After a public and humiliating breakup, Veronica Gates has sworn that she's done with love. Now, she's focused on her career as a professional mermaid performer at this high-end ocean-themed restaurant, social media gigs, private events, and her online store she is keeping herself busy to feel the sting of loneliness or the reminder of her recent heartbreak.
But, her best friend Alice is tired of her best friend either working or being holed up in their shared apartment. So, as a surprise, she manages to snag them tickets to see Veronica's favourite rock band Scarlet Failure – and in that one night Veronica's life changes forever.
Scarlet Failure's brooding bass player Sully Graham has built so many walls around himself that he hasn't let anyone over. He's cynical, guarded, and he's used to being misunderstood and he's given up on ever finding anyone that he's drawn to and wants to build a future with. But, then he spots Veronica in the crowd at one of his concerts and he feels a pull to her when he hands her one of his guitar picks, and the pull gets even stronger when they meet after the show. That one night turns into something so much more than either one of them ever expected and neither one of them can ever forget.
And as Sully and Veronica's connection continues to deepen, so do the cracks in the walls that they have each built around their hearts. They both know that falling in love with each other could help to heal their old wounds – or the risk they take could put everything that they've been protecting on the line and they could get hurt all over again.
Tropes: Rockstar x Mermaid energy, Slow burn tension, Cinnamon Roll FMC, Little Bit of OW Drama, Little Bit of Steam, Family Healing, Chosen Second Family, and Second Chance Love.
After Finding You by Brittney Coon. This was the first book by Brittney Coon that I have ever read but I can say with certainty that it is not going to be the last. Within the first few pages of this book I was just engrossed in the story and the characters.
I am going to start by saying that this book had all the elements that I love in a contemporary romance. It was sweet, heartwarming, had just the right amount of spice to it, it had emotional depth that drew you in and kept you hooked, and for me, it had the addition of music, one of my favorite things in the world.
Veronica Gates is trying to live her best life after her ex-boyfriend left her heart shattered when he fake proposed to her in an elaborate setup that was filmed all so he could turn around and dump her and tell her he had been cheating on her. He then made matters worse by trying to destroy her reputation by posting the video online. She didn't take this quietly and ensured the video was taken down by any means necessary.
After that “incident” as Veronica went on to call it, she decided that she was done with dating and she was done with love. She didn't need or have time for either in her life. She was going to focus on her career as a professional mermaid. (I love that career, I mean how cool is that really! I am so jealous of her). Veronica works at a high-end ocean-themed restaurant where she performs with other mermaids and she does meet and greets after the show. She also does social media gigs and along with her Mer-Handler Arthur, she does private events for both private and corporate parties. And her online store also helps to keep her busy and is another source of income for her.
Sully Graham who has had his own heartbreak and trauma in life is just as cold and closed off as Veronica is. But, as the broody bassist for Scarlet Fever, it's harder for him. He has women constantly throwing themselves at him as he's the only single member of the band. But, he keeps the walls tight around him, refusing to let anyone get close to him again.
That is till Veronica's best friend Alice decides that it's time for her to step in and get involved. She manages to snag 2 tickets to Scarlet Fever's local concert and surprises Veronica with them on the night of the concert after work.
They get there early enough that Alice and Veronica are able to get right up against the guard gate that keeps the fans away from the stage and Veronica knows that this is going to be the show of her life. During the show, Sully not only throws her a guitar pick, but he also gets off the stage and hands it to her himself, making Veronica's heart flutter. Then after the concert, she is able to snag one of the set lists, the very one that Sully had been using.
The two girls then go outside and to the back where the band will come out and try to meet the band. First Veronica can meet Charlotte the lead singer and then she meets Sully and from the moment they meet, Sully is different with her than he has been with anyone else.
First he actually smiles at her, then after he signs some stuff for her, he pulls her in for a hug before they do a selfie together (this is something that he's never done before), and then after they take a couple selfies together, Sully takes Veronica's phone and gives her his number, telling her to text him if she wants to get to know him better. (And no, not just in the way of s*x), I mean really get to know each other better.
Veronica considers this when she gets home, throws caution to the wind and ends up in his hotel room for the night. And then she ends up going to Vegas for the weekend with him. You can just feel their chemistry like electricity.
These are two characters who were made for each other and they were a perfect match. Sully being a little bit more controlled and broody was the perfect contrast for the vibrant energy that Veronica gives off. I loved how natural their connection felt. I loved the way that they both took their time in lowering their defences, letting down their walls, and truly opening up to each other.
The only thing that I wish was that there were points where I wish we had gotten dual POVs. Especially around all the Amy and Gigi drama and all the stuff that was happening around him and Gigi and what the truth was, rather than just what Veronica saw. I would have loved to have been in Sully's head so many times in this book and feel and understand why he was so quiet, why he didn't stand up for himself, and what his first thoughts of Veronica were.
But, even without the dual POVs, this book gave us everything we needed and could have ever wanted. The spice, swoon, storyline, plot, sub-plot, it was all done perfectly.
After Finding You took me on an emotional roller coaster ride. But, at the same time, I loved the way that it addressed so many issues that you can deal with in real life and that is something that I love in contemporary romance books.
If you are looking for a sweet, low-angst, mid-tension filled, emotionally filled romance with the right amount of grit to keep the story interesting and to keep you reading.
I loved the ending because while it was perfect in every way possible, it still left the door open for a sequel. While Gigi and Amy were thrown out the door and told that they had nothing to do with the band or in Veronica and Sully's case their lives, that doesn't mean that they have to take it and just walk away. Brittney could always write a 2nd book to this book and have both Amy and Gigi as the villains focused on Veronica's career, Sully, and Scarlet Failure. We will have to wait and see what Brittney decides to do.
I highly recommend this book, it is a great read, with wonderful characters, a great storyline, an amazing plot, and sub-plot.
I enjoyed this book and I look forward to reading more of Brittney Coon's books in the near future.