The Incredible Ordinary

by Briar Prescott

Milàn: When I return home after years of avoiding the place, the last thing I expect is to inherit a little brother.
After a chaotic childhood, I’ve built my life around one simple never get tied down. I’m not father material, and raising a thirteen-year-old with a chip on his shoulder and a talent for pushing every one of my buttons sounds like a special kind of hell.
Overnight, my life turns into one long tension headache, and I’m barely keeping it together when an incident at school lands Rory and me squarely in the orbit of Jordan and his son, Theo.
Jordan is everything I’m not. Calm. Collected. Completely in control. The kind of father people look at with barely hidden envy.
Spending time with him isn’t part of the plan. Neither is watching my life slowly start to fall into place.
Bit by bit, I build something resembling a relationship with my brother.
Bit by bit, life becomes… better.
And bit by bit, the friendship between Jordan and me grows into something deeper. The kind of feelings that might just be impossible to ignore.
It’s a bad idea from the start.
I’ve spent my whole life running the moment things start to get complicated.
Jordan knows exactly what it feels like to be left behind.
Getting close to him might be the best thing that’s ever happened to me.
Or the worst mistake we could make.
Because sooner or later we have to decide if we’re brave enough to fight for each other…

Genres: M M Romance, Friends To Lovers, Romance, Slow Burn, Contemporary, Found Family, Contemporary Romance

381 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 24, 2026

About the author

Briar Prescott is a work in progress. She swears too much, doesn’t eat enough leafy greens and binge watches too much television. It’s okay, though. One of these days she'll get a hang of that adulting thing.
Probably.
Maybe.
She hopes.

Want to check in occasionally to hear what's up? You can stalk her here:
Newsletter: https://www.briarprescott.com/contact
Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/briar...
Email: prescottbriar@gmail.com.
Webpage: www.briarprescott.com.

Reviews

[Pauline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is this my new favourite Briar Prescott??

I mean, I feel like I say this with every book of the author I pick up - but I’m pretty sure this actually is my new fav?
Because wow.

The cast here was exceptional:
Milán: a famous, somewhat bitter ex tennis player, always drifting, never staying in one place for long, no real clue who he is or where he’s going.
And suddenly he inherits a little brother. Rory, who’s troubled and hurt and all in all very much a teenager. And Milán is so relatably overwhelmed by this task of raising a thirteen year old he just met.

But then he meets Jordan, who we have actually met in Maybe You (he’s Theo’s dad and quasi brother of Wren). He‘s the complete opposite of Milán: He’s calm and collected and competent. He’s also been a dad for thirteen years already, so has a few tricks up his sleeve. And he’s just so damn kind. And isn’t kindness the most attractive trait a person can have? 🥹

So of course I completely understood why Milán was drawn to him from the first moment. I absolutely adored how they became friends first, inexplicably drawn to each other with that vague feeling of yeah, this is my kind of person. And when it got more? When they started PINING (god, I love me some good pining) and then finally giving in?! Uff, butterflies. So, so many butterflies and the most exciting slow burn tension I’ve read in a long time. GAH 🫦 (this was seriously so hot, omg)

But what made this story extra special to me was everything surrounding Rory. I absolutely adored how Milán - after pulling his head out of his ass - was just rooting so hard for him, became his biggest cheerleader, just like me, and realised that caring? Caring about someone? Yeah, that’s what it’s all about 🥹

I love reading stories like this; about kids finally getting what they deserve: a place to call home, feeling safe, feeling wanted and held and supported. Loved.
And I love reading about adults navigating that, while being supported, held and rooted for themselves.
All the support and care here, shown from so many different people and in so many different ways, just felt like a balm to the soul 🥹

If I had to nitpick something, it would be the more dramatic ending I didn’t see coming in a book like this and I would have loved a few more scenes of Milán and Jordan sharing their love with the world. That’s not enough to lower my rating though, because I enjoyed myself so, SO much overall.

So yeah, if you liked the complicated family dynamics of Tal Bauer‘s You and Me or the heartwarming siblings relationship in Made for You by Anyta Sunday, you won’t regret picking up this book. I’ll even dare say you’ll fall head over heels in love with these four. Just as I did.


Thank you so much to the author for giving me the chance to read this beautiful arc, this is my honest opinion!

[lakshmi · Rating 5 out of 5]

hello👀👀👀

Is giving this book a 5 star rating an impulse decision? NO because this book DESERVES IT💗

this book was emotional, comforting, soft and cozy and funny and SO FREAKING GOOD. I have nothing to say about it except : read it. it’s amazing. This book has officially made Briar Prescott an auto buy author for me!! I’m so excited for every single book , novella, short story, grocery list , hit list - I don’t care. I’ll read it.

The entire cast of characters were exceptional💗💗 down right perfect. I loved every single interaction that occurred in this book and can I just say : the slow burn in this was FIRE 🤌🤌 this is how I want a slow burn to be. Giving me nothing and everything at the same time. The confusion, the fear, the realisation, the acceptance- every aspect was done utterly beautifully 💗🌸 this is why I love reading omg I’m so happy 😭😭

“If I run headfirst into the wall, will it knock some sense into me?”


———————————————————————————————————




don’t want to jinx it but It’s been a streak of good reads for me this past week and I have HIGH hopes for this one because why does it sound ADORABLE???💗💗

[moonlight ☾ [semi-hiatus] · Rating 4 out of 5]

imo Briar Prescott delivers when it comes to writing such good banters and chemistry between the mcs and this was no different. 😌 i really enjoyed the romance and seeing Milàn and Jordan grow close and fall in love as they spend time together, but i think my favorite part of this book was the development between Milàn and Rory and watching their bond grow as we see Milàn make an effort with Rory. i love reading about complicated family dynamics, and complicated characters in general, and it was just heartwarming to see them develop that bond (it reminded me of Tal Bauer’s You & Me a bit, which i loved!!). i also loved seeing Wren and Sutton again, they’re probably my favorite couple in the Until series. 😭🥹

[haletostilinski · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️ 4.5 stars rounded up! ⭐️

I absolutely adored this.

Jordan finally did get this love story and he really IS not straight, just like I wanted 😘

The love of his life is Milán, who starts out seemingly to have a jet setting, wild life, never staying in one place too long. At 35, he's a retired tennis star, and now he has so much money - from his career and his asshole father - that he can just not work, and just travels from place to place. It's seemingly the life he wants - that he tells himself he wants - because then he can never get hurt by anyone, and he can never have anyone promise him anything or him promise anyone anything and so no promises are made or broken.

Clearly, he has trauma from his father, Gerard, who was a shitty, absent father.

But now that father is dead, and when he comes home, his brother Aiden informs him that Gerard had another child, 13 year old Rory whose mother is now dead and whose only other relative, his uncle, is a deadbeat who is constantly in jail - and is in jail currently.

All Rory has as family is Milán and Aiden. And now Aiden is saying that they have to now take in Rory and become his legal guardians. Milán is resistant to the idea, but Aiden persuades him - although Milán says he'll stay for only 1 year while Aiden is doing his fellowship year as a doctor, which is a lot of very long hours for Aiden - and then after that he's gone, back to his usual life.

We then pick up 3 months later as the two older brothers are trying to settle in to taking care of Rory, and to say it's not going so great is an understatement. Rory has obviously been through a lot of shit in his 13 years of life, and he's very resistant to forming any connections with the two brothers, especially Milán as he's the main one taking care of Rory. He also gets into trouble at school and with the law, because he vandalizes things with graffiti.

After one such incident of getting in trouble at school - where he punched another kid and got into a fight with him - Milán is called to the school and the father of the other kid, Theo, who was in the fight...Jordan.

Jordan, who had Theo at 15 years old - and so he's only 28 himself, so young to have a 13 year old - and mainly raises him himself. Kira, Theo's mother lives in California and has a fast going lifestyle in the tech world and who rarely comes to visit, but Theo spends summers and such with her sometimes.

There is an immediate connection between Jordan and Milán. Jordan is so kind and patient and put together - seemingly - and Milán is drawn to him like a moth to a flame. When Jordan suggests that instead of the usual suspension for fighting that the boys work together on their neighborhood soccer team where both Jordan and now Milán would volunteer to help out, it's agreed upon and thus Jordan and Milán start seeing each other more and more, until it's just them hanging out even outside of the soccer deal more than anything.

This book was so SO damn good at showing the connection between these two, and showing them fall in love. These two were so into each other from the very start. The romance was *chefs kiss* absolutely top notch, and the UST was off the charts. And Milán, who seemed so closed off and angry at first, just...totally melted around Jordan. He just became so so enamored and it was absolutely heart meltingly good to read it. Even Rory, before he became less closed off, made fun of Milán a little bit for his pretty obvious crush on Jordan.

Jordan did think he was straight before Milán, so it took him a bit longer to realize he was not just gaining a best friend, but someone he was interested in romantically and sexually. He has been with women since Kira, but he's never dated anyone else, and Milán is the first man he's ever been interested in. So of course it took him a bit longer to realize what he was feeling. Although Milán just told himself it was lust and attraction at first, as he was scared of a real connection. But he was very aware of feeling some type of way for Jordan almost immediately.

I just loved basically everything about this. Even Rory and Theo, the kids, felt integral to the narrative and took up a decent amount of page time but didn't overwhelm it either, and we got to know them pretty well as they themselves became best friends as their dad and brother were falling in love with each other.

My only reason for .5 off is that I really wish we had gotten a bit more smut. These two kissed a lot and THAT was great and amazing, but we didn't get a whole lot of the sex. They do take their time, which is perfectly fine, and it was very sweet and romantic, and it made sense for them to go slow as they were both so skittish in their own ways, for different reasons.

But once they got more and more comfortable, I wanted more. They don't have full on penetrative sex until 80% into this, and that's the only penetrative sex scene we get. We get a blowjob scene or two, a handjob....so not nothing....but not nearly enough, especially for how much amazing chemistry these two had and how explosive and passionate they were. Their love was deep and intense and we felt that throughout this, so...the amount of sex/passion to match that would have been great to see.

Also a small niggle is that I kind of wish the epilogue hadn't been from Theo's POV. Don't get me wrong, I love Theo, he's a sweetie and we got some sweet moments that he observed of Milán and Jordan together, but...I just feel that this deserved Milán or Jordan's POV for the the epilogue. We could have learned a bit more about their HEA too - like I don't know, are they still boyfriends, engaged, married? They obviously live together, but is that it? Did Milán adopt Rory, maybe? - if we'd been in their POV.

Or hell, maybe Theo could have thought that? "When they got married it was wonderful" or something, I don't know. Some indication of where they are aside from being obviously living together and happy, of course.

It wasn't too big of a deal, but still, I do think Theo being our epilogue POV was a bit out of place. Unless this author plans for him to have his romance next? (In the epilogue he and Rory are 18 and graduating high school, so..) but it didn't feel like a "this is set up for the next character's romance" epilogue, so I don't know.

Anyway, the sex aspect and epilogue in the end are not too big of a deal so I settled for just .5 stars off.

The romance was still absolutely top tier, I love love loved all the characters in this, I felt so much for our MC's as well as Rory and Theo, they were woven into the story so well, and Aiden too - him getting a love story wouldn't be so bad just saying... - and I just couldn't put this down, it was so well done.

I cannot wait for more from this author, I absolutely am in love with her work. I feel she just gets better and better at writing. And I'm so so happy Jordan got such a wonderful love interest in Milán and they got their beautiful HEA.

So, until the next one! Can't wait! 🥰

[martina (the life of a chaotic reader) · Rating 3 out of 5]

a wonderful book ruined by the darkest moment.

this is amazing IF i completely ignore some things:
-the random pov. it’s a pet peeve of mine, but it drives me crazy.
-the time jump. also very personal, also drives me crazy.
-the ex (and the only woman on this story) painted like a bitch because she *checks note* didn’t want a child at the grand age of 14 and wanted to live her life. shocker. send her to jail immediately. i generally didn’t like how she was painted and the fact that she apparently disappeared into the void because we simply didn’t hear about her anymore? okay?
-what the actual fuck was that darkest moment. not the crazy uncle with the murder attempt come on. it sticks out like a sore thumb in this kind of book. could’ve done literally anything else.
-rory. he was painted like a victim of abuse, acting terrified of everything but he was planning the fake kidnapping all the time? shouldn’t he have acted like a golden child then? they simply ignored all of that and i was so damn confused. we needed a therapist for the child in both cases. idk. i’m still confused. definitely don’t understand this choice.

so, i guess 3 stars is a lot.
what can i say, i’m apparently becoming kinder.
it pisses me off that this could’ve been a wonderful book, but it just wasn’t planned well.

[Georgie-who-is-Sarah-Drew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Difficult one.

Most of this story is a cheerful plot-free romance— Milán falling in love with stability, Jordan and parenting his half-brother. Everyone is nice. I'm absolutely not dissing this, because Nice and Stability and Romance are, at the moment, excellent things.

It's just that the niggles, individually slight, add up to a less than excellent overall read. Some of them are cosmetic—the proof-reading of the MC's name (spelled inconsistently 20+ times); the tortured MC on the cover suffering from constipation or haemorrhoids (it's not clear which).

The real annoyances are, I'm afraid, down to Prescott (and maybe her editor). The first is a pacing thing—the drama compressed into the last 15% of the book. I say 'drama', but what I actually mean is manufactured nonsense, none of it prefigured, and all of it unnecessary.

The second is untidiness & lots of loose ends.
— Milán (a retired world-class tennis player) has Grand Slam, ATP Finals, Wimbledon titles & an Olympic gold. But we never find out why he retired, why he has nothing to do with tennis any more.
— Jordan's ex-partner Kira, mother of their son, is a highly successful professional—but we never find out if she's paying child support.
— She makes a play for Jordan every time her own relationships end, and we never find out how she reacts to his new love. NB—she's the ONLY woman in the book—not very balanced, that.
— Milán's half-brother, Rory, insists on giving away a dog he has longed for. We never find out why.
— Milán's other half-brother Aiden, introduced at the start, has an "important fellowship" to pursue, but it's not important enough to explain he's actually a neuro-surgeon till 75% of the way through. He keeps taking up page time, though, with no plot function.

And the final nail in the three-star coffin is all Prescott, and her liberally splattered love of the over-blown drama that is the one sentence paragraph.

My heart picks up speed.

Will I? Really?

Is this what I want?

I don’t know.

I…

Maybe?

I might.

I could.

Maybe I do want that.

It’s not a resounding yes.

But it’s not a resounding no either.

Or—

He’s rambling.

It’s cute.

I’m floating on air.

“Where do you want to go?” he asks.

“Anywhere.”

I step closer and slide my hand into his.

He looks down at our linked fingers.

And kisses me.

Right there on the street.

And I don’t mind.

Because it feels just right.

Once, Prescott, yes. Twice, even.

But.

There.

Are.

Limits.

—————

The following are credited:
Editing: Kate Wood
Proofreading: Heather Caryn
Cover design: Cormar Covers
Cover image: Wander Aguiar

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

God, I loved this so much it made me look stupid.

THE PREMISE: it’s like You & Me .. but funny, and with a tennis backstory and soccer.

TROPES & VIBES:
- Epic displays of found family and sweet domestic scenes
- One of my new fave Briar Prescott books. Her banter is truly unmatched
- Forever triggered with the “why does nobody ever want me” character arc
- Reformed rake and tennis champ x single dad who works two jobs who loves his kid and never stops
- Slow burn x bi-awakening
- “Oops my dad died and I just inherited a teenage brother I don’t know existed ??”
- I loved the Wren and Sutton scenes. They’re my ride or die Briar couple.

4.75⭐️ 1-2🌶️

[Grace · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was fine? People lose their minds over this author, and I think they are just OK, TBH. Their writing style is a little too "try hard to be deep" and they really need an editor to cut their work down, especially because they often have an unnecessarily dramatic flourish thrown in for no reason -- we could have cut out at least 25% to tighten things up. Takes place in NYC, but I want my NYC books to feel like they take place in the city, and this very much did not and I often found myself shocked when the author would mention a location and I remembered this was supposed to be in THE city and not some random town/small city. The relationship here was fine? I thought the POVs started to sound too similar, Jordan's freak-out towards the end felt a little too overblown (as did the resulting Rory drama), and I kind of found the whole thing to be, well, incredibly ordinary. Not one that will stay with me.

[Em Jay · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.50 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

I have been patiently waiting for Jordan’s book since reading the wonderful Maybe You and while I did enjoy it, it pains me to say that I didn’t enjoy it as much as I expected or wanted to.

For starters, I did not expect Jordan‘s book would mostly be from the perspective of the other MC. The story is told mostly in 35-year-old Milan’s point of view, as he grapples with becoming a guardian to his 13-year-old little brother he only discovered existed at the time of his father‘s death. A narcissistic father, he did not have a high regard for, at that. Milan and his 34-year-old brother Aiden become guardians to Rory, their new little brother, when it’s discovered Rory has no family other than a loser uncle living in Nevada. With Aiden finishing school, the brunt of the caregiving falls on Milan, much to his dismay. Milan and Jordan cross paths when there’s an altercation between Rory and Theo at school. 28-year-old Jordan has an air of calm, confidence, and warmth that makes it hard for Milan to resist, despite the fact that he keeps any type of real relationship, of any kind, at arms length.

I’ve seen a few comments that compare this story to Tal Bauer’s You & Me. While there are many similarities, I would say these are very different stories in the way they are approached. Let me start with what I liked…

- First off Jordan is such an amazing character. He was so wildly likable in Maybe You and that extends completely in his own story. Despite his age, and becoming a single father at 15 years old, he has such a maturity, love, and appreciation for the life that he has.

- I also enjoyed that him having feelings for a man was a very moot point in the book. Outside of a few thoughts pondering the idea, Jordan jumps in with both feet when he realizes he’s attracted to Milan. So often these self discovery stories include a lot of turmoil at what it all means, so it was nice to read something that didn’t focus on that really at all.

- In that same vein, there is no big coming out scene in the story. Again, I did appreciate that Jordan discovering being into a man wasn’t the main focus of his story. (Ironically I did have some issues with there being no coming out scene, but more so because I feel like it left loose ends.)

- I really enjoyed the relationship between Milan, Aiden, and Rory. I liked watching their little family find their footing.

- It was also a plus getting to see a happy Wren and Sutton living their life with the family as well.

Now onto what I didn’t like as much…

- I did like Milan as a character, but sometimes I had a hard time getting a read on him. I feel like some of the characterization for him was a bit messy. He’s supposed to be a former famous tennis player, with endless money who is completely detached from the world and travels around doing whatever he wants. The person we see in this book is often hard to connect to that persona. I felt like a case of telling, but what was getting shown was very different.

- This is a very quiet, subdued, love story, which I love, but sometimes it felt like something was lacking. The chemistry between Jordan and Milan was very well done, but despite this being a slow burn I didn’t get the emotional gut punch I wanted to when they finally come together.

- This is small and petty, but their “hiding“ was laughable because they were doing such a terrible job at it. What do you mean you’re hiding your relationship but going on a weekend trip alone together? 😆😆😆 I think this is why the lack of discovery scene bugged me, because that family was nosy as hell in Wren’s book, so how are they not all over Jordan when it’s his turn?

- My biggest gripe is the ending. This overdramatic, gun-down scene with this insane uncle, and money scheme plot, was so left field I couldn’t get over it. It just really did not go with the tone of the book at all, and was completely unnecessary to the plot. Although very brief, it was just such a miss it definitely went into my rating.

- Although we get some Reny, Wren, and Sutton, I had really hoped we would get more.

- The plot with Kira, and her characterization, was odd. I don’t know I felt like it kind of went in a weird direction that I wasn’t loving. She wasn’t painted as a villain, but she was painted in what I would call less than savory light.

- Again, this is a subdued story, which I enjoy and appreciate, but I do wish there was more of a climax to it. The argument between Jordan and Milan was overshadowed by the insane uncle plot, so I just didn’t feel like the happy ending packed the punch I was waiting for.

Overall, this was an enjoyable read and a really lovely story. I just wanted to be obsessed with it and unfortunately I walked away wanting more. Briar is still an automatic read author for me, and that has not changed one bit 🫶🏼🫶🏼🫶🏼

[Vanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

At this point, Briar Prescott has firmly become one of my favorite authors. She has an incredible ability to make her characters feel deeply relatable—no matter how different their lives may be from ours. Their trauma feels personal, their joy feels earned, and their struggles resonate in a way that stays with you long after you’ve finished the book.
The Incredible Ordinary doesn’t feel like a traditional, plot-heavy story. Instead, it unfolds as a series of small, meaningful moments that come together to form a beautiful journey of growth for both Milan and Jordan.
Milan, a retired pro tennis player, is living a carefree, no-strings-attached life—until everything changes when he becomes the reluctant guardian of his thirteen-year-old half-brother, Rory, from an estranged father. Suddenly thrust into a role he feels completely unprepared for, Milan struggles with the weight of responsibility and the loss of his freedom.
Amid this transition, he meets Jordan—a young, single father to Theo. Their first meeting isn’t exactly smooth, but thanks to their kids being thrown together through soccer, proximity slowly turns into friendship… and then something deeper. What I loved most was how natural their relationship felt. The ease of their conversations, the comfort they find in each other, and their effortless chemistry made their connection incredibly believable and heartwarming.
Of course, both characters bring their own emotional baggage—Milan’s fear of losing his independence and Jordan’s lingering insecurities. Watching them navigate these challenges and figure out whether they can build a future together felt authentic and rewarding.
The banter was sharp and funny, the emotional moments hit just right, and the overall story struck a perfect balance between heartwarming and lighthearted. It’s one of those books that quietly sneaks up on you and leaves a lasting impression.
Another absolute winner from BP. I truly hope this turns into a series—I’d love to see a story for Aiden next. Highly recommended. 👍👍

[Monikat · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful ode to ordinary people.
Incredibly powerful in its peacefulness. Incredibly loud in its quiet. This is a book about love worked for and received freely.
Briar Prescott's writing is as stunning as ever, her banter and wit unmatched.
A gorgeous story
*Listen to Alex Warren's song Ordinary.
It gives the book (more) life.

[amina · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s Briar Prescott people, so not much needs to be said💔
Such a tender type of love between the MCs, I loved it🥰

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

Loved their relationship and all the family thing but I can’t say I loved that book and that pains me a lot. I am starting to think that some writers choose to write MM because they dislike women. Didn’t think this was the case of this writer but I was wrong. Kira is written as the « bad » parent who abandoned her family because she had ambition and who throws money at people to make up for not being here. She’s honestly portrayed as a caricature by both Jordan and Theo. We don’t know anything about her, about her feelings, she’s just here as an obstacle basically. It wouldn’t be a problem if she wasn’t the only female character in the book. The love story would have worked without writing her that way so why? I don’t read MM because I hate women, I love women actually, and you can write a gay love story and have plenty of great women characters. Any writer who can’t do it is just lazy or misogynistic. I am not pretending this is not also a problem in regular romance, but I expect way more from writers of queer romance.

So yeah really disappointed, I used to love this writer. But she’s getting a spot on my do not read shelf I guess.

[Bookreader87(Amanda) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stay

3.5 stars

I enjoy this others book and there were moments I absolutely loved in this one but overall it felt a little choppy. I needed more in the epilogue and I would have liked more relationship time with Milan and Jordan. The whole thing with the uncle was a little out there and a bit unnecessary. Still it was a decent read. I will alway pick up this author's books.

FRTC

[Evelyn Bella (there WILL be spoilers) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jordan is a literal 'pick me'. And I mean that with no negative connotations whatsoever. Finally an MC who just asks for what he wants, rather than doing the whole stiff upper lip thing.

I could name a few MCs who'd just grin and bear it then hold on to resentment for 16 years thus resulting in those second chance romances I love to hate.

If there's one thing I appreciated about this book, it's that issues got resolved without dragging them out. The bi-awakening, Rory's disappearance, the fight.

This is what I expect from friends to lovers stories, because yes, there might be some big hurt feelings, maybe a few raised voices but the issues were discussed....when they became an issue, lol.

I've also been really slow to pick this up because I generally dislike kids in romance because they're so meddlesome with their precocious commentary and I'm glad to report that I need not have worried.

Yes, they're there but they're old enough to be left alone for long stretches and not ONCE do they offer an opinion on the relationship.

Seriously. Not once. I've never been happier not to see a talkative toddler.

And they knew.

“And here I thought we were being discreet.”
“No,” Rory says.

Apparently the trick to this is to let the kids have their own lives so that they're not vicariously living through their fathers and trying to hook them up with unsuspecting neighbours who already have too much going on.

Seriously, though. I expected to hate the kid stuff but they had plotlines beyond just being humans that exist in the MC's homes. I liked the whole black cat vs golden retriever dynamic Theo and Rory had going on.

Did I enjoy this a lot more than I expected? Absolutely.

That said. Two complaints. I saw the title and figured okay, that's just a title and while I'm board for it 100% irl, their love IS incredibly ordinary. And I mean that with negative connotations.

It's very sweet BUT it feels like it could be your neighbour's love story. Well. Maybe not the part where your neighbour is some retired pro tennis player but the rest of it.

I'm used to big drama, big emotions, big confrontations from Briar. This felt like I was reading a Riley Hart book.

Secondly, after all the goodwill this built up from handling children in romance in a great way where they're people with their own lives and not just an extension of either MC that pops up at inconvenient times to make comments wise beyond their years.......the epilogue was from Theo's POV?

Sigh.

[Theodore · Rating 1 out of 5]

Possibly spoilery but this book reminded me of Silent is the Heart by Dianna Roman and Fauxmance in the Falls by J.E. Birk with how wildly the third act went and I did not enjoy those books either.

It's wild that I'm rating a Briar Prescott book 1.5 stars rounded down, but I guess I am because the first 85% was mediocre and I hated how the last 15% of this book went.

I have lots of thoughts that I'm mainly documenting here for future Theo, so I don't have to wonder why I rated one of my favorite author's books so poorly and force myself to re-read in the future.

Here are the notes I wrote as I was reading.

Super weird to not show us Milàn and Rory starting to live together. There was so much emphasis on Milàn not wanting to take care of him, you'd think it would've been important to actually see the start if that. Instead we get a lazy summary just telling us that he and Rory have butted heads for three whole months already. Why not show us those months? Why just tell us that "everything with Rory was a battle" when we could've seen Rory being combative and how Milàn dealt with that?

Not sure I was a fan of Milàn and Jordan telling each other about their deeply personal problems on their second meeting. I guess it was sort of justified, but idk, talking about how your GF left you because she wanted to go to college and you thought you were going to stay together seems like it would be a topic reserved for closer friends.

Milàn and Rory suddenly acting all buddy buddy after one soccer practice was kinda wild imo. Their relationship in general felt very underbaked since we didn't see how they started AND Milàn just randomly decided to be Rory's cheerleader (of which even he explicitly states he didn't know why). I feel like this would've been a deeper, more effective dynamic of both Milàn and Rory actually committed to not liking each other but slowly warming up through forced proximity of the soccer games. That's kinda what was set up here, but their dynamic shifts way too quickly to have it be believable. Rory should've been actively belligerent in his first session, then a bit more cooperative in subsequent ones until something happens that forced him to interact with both Milàn and Theo that finally breaks the ice, not just a single session where Milàn breaks through to Rory because he acted like Rory was good at something. Don't get me wrong, that scene where Milàn praises Rory on his speed was good, but it was just too early for me to believe that:
- Rory would've taken it as a compliment as opposed to an attack
- Milàn would've gained feelings of pride towards Rory because there was no reason for him to suddenly believe in the inherent value of family given his own personal experiences. I mean he literally was willing to leave Rory to the foster care system just three months ago, and he'd supposedly been non-cooperative in their time together so why exactly was he now suddenly trying to gain clout with this rude, troublemaking teen?


The super short scenes during the chapters where Rory gets arrested were very distracting. Idk why they needed to be chopped up so much or why they even needed explicit separators when it was only cutting out driving/waiting. The author could've just said that time passed without the need for the horizontal line dividers. Also, I did not understand why Jordan stuck with Milàn throughout that entire scene. Them going to the station was fine, but Jordan going into Milàn's apartment as Milàn was going to discipline Rory was uber weird (Milàn asking him to stay after he already gone in was sort of understandable, but Jordan really shouldn't have been there in the first place)

Ok, despite me not really jiving with the fact that the story sort of bungles Milàn and Rory's dynamic, that fake kiss scene between Milàn and Jordan came just in time for me to not DNF this. I also really liked how Jordan came out and said he was feeling confused after the fake kiss but Milàn told him he was just pent up from not having had sex in a while, echoing Jordan's idea that he might have just been turned on by the physical contact.

I liked the tension when Jordan came home from the good date. It was honestly sort of shocking for him to have seen Milàn just smelling his clothes like that, though I feel like it wasn't too outrageous. I didn't like how the scene abruptly cuts when they say they needed to talk though. Very very weird choice to end the chapter just as they were going to discuss what exactly was going on between them. At the very least, it could've just ended with them agreeing to sleep on things rather than the sudden end. That's about all the good I can say about their relationship as the book goes on though.

I feel like there was something wrong with the set up for Milàn and Jordan's relationship. The way they talk about Milàn being ok with helping Jordan explore his sexuality as friends sort of felt like it ignored the fact that they'd both already indicated emotional attraction to each other? That sort of "I'll help you ease into your exploration of gay sex" only really feels like it works when at least one of the characters aren't aware of their feelings for each other. Milàn and Jordan did already know, so them acting like it was just going to be a casual teaching experience felt very off since it was a very big downgrade from "I have a crush on you". Their issues were:
- Milàn was scared that he wouldn't be able to do the relationship thing with Jordan because he'd never been comfortable in one, and he was scared that trying to be Jordan's boyfriend was going to crash and burn and ruin their friendship.
- Jordan was worried that he wasn't going to actually like gay sex considering he'd never been attracted to a man before AND he'd already done the "dating my best friend" thing which ended poorly.

Them suddenly agreeing to "exploring" felt like it addressed none of those (both of which they vocalized during their date), so the whole conversation felt very very odd as they came to a conclusion that didn't actually line up with their concerns.

Then later, Jordan says it's not just sex and it's become this "we're not labeling what we are" thing, which makes sense but really just emphasized how weird the whole "just explore with me" talk earlier was and the story should've just started with the "no labels" thing instead.

Wasn't a fan of the whole "don't curse in front of the kids" thing either, especially when Jordan pulled it after just seeing Rory get grabbed by and fight off his uncle.

Uh, wow. That weird-ass third act kind of got me. I didn't think I was going to rate this book a less than a 2, but man was that bad. Jordan continually ignoring Milàn's words saying that he wasn't going to leave was so badly executed, it was insane. Maybe it would have made sense if Jordan's fear of being left alone by people he cared about was developed more with more concrete examples showing how deeply scared he was of that, but that fear isn't really emphasized at all throughout the story (there were no scenes showing Jordan as anxious when people he cared about left, just one anecdote about Kira all those years ago and she disappears after one scene), so him suddenly crashing out over something Aidan drunkenly told him was INSANE. I mean there wasn't even plausible deniability that he could latch onto and assume that Milàn was lying to him and planning on leaving (no hidden plane tickets, looking at websites for houses back in the UK, etc.) so I honestly don't understand why the author chose to have him react that way. Now, when Rory heard that, it was understandable considering he was shown (albeit kinda poorly) to have a fear of abandonment BUT even that was annoying because it came from an irrational Jordan telling him. The story just telling us about how badly he hurt when Kira left after the crash out was soooooo poorly timed because we should've seen that before he started acting irrational to justify his emotions. It just felt like a very poor melodramatic excuse to add conflict in an otherwise fluffy relationship.

I'm not even going to dignify Rory's uncle suddenly holding him at gunpoint with a response.

Actually, I am.

What the actual fuck? Why was that the climax this author chose to go with? There was like one scene prior where the uncle showed up (like at 75%), but up until then he was literally not a physical issue. Rory's whole spiel was supposed to be a fear of abandonment, so him being scared that he was going to be sent back to his uncle made sense when you put it in context that "They're sending me back because they don't want me" and not "my uncle is actually crazy, please don't send me back because I fear for my life." You're telling me the author chose to have their big, climatic moment to be a freaking out of nowhere hostage situation with a character that hadn't been a main player for a MAJORITY of the book??? Why. There were so many better ways of forcing a confrontation between Milàn, Jordan, and Rory that would've been more grounded AND emotional. At the very least, I think swapping Rory in for Jordan in hearing Aiden's drunken confession about Milàn's original plans of leaving would've made so much more sense given Rory had already been characterized as being insecure and him looking for any hint that he was going to be abandoned (however irrational) would've been more believable than Mr. OTT "I haven't been characterized to be scared of abandonment" Jordan. Speaking of which, Jordan needed to show way more trauma and anxiety around abandonment to justify the mental breakdown he had in the book, which means that I think there needed to be more explicit insecurity between him and Milàn in their relationship (which there really wasn't because it was just mainly smooth sailing).

The whole hostage/kidnapping climax needed to be left on the cutting room floor and changed in favor of something more sentimental that optimally didn't involve a random side character holding people at gun point for money. Maybe Milàn actually does leave then realizes he had everything he wanted with Jordan and Rory then has to grovel when he realizes his mistake? Sure, the whole book would need to be restructured to lead up to that, but the story needed more conflict in the middle anyway, so having Milàn's underdeveloped desire for freedom could've been used as a point of contention.

The book fails as a story about family because Rory's affections aren't hard fought, his defensiveness and antagonism basically go away after one slightly meaningful scene between him and Milàn, AND Milàn never has to go through explicit character growth to move past his own personal trauma around the concept of family to begin accepting Rory as someone to care for.

The book doesn't do a good job as a character-focused story because the MCs' individual journeys felt like they were just afterthoughts.
- Milàn's initial reluctance over being a father figure and hangups over what family meant to him basically go away as the book progresses without Milàn needing to fight himself over any of it because he just passively starts to care about Rory.
- Jordan's fears over Kira trying to take Theo stop when she literally disappears after the first fake kiss so there's literally nothing else going on on his side other than his supposed fear of abandonment (which doesn't get developed enough) and his sexual awakening (which wasn't a super big plot point because it was just the bog standard "Am I bi?" thing that didn't even affect their relationship once they started)

So the story isn't about Milàn learning the value of family or Jordan having to fight for his kid/dealing with abandonment/learning his sexuality, meaning all that's left is the romance. That's at least executed fine, but it had some rough parts as well imo, particularly with the tropes it was trying to use and how the MCs resolved them to get together. Milàn's fear of ruining his friendship because of his hangups over long term relationships and Jordan's fear of not being actually compatible with men and also not wanting to ruin his friendship was not adequately solved by Milàn suggesting Jordan "explore" his attraction with him. It was more believably addressed when they went down the "no labels" route since that at least justifies the cognitive dissonance because "what's to break up if we're not together" but it was messy since that wasn't what they started with. It was also generally just pretty fluffy since both Milàn and Jordan were relatively level headed and neither of them did anything that put their relationship in jeopardy (minus Jordan losing his mind at the third act breakup).


TL;DR: The book felt super unfocused. The blurb makes it sound like the focus was going to be Milàn's hard fought journey of raising a prickly Rory and using that as a vehicle to carry his romance with Jordan as they spend time together, but it isn't. The chip on Rory's shoulder goes away super quickly and Milàn is apparently just a natural at parenting despite his own lack of role models growing up, so there was no real premise on which this romance was being moved forward other than "Milàn and Jordan really like each other". The romance itself is super fluffy because Jordan's anxiety over his sexuality never has an impact on the actual relationship and Milàn doesn't express anxiety after he realizes that Jordan was actually into him. The tension in the romance does show up through one of the worst third act breakups I've read, which is then followed by a mind-boggling climax that had no business being here. 1.5 stars rounded down.

[Papie · Rating 4 out of 5]

So sweet and lovely! I adored Jordan and Milan.

Why not 5 stars?
- Although it can be read as a standalone, it’s really a spinoff from Maybe You, and I wish I had known.
- the drama at the end was SO unnecessary. Especially in a book named The Incredible Ordinary.

[Renée · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 stars

[Nanilya · Rating 4 out of 5]

4⭐

Overall, this was a good book with great characters. Jordan was amazing. I liked Milán, and the kids were nice, too.
I love stories where children find a wonderful family and can finally live a good life.

However, the slow burn was too drawn out. We didn't find out that Milán was into men until halfway through the book. I thought they were great friends, but honestly, I didn't feel the difference between their friendship and their relationship. I missed something, but I don't know exactly what.

Then, around the 75% mark, we learn that Milán is supposed to be a famous tennis player with many Grand Slam victories, especially at Wimbledon, and that he has a greater career than his dad. Basically, the guy is like Rafael Nadal. But no one recognizes him anywhere. Not even Jordan knows him. I mean, Come on! Why is Briar telling us this? If he won those titles, he must have 15 million in his bank account. It's a small detail, but I don't like it when things aren't realistic.

The ending was awful and disappointed me a lot.

I was waiting for a coming-out scene that almost never happened. I wish we had seen Aiden, Wren, Sutton, and Remy's reactions to it, but no such luck.

I also wish we had more scenes with Rory and Theo because they're like enemies-turned-BFFs, but we never see them talk together.

Overall, I enjoyed the book, but I have mixed feelings about the above points.

[Ariana (mostly offline) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4,5 stars

Thoroughly enjoyed this one.
Interesting themes on parenthood, settling down and how to cope with teenagers.
I appreciated that the emphasis here is on the relationship development, while parenting issues and teenagers aren't overpowering on page time.

I really liked the mature views and ideas that come across, and that neither man is taking their attraction lightly. Loved Jordan's sexual awakening and Milan's character development, in particular.

The drama in the last 20% or so is maybe a tad over the top, but I didn't mind too much.
Another great book by this author.

[Caz · Rating 4 out of 5]

B / 4 stars

I’m a fan of Briar Prescott’s and, after the disappointment of The Island , was looking forward to a return to form with The Incredible Ordinary. And mostly she manages it – the story is less overblown and the romance is more believable - but there are a number of inconcistencies and omissions that pull the book out of the 5 star “exceptional” bracket and into the 4 star “good” one.

When the story begins, we meet Milàn Corbin, former pro tennis player, as he’s en route to his childhood home for his father’s funeral. It’s clear right away that he and his dad didn’t have a good relationship; Milàn is waspish and resentful and wants nothing more than to get back to his life of travelling around aimlessly and doing nothing, but those plans are bought to a screeching halt when his half-brother Aiden informs him that they have another half-brother and that he needs Milàn to stick around for a while. Rory is thirteen years old and Aiden only found out about him after their father’s death; the boy has nobody other than a deadbeat uncle in prison and has nowhere to go, and Aiden wants to do the right thing by him and become his legal guardian. But he can’t do it alone; he has one year left to run of his fellowship and won’t be able to devote enough time to taking care of Rory, so he asks Milàn to give him one year – one year until his fellowship is done and then he can swan off back to his old life of indolence and luxury.

Milàn agrees to stick around, although has no idea what he’s doing. Rory is surly, secretive and uncommunicative – he’s obviously been through some shit in his young life and is resistant to forming any connection with his brothers, especially Milàn, who is his main caretaker. Things get off to a rocky start, and they get rockier when Milàn gets a call from Rory’s school asking him to come in for a meeting because Rory has got into a fight with another boy.

Jordan Wilsson (son of Remy, who appeared in Maybe You ) became a father at fifteen and has been a single parent for the best part of his son Theo’s life. His ex, Kira, has a successful career in California and visits occasionally, and Jordan and Theo live with Remy in what is, Milàn immediately senses, a happy, well-adjusted family unit – unlike whatever is going on with him, Rory and Aiden. When discussing what consequences the boys should face for their fight, Jordan comes up with the idea that they should both join the youth soccer team he helps out at; they need to learn how to cooperate and behave in a civilised manner and playing together would be a good way of encouraging those things. Jordan suggests that maybe Milàn could volunteer to help out at the twice weekly practices, too.

Milàn agrees to the suggestion and from that point on, he and Jordan begin spending time together at the practices and then just hanging out together outside them. The author does a terrific job here of developing their friendship – their chemistry and connection leap off the page from the moment they meet – and the slow-burn romance that ensues is full of longing and off-the-charts UST. Milàn realises he’s catching feelings quite a while before Jordan does – even though he tries to tell himself it’s just lust and only a casual interest - but he already knows he’s bi (or pan?), whereas Jordan, who hasn’t dated much since Kira, has never thought he’s anything other than straight, so it takes him a bit longer to recognise his feelings for Milàn as attraction. When he does, though, the move from friendship to more feels completely natural – they’re clearly head-over-heels for each other but the way they interact doesn’t change (other than the sex of course!) and I appreciated that; the day-to-day stuff they do, like eating together, taking the boys out together, just hanging out together, is so baked in to their relationship that they’ve fallen in love and become family without even realising it.

The main source of conflict is, of course, that Milàn had not intended to stick around past the year he agreed to, but fortunately, this is sorted out fairly quickly. Unfortunately, however, the author then opts to take a bus to crazytown to inject some drama and delivers a ridiculously over the top plot point that is such a massive tonal shift as to be whiplash-inducing.

If I can separate that incident out from the rest of the book, I liked that The Incredible Ordinary is, well, ordinary, a character-driven slice-of-life story. I enjoyed the found-family theme; Theo and Rory are believable teens and while they have a fair amount of page time, they don’t overwhelm the story or detract from the romance. The friends-to-lovers romance is really well done, the chemistry between Milàn and Jordan is sizzling, the dialogue is funny and insightful by turns, and the two leads are likeable and well-drawn.

BUT. With all that said, I have quite a few niggles. The setting is not well-developed – I had to keep reminding myself that the story takes place in NYC, and while I’m not from there, I’ve read enough books by authors who are (C.S Poe springs to mind) to be able to tell when the city, as a setting, is not well utilised. Milàn (or Milán – the accent isn’t always the same) is a thirty-five year old former/retired tennis pro with an impressive list of titles (Grand Slams, Olympic Gold) but we never find out why he retired or why he’s not involved in any way, shape or form, with the sport any longer. Jordan’s ex, Kira, is a highly successful professional, who decides to make a play for Jordan every time her own relationships end and who, it’s clear, Jordan worries about wanting to take Theo back home with her – but none of this is really explored. We’re told that Aiden has a year left of his fellowship - hence his need for Milàn to step up and be involved in Rory’s life – but it’s not clear what that fellowship is or why it means Aiden needs Milàn to stick around. Also, I’m not sure about the decision to have the five-years-in-the-future epilogue told from Theo’s perspective – what was it meant to accomplish? There are other odds and ends that I’d have liked to have been tied up or explained, but that’s already a long list, so I’ll stop there.

Despite my criticisms I did enjoy The Incredible Ordinary – the romance is lovely and the fantastic chemistry between the leads just leaps off the page – I just wish there hadn’t been so many loose ends, and I could really have done without the unnecessary melodrama near the end. But the good does outweigh the bad in this case, and I’ll be back for whatever Briar Prescott comes up with next.

[Emelie · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are reasons Briar Prescott is an auto-buy for me—this is yet another reason. I wanted to highlight so much more than I did!

One thing that drew me in from the very first book I read by Briar was the absolute genius, hilarious, and smart banter that always is. I love it! I'd choose clever banter over plot 9 times out of 10. Safe to say, Briar did it again. I could read pages upon pages with just dialogues from all of the characters that come from Briar's brain.

I loved these characters. I loved how absolutely accurate the teenager portrayal was! I felt it!! The lingo, the eye-rolls... Perfection!

If I had to mention something I didn't absolutely love, it's just a small side plot that happens in the end, which didn't really make that much sense to me, and at least for me, that could've been skipped, but it was small enough I can see past it.


Review of advance copy received by author.

[Valen · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is one of my auto-buy authors and this is their first book that I haven’t loved. I found the pacing odd, some characters behaviours unexplainable, the big “dark” moment at the end was baffling, and most importantly, I was kind of bored throughout.

[Teeny · Rating 3 out of 5]

This started great! Loved all the characters, main and secondary, loved the banter between all of them and even the bit of angst was fine. The book felt like a beautiful autumn afternoon, wrapped in a blanket while sitting in a cozy armchair and watching the sunset with a hot beverage. It was so lovely.

But then I noticed that I was at the 75% and things between Milàn and Jordan were repetitive and there was absolutely in all those pages not any kind of substantial development between Milàn and Rory.

I'm sorry but when a story has an underage character, especially with a role like Rory's character, I'm expecting to see a relationship developing! Milàn did just the bare minimum to establish the thinnest of connection with Rory! And frankly every time Milàn talked with Jordan about going away with no consideration to Rory it was frustrating because that showed no commitment from his part. And he never, ever dug to see why Rory said what he said, why he was insisting on "giving away" Dog, nothing!

Yes this is a romance but not developing the familial connection at all was disappointing.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.

[Ellie ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5⭐️

This book felt so special. I’m a huge fan of Briar Prescott and once again I was completely hooked from start to finish. Friends-to-lovers, single dad, found family and slow burn, it’s like this book was made for me.

I loved Jordan and Milán so much. I love them as people, I love them together, I love them as a dad, as a brother, as friends and then as something more. Their relationship felt so soft and so real, they took their time and it was worth it.

This story is full of emotions, there are real struggles, things to work through, but also so much love and care, amazing main and side characters and great communication. And I loved seeing Wren and Sutton again!

The epilogue from Theo’s POV made me tear up, they are such a beautiful and supportive family.

This is the first book I’ve fully enjoyed since my 4-month reading slump started in November, so it means a lot to me. I truly loved it!

[J.E. Benoit · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Stars

My life is messier than ever before, but it doesn’t feel it. It’s almost as if the mess is a worthwhile tradeoff.
You’re a disaster, but here, have some Jordan in your life.
I’ll take that deal. No hesitation.

I thought this was just lovely. The title is very fitting because the book did a great job of showing just how incredible the ordinary things in life can be when you have the right people to share them with. Jordan had what many people would classify as an ordinary life, but it was a good life, made better by his tight-knit family. Milán, on the other hand, was sort of drifting through life aimlessly until he ended up becoming co-guardian of a little brother he hadn’t even known existed. After both their lives are turned upside down, they cross paths with Jordan and his son. Milán is drawn to the fact that Jordan seems to have his life together, and Milán can use all the help he can get when it comes to trying to raise a teenage boy. The more time Milán spends in Jordan and Theo’s orbit, the more he starts to see the prospect of the kind of life he never thought he wanted - the kind filled with love and friends and family. He just has to decide if he’s brave enough to take it.

It’s just the two of us. Two ordinary people in their ordinary lives that somehow feel extraordinary now.

I loved seeing Jordan and Milán build their friendship. It was so natural and easy the way they fit together. Briar Prescott’s signature banter was on full display in this one, and I loved every second. Milán was attracted to Jordan from the get-go, but the early parts of their relationship were truly just about the friendship, and I loved how close they became. There was always the little hint of “more”, and I loved how things evolved, but I think I would have been just as happy if they had kept things platonic because they were just that good together.

I also loved seeing the evolution of Milán’s relationship with his brother Rory and how Jordan and Theo supported them both. The four of them created the sweetest little family. But seeing Milán find his parental instincts and seeing his and Rory’s little moments of bonding tugged at my heartstrings.

It was also fun seeing some familiar faces. I hadn’t realized this book was connected to Maybe You when I started, but it was great seeing Wren and Sutton all happy and in love. And it was nice to see Remy again. This book can definitely stand alone, though, if you haven’t read that book. But if you want a book that has characters who have great chemistry, top-tier banter, loads of heart, and even a little intrigue - I think you’ll enjoy this one!

Maybe it’s not about grand gestures and big moments. Maybe true happiness is a series of ordinary days made incredible by somebody else living that same ordinary life with you.

[Florence . · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh what a good time this was. I’ve been reading a lot of horror lately and I needed a good romance focused on the characters and their interactions to shake things up and this was so perfect for it.

Milàn has been trust in a situation where he is to take care of his 13 years old brother and he is very overwhelmed and a little angry at the world. He starts hanging out with another parent, Jordan, and the moments they spend offers him a little retrieve from the chaos of his day to day life. I just really enjoyed the premise and how it was tackled. I have mentioned it times and times again that I just love a good hurt/comfort story and this book was such a perfect example of everything that works for me.

The interactions between Milàn and Jordan were so fun to read. I just loved reading all of their back and forth and found them so nice togehter. I loved how even if they were having a hard day, they were always there to cheer each other on and always ready to lean on each other.

I sadly stopping connecting with this book a little after the half way mark and the last half didn’t work for me as much, but I still loved every interactions between Milán and Jordan and loved seeing them together.

[LegalGal421 · Rating 5 out of 5]

As usual with this author, this book was amazing. I loved the banter. I loved the different relationships that developed.

Milán and Jordan have a sweet love story. But I was also invested in the story between the adults and the kids.

Read this. You’ll love it.

[SaintDelicate _Edits]

so excited for a new Briar Prescott book!

[Elle · Rating 5 out of 5]

not only my new favorite briar book but maybe my new favorite book full stop? idk but by halfway through my chest was aching and by the end tears were streaming out of my eyes so like something magical happened here