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Before You
A fake boyfriend she never wanted.
Ryan Allie Allistar understood from a young age true love and happy-ever-after doesn’t exist. Her college mantra? Head down, grades up, and stay away from the guys until after graduation. Period.
The chance for a memorable year.
When a night of celebrating leads to a scary run-in with a guy from her past, and sexy rugby team captain, Xander Brody, steps in and declares he’s her boyfriend, Ryan faces rethinking how she wants to live her last year of college.
They’re not anyone’s idea of the perfect match.
She’s not into college guys. And definitely not guys with commitment issues. He prefers coeds with experience in the sack. But to survive the mayhem of a stalker on the loose, an unsolved murder, and a secret double life on the verge of unraveling before their eyes, Ryan and Xander will have to convince everyone they’re “the real deal” even if it means crossing the unspoken boundaries of their friend zone.
Ryan Allie Allistar understood from a young age true love and happy-ever-after doesn’t exist. Her college mantra? Head down, grades up, and stay away from the guys until after graduation. Period.
The chance for a memorable year.
When a night of celebrating leads to a scary run-in with a guy from her past, and sexy rugby team captain, Xander Brody, steps in and declares he’s her boyfriend, Ryan faces rethinking how she wants to live her last year of college.
They’re not anyone’s idea of the perfect match.
She’s not into college guys. And definitely not guys with commitment issues. He prefers coeds with experience in the sack. But to survive the mayhem of a stalker on the loose, an unsolved murder, and a secret double life on the verge of unraveling before their eyes, Ryan and Xander will have to convince everyone they’re “the real deal” even if it means crossing the unspoken boundaries of their friend zone.
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About the author
Ashlyn Mathews
49 books130 followersI'm an author of paranormal and contemporary romances. Blessed or cursed, depending on my mood and where I'm at on my current WIP, my overactive imagination guides my muse.
A big fan of Firefly and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, I incorporate various weapons in my paranormal romances and use out of this world names just because I can.
You can find more about me and my books at https://www.ashlynmathewsauthor.com.
A big fan of Firefly and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, I incorporate various weapons in my paranormal romances and use out of this world names just because I can.
You can find more about me and my books at https://www.ashlynmathewsauthor.com.
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
June 19, 2022
Not sure what I just read
This says book 1, but it read like maybe a fourth or fifth book in a series. There is so much here - way too much - that we are juat thrown in the middle of. Things are very, very weird and for most of the book I had no clue what was going on. Then the showdown was ott unbelievable and the ending- I'm not gonna throw out spoilers, but wtf did I just read? He took who to the show? I kept reading thinking we would get some actual backstory and clarification of exactly what was going on, but we didn't. I didn't like the vagueness, the plot, the characters or the rushed and 1d relationship. I'm not really finding anything redeeming here and with all its issues and extreme confusion, definitely did not enjoy it ans can't recommend it.
This says book 1, but it read like maybe a fourth or fifth book in a series. There is so much here - way too much - that we are juat thrown in the middle of. Things are very, very weird and for most of the book I had no clue what was going on. Then the showdown was ott unbelievable and the ending- I'm not gonna throw out spoilers, but wtf did I just read? He took who to the show? I kept reading thinking we would get some actual backstory and clarification of exactly what was going on, but we didn't. I didn't like the vagueness, the plot, the characters or the rushed and 1d relationship. I'm not really finding anything redeeming here and with all its issues and extreme confusion, definitely did not enjoy it ans can't recommend it.
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May 10, 2025🎁 FREE on Amazon today (6/8/2022)! 🎁
September 25, 2025
Not an angry read, and definitely has parts I like, but overall, not enough good to outweigh the bad. It's just OK.
If I had to describe this book in a word, I'd say disjointed. To expand on that, it'll take a bit more space and a lot more words.
I think my biggest issue was that Mathews seems like she was squeezing too many tropes into the story, as if she couldn't make up her mind what sort of story it would be, with what sort of characters. We have musician, rugby star, trust fund, heavy troubled angsty past, suspense, stalkers, college drama, fake romance... And yet none really felt like the focus of the story. For example, the rugby never plays a part in the plot, other than putting Xander on a different team than the football players.
Because the author was trying to fit so much in, the novel ended up with plot threads all over the place. We had lots of details that were introduced without foundation, often leaving me feeling confused on what was going on. Characters too, were introduced without foundation and weren't explained for another few pages - like Jim (one of "Noah's guys" on the security team) was mentioned by name and without explanation before we meet him. Allie/Ryan/Remy was a ball of secrets and angst and snark, and the way things were revealed was very oddly paced. Just felt like one thing after another, to the point where she was a hard character to relate to (or even like, at times).
The pacing was also weirdly whiplash. From the time they meet to when they were engaged, I think it was about 2 months? So many things happened in the first two weeks that - again - disjointed and bouncy. Things would have felt less rushed and haphazard if Mathews had tried to squeeze in fewer plot points and instead developed what she'd chosen. Give the time for the suspense to develop, or for the fake romance to turn to something more (instead, it was about 24 hours before they are saying it's real).
Was it all bad? Not at all. I did like the banter between the leads, such as it was.
Alternating 1st person POV. No cheating. Minor OW drama (yet another plot thread introduced and treated as more of a throwaway than anything else). No cliffhanger and HEA. While there is some good banter between the leads, my biggest impression was that the author couldn't decide what sort of romance she wanted this book to be and ended up stuffing in way too many tropes without developing any particularly well. Suspense threads lead to the most unbelievable conclusion, again feeling rushed and disjointed.
Would I read more in the series? Would I read more by the author?
Maybe to both (the other two in this trilogy sound interesting), but probably not one to seek out. I've read two by her now, and they didn't leave the strongest impressions, so I'm not going to be looking for her specifically. But if they're free and sound interesting, I might give another a shot before deciding whether I drop this author to the bottom of my lists.
If I had to describe this book in a word, I'd say disjointed. To expand on that, it'll take a bit more space and a lot more words.
I think my biggest issue was that Mathews seems like she was squeezing too many tropes into the story, as if she couldn't make up her mind what sort of story it would be, with what sort of characters. We have musician, rugby star, trust fund, heavy troubled angsty past, suspense, stalkers, college drama, fake romance... And yet none really felt like the focus of the story. For example, the rugby never plays a part in the plot, other than putting Xander on a different team than the football players.
Because the author was trying to fit so much in, the novel ended up with plot threads all over the place. We had lots of details that were introduced without foundation, often leaving me feeling confused on what was going on. Characters too, were introduced without foundation and weren't explained for another few pages - like Jim (one of "Noah's guys" on the security team) was mentioned by name and without explanation before we meet him. Allie/Ryan/Remy was a ball of secrets and angst and snark, and the way things were revealed was very oddly paced. Just felt like one thing after another, to the point where she was a hard character to relate to (or even like, at times).
The pacing was also weirdly whiplash. From the time they meet to when they were engaged, I think it was about 2 months? So many things happened in the first two weeks that - again - disjointed and bouncy. Things would have felt less rushed and haphazard if Mathews had tried to squeeze in fewer plot points and instead developed what she'd chosen. Give the time for the suspense to develop, or for the fake romance to turn to something more (instead, it was about 24 hours before they are saying it's real).
Was it all bad? Not at all. I did like the banter between the leads, such as it was.
Alternating 1st person POV. No cheating. Minor OW drama (yet another plot thread introduced and treated as more of a throwaway than anything else). No cliffhanger and HEA. While there is some good banter between the leads, my biggest impression was that the author couldn't decide what sort of romance she wanted this book to be and ended up stuffing in way too many tropes without developing any particularly well. Suspense threads lead to the most unbelievable conclusion, again feeling rushed and disjointed.
Would I read more in the series? Would I read more by the author?
Maybe to both (the other two in this trilogy sound interesting), but probably not one to seek out. I've read two by her now, and they didn't leave the strongest impressions, so I'm not going to be looking for her specifically. But if they're free and sound interesting, I might give another a shot before deciding whether I drop this author to the bottom of my lists.
May 29, 2019
Ryan and Xander are thrown together as fake boyfriend and girlfriend to throw off bullies targeting them. However, things get more complicated as a murder happens and a mystery begins.
I really enjoyed this book; however, the writing through me off a little bit. It's a bit crude and I'm not used to that. Other than that, I really enjoyed that the writing was told from both Ryan and Xander's points of views. It added depth to the novel that wouldn't normally be there if it was told from just one point of view. I liked that I got to "see" what the other character was thinking throughout the book.
I really enjoyed this book; however, the writing through me off a little bit. It's a bit crude and I'm not used to that. Other than that, I really enjoyed that the writing was told from both Ryan and Xander's points of views. It added depth to the novel that wouldn't normally be there if it was told from just one point of view. I liked that I got to "see" what the other character was thinking throughout the book.
June 18, 2022
2.5 if GR allowed half stars. It wasn’t the worst romance I’ve read but this book had 2 main issues working against it. The storyline was crazy confusing - a lot of past secrets with no explanation for a while, but still had a lot of name dropping of people associated with said past secrets. It just left me so confused and wondering who the hell all those names belonged to. Also the romance was just not well developed in my opinion.
With that said, I did like the MCs - I just would’ve preferred the story focused more on them and a bit less on the confusing back story…or to have some explanation of the back story woven into it better.
With that said, I did like the MCs - I just would’ve preferred the story focused more on them and a bit less on the confusing back story…or to have some explanation of the back story woven into it better.
July 6, 2020
Started out well
I enjoyed the first half of the story. The characters were easy to connect next with; the plot seemed interesting; there was enough mystery and build up to the drama. Then it al fell flat at the end. What could’ve been a really intriguing moment felt rushed and confusing. The subplots didn’t have any relation to each other and felt forced. Then there was an insane amount of explanation to try to make the previous events work for/connect with the story.
I enjoyed the first half of the story. The characters were easy to connect next with; the plot seemed interesting; there was enough mystery and build up to the drama. Then it al fell flat at the end. What could’ve been a really intriguing moment felt rushed and confusing. The subplots didn’t have any relation to each other and felt forced. Then there was an insane amount of explanation to try to make the previous events work for/connect with the story.
August 12, 2022
I was pretty intrigued by this book from the synopsis and the first few chapters were decent, if not a bit juvenile. It quickly became too over the top though with all the different subplots happening and the h having like 3 different names she goes by. The way the book was written became really confusing the more I read on. And then the Hannah Montana twist at the end, and the H Xander's ex drama was just ridiculous.
July 15, 2019
If you like reading about happily ever after then you'll love this book. Allie and Xander's story was far from real in the beginning but eventually they fell in love with each other. I wouldn't mind reading Asher and Nora's story.
I received this book for free from eBook Discovery. I voluntarily review this book. This is my honest review.
I received this book for free from eBook Discovery. I voluntarily review this book. This is my honest review.
June 15, 2022
Great story!
Xander was holding back on truly loving someone because of his first love, which turned out sleeping with most of his teammates. Ryan shows up at a bar and needs help before she gets beat up. Xander steps in. From 5here on in so many things happen to get them together but they say it will only be fake togetherness. Right….
Xander was holding back on truly loving someone because of his first love, which turned out sleeping with most of his teammates. Ryan shows up at a bar and needs help before she gets beat up. Xander steps in. From 5here on in so many things happen to get them together but they say it will only be fake togetherness. Right….
August 1, 2022
only recently have i learned of AM's books. i saw this was free on Amazon because i had read another of her books recently. Kiss Starter series. 3 books so far. i will hope to read those soon. May 28, 2019 it was out in the book world. sport romance. new adult. college romance. i tend to jump around in my genres. i had a different book cover. i think this is right book??!
May 1, 2019
A very enjoyable read which I had great trouble putting down. Always an emotional journey as written by Ashlyn Mathews. An upbeat on-the-move storyline with a few curves to follow and an interesting twist or two as well.
June 13, 2022
I liked Xander. Ryan/Allie/Remy was harder to figure out and impossible to relate to. This story had too many secrets, too many scandals, too many twists and turns. Way too soap opera to be enjoyable for me.
June 18, 2022
Concept had potential but the plot and subplots were messy and forced. Hard to follow along with and often felt rushed. Had to re read several pages to figure out what was actually going on. Main character is dry and secretive to the point it’s hard to relate to her at all.
June 21, 2022
huge disappointment
Infantile writing and the story is trying to be too many things. I almost stopped reading but I never give up. I was hoping it got better but it never did. So disappointing.
Infantile writing and the story is trying to be too many things. I almost stopped reading but I never give up. I was hoping it got better but it never did. So disappointing.
May 27, 2019
Just okay
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Decent story, but a lot of the writing is just too cliche for my taste.
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Decent story, but a lot of the writing is just too cliche for my taste.
May 30, 2019
I liked it very good reads.kind of mysterious .never dreamed she was singer.I'm glad she had a boyfriend who was a friend.awesome thanks
June 9, 2019
I won this book through a GoodReads giveaway. I have never read a book from this author before and I will definitely check out more of her books!
June 19, 2019
Throughly enjoyed this book
June 6, 2020
I really enjoyed this book. I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
July 25, 2020
I get lost in the authors dialog . Lots of confusion from past loves etc . Always secrets .
July 10, 2021
This was a great book. It’s the first in a series but can be read as a standalone. This writer had me laughing pretty good in some parts. It was a quick pace book. Highly recommend it.
June 13, 2022
Yes
Intense longing, sweet and open. Loved this story. Lots of mystery and strange twists but it worked out in the end.
Intense longing, sweet and open. Loved this story. Lots of mystery and strange twists but it worked out in the end.
June 25, 2022
Good idea for a story but it needs more. Sometime I felt like I had skipped pages because there were chunks missing. Overall, good story, just needs more.
September 11, 2022
This was fucking weird and the fanfic vibe stayed throughout the entire book
dnf
September 22, 2025Dnf at 25%. I’m not a fan of the writing in this one. It’s so cheesy and choppy and nothing makes sense.
June 29, 2022
The sweetest
Xander is the sweetest guy! Loved this story . couldn't put it down. Didn't expect the suspense part but it was so good.
Xander is the sweetest guy! Loved this story . couldn't put it down. Didn't expect the suspense part but it was so good.
August 4, 2019
A dramatic romance with a protective hero and feisty heroine, this book captures one's attention in the opening pages and carries it right through to the closing chapter. The novel is well written with a good plot and interesting characters, although I did find the storyline somewhat disjointed at times. To some extent, the novel keeps one guessing as to the background of Ryan's life, but it all comes out eventually, if in dribs and drabs. I enjoyed Xander as the hero and his protective stance towards Ryan endeared him from their first encounter. I received this book for free from eBook Discovery. I voluntarily post this review. This is my honest review.
May 25, 2024
This book was a let down, not much of a story and choppy.
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews