From Amazon top 40 best-selling author comes the final installment of the Cherry Peak series, an angsty, second chance romance.
I’ve spent the last eight years trying to forget Darren Huntsly. In a small town like Cherry Peak, it’s been nearly impossible to pull it off. Still, I made it work as best I could. That is until a series of unfortunate events have us face to face for the first time in years with nowhere to escape. Now, not only am I his daughter’s new teacher, but we’ve both been tasked with helping repair the one place in the world that remained unmoved after our breakup.
The town’s drive-in was where I fell in love with Darren. A place overrun with memories of us and the relationship we had for the better part of my life. But after a fire burns it to ashes, we’re tasked with restoring it to the way it was back when we spent every night there kissing under the stars. The hardest part of it all, though? Not falling into the trap of revisiting that version of us.
It’s no secret that Darren was my one great love and the heartbreak that had me considering running away forever. But this town is important to me, and our shared friends aren’t about to let me back out of helping with this restoration. That leaves me with no choice but to shove my feelings away and focus on getting through the next few weeks with as little damage to my heart as possible. After all, Darren already let me go once, surely he can do it again.
Hannah is a twenty-something-year-old indie author from Western Canada. Obsessed with swoon-worthy romance, she decided to take a leap and try her hand at creating stories that will have you fanning your face and giggling in the most embarrassing way possible. Hopefully, that’s exactly what her stories have done!
Hannah loves to hear from her readers, and can be reached on any of her social media accounts.
based on teasers on this author’s tiktok, i can already tell this book will be using the same tired bullshit plot of an MMC who claims he has “always loved” the FMC and spent “years missing her” while he was having a child with someone else (anyone wanna place bets on whether or not the FMC was celibate during this time?). he will presumably pop back into the FMC’s life and somehow convince her to raise his child. how romantic 🥰
EDIT-
i like to be an informed hater, so i actually gave this one a skim after it was released. somehow, unbelievably, this book was WORSE than i thought it was going to be.
where to begin? for starters, i mistakenly believed that the FMC had only recently returned to her hometown. imagine my surprise to discover that she had been back for 8 YEARS and literally watched the MMC get married and have/raise a child with his wife. the FMC opted to spend those years skulking around their hometown, avoiding the MMC, and refusing to ever move on from their relationship. as predicted, the FMC did not experience love, romance, companionship, enjoyable sex, etc. while separated from the MMC. who could have seen that one coming? at the time of this book, the FMC had been celibate for a fucking YEAR because no one could compare to the MMC 😢
i did not find anything particularly redeeming about the FMC or the MMC. this FMC had to be one of the top 10 doormats i have ever read. to perfectly encapsulate how pathetic she was, i'll leave you with this quote from her POV- "it's not supposed to be this easy, but i'm already doubting that i'll be able to make him work for anything. at this rate, i'll be the one begging him for a chance, and that's totally unacceptable." yes, BEGGING FOR A CHANCE 🤮 she also had an emotional outburst in which she confessed that she was angry because, had she known how unhappy the MMC had been with his ex-wife, she would have tried to get back together with him sooner. girl, STAND UP 🤡
as for the MMC, i would genuinely like some of whatever the people who claim he "worked so hard" to get the FMC back are smoking, because drug-induced delusions are the only explanation for that GENEROUS interpretation of the text. he did not do anything except harass the FMC into giving him another chance. he fucking built the FMC's dream house and then moved into it with his wife and daughter... please get a grip EXPEDITIOUSLY 😭
my final criticism of this book is that this author is so predictably uncreative that she chose to make the MMC's ex-wife a heinous bitch as if that would somehow excuse the fact that the MMC promised to remain faithful to the FMC over the course of their four year separation, fucked someone else during that time, got her pregnant, and then married her. as an author, if you have no other way to redeem a MMC's actions than to make a WOMAN the "villain," you have a problem-- and it's called internalized misogyny.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
flagging my review doesn't save your book from being bad and misogynistic btw!
big whole mess, so many questions unanswered, why did he carry a condom, how did he put it on if even so drunk to stand, was sasha also almost as drunk as he because not alarm bells starts going, why did he wait years and lastly why did he not tell her ?
this doesn't make sense to me, two parents do not equal happy family, why would he think that ?
AND HE DOESN'T EVEN INITIATE THE DIVORCE LIKE ??????
So he broke her heart 8 years ago now she is his daughter’s teacher
-Are u kidding me? So either she’s celibate while he’s having kids or none of them were good.
“Now, not only am I his daughter’s new teacher, but we’ve both been tasked with helping repair the one place in the world that remained unmoved after our breakup.”
-He isn’t even the one pursing her ! Makes me even more mad
💤💤💤😴🥱😴🥱💤
I am ready if anyone wants to prove me wrong but I have seen this play out 103929393 times before and FMCs are always loser pathetic characters,
EDIT!!!
I fucked around found out through some quotes from last book in series
what is the use of flagging my review when it wasnt even half a page quotes anyway dm me if you want to know
Update 2 this is what author said about OW
“The mother is still involved and she plays a part in why they stayed apart after their breakup, so I’ll say yes to OW but she doesn’t keep them apart in the present”
This book has: -a cheating mmc who’s reasoning makes no sense. In an attempt to redeem him the author makes him celibate after cheating. You’re told that he was so drunk when it happens without being given enough information of the state of the other woman. This allows you to feel sorry for the mmc while avoiding a more serious discussion over whether or not he was taken advantage of. The fact that the pregnancy was a result of a broken condom when he had no reason to have one on him is suspicious. -you get flashbacks of the fmc being the one who wanted to end the break while the mmc deluded her into thinking it was for the best so that they could work on themselves and have no regrets. -despite all the flashbacks the author leaves so much unaddressed and just gives a pathetic pining fmc that could never really move on. The high reviews will tell you this story is realistic but if it was surely she would have put actual effort into moving on after he got married. I can’t imagine many females in the real world would still be pining with no efforts to show the world they’ve moved on. -nothing makes sense. Surely she spoke to old friends. How is it no one told her about the pregnancy or engagement. -he should have told her he slept with the other women before he even found out she was pregnant. He knew she was waiting for him and wouldn’t sleep with anyone else -he is the one that clarified that it was a break not a break up yet the author gives no trigger warning for cheating -the author attempted to write an angsty second chance romance to trend on tik tok not caring about all the plot holes in an attempt to make it as angsty as possible. - the phrase “it’s always been you” was actually mentioned in the book - the apology from Sasha is vague and lacks clarity that would have been helpful -there’s no way ChatGPT did not help write this book because it will feel as though you’re already read it multiple times. -the chapters were filled with a whole bunch of nothing yet this book has manly five star reviews. I hate that the Arc readers are never truly honest. Where there’s an arc review you can expect 5 stars regardless of whether or not it’s deserving. - Genuinely feel like the author just searched angst recommendations on Reddit.
This has to be the authors worst book. She gave teasers throughout the series making this highly anticipated just for it to be a complete let down. This level of angst typically comes with groveling which was non existent in this book.
so apart from the fact that he cheated on her ( and yes sleeping with another woman on a break where they agreed to wait for each IS cheating), during their break where they were supposed to wait for each other. he also got the ow sasha pregnant and instead of being a man and telling Delaney. he ghosts her for 2 years, lets her faithfully wait for him all while he was engaged to ow. and when Delaney did show up, he was so cold and cruel to her. no "i'm sorry i betrayed you" ,no " i'm sorry i hurt you".. he straight up was rude and told her to go home.
then he let his fiancé mention the pregnancy and engagement infront if her totally blind siding her and he said nothing.
“Hey,” I whisper, unable to move. “What are you doing here?” I flinch at the harsh tone. “I just got back.” “Go home, Delaney.” “Is this because I didn’t give you a heads-up before coming? If I’m interrupting something, I can come back. I’m back home now, so—” He lurches toward me, blocking the entire doorway. The small bump on her stomach— I palm my chest and try not to scream. “It’s yours?” “I haven’t seen you in years, Delaney,” Sasha says, standing at the top of the stairs with her arms crossed. Years. Since we were in high school and she was hanging around the sidelines at every football game with a new sign every week with Darren’s name on it. Shaking my head, I ignore her and stare at Darren, willing my tears to hold off just another minute. “Is it yours?” “Yes.” “The baby or the ring?” Sasha asks proudly. I choke. The missing weight on my finger is jarring.
the question is, Why does this man deserve forgiveness? he cheated, ghosted her, lied to her and hurt her, then married the other woman. then bam 8 years later he wants her back harassed the shit out if her untill she caved.
why did he wait 8 years ?? he was willing to stay miserabley married to another woman than pursue the one he supposedly loved.
THEN we find out that he wasn't even the one who initiated the divorce, it was Sasha because she didn't want to stay married to a dead beat husband. he said he married her because he wanted a real family for his daughter, but how is it a family when he hates his wife and blamed her for their ONS.
Sasha was written to be this evil woman when she wasn't ??? if i slept with a man, gotten pregnant, got proposed to and married him i'd expect, fidelity and dedication and love, not a deadbeat emotionally unavailable husband still not over his ex. Sasha had EVERY right to be that way to Darren and Delaney, and she even apologized at the end to Delaney , she didn't cause drama nor want Darren back, she was happily engaged and pregnant with om.
Delaney, nothing to say except she was written like every other fmc in 2nd chance romances, never moved on, stuck, hung up on him, bitter ... yet said she would have taken him and raised Abbey with him if he hadn’t married Sasha right away. that's how far her weakness runs.
“The fighting between us every day or the way you put a concrete end to us because you got someone else pregnant? Or am I wrong? Maybe you didn’t hook up with her until after you broke things off. I don’t know! All I do know is that I offered to remove the distance between us hundreds of times and had to find out after two years of torturous silence that you were engaged and having a baby with someone else.”
“Everyone thinks it was me who issued the divorce, but it was her"
“Why did you sleep with her? If you were so broken up about me, why her when you could have waited for me the way you claim you wanted to.” “I don’t know,” I mutter with a raw wince. Delaney tucks her hair behind her ear, still avoiding looking at me. “Yes you do.” “She was . . . there. She was just there, Delaney, and I know how pathetic that sounds. When I hit rock bottom, she was there, and the morning after, I found my true bottom hidden far beneath that one.”
i'd have preferred if there was a scene where Darren was the one who got hurt and jealous over Delaney dating and sleeping with other men for once instead of her being jealous over other women most of the book, and from what Happened with Sasha and Darren wanting her back you'd think he's reassure her but no he was eating it up everytime she was jealous. i mean they live in a SMALL town where she always saw him with his wife and daughter yet he never saw her dating a man? what's the point in telling us she did when we neither see it nor is it utilized .
he said he only slept with Sasha once when Abbie was conceived but he hasn't clarified if he's been with other women since the divorce.
for a book trying so hard to show how much he supposedly loved her, we sure got alot of nothing about him actually reassuring her of his love either through words or actions
You can really see when authors switch to trying to appease to booktok by writing these overdone books. They throw in betrayal that makes no sense to market to the audience that enjoy books with angst. They then attempt to make the MMC redeemable by making him celibate only after he messes up. The rare times the FMC isn’t celibate they still don’t get to be happy during the separation. She won’t get married or have a kid during the 8 years and you’ll hear about how she had bad sex or short term relationships that were few and far between. Hannah’s books have always been enjoyable even when they’ve been second chance romances but this was just so overly done that the plot could have been written by AI
The last man on earth and me? I wouldn't want to be in the same country as him. Put me on the moon... heres how it goes- "I love you. Wait for me. 2 more years" "But i wanna be with you" "We can't. 2 more years and we will be together forever" *gets another woman pregnant while shes waiting*🥰 He's so romantic!!!!😍 2 stars for Abbie, Daisy & Bryce. Every other character pissed me off
Darren= infiel, 💩, egotista, cobarde Elle = tonta, arrastrada, sin dignidad ni amor propio
Elle y Darren eran novios, pero cuando tuvieron que ir a diferentes universidades empezaron a tener problema, entonces a él se le ocurrió que tomarían un descanso por 2 años y cuando terminarán la escuela, volverían y se casarían. Pero él idiota dejo emebarazda a otra y como según él viene de una familia muy unida quería que su bebé tuviera lo mismo, entonces le pido matrimonio a Sasha. Elle llega súper contenta porque por fin estarán juntos, pero se lleva la sorpresa de su vida cuando el amor de su vida ya está comprometido y esperando una hija con otra. Así es, el muy cobarde nunca le dijo lo que hizo y la Elle vivió ese tiempo pensando que estaban juntos. Está parte me enojo porque él se la pasa diciendo que Elle es el amor de su vida, pero nunca lucha por ella, prefiere casarse con alguien a quien lo quiere y al final solo se divorcia porque su esposa es quien le pide el divorcio, o sea que si fuera por él se hubiera quedado casado por siempre.
Uno pensaría que Elle se iría de ese pueblo porque ya no tenía porque quedarse ahí, que iría con sus padres e inciaria de cero, pues no. La muy tonta se volvió una reclusa, no tenía amigos porque todos eran amigos o hermanas del infiel, cada que veía a Darren con su esposa e hija se ponía escondía como si fuera ella quien hizo algo malo. Durante esos 8 años intento salir con otros, en realidad 7 ya que el último año fue célibe, pero a todos lo comparaba con el inútil. Y es tan tonta que nunca pensó que lo que ocurrió fuera culpa de Darren, nop, le echo la culpa a Sasha. Según ella, Sasha era la mala y D la victima 🙄.
Hannah intenta arreglar su desastre haciendo que el cobarde fuera célibe durante esos 8 años, pero sale peor y como dije anteriormente esto es más feo porque él decidió no luchar por Elle.
Ah, y como cereza del pastel muchas conductas de ciertos personajes se me hicieron imperdonables porque nadie estuvo del lado de Elle (incluso su propia abuela) y todos apoyaban que regresara con Darren. El comportamiento de Poppy se me hizo nefasto y pues se me arruinó su libro porque ya no puedo verla con buenos ojos.
I always check Goodreads before reading a book. On release day, this one had nothing but five-star reviews—alongside two negative assumptions from people who hadn’t even read it. Since Hannah is one of my favorite authors, I ignored those early critiques. But to my complete surprise, those assumptions turned out to be more honest than the reviews from readers who had actually finished the book.
The alpha and beta readers raved about how amazing the book was going to be—building up the excitement without acknowledging any of the flaws. That alone was frustrating. None of the early readers pointed out the plot holes, inconsistencies, or shallow character development. Instead, they praised it uncritically, and the book was published as is. I refuse to believe that none of them picked up on any of the errors.
It genuinely shocked me that this book made it to publication in its current state. Throughout the series, we’re given breadcrumbs about this couple, with the expectation that the final installment would tie everything together. Instead, we’re left with more questions than answers. The writing felt vague and rushed, like the author didn’t have solid answers herself and chose not to develop the plot or characters any further—just wrap it all up and move on. You receive flashbacks that do not add to the story at all, proving no answers.
The MMC was not redeemable. For eight years, he took the easy way out. We’re told he’s this great man, and yet when he makes a major decision that should shatter that image, the story continues to portray him as someone worthy of sympathy and forgiveness. Everyone excuses his actions and encourages the FMC to give him another chance. Prior to release, we were told to expect a proper grovel, but the MMC made no real effort over the eight years—and now only shows up because the FMC is no longer hiding.
The FMC, on the other hand, came across as incredibly weak—likely because she was stuck in her trauma. She stayed in the same town, made herself small, and essentially disappeared for eight years. The book aimed to give us angst, but it completely avoided exploring the deeper issues tied to that—grief, depression, alcohol abuse. Anywhere the story could have gone deeper, it didn’t.
The characters weren’t likable—including the side characters we’d grown to love throughout the series. The second chance didn’t feel deserved, and the romance felt unearned. The FMC’s point of view especially bothered me. She didn’t grow from her heartbreak. Her only regret seemed to be not forgiving the MMC sooner, despite the fact that he never did anything to earn that forgiveness. She came across as the type of character who blames other women while making excuses for the man who hurt her. The author loaded her with every trait of a weak female lead.
After this experience, I won’t be reading books on release day anymore. I’ll be waiting for honest, balanced reviews—the kind you would have expected the alpha and beta readers to give the author.
Not the review I wanted to write. I’ve loved this series so much, and I was so excited to finally get Darren’s book but this one just missed the mark for me.
I really struggled to believe the premise that Darren and Elle could live in the same small town for almost a decade and barely interact. If Elle had her own interests, friend group, or a clear life outside of Darren, maybe it would have felt more believable. But aside from Daisy and Poppy (Darren’s literal sister), she didn’t seem to have anyone.
Instead, it came across like Elle had spent nearly ten years being sad, pining, and feeling sorry for herself. I can understand heartbreak lingering, but for almost a decade. At some point, you either move on or move away. I needed more from her side of the story.
For me this book felt like this strayed from one of the series’ biggest strengths. Having these incredible FMCs who were secure in themselves, fully realised as individuals, and whose lives were enriched by romance rather than defined by it.
The book spent too much time stuck in the past. Even in present-day chapters, the narrative kept pulling us backwards. The drive-in refurbishment could have been such a fun, organic way to bring Darren and Elle back together in the now, but it never really played out. By the time we got a glimpse of them reconnecting in the present, it was basically over.
The saving grace. Darren and Bryce’s friendship. I loved their banter, honestly and loyalty. It was one of the few dynamics that kept me engaged.
Overall, an amazing series but sadly, a disappointing end for me.
dnf when i started the book i thought it was a regular 2nd chance romance. i didn't know Darren cheated on her, got another woman pregnant, got engaged all without being man enough to officially break up with Delaney .
I just can’t get over their stupid break and her coming home to find him with a pregnant fiancée. Like I know he was celibate for his marriage but I can’t forgive him.
“I’m sorry that I ever loved Darren in the first place.” I couldnt agree more!!
His book was a slap in the face! Why? Because it reminded me that men think with their dicks no matter how small?! I wished that Delaney got with Sam instead of the sorry excuse of partner she got stick with. Darren deserves to be miserable.
Not bad. A bit of a mindless read as it's predictable. A bit unrealistic as well because he married the ow he impregnated and was never intimate except when his daughter was conceived. Both MMCs were immature and irresponsible when they left for college. H self sabotaged for reasons unknown other than blaming the h for wanting to settle and marry after college. Around two year's of them being separated during college h was ready to give in because she missed H so much. She said as much many times to get back together but H refused. Made absolutely no sense. Then he has a drunken ONS with a girl who's always been after him. He marries her and they have a loveless marriage of 3 years because H wanted to give their daughter a two parent household which again made no sense. OW files for divorce so there is the question of whether the H would have filed if she hadn't and continued living in this farce of a marriage. Completely unrealistic for the time period honestly. Overall it was ok. Not at all as angsty as you think. While the h had a few men within the 8 years of them not being together, the H was completely celibate which is again unrealistic. They lived in the same town and both were stubborn and ridiculous. All and all a trope that has been done a million times. This definitely is the least ragey one I've read.
This book was frustrating. I wish the FMC moved on. It’s so annoying that the MMC can have a child with someone else and get married, yet the FMC is living this lonely life without her “soulmate.” I wish the FMC would have had more confidence and lived a happy fulfilling life without the man that betrayed her. Clearly other men in town had interest in her but she just sat around sad and annoying. Her “soulmate” was a loser who couldn’t stand up for himself and his life choices.
It was also weird that everyone in their lives abandoned her because they were friends with the MMC then EIGHT years later came back acting like they were “sisters” and “family.”
This entire book was not for the girls. It was in fact the opposite. The FMC was betrayed by EVERYONE in her life (even her grandma pushing that loser onto her) and she just accepted it.
this is why i hate reading second chance romance . if you are going to skip over their entire past then the book makes no sense?? and honestly the explanation for why he broke things off was so stupid. this book felt so long and the plot wasn’t even that good tbh
the angst!! the emotion!! the way they truly had to fight their way back to each other!! I love them so much
Delaney makes this man WORK for her forgiveness!!!
these two love each other so much and have now grown and matured and are truly ready to spend the rest of their lives together!!
Darren is truly a top tier Hannah Cowan mmc! He is the cutest dad, he loves Delaney so so much, and this man is not afraid to put in the work to get his girl back!! The way he pines for her >>>
ugh I love them! I cried, I laughed, I swooned!! I’m so sad to see this series end, but this was the PERFECT book to wrap the series up!!
Look, Cherry Peak is one of my favorite series of all time, so I’m going to pretend this book doesn’t exist and that Hannah didn’t make Darren a spineless cheater who let Delaney come back to him engaged with a baby on the way, who let his baby mamma bully Delaney, who thought his best course of action to get Delaney to admit she cared was to make her jealous, and IT WORKED.
Oh, my heart. This has angst that makes you feel on the fence on what to think about Delaney and Darren, their past or how things got to the point they are.
I felt bad about Delaney pretty much the entire book and my heart broke for her choosing to live in the same town where the man she loved had to move on with his life with someone else. Add the small town charm/lack of boundaries or privacy and she knew that everyone pitied her for how things turned out. That made me the saddest I think, knowing how lonely she was in a place she used to fit right into.
I understand making mistakes and having to live with the consequences of your actions but there’s a small part of me that wished that Delaney left for a while and lived her life without having the constant reminders of everything she once wanted and didn’t have right in her face every day. That same part thinks that Darren took his sweet time on making his way back to her.
I like the HEA and I get that they are each other’s person but I still feel like Delaney got the short end of the stick and then, . I’m still rating it 3 stars, mostly because I love the found family this series created and everyone’s relationships even if I’m not the biggest fan of D&D getting back together.
Was this a 4 star read? No. I am rating it 4 stars because I feel there are a lot of untrue negative reviews yes.
for my angst cheating loving peeps
* H is a moron but a celibate moron well after his ONS with his baby mama turned wife. I mean they had seperate bedrooms for crying out loud so I have zero idea why he married her. Maybe to show his kid what dysfunctional loveless marriage looked like?🤷♀️🤦♀️
* h she was there😂😂 I dont really feel one way about her or the other she was NOT celibate during this 8 year separation but I also have no idea why she returned to this town that apparently treated her like crap. Unless she's really into pain and enjoys inflicting it upon herself by watching her soulmate marry and raise a kid with someone else. Then I could totally see why she stayed in town🙄
* the break- it was stupid very stupid but unfortunately IMO not cheating since two years in they officially broke up and had zero communication for another 2 years. I will say they made promises to be together and she came back to him engaged with a baby so in the words of Julia Roberts "Big Mistake, Huge!". I mean dude could have at least gave her a heads up.
* For those curious about the one and only time he slept with the ex wife. He was drunk like way drunk and used a condom and it broke oh and it was outside.
So I guess maybe a 3 star story but a 4 star rating since I'm nice like that
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
As expected this was everything i could have ever dreamed of! I swear Hannah wrote it just for me!!! The second chance, dual timeline, the yearning, the LOVE, the HEARTACHE! It was SO GOOD! It was also the perfect ending to the Cherry Peak series. Everyone came together one last time and it was SO perfect.
The love they had for each other was HEARTBREAKINGLY BEAUTIFUL. They were a perfect match in so many ways, they just got lost along the way. It was tough seeing them be apart, and seeing them struggle. It BROKE my heart! They were YOUNG, they wanted to make sure they experienced life, they were so in love but knew they had to grow as individuals! they made BIG mistakes…. But they grew and changed because of the choices they made, the mistakes they made. But also seeing them finally come back together, finally facing each other, finally putting everything on the table!!! Seeing how easily they were able to fall right back into place?? Because they were MEANT TO BE?? They were just so GOOD!
I love this big huge happy family!! I’m so sad to see them go!! But I also know that her universe is VAST and this isn’t the last time we’ll see these characters!
And also I’m already very very excited for what’s coming NEXT!!!!
I don't get it.. I don't get all these 5 star reviews. Did we really read the same book?? Loopholes everywhere. Too many unresolved issues. The OWD? Resolved in a snap. It's like.. The author just got tired of writing the story she just went "F*¢k it!".
H was soooooo weak. If the h is a doormat, so is he. For 600+ page, this was a major boooooore. Could've wrapped up in under 20k words, that's how boring and pointless it was 🙄
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
This just wasn‘t it. The whole break made zero sense to me and felt incredibly forced. And mind you, how can she be back in town for 8 years without running into him at least once??? No no and no. Loved the other ones and I still enjoy the writing style and friendship group but the couple‘s story made little to zero sense to me.🥲
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.