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Love by Numbers #1-2

Nineteen & Twenty One: Box Set

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This is the Love by Numbers Duet - The only two books in the internationally bestselling series that need to be read in order.

Nineteen:
Your life can change in the blink of an eye.
How you adapt to these changes is what defines you.
Jake Fox is an aspiring actor who has found little success.
He is also a typical, cliche, bad boy, who 'loves them and leaves them' without love ever coming into the equation.
Emma Campbell is finding her way in life, struggling with memories from her past, an apathetic mother, and the choices ahead of her. Can she keep focused on the light when life keeps surrounding her in darkness?
Polar opposites, will love be the thread that binds them or will circumstances beyond their control, tear them apart?

Twenty-One:
Fate kept placing Emma Campbell and Jake Fox in each other's paths.
Fate also kept putting overwhelming obstacles in their way.
What fate didn't realize is that Jake and Emma share a connection that is stronger than circumstance.
An intense bond that threatens everything they thought they knew about themselves, one that is only made stronger by a perfect day.
A perfect day where they both surrendered to the force of their feelings for one another.
A perfect day that ended in darkness and tragedy.
Jake is missing.
Emma is lost.
Lost in grief; lost in hopelessness.
Will fate finally grant them a chance to be together or will it tear them apart?

628 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 1, 2015

263 people are currently reading
269 people want to read

About the author

E.S. Carter

30 books944 followers

USA Today Bestselling Author, ES Carter, lives in Cardiff, South Wales. The home of castles, dragons and folklore.
Her family joke that she was born with a book in her hand, and the urge to write stories soon followed.
At eleven, she won her school's literary prize. At ages fourteen to sixteen - her poetry phase after falling in love with Dylan Thomas and e.e. cummings - she had a few poems published, but life, love and family overtook her dreams, and she was in her thirties when she began the scary journey of self-publishing.
Her debut and internationally best-selling series, 'Love by Numbers', are a set of interconnected stand alone romances, all with varying themes of love. From second-chance to romantic comedy and M/M romance. These stories do not need to be read in order, in fact, she is often guilty of advising readers to start at the last book and work their way back through.
Contemporary romance is not the only genre she writes, her second series, 'The Red Order', is as dark and twisted as you can get, but there is beauty there too if you can open your eyes and look.
With many more stories bursting to be set free, she hopes you stay along for the ride.
She loves to connect with readers, so please feel free to friend/follow her on Facebook, IG and Twitter or join her reader's group, E's Elite <3

Facebook - https://goo.gl/Ih65tm

Goodreads - https://goo.gl/2b0fDE

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5 stars
93 (44%)
4 stars
63 (29%)
3 stars
34 (16%)
2 stars
15 (7%)
1 star
6 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
Profile Image for Coco.V.
50k reviews116 followers
Want to read
April 9, 2018
💝 FREE on Amazon today (4/9/2018)!💝

Blurb:
This is the Love by Numbers Duet - The only two books in the series that need to be read in order.

Nineteen:
Your life can change in the blink of an eye.
How you adapt to these changes is what defines you.
Jake Fox is an aspiring actor who has found little success.
He is also a typical, cliche, bad boy, who 'loves them and leaves them' without love ever coming into the equation.
Emma Campbell is finding her way in life, struggling with memories from her past, an apathetic mother and the choices ahead of her. Can she keep focused on the light when life keeps surrounding her in darkness?
Polar opposites, will love be the thread that binds them or will circumstances beyond their control, tear them apart?

Twenty One:
Fate kept placing Emma Campbell and Jake Fox in each others paths.
Fate also kept putting overwhelming obstacles in their way.
What fate didn’t realize is that Jake and Emma share a connection that is stronger than circumstance.
An intense bond that threatens everything they thought they knew about themselves, one that is only made stronger by a perfect day.
A perfect day where they both surrendered to the force of their feelings for one another.
A perfect day that ended in darkness and tragedy.
Jake is missing.
Emma is lost.
Lost in grief; lost in hopelessness.
Will fate finally grant them a chance to be together or will it tear them apart?
Profile Image for E.S. Carter.
Author 30 books944 followers
September 13, 2017
Now you can get the first two books in the internationally best-selling LOVE BY NUMBERS series in a box set for just 99c/99p!
Grab the NINETEEN & TWENTY ONE DUET for pennies for a limited time only and fall in love with the Fox brothers.
Also FREE with your Kindle Unlimited Subscription.
Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/2f3it0p
Amazon US: http://amzn.to/2wYYx4A
Profile Image for Pamela Lilley.
2,188 reviews38 followers
September 15, 2017
What a perfect duet following Manwhore wannabe actor Jake Fox and unlucky in life Emma Campbell, two polar opposites who are drawn to each other by fate.
In book 1, Nineteen, I was desperate to have Jake and Emma two spend time together, but, after their initial meeting and the dreadful circumstances in which it ended, we don't see them together again til the final chapters. Jake is a complete manwhore, Emma on the other hand is the polar opposite, but after meeting and having that undeniable connection, both cannot get the other out of their minds. After going their separate ways, their lives are still entangled and fate makes sure they meet up, even though neither want to see the other again, both having their reasons. Not able to avoid each other until eventually they spend one beautiful day together. This too, ends in disaster, and I was left bereft and unable to think coherently.
We find the conclusion to this duet in Twenty One, and this is when I completely fell in love with Jake, I love how he completely mans up and owns his feelings. He's gone from manwhore to loved up and I love this side of him. Emma is such a strong person who doesn't run away from her feelings. She, like Jake fights for what she believes in. They both have to deal with some pretty horrible events and people in their lives. I love the storyline, love the writing style and I'm a big fan of dual POV, its a major plus for me when reading. I loved their chemistry, loved their honesty and loved how they put the other first in their lives.

Profile Image for Diane (Books and Tequila Blog).
1,512 reviews73 followers
September 15, 2017
Time for a reread!!
I loved this book!
Told in alternating and overlapping POV, it is the story of Jake an aspiring actor and complete man-whore and Emma who is determined to be strong and must overcome some immense tragedies in her young life.
I loved all of the British slang throughout. An emotional story but told with touches of humor.

"Music and books have always been my solace and my friend. Who can ever feel unloved or lonely when there’s a whole world of undiscovered journeys to take, hidden in the pages of a book or the chords of a song?"

The character development was amazing and I grew to care about want to know more about all of my new friends.

"Beautiful is the wrong word for him, addictive would be better, as once you take a single look, you cannot tear your eyes away."

I was immediately grabbed by this story and couldn't put it down. Lots of surprising twists and turns in the book, but none as surprising as the wild ending! Oh My! I needed to start book 2 immediately and with this duet it is right there at the turn of a page!!

“Let me carry your scarred heart in mine” another kiss above the swell of my breast “Let me take care of it until the scars fade” another kiss to the other side of my breast, “Then once it is stronger than it ever has been before”, a kiss to my ribs, “Let me keep it there, safe, protected, cherished, adored.”

I love how this story is so unpredictable! I was kept on my toes always unable to guess what might happen next or how a character might react.
Profile Image for Cathy.
944 reviews6 followers
June 2, 2018
I had forgotten how beautifully written this story is, this is our first encounter with the Fox family, and the debut by this author. We get a little look at each of the brothers while watching the chemistry between Emma and Jake flare. Luckily here you get both parts of the story so no need to worry about the cliffhanger!!!

I loved watching Jake, our resident playboy, just starting out in his acting career, brought to his knees by the fresh innocence of Emma, down to earth, straightforward sweet and sassy. He didn't see her coming, and wasn't prepared for the things she would make him feel.

Obviously the path never runs smooth with these things, warning: there is a traumatic experience that affects them both on the night they meet, and sends them spiralling in different directions.

The writing is incredible as always, the only negative is that sometimes the dual POV gets a little repetitive - not that it put me off.

I absolutely loved this story, the connection between the main characters, but also the friendships between both Emma and Liam, and Jake and Harry, and the family bonds within the Fox clan. I am so glad I get to dive straight into the next part after that cliff hanger!

I love Jake and Emma, I don't want to spoil this story so I would say just dive in, there's heaps of love, lust and romance in this book, but also the focus on the bonds of friendships and family are still strong. The quality of the writing is amazing as always with ES Carter, she sweeps you along and you feel like these characters are your friends as you go through every emotion with them.

The dual POV and the depth of the secondary characters keep things moving at a swift pace, we see more of Emma's strength and resilience come through in this book. She seems to have come out of her shell and found her place in the world.

I loved it, and would recommend it to any lover of contemporary romance, or quality writing.
1,143 reviews
December 9, 2018
Nineteen: Emma and Jake's love story is heartfelt, soulful, and teeming with sexual attraction. Too bad it just couldn't get started. The author managed to convey lust and deep connection between Emma and Jake's even though they met only a couple of times and spent only a few hours together. So few that they haven't done anything sexual, yet their experiences with each other feels very intimate. It's a testament to the author's writing skills.

Twenty-One: The conclusion to Jake and Emmy’s love story is not to be missed! It is full of love, electric chemistry, passion, and understanding. It is not about the bad boy being tamed but as Emmy said and I paraphrase, when you love a person, you love their totality because love is unconditional.
522 reviews3 followers
June 20, 2019
I loved these books. Only a manwhore like Jake could fall for a quiet unassuming girl like Emmy. In his eagerness to get to know her his actions end up putting Emmy in a dire situation which then affects both of their lives. It seems life will never be the same again.
I loved the characters too. Liam and Nate((Jakes brothers) and Liv (Emmy best friend).
IT turns out to be a small world when Emmy meets Liam and as events unfold wires get crossed and Jakes longing for Emmy becomes more than just lust.
The story is hilarious in parts, especially with H....Jakes best friend. There's plenty of steamy scenes as well as anger, hatred, love and loyalty.
Well worth reading and I can't wait to read the rest of the series.
Profile Image for Rachel Renee.
Author 12 books170 followers
October 5, 2017
This is your basic bad boy turns good when he meets the woman he didn't know he had been waiting for. There was some twists and turns along the way that made this different from others that I've read. It is also well written and has many likable characters to meet along the way. I enjoyed that the main characters did not get right to the sexy time, and spent the majority of this duet getting to know each other, growing and adapting to become the characters they ended up being by the end of the book. I would definitely read this author again, as one of the side characters I enjoyed from this book has a book of his own for me to read.
Profile Image for Angela's Book Addiction.
801 reviews
October 7, 2018
Overall, I enjoyed this story. It's unfortunate that I'm unable to give it a higher rating.

The author makes a point to mention at the beginning of the book that it's written in British English containing euphemisms and slang, stating to keep in mind that these words are not misspelled. Spelling wasn't my issue.

There were just too many grammatical errors and too many words that were misused, completely omitted or transposed. This was a HUGE distraction that had nothing to do with the British English. An editor is desperately needed for this duet.

As stated previously, I enjoyed the story. With better editing, I would have likely given a higher rating.
Profile Image for Angela Wilson.
242 reviews15 followers
April 16, 2018
IDK

This really could have been good, but the writer kept repeating the same story from the main character's pov. Instead of developing a relationship between the H and h to make us feel the attraction between them , she chose to tell EVERY and mean every interaction between the two main characters from their points of view. But, took the time to write about Jake having all the random sex in the world, when she could have developed some depth in Jake. 19 and 21 could have been told in 15 pages. I would not recommend this duo....
153 reviews1 follower
May 15, 2018
Romance and friendship; family and loyalty.

Enjoyed the Fox-Williams family aspect- with the closeness of the brothers and their girls. Also enjoyed the sub-romances and friendships which gave the whole more depth. I look forward to reading the others in this series. I did expect a bit more discussion on Emma and Jake both having a connection to Havers (tall dowdy girl in men’s boots) and that Emma had been hired - even if she never started working there. But it wasn’t a lose end or a necessary connection for the main characters to make.
Profile Image for Fatima.
41 reviews
February 15, 2019
Love story

I really like the story. From the first time Emma and Jake met to their last words. I do find ironic that in Nineteen Jake mentions seeing Mr. Sullivan interviewing a girl, not being interested in her at all. Later Emma mentions being in the interview, at the dame place Jake already work. Never even considering that maybe that is how Jake and Emma got involved with Vanessa 'FML'.
Profile Image for POL.
995 reviews7 followers
April 16, 2018
Cute Duet

This was a cute duet. I enjoyed getting to know the characters and watch them develop into their respective relationships. The only thing I did not enjoy so much, was the writing style. Meaning, I felt it was a redundant starting each chapter with the main characters POV.
Profile Image for Petal Reynard.
118 reviews
April 15, 2018
A Heartwarming Romance

These books press all the right buttons. Tension, hot sex, romance. Emma is adorable all the way through, and all the other characters are well fleshed out. E.S Carter is really good in making the reader CARE about what is going to happen.
33 reviews1 follower
April 20, 2018
Decidedly different

Loved the way that E.S.Carter books were woven into the story. Jake was a most interesting character, many of us know a few guys like him. Some of us even love them. It is a hot, steamy, romantic tale.

11 reviews
April 23, 2018
What a great love story. I highly recommend this two book series.

See above. I will be waiting for the next book in the series. This was hard to put down. I hope that you enjoy this as much as I have.
1 review
April 24, 2018
Too much repetition

I enjoyed the story line and I didn’t mind the duel POV. However, when every chapter is a repeat, just Emma’s perspective and then Jakes perspective?! Yuck. I skimmed a LOT of this book because of that.
Profile Image for Lisa Lawson.
692 reviews4 followers
August 28, 2018
19 & 21 Duet Box Set Review

Nineteen and Twenty One gave me all kinds of feels. Heart breaking and heart warming all at the same time. Terrific characters. Relatable, well-written stories. I loved them both!
16 reviews
October 15, 2018
Worthy Read

I loved the magnetism between the main characters. Just wish he would have been more effected by the pull and have reserved himself for his love. But the story was great and would recommend these books to anyone.
Profile Image for Dawn Pressel.
1,675 reviews
September 11, 2021
According to my Kindle I already read these but never reviewed here…oh well not the first time and knowing me it won’t be the last

I skimmed over the books to refresh it and my rating stands. It was ok
Profile Image for Tammy.
3,608 reviews16 followers
October 8, 2017
great duet set in England with quite a bit of English talk that I find amusing.
65 reviews
April 16, 2018
The repetition in the her point of view, his point of view got old by the end. I really wanted to like Jake more, but he was just so ew.
28 reviews
April 28, 2018
Delightful read

I downloaded this book for free on a whim. So very glad I did!! Wonderful characters with a great story line. You will not be disappointed with these books!
Profile Image for Vivian Hofler.
10 reviews
May 20, 2018
I fell in love

I feel in love with all the characters in this book. Being able to find truth and happiness, though all the pain and hurt, is remarkable.
Profile Image for Liza Kline.
Author 17 books4 followers
May 31, 2018
Great story... didn't care for reading each scene from both characters point of view though.
Profile Image for marian.
19 reviews1 follower
October 5, 2018
Enjoyed

Lived the story and all the real life could of's that happened. I really didnt enjoy the two perspective parts though.
Profile Image for Ellen.
357 reviews5 followers
September 1, 2024
Loved the books, bit up and down in book 1 (19) but book 2 (21) really bought the story out and fun. Loved Jake and Emily’s story
Profile Image for Lisa Hill.
530 reviews13 followers
October 11, 2019
A beautiful duet

I absolutely loved the story of Emma and Jake. Their relationship emerges from the ashes of a disastrous event, one which would have finished off lesser characters.

Emma is such a strong character, a survivor. Life throws some pretty difficult stuff her way, and she deals with it with such tenacity and grace. Jake, former playboy, is absolutely smitten with her and completely changes his life around in order to have her in it.

The first book, Nineteen, finishes on a cliffhanger and I’m so glad I had TwentyOne lined up ready to dive straight into. I couldn’t have stood to wait to find out what happened.

The duet takes you through a whole range of emotions; so much so, I was heartbroken, distraught and elated within the space of a few pages.

A perfect, wonderful pair of books I’m so glad I read.
Profile Image for Laura Smith.
603 reviews20 followers
September 26, 2018
It didn’t take me long at all to read these too and I am so glad I had the box set so I didn’t have to wait for book 2!!

This is told in both POV and I love that you got both sides of the story, so to speak.

The two main characters were amazing and I fell in love with them equally. They worked perfectly together and I was so please to have read their story. I would recommend this to anyone and I promise you will love it.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews

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