The Watcher's Angel

by May Alder

Lainey

I thought when we turned eighteen and went off to college, I could finally escape the boy I’ve been secretly in love with the wrong way my entire life. But instead of getting time and space away from Grayson, we’re closer than ever, living in an off-campus apartment—now without the daily supervision that kept my longing in check. Grayson and I might not share a drop of blood, but we do share a last name, and confessing my feelings for him would completely destroy everyone’s lives. It’s already destroyed mine.

So I fight the attraction, as I have been doing all my life, but it won’t be long until I have to give up. Because my love for him isn’t the only secret I’ve been keeping to myself. I have an even bigger one growing by the day, and time is running out before everyone learns the truth…whether I’m ready or not.

Grayson

Falling in love with the one girl I can never be with is a pain unlike any other—one that I’ve been silently bearing since I first learned what love was. I’ve tried to prepare myself for a future in which Lainey gets married and starts a family with someone else, but sharing an apartment during our freshman year only weakens my already flailing willpower not to touch her the way I desperately want to.

I shouldn’t be tracking Lainey’s every move, every expression, but I can’t figure out how to stop. Especially not after that one magical night that she made me promise to forget, which I never have, and never will. The consequences of that night will scatter the pieces that make up our family puzzle forever. It’ll be us against the world…and I’m so ready for it.

The Watcher’s Angel is the 4th book in the Their Angels series but can be read as a standalone. TWA is a full-length, forbidden, spicy, college romance. Happily ever after guaranteed

318 pages, Kindle Edition

Expected publication November 6, 2026

About the author

May Alder would like to thank her life-long maladaptive daydreaming disorder and rampant #daddyissues for the storylines that have been brewing in her mind for years. Her need to turn them into something productive, a positive instead of a negative, has spurred her to write her stories and release them into the world.

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

💔 I’m not ready for this series to end.

I ​just finished the final book in the 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘈𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘭𝘴 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 by May Alder, & I’m in full book hangover mode. I devoured this in just two days & loved every bit of it.

​It was everything I had hoped for & more. I’ve secretly wanted it to end like this since the very beginning, so getting to see Grayson & Lainey actually together as a couple before it wrapped up was so satisfying.

Him calling her Devilainey & their usual banter- especially knowing how much they fought as kids, is my favorite 😂. But once they finally gave in to each other, they were just so sweet together! There is a part, near the end, when the whole family is together that had me cracking up. 😄

​So sad to say goodbye to these characters, but what a great finish! I definitely see another full series reread in my future.

"𝘕𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘴—𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘶𝘴 𝘢𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵—𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘶𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳. 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳. 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥. 𝘞𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘺 𝘮𝘦?" 🥹


Adoptive siblings
Forced proximity/roommates
Dual virgins
Accidental pregnancy
He has "no down time" 🤭
No OWD
No 3rd act breakup
2.5🌶️

[Sam · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

What a fun ending to the series! 🙌🏼

This one was a perfect wrap-up to the series, starting with their parents and ending on Grayson and Lainey. We get glimpses of Grayson and Lainey in the other books as adorable kids, but as grown-ups, both of them are something else.

Loving each other in quiet, trying to suppress their feelings, the angst, and then saying f it in the end. The journey was so well worth it. It was such a fun read with 🔥 spice.

Plus, the way we get the rest of the family adding funny banter into it made it so much better.

I can't wait to see what May gives us next.

Tropes: adoptive siblings, accidental pregnancy

[cuore__di__carta · Rating 5 out of 5]

ENG/ITA REVIEW

ENG
The last instalment of May Alder’s series Their Angels is the perfect mix of love, tenderness, longing and forbidden passion. Can’t have enough, so I’m up for a re-read!

BLURB
Grayson and Lainey are brother and sister. Adoptive siblings but nonetheless related. And this has been the crux of their lives. Always fighting and antagonising each other in order to hide a deeper feeling. Their close, beautiful extended family would never approve what is growing into an inescapable love, now that they are eighteen and at college. But they have to try, because a baby is coming.

I’ve been waiting for so long for Grayson and Lainey’s story. While reading this I was full of wonder and melancholy, as I thought about them when they were babies in the first book, already bonding, and then active kids, teenagers discovering the world. I love love love to see each and every time this incredible extended family full of uncles, aunts, cousins, parents. They are just so close, they’re always there for each other. It gave me tears of happiness and sadness as well.

Gray and Lainey are up for a disastrous start, as they’ve teased each other all their life but for a good reason: they have always been secretly in love. And now that they are in college they simply cannot resist anymore. Everything is so sweet and perfect (and full of scorching steam!) and the secondary characters are perfect as always. May, you are as perfect as ever. Thank you for giving us this family and these books.

RATE: 5/5

—

ITA
Non vedevo l’ora di leggere l’ultimo libro di questa bellissima serie su una famiglia allargata unitissima e piena di guai, ma strabordante d’amore. È il turno di Grayson e Lainey, i piccoli di casa, fratelli adottivi… legati da un amore impossibile.

TRAMA
Grayson e Lainey sono cresciuti come fratelli, anche se non condividono neanche una goccia di sangue. Sempre a litigare, sempre a combattere per nascondere qualcosa di complicato che rischierebbe di distruggere la loro famiglia. Quando vanno al college e sono costretti a convivere, quel sentimento proibito sboccia indomito, costringendoli a una passione inconfessabile. Ma dovranno trovare un modo per svelarsi, perché Lainey aspetta un bambino.

May Alder crea mondi pieni di personaggi bellissimi tutti collegati tra loro. Qui, come negli altri libri, troviamo amore, amicizia, tenerezza e malinconia, due innamorati che si sentono destinati e farebbero di tutto l’una per l’altro. Grayson e Lainey sono dolci e ingenui, ma anche molto determinati a combattere per il loro sentimento. Bellissimo!

VOTO: 5/5

[Emma Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

🌷ARC Review🌷

5/5 ; 10/10; I absolutely ate this one up. 💞
Did I read this completely in under 24 hours after receiving the ARC? Yes, yes I did.

If May Alder writes it, I read it.

I honestly don’t even know how to review this because it was THAT good. It was perfect. I knew I would love Laineys and Graysons book the day May Alder announced it. And I wasn’t disappointed!💞

First off, I loved Lainey and Grayson as “siblings” in the first book when Shayla only wanted them to be her babies. It fit in her storyline so perfectly. BUT now that they’re both older I really enjoyed the shift in their relationship. Especially since both also said that they fell in love way earlier, it felt kind of natural. Grayson was such a cutie patootie, fr, I loved him so much, the way he always watched Lainey and keeping her safe, at first I was a little icked by his and Brady’s behavior towards the girls but when their feelings became more clear I understood it better. With his slutty little mustache and his muscle tees he was everything I imaged he would be. Also he is my favorite micro trope characterized, him 💦 in his pants like every time??? I love a man who is so absolutely down bad, who wants his girl so much that he can’t control himself. And also he is our consent King 👑 I loved how he made sure that Lainey was comfortable at every turn. ✨
In general it was refreshing having a virgin x virgin trope rather than one having f’d their way through and the other one being inexperienced.
And Lainey? The way she yearned for him from afar, trying to stay always but knowing she could never really move on, however hard she tried (the same goes for Grayson as well obv).
I just adored it. Adore them so much! 💞

The spice was also spicin’ but not overpowering the storyline which is exactly the sweet spot! Since I read Shayla and James’s story I was anticipating another ✨micro trope✨, but even though it never came I still wasn’t disappointed (would have been a fun full circle moment that’s all hehe 🥰)

I honestly don’t have anything more to say, it was just 🤌🏼

Thank you May Alder for providing me with this ARC, as predicted Lainey and Grayson became my top 2 couple (first will always be Shayla and James) 💞

(ps: you best belief I read the BradyJosie short story after that as well and I LOVED it) 🥰

[Ash · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC Review!

The Watcher’s Angel was one of my most anticipated reads this year, I’ve been so excited so read Lainey and Grayson’s story ever since it was first hinted. While it’s not necessary to read the rest of the books in the series, I strongly recommend reading The Guardian’s Angel for some context into Lainey and Grayson’s family dynamic.

Being a third generation story, it was really comforting to have several appearances from all of the characters we know and love while still focusing on our two main love interests. I will never get tired of reading about this ginormous family and their hilarious banter. Several scenes had me laughing out loud.

In previous books in the series, we get adolescent Lainey and Grayson scenes where they are constantly fighting, so I expected a bit of a hate to love trope in this book. Boy, was I wrong! This story is full of yearning and forbidden deliciousness! The emotions really run deep in this one, we get insight into their true feelings throughout all those years, and I’ll just say I wish I could give Grayson a big hug 😭

“Our lives would have been so much simpler if our parents hadn’t fallen in love, and Grayson was just the cute neighbor growing up across the street.”

The reveal towards the end was great, we get to meet some new additions to the family. We also get a glimpse of another younger gen couple, wonder who that could be 👀

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. These two were absolutely meant to be together. May delivered everything we love in her storytelling from strong FMCs and their whimpering men to heartwarming feel-good stories with a little extra kink and spice. I can’t wait to see what else is in store for this series!

Thank you for the advanced reader copy! 🙂

[Carly Fay · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you’ve read the rest of this series, or anything by May Alder; you’re used to a quick burn. So this book being a slow burn (with a hot flash near the beginning) threw me off slightly, but it’s absolutely needed for this couple.

Lainey & Grayson have grown up together. Grayson’s adoptive dad married Lainey’s mum when they were both infants. They are constantly bickering & fighting, but neither of them realise the true feelings they have for each other are reciprocated, & have been for years.

Now aged 18 & living with each other at college, Lainey finds herself in a predicament, & it’s Grayson who got her there. I kept shouting a them “just talk to each other!!” You could feel the anxiety the pair had, especially with Grayson’s panic attacks & explaining his “problem”, not knowing how Lainey would react to it.

But being adoptive siblings wasn’t enough to stop the love the pair have for each other, & knowing coming clean would be a huge bomb for the entire family was another hurdle they had to cross.

The Watcher’s Angel is an adoptive sibling (no blood relation), college age romance with slow burn spice but it’s totally worth the wait.

[Mandy Robitaille · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Watcher's Angel was everything I love about May Alder's books. It was sweet, romantic and tender. Some of the scenes had me laughing and some scenes seriously had me crying (like actually big ugly sobbing).

Lainey, sweet Angelainey, my heart broke for her at times during this. And Grayson, my - down bad for his girl - man, had my heart breaking at times too. His struggle with anxiety had tears in my eyes. Their bond was absolutely beautiful. I also loved watching them explore and experience everything together for the first time. Every tender, forbidden moment between these two... the longing stares and lingering touches, everything was pure *perfection* It was sweet. It was spicy. They were beyond precious. With the odds stacked against them, I loved watching Lainey and Grayson find their happily ever after.

I love this big, messy family so much. Full of chaos and love, this book was really watching everything come full circle 🥹 This one was everything I hoped for and more - a perfect, bittersweet ending for this series.

[Michelle Fry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Received an ARC copy from the author

May Adler can do no wrong when it comes to forbidden relationships

Lainey and Grayson were raised together as siblings but that couldn’t stop them from falling in love with each other

I loved seeing how their love for each other started and seeing how they stood up for each other when they were younger

When Grayson first learned Lainey was pregnant he was devastated but as soon as he found out it was his he was overjoyed

I loved watching Lainey and Grayson explore their relationship and be able to be together

Definitely didn’t see the plot twist coming with Jacob but I thought it was definitely a good one

Loved the ending of this book and can’t wait to see what’s next for May Adler

[Dara Butler · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC Review: Thank you to May Alder for sending me an advanced copy of The Watcher’s Angel to read and review.

This book was full of taboo goodness. This was the perfect addition to the Their Angels series. The mental health rep in this book was handled with such care, and as someone who also struggles with severe anxiety, I appreciate that so much. This book has so many tropes that I love: it’s always been you, unplanned pregnancy, roommates to lovers, and no 3rd act breakup.

Grayson is so freaking sweet, and he’s so down bad. I love Lainey too. She tried so hard to keep up her “I hate Grayson” act, but she had fallen just as hard for him. Josie and Brady were just as funny. This book had some fun unexpected twists too!

[Lisa · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

I got an ARC copy of this and I loved it. May Alder writes a fun, kinky book adding to the angel series. This one was a real slow burn, which I loved and hated. I really wanted the main characters to just talk to each other. However, she wrote it so well that you could feel like anxiety they had about talking to each other. Particularly as both characters are only 18. I would start with book 1 if you plan on reading the other books. No major spoilers but you would miss some of the character development for non main characters. I hope you enjoy this book once it’s released! I’m sure it’ll be another one I reread a lot!

[Cristina YB · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.


The Watcher's Angel is somewhat of a slow burn, sweet, and funny read. The story between Lainey and Grayson's attraction to one another, from them trying their "best" to not fall into the love and attraction to them trying not to break their family.

You will laugh or chuckle when you Lainey and Grayson break the news to the family, the commentary between the family group texts, and interactions between one another was fun to read.


Thank you May Adler for the amazing books you write!!

[Brittany Reads Book · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a great freaking book! Honestly the beginning kind of felt like I got thrown into the deep end because there was no build up to their story but as the story went on I felt like I was floating and it was the best time of my life! Grayson and Lainey shouldn’t have worked since they are adopted siblings but they did and they were so flipping cute together! Just the tip was given a whole new meaning in this book!

[Paige · Rating 4 out of 5]

I absolutely loved being back in this world with these characters.

While you could read this book as a standalone, I highly recommend going back to the start.


Tropes:
▫️Off Limit Adoptive Siblings
▪️Secretly in Love/Hidden Relationship
▫️College Roommates
▪️First Loves & dual Vs
▫️He has no "down time"
▪️Accidental Pregnancy



Thank you to the author for this ARC!

[Erica Tackett · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was not my favorite in the series. I love this series so much and that’s probably why I was so hard on The Watchers Angel with my rating. I still enjoyed the book don’t get me wrong but I do not think it will be a reread for me like the others in the series. I am sad that this series is over though.

[Adri (books.with.adri) · Rating 5 out of 5]

May really can’t do no wrong with these books. I loved everything! I’m sad were coming to the end of this series. I really enjoyed these characters. Grayson and Lainey were so much fun. All the banter between them was so funny and then when they fully gave in – they were just so adorable.

Overall I truly enjoyed this book.

I received an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Ashlyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you so much for my ARC book! I have been waiting for this story and it was well worth the wait.

I was so anxious the whole time trying to figure out how it would all work out! And I thought it was pretty clever.

Now the spice👀👀 I was surprised by the quickness but I get why she liked it. I too would be flattered 🥰

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s the perfect way to end this series by circling back to the kids who were in the first book. Lainey and Grayson are adopted siblings with no blood relation who learn they have feelings for each other once they start college and share an apartment together. They have tons of flirty banter between the two of them, adorably romantic scenes and of course in true May Alder fashion some VERY spicy scenes as well.

Thank you to May Alder for letting me get an e-ARC and be an advanced reader ahead of it’s release! 💗

[Sofia D · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐5

I love anything May writes. This is about Grayson and Lainey who are adoptive siblings who always loved each other.

They both go away to college together and find themselves.

This was fantastic. It was hot, sometimes emotional and very wholesome. I loved everything about it !

[A. L. Jamieson · Rating 5 out of 5]

May is an automatic read EVERY TIME!! Lainey & Grayson’s story has been a longgggg time coming.

I ate this book up. The heart ache, the YEARNING, the forbidden love 🫠😍🥹 this might be my favourite of the series… GET ON IT, SERIOUSLY

[Kaitlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wasn't expecting so much drama. MESSY DRAMA at that. The entire family is a hot mess and I loved all of it. Seeing Grayson's brother say he lived in bumfuck texas after they explained the entire story also made me laugh out loud