something and be well developed but just weren’t.
And the ending. Suddenly we get so much coverage of James’s audition as if it was one of the most important parts of the whole story.
The ending - I don’t know what it was supposed to be. Just for the Christmas vibes and the spice I guess?
I wasn’t hurting or very frustrated reading it, it was mostly just boring. There should be a point to the story an author is presenting but say there was no such thing in this book, add to it characters lacking any personalities and a lot of inconsistency and you just have a boring story that cannot be fixed with spicy scenes, that’s not a solution.
Oh, and was it really a forbidden romance?…
Ugh and the british english? What the hell was that?! English is not my first language, I read mostly American or Canadian authors but I’ve read a couple books in English written by British authors and I think something went very wrong with British English part of the writing. I was getting such ick with every “very British” word or phrase. It felt very very forced and kinda… exaggerated?
Just no.
I read it because of someone I follow recommended it as a 5⭐️ read but now I wonder if maybe I should stop following recommendations of this reviewer…
January 26, 2025
tierney my girl. you absolutely ATE with this!! 🙌🏼💖💖 i’m so surprised how quickly i flew through this ex-fiancé’s brother, rockstar romcom. this was quite literally the PERFECT palette cleaner, SPICY romcom that had me giggling, screaming and kicking my feet from beginning to end. had the absolute best time (p.s i need Gemma’s book like i need air to breathe).
congratulations on your debut my darling!! EVERYONE GO READ THIS RIGHT NOWWWWWW! 4⭐️ 4🌶️ (you will need multiple showers, just a PSA 😉). enjoy my thoughts while reading:
- tropes: forbidden, ex fiancé’s brother
- ‘i can taste myself’ ‘you’re my favourite flavour’ THIS IS SICK IM YELLING OMGGGG 😩😩🙌🏼🔥🔥
- ooooooh do i smell a cheater???
- BAHAHAHAHAHAH me and anna 🤝 one and the same
- bajajajahaha the whole retreat is SENDING ME and the audiobook playing out loud 😂😂😂😂
- ‘i hope there weren’t any skid marks’ TIERNEY IM PISSING 😂😂🙌🏼
- ‘i love the man but sometimes i worry that one day, he’ll procreate’ IM LOSINF IT BAHAHAHAHAH
- if she entertains this guy again imma be pissed
- all i have to say is. jesus. christ. that was so hot 🔥🔥
- lucas…WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON YOU BOY 😡😡😡😤
congratulations on your debut my darling!! EVERYONE GO READ THIS RIGHT NOWWWWWW! 4⭐️ 4🌶️ (you will need multiple showers, just a PSA 😉). enjoy my thoughts while reading:
- tropes: forbidden, ex fiancé’s brother
- ‘i can taste myself’ ‘you’re my favourite flavour’ THIS IS SICK IM YELLING OMGGGG 😩😩🙌🏼🔥🔥
- ooooooh do i smell a cheater???
- BAHAHAHAHAHAH me and anna 🤝 one and the same
- bajajajahaha the whole retreat is SENDING ME and the audiobook playing out loud 😂😂😂😂
- ‘i hope there weren’t any skid marks’ TIERNEY IM PISSING 😂😂🙌🏼
- ‘i love the man but sometimes i worry that one day, he’ll procreate’ IM LOSINF IT BAHAHAHAHAH
- if she entertains this guy again imma be pissed
- all i have to say is. jesus. christ. that was so hot 🔥🔥
- lucas…WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON YOU BOY 😡😡😡😤
January 26, 2025
i’m sorry… just because you’re popular in booktok does not mean you should write a book. don’t get me wrong, i enjoy tierneys tiktoks but… this just wasn’t good.
January 19, 2025
3.5 stars! ⭐️ i loved april and james and how their love story came to be. i can't believe this is tierney's debut novel like HELLO? miss girl you've outdone yourself, congrats to this amazing debut 🥹 i had so much fun reading this. also, gemma's nightmareish dating adventures are hilarious 😭 i hope she gets her book next! *wink wink*
February 15, 2025
2.5 Stars
Opinion Breakdown
The Good: The premise and the h's friends.
The Not-So-Good: The ending and lack of a real conflict.
The Bad: The lack of angst or emotion.
Overall: I was hoping for some angst since the idea of the "other brother" sounds awesomely taboo. Sadly, this wasn't that. I guess if I had to pick one word for this one it would be...meh.
*Side Note* ~ if you have a sibling/friend taboo book to recommend, please do!
Brief Summary of the Storyline: This is April and James' story. April is devastated to find out that her fiancé is not who she thinks he is and they break up. James has always had a soft spot for April and when they bump into each other a few times after her break up with his brother, he can't help but be supportive of her. Lines get crossed, there is some family/ex drama, some sexy scenes, and some big life changes...and they get a HFN ending.
Point Of View (POV): This alternated between April and James' POV.
Overall Pace of Story: Alright. I skimmed some because it was a little wordy here and there in the inner dialogue. Otherwise it flowed fine.
Instalove: No, they're friends to more
H (Hero) rating: 3.5 stars. James. I liked him but I wanted him not to be so....perfect and nice all the time 🤷🏻♀️
h (heroine) rating: 3 stars. April. She was just alright for me. She wasn't a doormat, which I appreciated, but she also needed to communicate better at times.
Sadness level: Low, no tissues needed
Push/Pull: Yes, but mild
Heat level: Good. They have some good tension, chemistry, and scenes -- but not so much it takes away from the story.
Descriptive sex: Yes
OW (Other Woman)/OM (Other Man) drama: Yes
Sex scene with OW or OM: Yes
Cheating: Not between mcs
Separation: No
Possible Triggers: Yes
Closure: This ends in an alright place but not enough closure for me to call it a HEA. I would call this a HFN ending
Safety: This one should be either Safe or Safe with exception for most safety gang readers depending on personal preferences
Opinion Breakdown
The Good: The premise and the h's friends.
The Not-So-Good: The ending and lack of a real conflict.
The Bad: The lack of angst or emotion.
Overall: I was hoping for some angst since the idea of the "other brother" sounds awesomely taboo. Sadly, this wasn't that. I guess if I had to pick one word for this one it would be...meh.
*Side Note* ~ if you have a sibling/friend taboo book to recommend, please do!
Brief Summary of the Storyline: This is April and James' story. April is devastated to find out that her fiancé is not who she thinks he is and they break up. James has always had a soft spot for April and when they bump into each other a few times after her break up with his brother, he can't help but be supportive of her. Lines get crossed, there is some family/ex drama, some sexy scenes, and some big life changes...and they get a HFN ending.
Point Of View (POV): This alternated between April and James' POV.
Overall Pace of Story: Alright. I skimmed some because it was a little wordy here and there in the inner dialogue. Otherwise it flowed fine.
Instalove: No, they're friends to more
H (Hero) rating: 3.5 stars. James. I liked him but I wanted him not to be so....perfect and nice all the time 🤷🏻♀️
h (heroine) rating: 3 stars. April. She was just alright for me. She wasn't a doormat, which I appreciated, but she also needed to communicate better at times.
Sadness level: Low, no tissues needed
Push/Pull: Yes, but mild
Heat level: Good. They have some good tension, chemistry, and scenes -- but not so much it takes away from the story.
Descriptive sex: Yes
OW (Other Woman)/OM (Other Man) drama: Yes
Sex scene with OW or OM: Yes
Cheating: Not between mcs
Separation: No
Possible Triggers: Yes
Closure: This ends in an alright place but not enough closure for me to call it a HEA. I would call this a HFN ending
Safety: This one should be either Safe or Safe with exception for most safety gang readers depending on personal preferences
January 23, 2025

I usually don’t write reviews, but I’ll make an exception for this one. This book is everything you could never imagine. Almost transparently bland compared to anything I’ve ever read. In my opinion, it’s very weak considering all the hype surrounding it. I thought I’d wait for the sex scenes to maybe save the book, but nope. I didn’t even finish it because it was so predictable.
Oh, and by the way, if you write a bad review, you’ll get blocked on Instagram.
Tierney, good luck and success with the second part of this series.
I usually don’t write reviews, but I’ll make an exception for this one. This book is everything you could never imagine. Almost transparently bland compared to anything I’ve ever read. In my opinion, it’s very weak considering all the hype surrounding it. I thought I’d wait for the sex scenes to maybe save the book, but nope. I didn’t even finish it because it was so predictable.
Oh, and by the way, if you write a bad review, you’ll get blocked on Instagram.
Tierney, good luck and success with the second part of this series.
July 1, 2025
Uh
no plot, all (cringe) smut, no emotional depth.
TW for no prep no lube anal 🤢
no plot, all (cringe) smut, no emotional depth.
TW for no prep no lube anal 🤢
January 23, 2025
DNF at 41%
What even was this???? Why so many intricate day to day details? Why was Lucas so loving to her but then blocked her days after breaking up??? All his stuff still there? Not a fan, do not recommend.
What even was this???? Why so many intricate day to day details? Why was Lucas so loving to her but then blocked her days after breaking up??? All his stuff still there? Not a fan, do not recommend.
January 16, 2025
This was . . . okay? The story itself was fine, but it all felt very surface-level. There was no real depth or development, nothing to really draw the reader in and render them unable to put the book down. It felt more like reporting than storytelling. Instead of a fiery love story, we're given a watered-down retelling of events. There was no real emotion coming off the page. The spice was spicing, though!
The characters were two-dimensional, like cardboard cutouts placed in the story according to a checklist. A married, stable one, a boisterous party girl . . . it felt like the author was trying to assign roles for a Sex and the City cosplay. But again, we know almost nothing about them, even our main characters, other than the very surface-level details.
There were moments of promise, but they were like an itch you can't scratch. It was disappointing because there is potential here, but it was never quite realized. This story could have benefitted from a little more work and a thorough edit.
I wanted to like this one more than I did, and while this could have been something special, it didn't quite get there for me.
The characters were two-dimensional, like cardboard cutouts placed in the story according to a checklist. A married, stable one, a boisterous party girl . . . it felt like the author was trying to assign roles for a Sex and the City cosplay. But again, we know almost nothing about them, even our main characters, other than the very surface-level details.
There were moments of promise, but they were like an itch you can't scratch. It was disappointing because there is potential here, but it was never quite realized. This story could have benefitted from a little more work and a thorough edit.
I wanted to like this one more than I did, and while this could have been something special, it didn't quite get there for me.
dnf
April 6, 2025Dnf : 188 pg / 53%
I’ve been a long-time fan of Tierney on BookTok and Booksta, so I was really looking forward to this release—but it just didn’t work for me. The story lacked depth, the characters felt flat, and the “forbidden” romance didn’t feel forbidden at all. The spice was awkward and felt forced, which made it hard to connect or care. Disappointing overall.
🎸 🎸 🎸
I still can't believe that one of my fav tt book girlies wrote a book...ahhh I'm so excited!!!😆🤍
I’ve been a long-time fan of Tierney on BookTok and Booksta, so I was really looking forward to this release—but it just didn’t work for me. The story lacked depth, the characters felt flat, and the “forbidden” romance didn’t feel forbidden at all. The spice was awkward and felt forced, which made it hard to connect or care. Disappointing overall.
🎸 🎸 🎸
I still can't believe that one of my fav tt book girlies wrote a book...ahhh I'm so excited!!!😆🤍
January 27, 2025
Characters lacked depth and consistency. Writing style was Wattpad-esque and juvenile, seemingly only missing the links to outfits on Polyvore.
Most of the text was used to describe outfits/hair/makeup in excruciatingly painful detail, as opposed to building a strong storyline. I found myself cringing through unnatural turns of phrases and asking myself “who actually speaks like this?”when reading April, Gemma, and Anna’s dialogue.
Future me: give any sequels and other works by this author a miss.
Most of the text was used to describe outfits/hair/makeup in excruciatingly painful detail, as opposed to building a strong storyline. I found myself cringing through unnatural turns of phrases and asking myself “who actually speaks like this?”when reading April, Gemma, and Anna’s dialogue.
Future me: give any sequels and other works by this author a miss.
January 31, 2025
I really wanted to love this book. But the whole thing kinda felt redundant. I didn’t connect with the characters there wasn’t enough character building. The plot was like luster. For the most part I really just skimmed through most of the book.
I had such high hopes for this book. I think Tierney should stick to book reviews😭😭😭
I had such high hopes for this book. I think Tierney should stick to book reviews😭😭😭
January 17, 2025
I love Tierney's content and I really wanted to love this book. However, I did not. There was very little chemistry between April and James. There was very little character development either. While April did change some, James did not. They were both two dimensional with no descriptive flaws. No one is perfect. No one in real life, and certainly no character in a romance book. We want the flaws. We want to see how characters grow, develop, and change over time. We want to see how they overcome adversity. The problem is, there is very little adversity in this book. That is surprising considering this is billed as a forbidden romance in which she dates one brother then the other. She certainly does that, but there's very little tension. The angst is underwhelming. The premise lends itself beautifully to a lot of drama, angst, and tension, but this book completely missed that mark.
Part of the reason for that is the odd pacing. Months go by between chapters. That time could have been spent building the suspense, tension and drama. Instead time just jumps ahead and the story forges on losing any emotional momentum that could have been gained.
If you're looking for heavy on the spice, but light on the plot, then this is your book. The spice is spicy, but because I could not connect to either main character and was not invested in them or their story, it felt lacking to me.
Part of the reason for that is the odd pacing. Months go by between chapters. That time could have been spent building the suspense, tension and drama. Instead time just jumps ahead and the story forges on losing any emotional momentum that could have been gained.
If you're looking for heavy on the spice, but light on the plot, then this is your book. The spice is spicy, but because I could not connect to either main character and was not invested in them or their story, it felt lacking to me.
February 5, 2025
4.4⭐️
2.5🌶️
This was such a fab debut. It was enjoyable to read, great banter and spice and heartfelt moments.
Full review to come
2.5🌶️
This was such a fab debut. It was enjoyable to read, great banter and spice and heartfelt moments.
Full review to come
August 9, 2025
This was rough. Ugh...
I really couldn't stand April for a goof portion of this book. This book should've started off with Lucas being a jerk in his phone constantly from the beginning. Instead, we have Lucas being a doting fiancé who gets his girlfriend off in the bathroom to immediately walking down the stairs and now the problems begin, lol. Then let's add in the eye staring from James and April that's happening at the same time. I'm guessing this was added to try and show some kind of connection to him, but it was the wrong time to do this.
The constant inner dialogue over Lucas was really exhausting. I mean, I get it...he hurt her. But for the love of all that's holy, do we have to hear about it the whole fucking book?!?!??! How am I supposed to love her being with James when we are constantly going back to Lucas!!!!!
Don't even get me started on the sex scenes that were used as filler, too. God, I hate that in books. We needed to focus on these two and them building their relationship together. Instead, we add some sex scenes, complain about Lucas some more, and then it's over.
This was very cliché, and while I understand it was a debut, this needed some more refining. I'm not sure if I'll read anything else at this point because I wanted to DNF this BADLY. I'm giving this 2 stars because I did like James. April, not so much.
I really couldn't stand April for a goof portion of this book. This book should've started off with Lucas being a jerk in his phone constantly from the beginning. Instead, we have Lucas being a doting fiancé who gets his girlfriend off in the bathroom to immediately walking down the stairs and now the problems begin, lol. Then let's add in the eye staring from James and April that's happening at the same time. I'm guessing this was added to try and show some kind of connection to him, but it was the wrong time to do this.
The constant inner dialogue over Lucas was really exhausting. I mean, I get it...he hurt her. But for the love of all that's holy, do we have to hear about it the whole fucking book?!?!??! How am I supposed to love her being with James when we are constantly going back to Lucas!!!!!
Don't even get me started on the sex scenes that were used as filler, too. God, I hate that in books. We needed to focus on these two and them building their relationship together. Instead, we add some sex scenes, complain about Lucas some more, and then it's over.
This was very cliché, and while I understand it was a debut, this needed some more refining. I'm not sure if I'll read anything else at this point because I wanted to DNF this BADLY. I'm giving this 2 stars because I did like James. April, not so much.
January 20, 2025
I really wanted to like this cause I'm such a fan of Tierney and her reviews. But this wasn't it.
This was supposed to be a forbidden romance, but I was missing the drama and the tension.
Also, I wasn't a fan of the time skips. There were so many of them. The pacing was weird. Sometimes, it went by really fast, and other times, the boring bits dragged on.
The FMC and the MMC I felt didn't really have a deep connection. Honestly, james (MMC) was boring to me. Didn't feel attracted to him or was salivating with jealousy wanting to be in the FMC's place.
Honestly, if this had been any other author, I would have dropped this at less than half way, because I was bored. But since it was Tierney, I wanted to give her a shot.
I could have also done without so much of Gemmas (FMC's friend) sex stories. They were boring to me. The retreat at the beginning of the book was just weird and super short. I felt like that had no purpose and felt really random. The only purpose was to get james to take care of her cat. But she could have done something different instead of that random retreat.
I also didn't like how the FMC kept retelling everything that happened with James to her girlfriends. That could have been shortened.
Idk I'm really happy that Tierney tried something new, and maybe her other books will be better, but this one didn't hit it for me. From the halfway point, I basically skimmed the majority of the book, including the smut scenes. Like I said, I was bored.
I do wish her success, and hopefully, the others will be better seeing as this was her first.
This was supposed to be a forbidden romance, but I was missing the drama and the tension.
Also, I wasn't a fan of the time skips. There were so many of them. The pacing was weird. Sometimes, it went by really fast, and other times, the boring bits dragged on.
The FMC and the MMC I felt didn't really have a deep connection. Honestly, james (MMC) was boring to me. Didn't feel attracted to him or was salivating with jealousy wanting to be in the FMC's place.
Honestly, if this had been any other author, I would have dropped this at less than half way, because I was bored. But since it was Tierney, I wanted to give her a shot.
I could have also done without so much of Gemmas (FMC's friend) sex stories. They were boring to me. The retreat at the beginning of the book was just weird and super short. I felt like that had no purpose and felt really random. The only purpose was to get james to take care of her cat. But she could have done something different instead of that random retreat.
I also didn't like how the FMC kept retelling everything that happened with James to her girlfriends. That could have been shortened.
Idk I'm really happy that Tierney tried something new, and maybe her other books will be better, but this one didn't hit it for me. From the halfway point, I basically skimmed the majority of the book, including the smut scenes. Like I said, I was bored.
I do wish her success, and hopefully, the others will be better seeing as this was her first.
February 17, 2025
I really, truly wanted to love this book. I am a huge fan of Tierney and her content.
This book, though, was one of my few DNF's.
I didn't feel any chemistry between the characters. April was waxing lyrical about her love and devotion to Lucas in one sentence to having thoughts about his brother and concerns in the next...it felt off.
The side characters (Gemma specifically) felt more characature than character.
I think I understand what the author was going for, but it just missed the mark for me. Even the 'forbidden' romance wasn't really all that forbidden, honestly.
I really am sad that I don't love it, but it just didn't work for me
This book, though, was one of my few DNF's.
I didn't feel any chemistry between the characters. April was waxing lyrical about her love and devotion to Lucas in one sentence to having thoughts about his brother and concerns in the next...it felt off.
The side characters (Gemma specifically) felt more characature than character.
I think I understand what the author was going for, but it just missed the mark for me. Even the 'forbidden' romance wasn't really all that forbidden, honestly.
I really am sad that I don't love it, but it just didn't work for me
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 28, 2025
BORING!!!!
I hated this book. Hated it. In fact, it’s probably the worst book I’ve ever read.
I hated this book. Hated it. In fact, it’s probably the worst book I’ve ever read.
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