Lovin' los libros

Catching Liam (Good Girls Don't #1)
   by: Sophia Bleu

Publication Date: July 8, 2013
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Age Group: New Adult
Source: e-ARC provided by Xpresso Tours and the author in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Page Count: 196 pages
Order Links: Amazon
My Rating: 4.5/5 stars


My Review:

When I first read the synopsis to this book I thought I was in for a fun, light-hearted read. Not the case. Was it still fun? Absolutely. Was it light-hearted? At times. This book held so much more depth than I had ever anticipated. It takes quite a bit to make me tear up over a book. This book? Yeah, it put me through the emotional ringer quite a few times. I loved both Jillian and Liam's characters, as well as the side characters (Jess, Professor Markson), and I felt overall the book flowed really well. I was engaged from the start and pulled in by Jillian's spunk and Liam's humor and sexy Scottish accent and his waffles....

The book starts with Jillian waking up to realize the guy she had slept with is still hanging around. And to make matters worse? He's making breakfast. And he's sexier than she remembered. And for the love of all that's holy.... he's freaking Scottish. Excuse me while I fall to the floor and FAINT. However, Jillian doesn't do relationships. And she doesn't do seconds.  We find out pretty quickly that this is for a specific reason. We don't find out until much later what that reason is, but we can clearly see that there is *something* that makes her this way. And oh Lord. Finding out what the reason is broke. my. heart. For someone so young to be dealing with what she is--- I can understand her need to push people away and why she wouldn't want to get involved in a relationship. I hate that she feels like that, especially after Liam endlessly proves his willingness to fight for a chance to be with her. Jillian has a lot on her plate: she is dealing with a secret, trying to get good grades to stay in school, and deal with an overprotective mother. After that night with Liam, she never expected to see him again- until she does: in her communications class. She is partnered with him and now really can't escape him. Their midterm assignment requires them to work together outside of class and soon Jillian realizes she's tired of fighting against her feelings. She wants to be caught by Liam. Slowly, she starts to open her heart to him and as terrified as she is, she wants to try to live in the now with him and not focus on what the future holds.

Liam. Holy hell, I don't even know where to start. Number one: If I were to wake up from a one night stand to a sexy Scotsman making me waffles, I would be a goner. I absolutely love Liam's sense of humor. He is funny, but he is also incredibly patient with Jillian. Not only does the man make a mean waffle, but he KNOWS how to have an after-date ice cream party. I have to say, I admire Liam so much because he makes Jillian feel beautiful and wanted and slowly starts to give her hope for the future. He isn't afraid to defend her against drunken idiots and certainly isn't afraid to stand up for her against her mother. He falls in love with her and even after discovering her secret and after being continuously pushed away, he stands firm in his decision to be with her.

I love that Jillian has a great support system: most notably in her best friend and roommate Jess. Jess knows about Jillian and although she is involved in a relationship of her own, she does not neglect her best friend like I felt Cassie did. Cassie, another of Jillian's friends, we didn't see as much of as we did Jess. It's not that Cassie was a bad friend, but there were a few times where she seemed a bit more concerned with her boyfriend than spending time with her friend. Jess is a good friend to Jillian and isn't afraid to do what's right, even knowing it would make her friend angry.

I personally really enjoyed this story. Watching Jillian find strength and acceptance of herself and what she's going through and watching her learn to let someone in is what really did it for me. She is strong-willed, but yet has a vulnerability that really makes your heart ache. Liam is the perfect guy for her because he's not afraid to hang on and he won't give her up so easily. The chemistry between these two is incredible. And Sophia KNOWS how to write steamy love scenes. Whew!

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