What do you think?
Rate this book
With You Always
From the author of The Girl Before comes a tense and incisive work of psychological suspense that examines how easy it is to fall into the wrong relationship . . . and how impossible it can be to leave.
In the wake of a painful breakup and struggling to prove herself at work, Julia feels adrift. When Bryce blows into her life, he seems like the perfect anchor. Handsome, charming, secure, and confident, Bryce brings out the best in Julia, sweeping her off her feet with attention and affection while grounding her with his certainty and faith. Together they embark on a path guided by the principles of his family and their church, each step a paving stone leading to happily ever after.
But this is no fairytale.
Step by step, one small concession leading to another, Julia is slowly isolated from her job, her friends, and her family, until she comes to find that her dream come true is a cage. Then one day everything changes . . . and Julia is faced with no choice but to find a way out.
In the wake of a painful breakup and struggling to prove herself at work, Julia feels adrift. When Bryce blows into her life, he seems like the perfect anchor. Handsome, charming, secure, and confident, Bryce brings out the best in Julia, sweeping her off her feet with attention and affection while grounding her with his certainty and faith. Together they embark on a path guided by the principles of his family and their church, each step a paving stone leading to happily ever after.
But this is no fairytale.
Step by step, one small concession leading to another, Julia is slowly isolated from her job, her friends, and her family, until she comes to find that her dream come true is a cage. Then one day everything changes . . . and Julia is faced with no choice but to find a way out.
Audible Audio
First published August 7, 2018
102 people are currently reading
3490 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 249 reviews
August 8, 2018
3.5 stars
The synopsis of this book pretty much says it all. This is not going to be a fairy tale romance. It starts out that way but things, like life. have a way of changing. Julia meets Bryce by chance and is quickly swept off her feet by this handsome, charming and confident man. Julia wants to please Bryce and is open to meeting his adopted family and attending Church services with him. This is where things get interesting!
Soon, with each small concession, Julia's life begins to change...
This book is what I would call escapism reading. It was entertaining, and I enjoyed it. Will I be sitting around thinking about his book for months to come? No. But I did enjoy it while I was reading it and hence the 3.5 stars. I feel this book makes a great plane or beach book. I enjoyed how this story was told. I also enjoyed the italicized sections. Yes, they do break up the story a little, but I enjoyed trying to make sense of them and made guesses as to who each part was about.
Thank you to Penguin Group Putnam and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions in this review are my own.
Read more of my reviews at www.openbookpost.com
The synopsis of this book pretty much says it all. This is not going to be a fairy tale romance. It starts out that way but things, like life. have a way of changing. Julia meets Bryce by chance and is quickly swept off her feet by this handsome, charming and confident man. Julia wants to please Bryce and is open to meeting his adopted family and attending Church services with him. This is where things get interesting!
Soon, with each small concession, Julia's life begins to change...
This book is what I would call escapism reading. It was entertaining, and I enjoyed it. Will I be sitting around thinking about his book for months to come? No. But I did enjoy it while I was reading it and hence the 3.5 stars. I feel this book makes a great plane or beach book. I enjoyed how this story was told. I also enjoyed the italicized sections. Yes, they do break up the story a little, but I enjoyed trying to make sense of them and made guesses as to who each part was about.
Thank you to Penguin Group Putnam and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions in this review are my own.
Read more of my reviews at www.openbookpost.com
August 14, 2018
2.5 stars.
The writing was done well, the characters were distinct but the plot was predictable and many questions were left unanswered.
This novel follows Julia Hawthorne, a young woman working her way up in her career, who is swept off her feet by the handsome and wealthy Bryce Covington. Bryce immediately falls deeply into Julia’s life and seems to be the perfect man – successful career, incredibly handsome, extremely attentive, devout to his church. Julia keeps wondering how she could be so lucky. As time progresses, Julia longs to know more about Bryce’s past. Why does he refrain from giving details about his childhood? What happened to his real parents? What is his true connection to his church?
For me, this story felt like it has been done many times before. The situation seemed highly predictable, at times I could picture it as a made-for-TV movie. Even though it was quite obvious where this story was headed early on, there were many questions left unanswered at the end. The intricate details that were slowly revealed throughout the novel remained open and without explanation at the conclusion which felt unsatisfying.
This was a Traveling Sister read. Others felt much more positive about this, so I strongly recommend checking out the other glowing reviews before making a decision on this.
Thank you to Edelweiss, G. P. Putnam’s Sons and Rena Olsen for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
The writing was done well, the characters were distinct but the plot was predictable and many questions were left unanswered.
This novel follows Julia Hawthorne, a young woman working her way up in her career, who is swept off her feet by the handsome and wealthy Bryce Covington. Bryce immediately falls deeply into Julia’s life and seems to be the perfect man – successful career, incredibly handsome, extremely attentive, devout to his church. Julia keeps wondering how she could be so lucky. As time progresses, Julia longs to know more about Bryce’s past. Why does he refrain from giving details about his childhood? What happened to his real parents? What is his true connection to his church?
For me, this story felt like it has been done many times before. The situation seemed highly predictable, at times I could picture it as a made-for-TV movie. Even though it was quite obvious where this story was headed early on, there were many questions left unanswered at the end. The intricate details that were slowly revealed throughout the novel remained open and without explanation at the conclusion which felt unsatisfying.
This was a Traveling Sister read. Others felt much more positive about this, so I strongly recommend checking out the other glowing reviews before making a decision on this.
Thank you to Edelweiss, G. P. Putnam’s Sons and Rena Olsen for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
August 11, 2018
4 ominous creepy stars
On this sunny Saturday morning, I am reviewing the very dark With You Always
When one is hurt and suffering, it is easy to fall into traps, places that you know you shouldn't be, relationships that can make you wonder if this is just too good to be true. Oftentimes, your gut feeling is right and you know eventually you have tumbled into something you need to get away from, something threatening, something evil.
Julia is adrift coming off of a bad relationship when into her life strolls the handsome, charismatic Byrce. He is beyond wonderful, a successful lawyer, a respectful man, and Julia finds herself being swept off her feet. Their relationship goes forward in record breaking speed because you know when something is right, and one does sometimes fall madly in love.
Byrce does have a few tiny idiosyncrasies though. He refuses to speak of his parents and he adores his church having latched onto the Reverend and his wife as surrogate parents. Byrce encourages Julia to join his church and originally she is put off by the goings on, but she loves Byrce and wants to please him so she climbs aboard for this religious experience. Julia embraces the church and its followers and all seems destined to be a bit of heaven on earth.
However, that little bit of heaven becomes a large piece of hell as Julia descends down a road she never thought she would be traveling. As always, all is not what it seems and Julia is in for a very rude awakening.
This was a well done story that kept this reader actively involved in the scenario it depicted.. Rena Olsen did an admirable job with developing her characters and created a mysterious, ominous and chilling moodiness.
Thank you to Rena Olsen, G.P. Putnam's Sons, and NetGalley for a copy of this chilling book.
Also thank you to the Traveling Sisters group who shared this chilling book and their views with me.
My reviews can be found here: https://yayareadslotsofbooks.wordpres...
On this sunny Saturday morning, I am reviewing the very dark With You Always
When one is hurt and suffering, it is easy to fall into traps, places that you know you shouldn't be, relationships that can make you wonder if this is just too good to be true. Oftentimes, your gut feeling is right and you know eventually you have tumbled into something you need to get away from, something threatening, something evil.
Julia is adrift coming off of a bad relationship when into her life strolls the handsome, charismatic Byrce. He is beyond wonderful, a successful lawyer, a respectful man, and Julia finds herself being swept off her feet. Their relationship goes forward in record breaking speed because you know when something is right, and one does sometimes fall madly in love.
Byrce does have a few tiny idiosyncrasies though. He refuses to speak of his parents and he adores his church having latched onto the Reverend and his wife as surrogate parents. Byrce encourages Julia to join his church and originally she is put off by the goings on, but she loves Byrce and wants to please him so she climbs aboard for this religious experience. Julia embraces the church and its followers and all seems destined to be a bit of heaven on earth.
However, that little bit of heaven becomes a large piece of hell as Julia descends down a road she never thought she would be traveling. As always, all is not what it seems and Julia is in for a very rude awakening.
This was a well done story that kept this reader actively involved in the scenario it depicted.. Rena Olsen did an admirable job with developing her characters and created a mysterious, ominous and chilling moodiness.
Thank you to Rena Olsen, G.P. Putnam's Sons, and NetGalley for a copy of this chilling book.
Also thank you to the Traveling Sisters group who shared this chilling book and their views with me.
My reviews can be found here: https://yayareadslotsofbooks.wordpres...
August 12, 2018
1 underwhelming star
What a letdown. The Girl Before was one of my favorite reads last year so I was excited to see what Olsen's follow-up would entail. Yes, I finished this in a couple sittings but that's because I was hoping to get it over with, to see if anything would make me change my mind in giving it a higher rating. It's always painful to give reads 1*; I always feel like there's something I'm missing, but after comparing this to her debut... honestly? I expected more.
First off, this is labeled as "thriller". Sure that meaning has been severely overused the last few years, but there was nothing "thriller-ish" about this book. Like Olsen's debut, you have the unreliable narrator- the MC being a naïve, pushover female. (Why are they not more strong-willed?)Then you have the "broad-shouldered dashing prince" who gives her the time of day, so naturally she falls in love with him. It's an already cheesy baseline, but I guess it just annoyed me more than usual because The Girl Before is quite similar. Why do authors insist on copying what they know rather than trying to dive out of their comfort zone?
Regarding Julia & Bryce's relationship: obviously they get married. Bryce has introduced Julia to his church as religion is a massive part of his life & since it isn't for her, she wants to show that she cares deeply about her fiancé's interests. But this church is unlike anything Julia has ever seen before. "The Church of Life" (a Scientology similarity) quickly consumes her & makes her give up everything from her outside life- friends, job, possessions- so she can learn to become a suitable wife. Naturally, it only gets worse from here as Bryce turns off his charm & shows his dark, domestic abuse side & Julia realizes there's no escape. Or is there?
The plot to this is incredibly predictable, but I was really hoping Olsen would salvage it as her writing is compelling at times. The "bad guy" characters are generalized & the good people that do come into Julia's life aren't there to stick around long enough to be fleshed out. So much time was spent focusing on Bryce's downward spiral, that by the time Julia set her plan in action, it was already too late. I lost interest in the story way before that happened & I felt cheated that it was boring for 300+ pages & then bam! Way to simplify & add unnecessary drama- especially by randomly bringing back a character off-screen that we don't see for a chunk of the book.
Overall I just had a difficult time with this. It felt like I had already read the same story a thousand times & nothing stuck out or made me like any of the characters. Can't recommend; it's better just to stick to her debut.
What a letdown. The Girl Before was one of my favorite reads last year so I was excited to see what Olsen's follow-up would entail. Yes, I finished this in a couple sittings but that's because I was hoping to get it over with, to see if anything would make me change my mind in giving it a higher rating. It's always painful to give reads 1*; I always feel like there's something I'm missing, but after comparing this to her debut... honestly? I expected more.
First off, this is labeled as "thriller". Sure that meaning has been severely overused the last few years, but there was nothing "thriller-ish" about this book. Like Olsen's debut, you have the unreliable narrator- the MC being a naïve, pushover female. (Why are they not more strong-willed?)Then you have the "broad-shouldered dashing prince" who gives her the time of day, so naturally she falls in love with him. It's an already cheesy baseline, but I guess it just annoyed me more than usual because The Girl Before is quite similar. Why do authors insist on copying what they know rather than trying to dive out of their comfort zone?
Regarding Julia & Bryce's relationship: obviously they get married. Bryce has introduced Julia to his church as religion is a massive part of his life & since it isn't for her, she wants to show that she cares deeply about her fiancé's interests. But this church is unlike anything Julia has ever seen before. "The Church of Life" (a Scientology similarity) quickly consumes her & makes her give up everything from her outside life- friends, job, possessions- so she can learn to become a suitable wife. Naturally, it only gets worse from here as Bryce turns off his charm & shows his dark, domestic abuse side & Julia realizes there's no escape. Or is there?
The plot to this is incredibly predictable, but I was really hoping Olsen would salvage it as her writing is compelling at times. The "bad guy" characters are generalized & the good people that do come into Julia's life aren't there to stick around long enough to be fleshed out. So much time was spent focusing on Bryce's downward spiral, that by the time Julia set her plan in action, it was already too late. I lost interest in the story way before that happened & I felt cheated that it was boring for 300+ pages & then bam! Way to simplify & add unnecessary drama- especially by randomly bringing back a character off-screen that we don't see for a chunk of the book.
Overall I just had a difficult time with this. It felt like I had already read the same story a thousand times & nothing stuck out or made me like any of the characters. Can't recommend; it's better just to stick to her debut.
August 2, 2018
With You Always is the story of Julia and Bryce - a couple who meet by the chance of fate and have a whirlwind romance. By all appearances, Bryce is the perfect man - handsome, wealthy, charming - but is there more than meets the eye? In this story of a woman who gets wrapped up in a Scientology-Esque cult with an awful man, the story is really just that. The writing is great, however, the story bored me honestly and felt incredibly predictable. I was expecting more of a thriller and this one was more a bad lifetime movie.
I received an advance copy. All opinions are my own.
I received an advance copy. All opinions are my own.
July 27, 2018
Another 3.5 ⭐️ suspenseful thriller. I found the book interesting, but it left unanswered questions — which I didn’t care for. Throughout the book, there are brief chapters that give a glimpse of Bryce’s past and hints of what we might expect from the ending. Those chapters were the most interesting and I wish more of the book was dedicated to that portion of the story. The plot is your typical boy meets girl, instantly sweeps her off her feet and they marry — without the happily-ever-after. The author does throw in some different context, which changed things up some.
Julia is an assistant at a marketing firm, trying to impress her boss and get a promotion. Then she meets Bryce and they begin a whirlwind romance. He’s everything she needs after a complicated relationship with her ex-fiancé — handsome, successful, supportive and charming.
After the proposal, she becomes overwhelmingly busy. She struggles to make time for everything without being stressed out and ends up quitting her dream job, that has now become too demanding. There isn’t as much time for friends and family, either. Which is fine because some are skeptical of Bryce and don’t understand their relationship. She’s even convinced they might be jealous.
Bryce has a wonderful “church family” that consumes most of their time and although she’s never been religious, the church is so welcoming that she begins to understand the importance of faith. Her life has finally taken a turn in the right direction!
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group-Putnam for this ARC, in exchange for my honest review!
#WithYouAlways #NetGalley #Edelweiss
Julia is an assistant at a marketing firm, trying to impress her boss and get a promotion. Then she meets Bryce and they begin a whirlwind romance. He’s everything she needs after a complicated relationship with her ex-fiancé — handsome, successful, supportive and charming.
After the proposal, she becomes overwhelmingly busy. She struggles to make time for everything without being stressed out and ends up quitting her dream job, that has now become too demanding. There isn’t as much time for friends and family, either. Which is fine because some are skeptical of Bryce and don’t understand their relationship. She’s even convinced they might be jealous.
Bryce has a wonderful “church family” that consumes most of their time and although she’s never been religious, the church is so welcoming that she begins to understand the importance of faith. Her life has finally taken a turn in the right direction!
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group-Putnam for this ARC, in exchange for my honest review!
#WithYouAlways #NetGalley #Edelweiss
August 12, 2018
Only reason this received 2 stars instead of 1 was that I evidently was engaged enough to keep flipping pages. This one made me angry. Julia goes FAR beyond naive, she tosses away her job for a man she's only know a few weeks, readily accepts his proposal after three months, and steadfastly defends him from every. single. person in her life who sees through his facade.
The ending was also a cop-out: I wanted a resolution, what I got was a few sentences at the VERY end and more questions.
More thoughts to come.
The ending was also a cop-out: I wanted a resolution, what I got was a few sentences at the VERY end and more questions.
More thoughts to come.
January 5, 2018
OMG i Loved Olsen's first title The Girl Before like a 14 year old fan girl. Now with her latest release I feel like I've returned to my teen giddiness after finishing; such astounding storytelling!
If you also enjoy I-can't-believe-how-this-could-be-true psychological writing style - preorder now.
From page one you know it's going to have elements of Sleeping With the Enemy, while equally getting sucked into the fairy tale love story that most young girls dream of. You stay on this wild ride of situational irony until you yourself feel the emotional turn and want to step into the pages to stop what you know is coming.
I was glued to the story right up until the brilliant ending (and could still use about 50 more pages ;)
If you also enjoy I-can't-believe-how-this-could-be-true psychological writing style - preorder now.
From page one you know it's going to have elements of Sleeping With the Enemy, while equally getting sucked into the fairy tale love story that most young girls dream of. You stay on this wild ride of situational irony until you yourself feel the emotional turn and want to step into the pages to stop what you know is coming.
I was glued to the story right up until the brilliant ending (and could still use about 50 more pages ;)
August 3, 2018
Thank you Putnam Books #Partner for gifting me a copy of this book, in exchange of an honest review. All opinions are my own.
I sadly rate this book a 2.5 stars out of 5.
This book started out great for me, the prologue had me hooked, and than once Bryce came along, I wanted to find out what kind of bad guy he was. I can't say in this review, because if I do, it will ruin a huge part of the plot for you guys, but I came to a certain part of this book, and lost interest. While I give major kudos to the author for thinking outside of the box, this book just didn't do it for me. While I love a good unreliable narrator, I do not like a weak-minded ones. I also took a huge issue with a character that suddenly appeared at the end, and basically how the book ended. There was no resolution to other key parts of the books, and I was left with several questions. For me, I think I would have enjoyed this book more, had it had less build up, and more conclusion.
I will say though, despite me not liking the book, I did appreciate Olsen's writing style. It kept me turning pages, and even though this book wasn't for me, I did want to see how it ended, and I wanted to see some serious karma dished out. I believe there was. I would suggest this book for readers who want a much lighter thriller, this does have a couple domestic violence issues (and what happened when Julia tried to get help really PISSED me off) but someone who wants to start reading domestic and psychological thrillers, I think this one is a good step into that genre.
I hate writing negative reviews guys, and really I hope you take them with a grain of salt. Not every book is for every reader, and although I am one person in line who didn't like it, there are 15 in line who will. So please keep that in mind when you choose to read this book or not. I will add, it also was a very quick read, so if you are looking for something to read in a day or so, this is your book.
I sadly rate this book a 2.5 stars out of 5.
This book started out great for me, the prologue had me hooked, and than once Bryce came along, I wanted to find out what kind of bad guy he was. I can't say in this review, because if I do, it will ruin a huge part of the plot for you guys, but I came to a certain part of this book, and lost interest. While I give major kudos to the author for thinking outside of the box, this book just didn't do it for me. While I love a good unreliable narrator, I do not like a weak-minded ones. I also took a huge issue with a character that suddenly appeared at the end, and basically how the book ended. There was no resolution to other key parts of the books, and I was left with several questions. For me, I think I would have enjoyed this book more, had it had less build up, and more conclusion.
I will say though, despite me not liking the book, I did appreciate Olsen's writing style. It kept me turning pages, and even though this book wasn't for me, I did want to see how it ended, and I wanted to see some serious karma dished out. I believe there was. I would suggest this book for readers who want a much lighter thriller, this does have a couple domestic violence issues (and what happened when Julia tried to get help really PISSED me off) but someone who wants to start reading domestic and psychological thrillers, I think this one is a good step into that genre.
I hate writing negative reviews guys, and really I hope you take them with a grain of salt. Not every book is for every reader, and although I am one person in line who didn't like it, there are 15 in line who will. So please keep that in mind when you choose to read this book or not. I will add, it also was a very quick read, so if you are looking for something to read in a day or so, this is your book.
September 15, 2018
This was a hard book for me to rate. I both liked and disliked it. Some parts of it seemed realistic as I have been witness to what can happen when a woman loses her mind over a new man in her life. Other parts were over the top. I thought I was reading a normal book about a relationship that would turn sour, then I reached page 149 and had to take a step waaaay back.
I tried to understand Julia's POV but was unable to grasp why she was so foolish. Like I said, I know some women develop tunnel vision when they are interested in a man, but Julia's devotion to Bryce so early on was crazy. The man was practically a stranger and would not share information about his biological family, but in about a week's time Julia was ready to turn her back on her friends if it came to it.
I thought Julia's sister's reaction to Bryce was much too severe after she first met him. Bryce was charming and on his best behavior, yet Kate hated him with such a fierceness for no reason other than he seemed fake.
It made sense that Julia would be defensive, but falling out with her sister over a man she'd known 21 days had me shaking my head. I think Julia knew that Kate was right on at least one issue; the relationship was moving too fast.
Once Julia became heavily involved with Bryce's church, the story started to spin away from normalcy. Bryce considered the Reverend, who was the founder and owner of the church, to be his father, and the man's wife to be his mother. The Reverend and his wife were weird, and a large majority of the parishioners were weird as well.
The Gathering was a special meeting that only certain members of the church got to attend, when Julia was finally invited to observe one of the meetings she could not believe what she saw. I couldn't either, and I couldn't believe that any sane person would be eager to participate, but Julia was. Julia was eager to do anything she could think of to please Bryce and his "family," even when she was feeling uneasy.
The book isn't really a mystery from my perspective, it's plain to see what will happen next as Julia continues on with Bryce. He becomes more controlling and violent. Julia both defends and questions his outlandish behavior. Bryce amps up his nutty, and Julia puts up with it while sneaking around trying to find out about his past.
I found Julia to be fairly stupid and pathetic when it came to men. I wanted to feel sorry for her but I found that I couldn't muster up much concern, even though I grew up seeing domestic violence play out. Julia unfortunately just made me sigh and shake my head.
You know I really don't mean to rant, but I'm sick of the stupidity.
...Kate being missing in action for most of the book and then popping up I'm going to step away from this review before I knock off a star.
I tried to understand Julia's POV but was unable to grasp why she was so foolish. Like I said, I know some women develop tunnel vision when they are interested in a man, but Julia's devotion to Bryce so early on was crazy. The man was practically a stranger and would not share information about his biological family, but in about a week's time Julia was ready to turn her back on her friends if it came to it.
I thought Julia's sister's reaction to Bryce was much too severe after she first met him. Bryce was charming and on his best behavior, yet Kate hated him with such a fierceness for no reason other than he seemed fake.
It made sense that Julia would be defensive, but falling out with her sister over a man she'd known 21 days had me shaking my head. I think Julia knew that Kate was right on at least one issue; the relationship was moving too fast.
Once Julia became heavily involved with Bryce's church, the story started to spin away from normalcy. Bryce considered the Reverend, who was the founder and owner of the church, to be his father, and the man's wife to be his mother. The Reverend and his wife were weird, and a large majority of the parishioners were weird as well.
The Gathering was a special meeting that only certain members of the church got to attend, when Julia was finally invited to observe one of the meetings she could not believe what she saw. I couldn't either, and I couldn't believe that any sane person would be eager to participate, but Julia was. Julia was eager to do anything she could think of to please Bryce and his "family," even when she was feeling uneasy.
The book isn't really a mystery from my perspective, it's plain to see what will happen next as Julia continues on with Bryce. He becomes more controlling and violent. Julia both defends and questions his outlandish behavior. Bryce amps up his nutty, and Julia puts up with it while sneaking around trying to find out about his past.
I found Julia to be fairly stupid and pathetic when it came to men. I wanted to feel sorry for her but I found that I couldn't muster up much concern, even though I grew up seeing domestic violence play out. Julia unfortunately just made me sigh and shake my head.
You know I really don't mean to rant, but I'm sick of the stupidity.
...Kate being missing in action for most of the book and then popping up I'm going to step away from this review before I knock off a star.
July 20, 2018
Short Take: Like a fun-size candy bar - tasty for a minute, but unsatisfying.
(*Note - I received a free advance copy of this book for review.*)
Mega-churches are skeevy, aren’t they? I mean, you have the pastors with their shellacked hair and blinding veneers, hopping around doing their darnedest to convince their congregation that God wants them to have a private jet. It’s no secret that Joel Osteen and his ilk prey on people who are desperate for some kind of help, and scam them out of what little they have. But as disgusting as I find their behavior, I have to acknowledge that behind the spotlights and designer choir robes, there might be worse crimes than stealing from the poor.
Enter Julia. She’s at a bit of a crossroads in life, just coming out of a bad break-up, and trying to get a promotion at work when Bryce Covington blows into her life. He’s rich, gorgeous, and treats Julia like a queen, lavishing her with attention and gifts. He’s also mysterious - he will not speak of his family, insisting that the only family that matters to him are the Reverend and his wife Nancy, leaders of the Church of the Life, who took him in as a teenager. Although Julia has never been into religion, she begins attending church with Bryce, gradually abandoning her own life in order to be accepted into his.
Julia gives up her job, contact with her family, hanging out with her friends, and pretty much everything that mattered to her before Bryce, and do I even need to tell you what a Bad Idea that is? Because of course Bryce is not the Prince Charming he appeared to be, and the church is way more sinister than Julia could’ve imagined.
As much as I love a good takedown of a religious huckster, With You Always didn’t do that. It didn’t even try. The first three-quarters of the is nothing but Julia mooning over Bryce and ignoring everyone who tries to talk sense to her. She’s That Girl, the one who will change everything about herself and turn her back on everyone who’s been there for her throughout her life to keep a guy. It’s pathetic. When Julia finally starts to wise up and realize YOU IN DANGER GIRL, there’s exactly one scene, one character getting what they deserve in the space of a single paragraph, and Bam! Over.
Ms. Olsen gives readers a lot of tantalizing mysteries to gnaw on, then ignores them. For example, who in the church’s inner circle was responsible for [spoiler], and did they get any kind of punishment for that? Were there any consequences for anything on the church’s end? We don’t find out what happened in Julia’s life after all this, at all. The epilogue is literally like 20 minutes after the climax, and it amounts to “and she lived happily ever after”, which, uh, NO. There’s absolutely no way that [spoiler] wouldn’t be out for revenge, or that she would just walk away and go back to her old life after burning so many bridges, not to mention the whole police thing.
And honestly, with the way Julia treated everyone around her, it’s really hard to care what happened next. I’m inclined to think the author agreed.
The Nerd’s Rating: Two Happy Neurons (and a full-size candy bar. Because whoever invented “fun size” clearly doesn’t understand candy bars.)
(*Note - I received a free advance copy of this book for review.*)
Mega-churches are skeevy, aren’t they? I mean, you have the pastors with their shellacked hair and blinding veneers, hopping around doing their darnedest to convince their congregation that God wants them to have a private jet. It’s no secret that Joel Osteen and his ilk prey on people who are desperate for some kind of help, and scam them out of what little they have. But as disgusting as I find their behavior, I have to acknowledge that behind the spotlights and designer choir robes, there might be worse crimes than stealing from the poor.
Enter Julia. She’s at a bit of a crossroads in life, just coming out of a bad break-up, and trying to get a promotion at work when Bryce Covington blows into her life. He’s rich, gorgeous, and treats Julia like a queen, lavishing her with attention and gifts. He’s also mysterious - he will not speak of his family, insisting that the only family that matters to him are the Reverend and his wife Nancy, leaders of the Church of the Life, who took him in as a teenager. Although Julia has never been into religion, she begins attending church with Bryce, gradually abandoning her own life in order to be accepted into his.
Julia gives up her job, contact with her family, hanging out with her friends, and pretty much everything that mattered to her before Bryce, and do I even need to tell you what a Bad Idea that is? Because of course Bryce is not the Prince Charming he appeared to be, and the church is way more sinister than Julia could’ve imagined.
As much as I love a good takedown of a religious huckster, With You Always didn’t do that. It didn’t even try. The first three-quarters of the is nothing but Julia mooning over Bryce and ignoring everyone who tries to talk sense to her. She’s That Girl, the one who will change everything about herself and turn her back on everyone who’s been there for her throughout her life to keep a guy. It’s pathetic. When Julia finally starts to wise up and realize YOU IN DANGER GIRL, there’s exactly one scene, one character getting what they deserve in the space of a single paragraph, and Bam! Over.
Ms. Olsen gives readers a lot of tantalizing mysteries to gnaw on, then ignores them. For example, who in the church’s inner circle was responsible for [spoiler], and did they get any kind of punishment for that? Were there any consequences for anything on the church’s end? We don’t find out what happened in Julia’s life after all this, at all. The epilogue is literally like 20 minutes after the climax, and it amounts to “and she lived happily ever after”, which, uh, NO. There’s absolutely no way that [spoiler] wouldn’t be out for revenge, or that she would just walk away and go back to her old life after burning so many bridges, not to mention the whole police thing.
And honestly, with the way Julia treated everyone around her, it’s really hard to care what happened next. I’m inclined to think the author agreed.
The Nerd’s Rating: Two Happy Neurons (and a full-size candy bar. Because whoever invented “fun size” clearly doesn’t understand candy bars.)
November 26, 2018
Another charts topper by this author (in my opinion). Just like her first novel "The Girl Before," I believe she sends messages out to her readers through fictional story telling. Her background explains why she's writing such good books. You'd almost need to live it to be able to write it, and with her career in marriage & family therapy - with a degree in psychology, she's knocking 'em out of the park. I don't want to give anything away.....it's fun to discover what's going on as you read each page....and fascinating to discover what subject matter she's chosen to expose. Basically, the story is Julia meets Bryce Covington. Mister Wonderful, Prince Charming, her every dream come true. After her stormy break-up from her ex-fiance' this is like making a wish and having it come true. But, this fairy tale isn't like the ones Disney writes. This one is dark, terrifying, and deadly. As I said, there's messages in this book - sort of like warnings against anyone who might fall victim to the monsters and manipulators who prey on the weak. I am giddy with excitement for her next book! Recommend 100% and also advise thrill seekers to keep a look out for any books she'll come with in the future.
September 26, 2018
This book hooked me from the very first page. I was so intrigued by the cultish storyline and anxious to see how it all played out.
The dark and creepy Sleeping With The Enemy themes were so anxiety producing and kept me turning the pages as fast as I could. All in all it was a satisfying read foe me.
I recommend this one to lovers of dark, twisted thrillers. This was a good one.
The dark and creepy Sleeping With The Enemy themes were so anxiety producing and kept me turning the pages as fast as I could. All in all it was a satisfying read foe me.
I recommend this one to lovers of dark, twisted thrillers. This was a good one.
January 5, 2019
Bryce Covington breezes into Julia's life and immediately sweeps her off her feet with helicopter rides to fabulous restaurants and an interest in everything about her life. He's charming, handsome, and well off. He introduces her to a life she's never known including his church. When she marries him, he gradually cuts her off from work, her family, and all her friends. Can Julia change her ways to devote her life to Bryce and the church?
Bryce's devotion seemed too fast and too good to be true. I was seeing red flags. Maybe Julia didn't because love is blind but I was uneasy very early on. Some of the leading church members were creepy and the closed door scenes were bizarre.
Interspersed in the regular chapters were cryptic paragraphs that led me to believe I knew what was going to happen. Wrong. The entire story was predictable but there was what I'll call a wow factor at the very end. The church component added a new dimension to a foreseeable story. Although the ending was not what I was expecting, I'm not sure I understood how this was going to play out afterward. Since it happened abruptly, I guess I had a lot of unanswered questions. However, I understand that authors deliberately end books this way and lots of readers like it.
Bryce's devotion seemed too fast and too good to be true. I was seeing red flags. Maybe Julia didn't because love is blind but I was uneasy very early on. Some of the leading church members were creepy and the closed door scenes were bizarre.
Interspersed in the regular chapters were cryptic paragraphs that led me to believe I knew what was going to happen. Wrong. The entire story was predictable but there was what I'll call a wow factor at the very end. The church component added a new dimension to a foreseeable story. Although the ending was not what I was expecting, I'm not sure I understood how this was going to play out afterward. Since it happened abruptly, I guess I had a lot of unanswered questions. However, I understand that authors deliberately end books this way and lots of readers like it.
January 24, 2021
This started out as basic Chick Lit - dumped girl meets Prince Charming. I had just finished the author’s first book, so I knew something sinister was bound to happen and it does but................... Hey, wait a minute, this is the same plot and the same characters as in The Girl Before.
Same scene - a big compound of homes etc
A secret leading up to something weird that is never fully explained
Recruiting kids for their own mysterious purposes
Bryce/Glen - suave, devious, charming, angry wife beaters
Julia/Claira - naive, insecure, starving for love, brainwashed
Reverend/Papa G - controlling patriarchs
Nancy/Mama Mae - subservient evil women, matriarchs of the cult
Sydney/Passion - abused helpless young girls
Whores and sex slaves/Downtrodden wives and mothers
I actually thought I was reading the same book over again - too bad the author couldn’t have been a bit more original this second time around.
Same scene - a big compound of homes etc
A secret leading up to something weird that is never fully explained
Recruiting kids for their own mysterious purposes
Bryce/Glen - suave, devious, charming, angry wife beaters
Julia/Claira - naive, insecure, starving for love, brainwashed
Reverend/Papa G - controlling patriarchs
Nancy/Mama Mae - subservient evil women, matriarchs of the cult
Sydney/Passion - abused helpless young girls
Whores and sex slaves/Downtrodden wives and mothers
I actually thought I was reading the same book over again - too bad the author couldn’t have been a bit more original this second time around.
April 1, 2024
The story was phenomenally done! And it had me feeling a rollercoaster of emotions throughout. But the ending just felt so rushed for me. I'm bummed that we didn't get a bit more of a drawn out ending with some real closure to a lot of the elements of the story.
May 27, 2019
This book reads like a lifetime movie. If that’s your thing, you’ll love it.
August 11, 2018
What a totally fantastic read that I absolutely loved. Julia is still getting over a relationship when she meets Bryce Covington, a charming, charismatic and handsome lawyer. He introduces her to his l cult-like church and after a whirlwind courtship, they are married. He makes her sever ties with family and friends and prince charming turns into a devil in disguise. Lots of surprises in this book with a real surprise ending. If you are looking for a great psychological thriller, this is the book for you.
August 14, 2018
At the beginning Julia thought she found her prince charming. So in loved with him. She even likes his family which happened to be the church family of his. But with her sister warning her that she don't know him she's ready to defend her man by all means. But once married she sees how different he become. Shutting her away from her family. His secrets stays his own his past but she can't ask about his REAL family.
Prince charming isn't who she thought he was.
Interesting tale on a marriage gone wrong.
Prince charming isn't who she thought he was.
Interesting tale on a marriage gone wrong.
October 6, 2018
A woman gets involved with a man who may be hiding some dark secrets behind his charismatic facade. Trashy but addictive - this is basically the book version of a Lifetime movie. I felt like the ending was extremely abrupt and I wanted more resolution involving the Creepy Drug Church (TM pending) but it's a great psychological suspense to keep you up at night if you can forgive some incredulous moments.
Would recommend for anyone who enjoys feeling like Whoopi Goldberg in this gif while reading:
Would recommend for anyone who enjoys feeling like Whoopi Goldberg in this gif while reading:
January 4, 2019
Round up to 4.5 stars.
July 15, 2018
I was provided a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest and fair review.
I’d actually give this book 3.5 stars but rounded it up for Goodreads. The book started out with Bryce, the prince charming, wooing our main character, Julia. However, since I already knew this was a psychological thriller I knew Bryce was not all he was cracked up to be. You saw little things from time to time that seemed a bit weird but I felt the book took more than half way to really start to expose the whole reality of Julia’s situation. Then, only the last 1/10th of the book is where Julia really finds out some hidden secrets and tries to escape.
I gave it a good rating still because, for me, it started becoming a page turner where I could not wait to find out what would happen. There was only one part that I found confusing but other than that it is a quick read with an interesting topic. Even though every step of the way I was screaming at Julia to leave Bryce, I understand how if you are in that situation, not everything is always so clear.
I’d actually give this book 3.5 stars but rounded it up for Goodreads. The book started out with Bryce, the prince charming, wooing our main character, Julia. However, since I already knew this was a psychological thriller I knew Bryce was not all he was cracked up to be. You saw little things from time to time that seemed a bit weird but I felt the book took more than half way to really start to expose the whole reality of Julia’s situation. Then, only the last 1/10th of the book is where Julia really finds out some hidden secrets and tries to escape.
I gave it a good rating still because, for me, it started becoming a page turner where I could not wait to find out what would happen. There was only one part that I found confusing but other than that it is a quick read with an interesting topic. Even though every step of the way I was screaming at Julia to leave Bryce, I understand how if you are in that situation, not everything is always so clear.
April 9, 2019
I am officially angry with this book. How DARE you lead me on this way? How can you look yourself in the mirror every morning knowing that I gave you everything during the two days we were together, only for you to just ghost me? We could have had something really special... YOU could have been something special... But in the end, you're just another Instagram filtered Catfish of a novel. You never loved me.
Okay, now that I am finished being unnecessarily overdramatic, I can express to you, dear Goodreader, that I really fell for this book. While the above is a slight exaggeration, I did give this a hell of a lot of my time, and I did pick it up as soon as I got home from work and I did sneak a few chapters in while pretending that I was paying attention to what my husband was saying to me from the other side of the couch (I know - how rude that he would even attempt a conversation with me whilst I am holding a piece of literature?!).
I have read plenty of "girl gets roped into an abusive and manipulative relationship and has to figure out a way to escape" storylines, and I am sure I will read more, but this one felt at least slightly fresh to me. Maybe because I am a sucker for all things cultish (99.9% chance this is true), but my heart went pitter patter during the scenes that involved Julia and Bryce's rendezvous at the church, specifically during the super secretive Gatherings. Oh ya, you know what I like! Yes please!
I would be lying through my teeth if I said I wasn't hoping for way more culty goodness, though. Was there a white middle aged male reverend / leader with a God complex? Sure was. Did the church / cult tamper with hallucinogenic drugs? You betcha. Were the women of the group treated as second class citizens, forced into submission, and beaten when necessary because all females are good for nothing whores? Yes, yes and yes.
Sadly, despite all of this delicious pure cult gold, the cult always felt like a backdrop, like b-roll, and it was never really able to take front and center. In fact, in the end, it was kind of just left by the side of the road like an unwanted and beat up shoe (and while we are on the topic - can someone please tell me why there is always only ONE shoe whenever there is a random shoe on the side of any street? What in the literal hell happened to the second shoe? This is the type of thing that keeps me up at night.).
Sure, we get to follow Julia's rise from the ashes like the phoenix she is (...not) and we are by her side as she eventually breaks free from her toxic marriage - cliché anyone? - but we the people wanted more. This book got me all hot and bothered, but decided I wasn't it's type halfway through, and frankly, I am offended. What happened to everyone and everything else? Bryce's trailer trash mother that was introduced, but ended up serving no real purpose? The church itself and the state of the reverend after Bryce's untimely departure? And we are given just the tip about the supposedly crazy scandals that will threaten the future of the church - according to Julia's way too conveniently present high school friend. But do we get to read about any of it? NO!
I am sorry, but I cared more about the fate of this bible thumping, Ketamine wafer eating cult than I did about Julia mending her relationship with her sister.... What a tease you are, Rena Olsen. But lucky for me, you apparently are really into plotlines involving Christian extremist groups, so I can only hope your next novel will put out like a cheerleader on prom night and not leave me wanting so much more.
Okay, now that I am finished being unnecessarily overdramatic, I can express to you, dear Goodreader, that I really fell for this book. While the above is a slight exaggeration, I did give this a hell of a lot of my time, and I did pick it up as soon as I got home from work and I did sneak a few chapters in while pretending that I was paying attention to what my husband was saying to me from the other side of the couch (I know - how rude that he would even attempt a conversation with me whilst I am holding a piece of literature?!).
I have read plenty of "girl gets roped into an abusive and manipulative relationship and has to figure out a way to escape" storylines, and I am sure I will read more, but this one felt at least slightly fresh to me. Maybe because I am a sucker for all things cultish (99.9% chance this is true), but my heart went pitter patter during the scenes that involved Julia and Bryce's rendezvous at the church, specifically during the super secretive Gatherings. Oh ya, you know what I like! Yes please!
I would be lying through my teeth if I said I wasn't hoping for way more culty goodness, though. Was there a white middle aged male reverend / leader with a God complex? Sure was. Did the church / cult tamper with hallucinogenic drugs? You betcha. Were the women of the group treated as second class citizens, forced into submission, and beaten when necessary because all females are good for nothing whores? Yes, yes and yes.
Sadly, despite all of this delicious pure cult gold, the cult always felt like a backdrop, like b-roll, and it was never really able to take front and center. In fact, in the end, it was kind of just left by the side of the road like an unwanted and beat up shoe (and while we are on the topic - can someone please tell me why there is always only ONE shoe whenever there is a random shoe on the side of any street? What in the literal hell happened to the second shoe? This is the type of thing that keeps me up at night.).
Sure, we get to follow Julia's rise from the ashes like the phoenix she is (...not) and we are by her side as she eventually breaks free from her toxic marriage - cliché anyone? - but we the people wanted more. This book got me all hot and bothered, but decided I wasn't it's type halfway through, and frankly, I am offended. What happened to everyone and everything else? Bryce's trailer trash mother that was introduced, but ended up serving no real purpose? The church itself and the state of the reverend after Bryce's untimely departure? And we are given just the tip about the supposedly crazy scandals that will threaten the future of the church - according to Julia's way too conveniently present high school friend. But do we get to read about any of it? NO!
I am sorry, but I cared more about the fate of this bible thumping, Ketamine wafer eating cult than I did about Julia mending her relationship with her sister.... What a tease you are, Rena Olsen. But lucky for me, you apparently are really into plotlines involving Christian extremist groups, so I can only hope your next novel will put out like a cheerleader on prom night and not leave me wanting so much more.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 24, 2021
Sad to start off the year with a dud but here we go.
This book reads like a dull and highly predictable lifetime movie. Its focus is the insecure woman falls in love with a “perfect” man who, surprise, doesn’t turn out to be perfect at all. Even though this trope has been done time and time again, I believe that
originality can be brought to the story to put a fresh spin on it. Unfortunately, ‘With You Always” just fell into all the cliches.
The main character, Julia, wasn’t very likable. I’m a reader who can get through a story without loving the narrator, though I found Julia to be completely all over the place. She was coming from a very toxic and unhealthy relationship prior to Bryce, so insecurity and emotional damage from that is human and understandable. My main problem with Julia is how easily she fell in love with this religious cult after the author spent the first chunk of the story setting Julia up as a independent working woman. It’s just strange how quickly Julia falls into the Church of Life and how weak-willed she became when things began to get serious with Bryce.
The ending also left a sore spot for me as it was so abrupt! There’s no real resolution, no follow-up, no explaining regarding what happened after Bryce’s death, nothing. It was basically (paraphrasing): “I knew I would never get far without Bryce coming after me so I killed him in the bathtub. Kate showed up and I finally felt free.” Julia was a very weak-willed character and I found reading from her perspective to be boring and honestly irritating. I’m glad Julia got away from an abusive partner, but there is no follow-up regarding what happened to Nancy and the Reverend, no “x months later” regarding the birth of the baby, nothing. As much of an a** Bryce was, it would’ve been a lot more satisfying for him to have to live with what he had done. I wanted to see some accountability being held to the cult fanatics. The ending was too abrupt and lazy.
Overall thoughts: you can just watch a “thriller” movie on lifetime that follows this similar plot and at least be a bit more entertained. This book was only around 339 pages but it dragged and felt like I’d never finish. ‘With You, Always’ was uninteresting, predicable and richly unsatisfying.
This book reads like a dull and highly predictable lifetime movie. Its focus is the insecure woman falls in love with a “perfect” man who, surprise, doesn’t turn out to be perfect at all. Even though this trope has been done time and time again, I believe that
originality can be brought to the story to put a fresh spin on it. Unfortunately, ‘With You Always” just fell into all the cliches.
The main character, Julia, wasn’t very likable. I’m a reader who can get through a story without loving the narrator, though I found Julia to be completely all over the place. She was coming from a very toxic and unhealthy relationship prior to Bryce, so insecurity and emotional damage from that is human and understandable. My main problem with Julia is how easily she fell in love with this religious cult after the author spent the first chunk of the story setting Julia up as a independent working woman. It’s just strange how quickly Julia falls into the Church of Life and how weak-willed she became when things began to get serious with Bryce.
The ending also left a sore spot for me as it was so abrupt! There’s no real resolution, no follow-up, no explaining regarding what happened after Bryce’s death, nothing. It was basically (paraphrasing): “I knew I would never get far without Bryce coming after me so I killed him in the bathtub. Kate showed up and I finally felt free.” Julia was a very weak-willed character and I found reading from her perspective to be boring and honestly irritating. I’m glad Julia got away from an abusive partner, but there is no follow-up regarding what happened to Nancy and the Reverend, no “x months later” regarding the birth of the baby, nothing. As much of an a** Bryce was, it would’ve been a lot more satisfying for him to have to live with what he had done. I wanted to see some accountability being held to the cult fanatics. The ending was too abrupt and lazy.
Overall thoughts: you can just watch a “thriller” movie on lifetime that follows this similar plot and at least be a bit more entertained. This book was only around 339 pages but it dragged and felt like I’d never finish. ‘With You, Always’ was uninteresting, predicable and richly unsatisfying.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Read
August 7, 2018The book triggered me in so many ways.
I have read a lot of books about abusive relationships. A LOT!
But nothing was this intense.
The Main character naivenness was getting on my nerves, i couldn't believe how much stupid she is for falling for him.
Right from the beginning there was something wrong about this man.
I thought i would forget that it was an abusive relationship for a while, get swept up like the main character did, love him like she did.
But no.
Right from the beginning, so intense and abusive.
I don't think i can even rate this.
It was just so hard...
Read
May 18, 2018DNF. The writing in the beginning was pretty bad, so I'm lemming this one.
August 28, 2018
Truly terrible.
May 19, 2020
The book was predictable at every step. There was nothing beyond the synopsis that I couldn’t guess. Maybe just not my style of book.
August 21, 2020
So bad. Don’t waste your time on this one.
August 14, 2018
The story of a woman trapped in a mentally and physically abusive relationship is not new. We have seen this story play out in books and movies. Usually these stories end with the woman killing her abuser or the abuser killing her then moving onto to his next victim. What makes Always With You original is the circumstances which lead to the main character's dangerous situation. Unfortunately the story does not live up to its potential.
Meet Julia Hawthorne. In her early 30’s working as an assistant in a marketing firm. Still healing emotionally from a broken engagement, she meets Bryce, a handsome and successful lawyer. Julia is very quickly taken in by Bryce’s charm and they marry. Soon after they marry, Julia learns there is much more to Bryce than she first thought. Julia is now entangled in a web of deceit and danger with no way of getting out.
Always With You has a very original premise. Julia is not only trapped in a troubled marriage, she is also trapped in a religious organization. Bryce is a devout member of the Church of Life. The Church of Life has many loyal members but is also clouded by rumors and mystery. Many of Julia’s friends and family express concerns about the church and Bryce’s dedication, but Julia ignores their concerns. The addition of a religious element to the story of an abused woman is new to me. This is the main reason why I was excited to read Always With You. Sadly the story did not live up to my expectations, I found Always With You predicable and superficial.
Julia’s story has been told many times in fiction, but in my opinion the author missed a great opportunity to make build a more substantial story by not exploring the religious aspect more. The corruption within the Church of Life was implied more than explained. I would have enjoyed the story more if I could have learned details about what the church was up to. When Julia finally realizes she is in danger and decides to stand up for herself, she begins to rebel against Bryce and the church. The way the high ranking members of the church, including Bryce, reacted seemed extreme and a bit over the top. Since I never really learned what was happening within the church, I did not understand why it is so important to keep Julia in line.
Always With You moves at a very fast pace and can be read within a few days, which makes it a perfect read for summer. I am sure there are some readers who will enjoy Always With You and will find Julia relatable. I did enjoy Olsen’s first book The Girl Before, so my lack of enjoyment of Always With You will not stop me from reading other books by Olsen. Readers looking for a lighter fast paced read should add Always With You to their list of must reads.
** Thanks to G.P. Putnam's Sons for my free review copy**
Murder and Moore Rating :
3 out of 5 Stars
Meet Julia Hawthorne. In her early 30’s working as an assistant in a marketing firm. Still healing emotionally from a broken engagement, she meets Bryce, a handsome and successful lawyer. Julia is very quickly taken in by Bryce’s charm and they marry. Soon after they marry, Julia learns there is much more to Bryce than she first thought. Julia is now entangled in a web of deceit and danger with no way of getting out.
Always With You has a very original premise. Julia is not only trapped in a troubled marriage, she is also trapped in a religious organization. Bryce is a devout member of the Church of Life. The Church of Life has many loyal members but is also clouded by rumors and mystery. Many of Julia’s friends and family express concerns about the church and Bryce’s dedication, but Julia ignores their concerns. The addition of a religious element to the story of an abused woman is new to me. This is the main reason why I was excited to read Always With You. Sadly the story did not live up to my expectations, I found Always With You predicable and superficial.
Julia’s story has been told many times in fiction, but in my opinion the author missed a great opportunity to make build a more substantial story by not exploring the religious aspect more. The corruption within the Church of Life was implied more than explained. I would have enjoyed the story more if I could have learned details about what the church was up to. When Julia finally realizes she is in danger and decides to stand up for herself, she begins to rebel against Bryce and the church. The way the high ranking members of the church, including Bryce, reacted seemed extreme and a bit over the top. Since I never really learned what was happening within the church, I did not understand why it is so important to keep Julia in line.
Always With You moves at a very fast pace and can be read within a few days, which makes it a perfect read for summer. I am sure there are some readers who will enjoy Always With You and will find Julia relatable. I did enjoy Olsen’s first book The Girl Before, so my lack of enjoyment of Always With You will not stop me from reading other books by Olsen. Readers looking for a lighter fast paced read should add Always With You to their list of must reads.
** Thanks to G.P. Putnam's Sons for my free review copy**
Murder and Moore Rating :
3 out of 5 Stars
Displaying 1 - 30 of 249 reviews