October : The Odd Ones, Stories of Love and Grovel

by Rina Amara GrovelDoll

My name is October, and this is my story of love, betrayal, emotional cheating, and the painful road toward redemption.

I thought I had everything—a marriage built from high school sweethearts, three beautiful children, and the stability I once believed was enough. But love built on one heart alone eventually cracks. My husband never raised his hand, never even raised his voice. He provided a house, food, security. And for years, I convinced myself my love was big enough to fill in the rest.

Until she came. Laura—his charming, polished coworker who slipped into his life so easily it felt like she’d always been there. She laughed with him in ways I hadn’t seen in years, shared secrets, and became the one he turned to when he should have been turning to me.

And I stayed silent. I told myself it would pass. That one day, he would remember me. But betrayal doesn’t always come as a kiss or a touch—it comes in absences, in missed anniversaries, in laughter meant for someone else.

The night of my birthday was the breaking point. While my children waited with wide, hopeful eyes for their father to arrive, I answered the phone only to hear he couldn’t come—Laura’s cat was missing, and just like that, my family’s celebration was abandoned for her tears.

That was the moment everything shattered. The moment I realized I wasn’t just losing him; I was losing myself. I was teaching my children to accept neglect as love, to confuse devotion with desperation.

This is the story of how I broke, how he begged, how we both bled, and how love, if it is to survive betrayal, must be rebuilt not on blind devotion but on truth, groveling, and the kind of redemption that doesn’t come easily.

Genres: Second Chance, Contemporary, M F Romance, Marriage

456 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 5, 2025

Reviews

[Debbie DiFiore · Rating 2 out of 5]

So conflicted

I tried to.love.it but I couldn't. It was so long and drawn.out. the Evil OW was a piece of work but he.never.wanted.her physically.I don't think. He liked that his Dad liked her and treated him with more respect. Or at.least that is why he thinks.he did. But he did find her attractive. I just dont.know. I am torn on the stars because she definitely tried and I was really engaged for the first 37% of the book and then it just got a little tiresome to me. I read the whole thing but towards the end I really thought about skimming. I purchased this so I may have to.wait.and read it again.

[Pinky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Trigger Warnings: Emotional neglect, cheating (MMC’s dad to MMC’s mom), emotional cheating (MMC to FMC), emotional abuse (MMC’s dad to MMC’s mom), parental abuse (both physical and emotional), panic attacks, childhood trauma

I read GrovelDoll’s books on Wattpad and FELL IN LOVE. She writes angst so well, and the grovelling made up for the betrayal. Her writing is fucking beautiful, it’s a goddamn masterpiece. She made me understand where the FMC and the MMC were coming from. When I found out GrovelDoll published her books, I was so happy. EVERYONE NEEDS TO CHECK HER BOOKS OUT. This series follows girls that have the names of the 12 months, they’re called The Odd Ones. There isn’t a specific order of how to read the books. This is the first book I finished by her, and I can’t wait to read the others. This did drag a bit near the end, but it was beautiful.


You are my home October, and I will spend whatever time I have left becoming the kind of home you never want to leave.

October and Thomas are married and have 3 kids together. Lately, October has noticed that Thomas is prioritizing his coworker Laura over her. One day, October has had enough. Now Thomas has to make October realize that she is the only one for him.


Now for spoilers


October and Thomas are high school sweethearts, who knew each other since they were kids, married for 15 years. October appeases people to get them to like her. She feels like Thomas only married her to settle in, that he doesn’t love her like she does him. Ever since Laura came to his office a year ago, Thomas prioritizes her over October. He laughs with Laura and is open with his emotions. When it’s October’s birthday, the kids and Thomas have a surprise planned. But Thomas bails to help Laura find her cat. October and Thomas have three kids; Lola is a toddler, Alice is 4, and Jimmy is 14. Jimmy knew Thomas bailed for Laura. He calls October out for appeasing Thomas, and that’s what woke October up.

“Maybe if you keep defending him, he'll finally see you. Maybe if you pretend hard enough, one day he'll actually notice you. Or even better—maybe he'll love you back.”

Thomas left October an envelope of money for her birthday, since he couldn’t get her gift in time. October confronts Thomas at work. She doesn’t think Thomas cares about her. She asks why he would give her money for her birthday, it felt cheap. Thomas says he’s under stress cuz of his dad, who is the CEO. He thinks she’s acting up cuz of her hormones. October says he’s prioritizing Laura over her, and Thomas gets pissed.

“God, do you even hear yourself? This jealousy—this obsession—it's exhausting! My father's coming any minute. I don't have time for your tantrum.”


When October says that he left for Laura on her birthday, Laura says everyone can hear them. Instead of telling Laura to give them a minute, Thomas tells October they will talk later. October calls Thomas’s sister Beth, I loved that Beth didn’t defend Thomas. She said it’s about time October puts herself first. Thomas texts October saying he will be late. Jimmy isn’t surprised, saying Thomas prioritizes Laura over October. When October goes to talk to Jimmy, I had tears.

“I love you too Mom."
I froze.
"I just want you to love yourself."


When Thomas comes home, Thomas cuddles October and says that he is sorry, while kissing her forehead. He says his dad is putting him under a lot of pressure. It did feel like Thomas loved October, but he made it all about himself. She ignores him and says whatever.

“You're my peace. When everything's crashing, when I'm drowning in numbers and expectations and that constant pressure—you are the one thing that makes me feel like I'm still okay.”

Thomas notices a shift in October, she speaks to him coldly about what needs to be done to prepare the kids for school. Thomas has dinner ready for the first time in ages, and tries to talk to Jimmy, but he is dry with Thomas. Once everyone is in bed, Thomas asks to talk. October calls Thomas out for prioritizing Laura over her. Thomas says he loves October, that he provides for the family (he says this a lot). October asks what he told Laura once she left, and he admits he apologized for October, which pisses her off. Then, Laura calls, her saved contact picture is her puckering her lips. October says that Thomas’s mistress is calling. He says he can’t lose October. She tells him that he lost her after what he did, telling him to sleep in the guest room.

“You didn't lose her, Thomas," I continued, my voice trembling. "You killed her. Slowly. Deliberately. Every time you picked up her call while I was setting the table. Every time you looked at me like I was a burden instead of your wife. Every time you made me feel insane for wondering where you were. For asking for your time. For begging—begging—for your affection like some stranger who wandered into your house.”


It was nice to finally see October putting herself first. When they visit his parents’ house, Thomas’s dad, James, is an ass. He treats his wife Jeanine like absolute shit. He makes snide comments about her appearance and her not being smart. Growing up, Thomas was mentally and physically abused by James, while Jeanine did nothing. James never hit Jeanine, but he emotionally abused her. She believed that he paid the bills, so she should love him. James cheated on Jeanine, but she stayed. James belittles October while Thomas does nothing. October meets with a lawyer. Since October doesn’t have a job, she needs to make her own bank account. She needs to transfer small bits of money into the account for savings, and get a job. They need to make sure she has property in her name, to have Thomas sign things to her. October starts going to the gym with August. They bond over their husbands cheating, August’s husband cheated on her physically. Seeing them compare emotional cheating to physical cheating was heartbreaking. I need August’s story, hearing her pain since she felt like her body wasn’t enough was just so sad.

“Physical cheating... it's your body being rejected," she said, quieter now, but each word landing like glass breaking. "Like you weren't enough, not your body, not your skin, not your scent, not your laughter, not the way you touched them or the way you looked at them like they were everything, and it's not just sex; it's you. It's all of you. Every part you gave, thinking it was safe, thinking it mattered.”

October puts Lola in daycare and enrolled herself into classes for Perfumery. Thomas is shocked that October didn’t talk to him about it, so she says she can pay for it. Thomas is offended, saying he provides for the family. October says she isn’t asking for his permission. Whenever it’s time for bed, Thomas will sit outside of October’s room to talk to her about work. He asks questions about the kids, but she ignores him. When there is a party at James’s place, Laura talks to Thomas. She acts like October isn’t there after making snide comments about her outfit. Thomas does nothing to defend October. When Laura asks Thomas to dance, he hesitates, and lets Laura take him away. Then, James dances with Linny in front of Jeanine, he was having an affair with her. When Thomas asks October to dance, she says no. Laura tells October that they are going on a trip to Portugal, saying she knows Thomas proposed to October there. She says October doesn’t have to come cuz of the kids. James announces that October and Jeanine will stay, while insulting them, saying Thomas and Laura make a great pair. Thomas runs after October, but she drives away. When October gets home, Jimmy asks if October needs a hug

“You don't have to be strong every second. I'm not a little kid anymore, Mom. You can be real with me.”


Thomas apologizes to October. October says she wants a divorce, that he needs to leave, giving him the papers.

“You didn't betray me with your actions as much as you betrayed me with your silence.”

Thomas begs
“Please, I can't lose you, October. You're the only constant in my life. The only thing that ever really mattered.”

He says that October loves him, it’s stupid, he doesn’t say he loves October. So she calls him out and he says of course he loves her. When Laura calls, he answers it in front of October on speaker. Laura asks if October was really that insecure. Laura was comfortable enough to shit talk about October. Jimmy comes out to defend his mom. I have so much respect for him, Thomas leaves once they tell him to. He gets a hotel, and Jeanine asks to meet October. Jeanine knew about James’s affairs and has been planning for a while. James was sick at one point and signed his rights to his company to Jeanine. He used to be loving, but eventually, he took Jeanine for granted. When he cheated the first time, he begged her not to leave. But after that, he didn’t care. Jeanine knows about all the James’s company fraud, and has mountains of evidence. Thomas is working with her to take his dad down. So he had to play along with Laura since they didn’t want her to suspect anything. Thomas heads to Graham Langley’s office, a lawyer and his dad’s rival, I wish Graham ended up with Jeanine. Graham tells Thomas he needs to play along with his dad until they get him arrested. Thomas doesn’t want to risk anything with October, he won’t go to Portugal.

Thomas calls Beth, and I loved that Beth defends October. She gives Thomas advice to do better. To put October first, to go into therapy, to fix things without expecting anything. Beth left their family years ago since her parents were toxic. She says that Thomas was so desperate for his father’s approval, that he lost himself. Thomas was always treated badly by his father in the company. He found Laura beautiful, but he didn’t want to get physical with her. He found her comforting, since she knew how to impress his father. In doing so, his father treated him well. So he wanted to stay close with Laura to be on his father’s good side. Thomas was constantly chasing his dad to impress him. He doesn’t remember Laura changing her contact picture on his phone. When he was distracted cuz October wouldn’t message him, Laura took his phone after James told her to, and she changed her contact picture. But one day, a random number texts Thomas telling him to check his father’s office. Thomas overhears Laura and his dad, they were lovers. I didn’t expect this twist coming. James wanted Laura to act like she was with Thomas so that once James promotes her to CEO, people won’t think it’s cuz she slept with James since she is “with” Thomas. The person who sent those messages to Thomas was Leo, the janitor. I felt like this was the reason he turned against Laura. But Thomas insists to October that he didn’t want to be close to Laura once October called her his mistress. He started to see things the way October did, like when Laura talked to him on the phone, it was intimate rather than casual. October’s parents come over since Jeanine told them to, October filles them in. I fucking loved October’s dad, Joseph. When Joseph talked about Thomas, I was dying.

“Honestly, hugging him was like trying to get affection from a fax machine. I've seen warmer embraces from airport security.”

When Laura shows up in Thomas’s office, she insults October. Joseph appears, Laura is going to call security on him, but Thomas stops her. Seeing Joseph rip into Laura was hilarious.

Laura flinched. "This is completely out of line—"
"You're worried about lines? Witch, please. You fly in on chaos and leave shame in your cauldron.”

Joseph threatens Thomas lol
“Then I'd wrap your worthless body in fishing wire, tie it to a rock the size of your delusion, and sink you to the bottom of the bay where even the crabs would be too dignified to touch you.”

Once Joseph tells Thomas off, he says that he is there for Thomas. That he knows Thomas grew up with a fucked up dad, and he’s been there. Thomas tells October that he plans to get his father arrested along with Laura. When they are about to go to Portugal, the police surround them. Both James and Laura are arrested, James says he wished Jeanine had an abortion when she had Thomas, it was so fucked. Thomas has a panic attack and Joseph hugs him. Joseph opens up to October about his father being abusive, that he wouldn’t be alive if it weren’t for his uncle. I loved how October’s family gave hugs and comforted each other. Thomas goes to therapy, picks up the kids, and makes dinner at October’s place. Seeing the family laugh and have fun together was heartwarming. Thomas goes to Jimmy’s soccer game and Jimmy thinks that October is sick since Thomas never visits. Seeing Jimmy’s concern for October was so sweet, but it hurts Thomas, since he wasn’t there for Jimmy. He takes Jimmy out for ice cream and holds his hand while apologizing for not being a good dad, saying he will make it up to him and October. Jimmy continues to hold his hand, but doesn’t say anything. Thomas takes Jimmy to the comic store, and Jimmy starts to talk to Thomas. October asks what Thomas originally got for her birthday. He gives her the gift, and it’s a necklace pendent made with the bark and leaves of a tree. The tree has their initials carved into it, and it’s where Thomas asked October to be his girlfriend. The gift wasn’t delivered in time, so he listened to his dad’s advice to leave cash, he regrets it. She visits the tree and notices that there is a plaque underneath. It says “Les feuilles s'effacent, l'odeur d'Octobre persiste,” which means “The leaves fade, the smell of October lingers.” When Lola was born, October felt like Thomas was distant. It was cuz of his dad and since he felt bad, he made this plaque. He wanted to visit it in a year as a surprise with all the kids. Thomas learned French for October since he knew she loved how it sounded like. This is when I started to melt for Thomas. He loved quietly, but he was obsessed with October. That’s why the Laura thing is confusing. He was never attracted to her the way he was attracted to October. But he found comfort in Laura, since she made things easier at work with his dad. He apologizes, saying it was an emotional affair. Even if he didn’t feel sexual things for her or feel that way about Laura, he confided in her, things that he should’ve done with October. He never talked shit about October to Laura.

Thomas distanced himself from his mom, and Beth visits him, hugging him and telling him he did good. He got an apartment, but he visits October often. When Jimmy is upset, Thomas says that he had his first heartbreak. Jimmy tells October that a girl he liked, liked his best friend. She made fun of him when he asked her out, since he thought she liked him. October said he will find someone better. Joseph and Thomas were renovating a house that October was obsessed with. Thomas gives October his shares to the company, the rest went to his kids when they turn 22. He gave her the signed divorce papers, saying he doesn’t want to, but he wants to give her the choice. He buys a dog shelter and starts working there. The shelter is named Marigold, the birth flower for October. October says she will go to couples therapy with Thomas since he’s making an effort. In couples therapy, they talk about growing up together, you can see that they both loved each other. Beth brings up stories where she knew Thomas was obsessed with October. The therapist tells them to match each other’s love languages. Thomas and October need to work on communicating what they want. Thomas shows his love through actions, while October does it through words. So October starts to visit Thomas at his shelter. We find out that Thomas only wears beige/brown clothes, since it’s the colour of October’s eyes. Thomas writes lists of what October loves. We find a book full of reminders where he says that he needs to buy things for October since he noticed she liked it or needed it. He added lemon to food even though he hated it cuz October loves it.

The therapist told them to make time for Jimmy. They spend the night drawing with Jimmy. Seeing Jimmy laugh at Thomas’s terrible art skills was cute. Jimmy likes a girl named Carissa. Jimmy starts talking to Thomas about superheroes, their debates were cute. Thomas explains that on the day he went to save Laura’s cat, she did him a huge favour. He messed up something in the company and she fixed it. So he felt like he owed her, so when she called, he went. He thought he could make it up to October. When he realized it was just him, he invited others so it wouldn’t be weird. When Laura invited him to her place afterwards, he said no. But October says this never should’ve happened. They cuddle that night, and he says he is sorry for doing this to their marriage. Then Laura starts contacting Thomas to help testify. Since he blocked all numbers, Laura corners October while she is out with Beth and August. Beth and August decide to go on a trip abroad to heal. When October gets home, they take a bath together, and he holds her in bed. They get a restraining order on Laura and his dad is behind bars. Thomas wrote letters to October about his love and guilt, he gives it to her eventually. His dad goes to the hospital and Joseph goes to visit with Thomas. James says he wished Thomas weren’t alive and insults him. So Thomas says he is cutting James off. 6 months later, Thomas moves back in. October’s parents leave, Thomas says he doesn’t want Joseph to leave, but Joseph says he is a call away. A year later, they have sex, it took time for October to trust him. October opened up a perfumery shop and the kids adopted two dogs from the shelter. Thomas meets his mom once a month but doesn’t trust her just yet. October got Thomas a pen saying that she is ready to give him another chance. He always gifts her perfume stuff in vials. Years later, Jimmy gets married to Carissa, so proud of him. Thomas asks to renew his vows to October. I loved this and am excited to read more by this author.

Stay safe folks!

[Miki’s⚠️ Safety Reviews & Rants⚠️ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this on WATTPAD Review coming

[Maya · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is good—but not great. It could have been a beautiful story, but it needs work. First things first: I DNF’d this at around 50%. Not because it was too bad, but because it started to feel boring for me. I might pick it up again in the future, but I wanted to write down my thoughts on what I read so far before they disappeared from my brain.

Now, onto the actual issues. There are a lot of grammatical errors. The chapter titles don’t clearly tell you whose POV you’re in, and since the POV shifts a lot, it gets confusing fast. I did like the writing style overall, but for my personal taste it leaned a bit cringe and cliché at times. Also, some things just didn’t add up—like a scene saying Thomas is in the kitchen and then immediately describing him as if he’s not there at all. Little things like that pulled me out of the story.

Honestly, this book really needed a solid editor before publishing, because the potential is there. If you’re someone who can ignore grammar issues and inconsistencies, you’ll probably love this book.

I absolutely adore October. She is a badass, and authors writing second-chance romances need to take notes on how not to write a doormat. I have zero notes for her. She’s a great wife, a great mom, and just an all-around amazing woman. I loved seeing her choose herself a little more and Thomas a little less—we support women’s rights AND women’s wrongs lmao ;)

Thomas openly admits he’s having an emotional affair with Laura. According to him, he doesn’t have feelings for her and doesn’t want to leave October. He prioritizes Laura because of his lifelong need for his father’s approval, which—fine. Childhood trauma is real. But sir. You are a grown ass man - it was time for you to grow up a long time ago.

Missing October’s birthday to look for Laura’s stupid cat was already wild, but what really got me was how easily October’s hurt was brushed off afterward. No real accountability. He states he never had feelings for Laura and he leaned towards her because of his father. But how could he so easily then just brush of his wifes birthday? Then call her dramatic for being upset about it. It just didn't add up with what the emotional affair consisted of.

Here’s where Thomas completely loses me. He claims he sees his life as two separate worlds: his work life with Laura (about work and earning his father’s approval) and his home life with October, which he describes as warm, loving, and safe. But if that’s true… why does his home life feel anything but that?

He’s absent. He’s emotionally checked out. He’s lowkey cruel with his words towards October. He’s barely present in his kids’ lives. Yes, he believes a man’s job is to provide while the woman handles the home—but that doesn’t excuse the emotional neglect. If his home life was truly “warm and loving,” October wouldn’t feel so alone all the time.

Overall good story, strong FMC, messy execution. I might come back to it someday, but for now… it’s staying on pause.

[I’m a Paula too… Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful…

A rare 5 star from me. This is a painfully beautiful story, that might resonate with anyone who has felt love slipping away. When things got so comfortable that you forget to stay aware and keep the relationship alive.

First, there is no physical cheating. But there is a kind of emotional connection between the MMC, Thomas, and the woman who enters his company. She has a connection to his father, who is the biggest loser I have ever read about. People like to blame their parents for their behavior because of the circumstances of their upbringing. In this situation, the father absolutely caused the MMC’s lack of self esteem and awareness. The father is cold and domineering, and an adulterous jackass.

But Thomas loves his wife, October. He doesn’t know how to express himself because of his upbringing. And the woman in the company is trying to make it look like they are intimate, and he’s not stopping it.

The emotional thread that runs through this book is so powerful. There are moments of crushing pain, and there are moments so profound and beautiful that it makes you weep. This is a beautiful story…

[Amel · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was so good, it was the best marriage in crisis book that I have read. The author did an incredible job.
That's what I ask when I want to read this kind of books.

[Tmstprc · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one I read on Wattpad. It was better read serialized, it’s way too long. The plot doesn’t sustain the word count.

[Claudia]

This book follows October and Thomas, a married couple going through serious trouble. They’ve been together for years and have two kids. The main issue revolves around other woman drama — October suspects Thomas of having an affair with his co-worker, Laura.

Thomas, however, never physically cheats. He’s just the typical emotionally unavailable husband — the kind who believes providing financially equals love. His upbringing plays a huge role in that. His father constantly had affairs and treated his mother terribly, so Thomas grew up thinking emotions were weakness and that being a good man simply meant working hard and providing.

The story had such a strong start. I loved the writing style and the emotional depth. The angst was fantastic — the kind that makes your heart ache and tightens your chest. But as the book went on, it just became way too long. It’s over 700 pages, and by the 57% mark, it felt like every chapter was full of unnecessary fluff. With tighter editing, this could’ve been an excellent story.

By that halfway point, the big twist drops — we find out Thomas’s dad and Laura were actually working together to frame Thomas, pretending he was having an affair when, in reality, Laura was sleeping with his dad. They were trying to take over the company. In a surprising turn, Thomas’s mum ends up coming out on top, exposing them both, and the dad and Laura get arrested.

After everything, October asks Thomas for a divorce, saying she doesn’t deserve the humiliation she’s endured. We also learn Thomas had secretly been working with the police to bring his dad and Laura down, but in doing so, he hurt his family deeply. He missed birthdays, ignored his children, and emotionally neglected his wife — even choosing to help Laura over October on her birthday because of some excuse about a cat.

By that point, I actually liked Thomas and sympathised with him. He’s clearly a product of his upbringing and never learned how to love properly. But despite that, the book just dragged on for too long. The story lost momentum, and I couldn’t keep going.

So, I didn’t finish it — I stopped at 57%. If I ever do go back, I’ll probably just skim to the end to see what happens.

Overall, the angst was incredible, the concept was strong, and Thomas’s character had depth — but the pacing completely ruined it for me. With a good edit, this could have been a five-star read.

[Raffaella · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a new author that debuted on wattpad and she’s very talented.
The book is very intense and I know many won’t be able to forgive the hero, who, for the first past of the book is really a jerk.
He and the heroine have been married for more than a decade and have three children.
He’s working in his father’s company, and she’s a housewife.
He’s an absent father and husband, and also very introvert, but the heroine has always thought he was a good man, a provider, solid and safe, maybe not much of a talker and of too much taken with his job.
Lately though, there’s a woman, a colleague that has been taking too much of his time too, even his free time.
When he misses a birthday because ows cat is missing, the heroine has enough and starts plotting not only to have her own career, but also to file for a divorce.
She thinks he’s having an affair, but he denies and gaslights her.
During a party at his father’s house where his father basically admits the hero and ow being a couple, the heroine decides enough is enough and dumps his sorry ass and throws him out of their house.
There’s more to the story.
The hero’s father is a sadistic abusive jerk, he’s been abusing his son and wife since forever so the hero has grown up weak and always trying to have his father’s love or attention.
He never cheated and never thought about it.
For him there was always only one woman and that’s the heroine, but he tried to be friends with ow since his father approved of her, and guess what.
Well, the rest of the story is him trying to win his family back, since not even his own son loves him, and the evil ow and evil father being punished.
I loved this story because the hero is not the usual alpha man, but he’s a weak and abused man, but also a very sweet and devoted one even if he was messed up seriously.
The heroine is sweet but also strong and she doesn’t accept being treated as an afterthought.
I won’t be spoiling the story more than this, because there are some interesting twists and turns that makes it very good and worth reading.
Safe for me, I don’t see his behavior as cheating not even emotional, since he never talked about his wife or personal matters with ow, he just tried to follow her lead at work since she was his father’s protege.

[Nikki ღ Navareus · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like this author's storytelling, but this story definitely needs a good editor. There are plenty of typos needing cleaned up. Aside from that, the story itself was perfection up to the 40% mark, when evil villains got their dues. Imagine my surprise when I looked and saw the story was only at the 40% (ish) mark. What else could be told? Well, not much. The story dwindled and dragged, and there was a TON of grovel from the Hero.

Yeah, he messed up, but there was no physical cheating in this story. His crime was focusing on work so much that he painfully neglected his entire family to the point of his wife (wrongly tricked into believing he had cheated on her) kicking his ass out of the house and filing for divorce. The reason why he was so hyper focused on his job and succeeding (to please his emotionally/physically abusive father who had beaten the Hero's self esteem down to NOTHING, and grasping for any approval he could grasp from his asshole father his whole life) makes sense as it's all explained in this story. I felt this Hero having to kiss ass through over half of this story was a bit too much though. Especially after he had endured so much abuse from his father his whole life, and after all he had done to make amends for his neglect of his family.

This could have been a full 4 star story for me if it was about half its length. On an up note though, I did enjoy the evil OW and her shenanigans trying to destroy the Hero's marriage. That added a lot of much needed drama to this story.

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally read on Wattpad.

Cheating = H is a very weak man when it comes to his father, so when a new work colleague, OW, comes in and makes the dad notice the H, the H clings on to the OW. The H will ditch his family on the whims of the OW. It was a definite emotional affair with the manipulative OW but I cannot remember if there was a physical portion ( I cannot remember if there was a kiss or an intention for one exactly, but the H never went beyond this if it was there, I read too much and can muddle my facts).

h sees H with OW = h would be on the sidelines at parties watching the H prioritize and validate the OW constantly, see the H be emotionally intimate with the OW while icing out the h.

Grovel = h had enough and so had their oldest child and they kick the H to the curb verbally. H has to get intense therapy and learn how to stand up for himself and to have a spine and stand up for his wife. It is not a quick process and there are many other factors that come into play, but it was one of the best grovels I have read.

OW drama = come to find out the OW was scheming with the dad and they were both stealing from work and were planning on the H being the scapegoat, that's the simple version, it was way more complex and involved than this. Comeuppance? I cannot remember exactly, but I do know the h got to get a few verbal jabs in and I think the OW went to jail(?) as did the dad.

Fantastic writer, and I will have her as a new auto click/favorite.

[Lana · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars
It was a good story, but it did feel overly drawn out at times.
I know this was originally a wattpad story, but I hope the author takes some time to make some edits later. This one was worse than June when it came to the mistakes. There were many typos but also POV switches in the middle of chapters and then incorrect pronouns used throughout.
It doesn't take away from the story but it does take you out for a moment until you orient yourself again.

I liked seeing how soft Thomas was all along for October. I was happy to see October find her backbone and say what she wanted from him. They worked it out together and prioritized their kids - so that journey was beautiful.
I do go back and forth on how Thomas' relationship with Laura was considered an "emotional affair". He didn't love her, didn't want to do more with her. He definitely prioritized her over his family at times, and liked the praise and attention he got at work. The therapist said, "Emotional affairs aren’t about love. They’re about emotional displacement". I took this to mean misplaced effort/time etc. So by that standard, I can see how he had an "emotional affair". But I did appreciate that Thomas really only loved October the whole time. Otherwise, an emotional affair like that is hard to come back from.

[Mariana Ponce · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5


Wow! Este libro me hizo sentir muchas cosas. La verdad que Octuber sufrió mucho y aguanto lo más que pudo en su matrimonio con Thomas. Ellos se conocen desde chicos y han sido el único en la vida del otro, tiene. 3 hijos: 2 niñas de aprox 4 y una de meses y 1 niño, Jimmy de 13-14 años. Los últimos años y sobre todo el último, Thomas se ha enfocado en el trabajo y en su compañera Laura. Deja las reuniones con su familia, los cumpleaños y aunque está en casa, no está presente. La gota que derramó el vaso, fue que faltó al cumpleaños de October y su excusa fue que el gato de Laura se perdió y tuvo que ayudarla. Jimmy ve todo y le dice a su madre que cuando se va a querer como quiere a su padre, lo que le abre los ojos. En está historia aunque no hay infidelidad física, ya que ni beso, ni nada hubo, si hay infidelidad emocional. Vemos todo el proceso de dolor tanto de October, que es humillada por Laura y su suegro, y por el mismo Thomas que no marcó límites ni puso un alto, pero también vemos como él sufre al ver todo perdido y por nada. Tiene que asumir sus actos e irse de la casa cuando October propone el divorcio. Es un libro angustiante pero creo que merece la pena ver todo el proceso que tiene está pareja para seguir o no, adelante y juntos.

[Carole Copeland · Rating 2 out of 5]

Way to long

Spoilers: I knew when I decided to pay my hard earned cash that this book was going to be tooo long. I decided to read it anyways and kinda wish I hadn't paid money for it. It was way too long, the author couldn't keep the storyline consistent, repetitive thought life over and over. At one point I wasn't sure there were one or two sisters cause the author changed the names and behavior. A four year old is not a toddler. The author really made it hard to like the wife and the overly long timeline was a bit much. But my two things I couldn't stand were 1. The length. Way too long and it dragged..Took me days to read it and I even had to skim.
2. The inconsistencies in the story. Something happens and then the author writes it again like it didn't just happen in a previous chapter. Ex: father tells him he wishes he had been aborted. Go forward a couple chapters,many more, and he visits his father and he says the same thing. The author has the son, main character, act like it was the worst thing said to him. Like he had never heard it before. I did like some of the confrontations. Some was good. Not I would not buy this book again.

[Margerm, Pat · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 1/2 stars The book began with a powerful guy punch followed by some plot twists but then the emotional intensity dissipated. The H and h have three children together, a teenaged son, a toddler and an infant (both girls). I wondered, and it was not explained, why there was such a gap between the son and the daughters. The H has tried and failed to gain his father's positive attention his whole life. When a new co-worker,(OW) makes the H feel better about himself he doesn't recognize the boundaries that he is crossing until his father publicly humiliates the h by making a surprise announcement about an upcoming vacation to Portugal for the H, OW, the father and the father's mistress. The h confronts the H who doesn't recognize the inappropriateness of his relation with the OW because he was not physically intimate with her.
The redemption is very slow with several conversations between the H and other characters (the h's father, the son etc ) about relationships. Well written but this is where it dragged for me.

[Samaira · Rating 3 out of 5]

This author always comes up with such interesting ideas, and I was drawn in right away by the concept behind this book! But once again, it felt like AI took the wheel a bit too much. The writing was so polished and precise that it lost a lot of the emotional spark. The characters felt more like they were being moved around by a machine than by a human hand. I found myself wishing for those little imperfections or bursts of personality that make fictional people feel real and memorable.AI can help shape a story but when it’s given too much room, it can smooth things over to the point that the heart of the book gets lost. Overall, while I enjoyed the premise, it dragged on for way too long than necessary and I ended up wanting more feeling and less formula!

[Traci · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fairly common story. Husband ignores wife for years due to work. Then emotional affair with co worker.

What is different is this story reflects heavily on why MMC put work before family. His father was very emotionally abusive and MMC was hoping to receive validation. That’s the only reason he was “involved” with OW. He wasn’t interested in her at all. He just received positive attention from Father when he worked with her. I truly believe he had no outside interest in her.

Only 35% in and it’s now focused on what will happen now with divorce and counseling.

This story is a gut punch but honestly not from the “affair”. It’s from how emotionally damaged the MMC is. It broke my heart both as a wife and a mother.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is simply no way I can add to or improve of the review written by Pinky. I totally agree with her opinions and recommendations. It did start off slow but once the FMC woke up, with a little help from her son, it really got emotional and angsy. The parents of the MMC were absolute loosers while the FMC's parents were awesome. Glad to see that both the MMC's father and the OW got their just prison time for at least some of their evilness.

I have known some individuals, both male and female, who tolerate way to much abuse in trying to earn a parent's love or approval. Unfortunately this also sets them up to have their spouses always a second priority.

Read this on Wattpad initially and was totally impressed with the story and the author. She nailed it.

[Michelle Sharpe · Rating 5 out of 5]

love, love this book

I loved June, but words can’t described how much I loved October. This book sat with me in the best possible way. I cried and cheered at Thomas and his growth throughout his and October’s story. I loved October’s parents and the support they provided to Thomas. This book being back what I love about second chances. The mistakes made weren’t glossed over, instead, both characters put in the work, to be better versions of themselves for each other and their family. I can’t wait to read August story and hope Beth gets one too. 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽❤️❤️

[Athena Que Será, Será · Rating 3 out of 5]

It started really well but it kinda' got dragging... n dragging.. after around 40%; I skip read after that.
Tags: betrayal, boring-yaawn, child_abuse_alert, damaged-broken_hero, emotional-cheating, grovel-remorseful, hero-hurts-heroine, hero-married-to-heroine, in-laws-from-hell, ow-drama, read, second-chance, troubled-marriage, wattpad-mania, weak-hero

[China · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!

I have read thousands of books and this was one of the best! It was quite emotional! I found myself getting teary eyed often. It was such an emotional read. Loved it and looking for more from this author.

[OverbookedSoul · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first 30% was pretty engaging, but the rest dragged on. After around the 55–60% mark, it started feeling more like an essay than a novel. I did enjoy the ending and the comeuppance part though. Overall, not a bad effort and I’d definitely read more from the author.

[Paige Whitecotton · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Journey

This was not just a book it was a journey of mistakes, hurts, evil, abuse, change, choosing again, love, and deeper love. Thomas and October made lots of mistakes but choosing to rebuild stronger takes work and courage. I loved it.

[Dre · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars I liked this but thought it was long.

[Eliana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I still felt the emotions the second time around.

[Marianna Couper · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wattpad read. Strong start then... meh. DNF

[Jill Stewart]

The first third of the book is good, but then it drags on from there. At least 40% of the book could have been edited out, and nothing would be missed.

[Mery B'teqraa · Rating 1 out of 5]

Minus endless starts.
This had quite a decent potential. But using ChatGPT to express creativity? That's simply unethical and unacceptable. Don't write and save yourself.

[Star · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75

[Lisa Witts · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an emotional journey! I really enjoyed this story. 5 stars alone for October’s father’s rants and shade.