Reviews: One Week Girlfriend and Second Chance Boyfriend by Monica Murphy
One Week Girlfriend (Drew+Fable #1)
by: Monica Murphy
Publication Date: Jan. 10, 2013
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Age Group: New Adult
Source: Purchased for Nook
Page Count: 155 pages
Order Links: Amazon | B&N
My Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Temporary. That one
single word best describes my life these last few years. I’m working at a
temporary job until I can finally break free. I’m my little brother’s
temporary mother since our mom doesn’t give a crap about either of us.
And I’m that temporary girl all the guys want to get with because I give
it up so easily. According to the rumors, at least.
But now I’m the temporary girlfriend of Drew Callahan, college football legend and all around golden guy. He’s beautiful, sweet—and he’s hiding way more secrets than I am. He’s brought me into this fake life where everyone seems to hate me. And everyone seems to want something from him. The only thing he seems to want though is…
Me.
I don’t know what to believe anymore. All I know is, I think Drew needs me. And I want to be there for him.
Forever.
But now I’m the temporary girlfriend of Drew Callahan, college football legend and all around golden guy. He’s beautiful, sweet—and he’s hiding way more secrets than I am. He’s brought me into this fake life where everyone seems to hate me. And everyone seems to want something from him. The only thing he seems to want though is…
Me.
I don’t know what to believe anymore. All I know is, I think Drew needs me. And I want to be there for him.
Forever.
I have read and loved Monica's adult series (The Billionaire Bachelor's Club), and I have actually had these two NA books of hers on my Nook since last year. All my blogger friends were raving about Drew and Fable and marshmallows and I HATE that it took me this long to read them! Because I am totally in love with these two and I finally get the whole marshmallow thing!
One Week Girlfriend was really tough to read at times because you can figure out early on what happened to Drew, even though it doesn't come out until later in the book. My heart ached for him because he doesn't deserve his present and future to be tainted by a past he cannot change. I love that Drew is a GOOD GUY. He really is. He is a talented and well known football player for his university but he isn't like his other teammates who sleep around, party, and screw around. He is desperate to find a girl to take home with him, as he is being forced to go for Thanksgiving break. He is so desperate he actually offers to pay a girl he has never met, but only knows by reputation, to be his fake girlfriend for the week.
Fable is so much more than Drew could have ever imagined. He seeks her out as he's heard some rumors about her from his teammates and he offers to pay her to go home with him and act the part of his girlfriend. Fable is hard up for money, so she agrees. Fable has no idea as to what she's getting into with Drew and his family, but she senses it's not good and that he has a really messed up home life. Things between the two start out strained, as they don't really know each other and Drew is pretty closed off in the beginning. However, as they walk into the lion's den, Fable proves to be more than Drew's fake girlfriend- she starts to care about him and his well being and finds herself falling for the sweet guy that lies underneath the hardened exterior. Fable ends up being exactly the person Drew needs in his life and when he finally opens up to her and shows his vulnerabilities and exposes his darkest secrets, she is there for him and doesn't pass judgment.
Fable's home life is less than ideal too, but we don't really get to see that in depth until the second novel. Still, she has had to grow up faster than she should. At only 20, she carries the responsibility of taking care of her 13 year old brother- making sure he stays out of trouble, as well as making sure he has a roof over his head and food to eat.
I loved Drew and Fable's relationship. Most people would consider it insta-love, but that didn't bother me here with them. Monica's writing style draws you in and you will fall in love with these characters.
Drew and Fable both have their share of problems and issues to work through, but these two really end up being there for each other in a way no one else could.
As for side characters, we don't have very many in this book. Adele, Drew's stepmom, is probably the biggest one and she's AWFUL. You know there's something seriously not right with her by how protective and alpha female she is concerning Drew. Drew does NOT want her attention at all and tries to avoid her the best he can while he is at home. She is a complete witch to Fable and treats her poorly- making her feel like trailer trash and unwanted. Luckily, Fable doesn't let her to get to her and still manages to keep her wits about her. Drew's dad started off a bit creepy by the way he blatantly checks Fable out, but he's not that bad of a guy. Sure, he's married to the devil incarnate, but I think he genuinely wants a relationship with his son and Drew's history with Adele is preventing that. Finally, there is Owen, Fable's younger brother. Owen is a 13 year old kid, who has no father figure, no dependable mother, and relatively no stability in his life. Fable is his one constant, as she vows to take care of him and make sure he stays out of trouble. He loves his sister, but he is starting to get to that impressionable age where peer pressure becomes a big factor in his life. Monica has already released the cover and blurb information for Owen's book, Four Years Later set to release in February.
This was a fast, easy read and I loved watching Drew and Fable get to know and accept one another with no reservations.
Second Chance Boyfriend (Drew+Fable #2)
by: Monica MurphyPublication Date: April 6, 2013
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Age Group: New Adult
Source: Purchased for Nook
Page Count: 210 pages
Order Links: Amazon | B&N
My Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Lost. That one single
word best describes my life at this very moment. I lost the last games
of the season and both my team and my coach blame me. I lost the last
two months because I drowned in my own despair like a complete loser.
And I lost the only girl who ever mattered because I was afraid being
with me would destroy her.
But now I realize how truly lost I am without her. She has become my story…and even though she acts like she’s moved on, I know she still thinks about me just as much as I think about her. She’s beautiful, sweet—and so damn vulnerable, all I want to do is help her. Be there for her.
Love her…
If only I could convince Fable to give me a second chance. Then I wouldn’t feel so lost anymore, and neither would she. We could be found together.
Forever.
But now I realize how truly lost I am without her. She has become my story…and even though she acts like she’s moved on, I know she still thinks about me just as much as I think about her. She’s beautiful, sweet—and so damn vulnerable, all I want to do is help her. Be there for her.
Love her…
If only I could convince Fable to give me a second chance. Then I wouldn’t feel so lost anymore, and neither would she. We could be found together.
Forever.
After the heartbreakingly, hopeful ending to One Week Girlfriend, I immediately started this next book. Literally, it was already going on 1AM, but I HAD to keep going. It is contradictory to label an ending as both heartbreaking and hopeful, but it really was. However, Second Chance Boyfriend does not start by immediately picking up the pieces to One Week Girlfriend. Instead, we are left with Drew and Fable working to move forward with their lives. Drew is seeing a therapist to help him work through everything that he has fought so hard to run from in his past, as well as talk to someone about the new information that his stepmother had unloaded on him towards the end of OWG.
Fable is approached by a gorgeous stranger and offered a new job waitressing at a higher paying, more affluent restaurant. She is still struggling to keep control over her brother and trying to deal with her alcoholic mother who likes spending all her time with her boyfriends instead of her family or trying to get a job. She is initially attracted to the stranger, but that's really all it is, as she is still so hung up on Drew. She is hurt by his decisions at the end of OWG, and she is even more hurt that he left her a hidden message, which provided her with hope, and after 2 months has not heard anything.
I had a hard time liking Fable's new boss, Colin. He kind of creeped me out to be honest. It seemed like his intentions towards her were too noble and that he expected more from her than she was willing to give. However, I'm happy that wasn't the case. Colin is a businessman, but he also cares for his employees and wants them to be sexy, yet tasteful in his restaurants. He doesn't like trouble or drama and problems with his staff.
Jen is another new character who I also really liked. She plays a minor role, but she works with Fable at Colin's restaurant and actually lives with him. We find out he and her older brother were best friends, but you can also tell Jen harbors a crush on Colin. Monica just released their story Three Broken Promises on 12/31.
Drew and Fable run into each other again and while things between them are tense, Drew is still protective of his girl and refuses to let her go again. Fable is hurt over Drew leaving her, but he is her weakness and while she tries to stay strong with him she is falling apart inside. She feels used and discarded by the one person who said he loved her and that hurt like hell. Drew has never dealt with his problems in the right way. For most of his life he has been running from them and that is his MO when things get tough. He pushed her away because he was afraid he would lose her anyway- he has gone through some messed up things and doesn't want to drag her down, even though she's already accepted him and his issues.
"I don't deserve you," he finally says. "You accept me so easily, no matter how hard I push you away. You need to know I don't do it on purpose. It's just... the only way I know how to deal is to run."
Second Chance Boyfriend is all about second chances and moving forward, but not just for Drew and Fable. Drew has to face his past and come clean with his father about what really happened with Adele. His father needs him more than ever after realizing Adele's true nature, but Drew hates that he is the go-to guy about this woman. Adele is the last person he wants to think about, much less discuss with his father, but his father needs guidance. He wants to divorce Adele, but he is so blindsided by this evil woman, he hesitates. Adele threatens to shatter everything and tell Drew's dad about what happened in the past, and I'm thankful as to the way it turned out, as it ends up being a small step to rebuilding Drew and his father's relationship. I hate Adele more than ever and she is one manipulative, evil, crazy bitch. She got what she deserved in my opinion.
I can't stand Fable's mother either. She is a weak, pathetic excuse of a woman and for her to treat her children the way she did, is absolutely appalling. Fable is older and more jaded than Owen is, and while she is hurt over what her mother did, she isn't completely blown away. Owen on the other hand, genuinely believed his mother cared for him and is really affected by the stunt she pulled. I am really looking forward to reading his book next month to see how he deals with this fallout four years into the future.
The biggest thing I love about Drew and Fable is that they both are essentially these broken individuals who rise up and with each other form a bond that is so full of love and beauty that they are able to heal the broken parts of themselves and seek strength in each other. They are consumed by their love for one another, and there is real hope for this young couple. They have their weak moments where they feel they aren't good enough for the other, but they are so attuned to the others' needs and insecurities that they are able to sense when the other needs to communicate and express their fears. Drew is learning to be more open with Fable and not run away from his problems, but to talk to them out instead. Overall, these crazy kids are going to make it.
Oh and the poems Drew writes for her? WILL MELT YOUR FREAKING HEART.
16 comments
I have seen a lot of raving reviews for these! I love the sound of the first book ( I skimmed your second review) I hope to get around to this one soon! :)
ReplyDeleteGreat review
I hope you do too Tonya! They are so good!
DeleteI bought One Week Girlfriend last week!! So glad you liked it so much! Excited to read it :-) I skimmed the second review but glad to see it got a hight rating too! Great review girlie! x
ReplyDeleteYAY! I hope you enjoy it Dani!
DeleteAhhh! This series just blew me away. I loved Drew + Fable so hard. Just wait until you read Drew + Fable Forever!
ReplyDeleteGreat reviews!
Thanks Andrea! This is definitely one series I won't be forgetting any time soon!
DeleteYep. Adding both of these to my TBR list and checking out her Billionaire Bachelor's Club series right now. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the reviews!
Yay! Thanks Octavia! I hope you enjoy them!
DeleteYayy I'm so happy you finally started this series! I love it so much <3 Though Three Broken Promises wasn't as great, I really can't wait for Owen's story in the fourth and final book.
ReplyDeleteI loved that Drew is a good guy too, you really don't see that much in NA!
Awesome reviews, Jess :)
I'm so excited for Owen's story! I want to dive right in, but alas, other books take precedence. Yes, I agree- Drew is a good guy through and through and I loved that!
DeleteGreat reviews girl! You know I loved these books. I'm so glad you finally met Drew and Fable. I loved how much they helped each other find a better place in their lives and I loved the way Fable was with Drew. You're right, he is a truly GOOD guy!
ReplyDeleteThanks Chelsea! I do love them so much! I'm so glad I finally got to them!
DeleteOh I just got One Week Girlfriend for Christmas! I've heard people mention these marshmallows and I'm dying to find out what it's about lol. I'm glad to hear that Drew is a good guy, I love me a sweet guy to swoon over :)
ReplyDeleteHahaha! Yes! It's adorable! You will love the whole marshmallow thing!
DeleteAhhhh! I haven't read these yet! I've read her Billionaire books & loved those. I need to move these up in my list. Great reviews!
ReplyDeleteThanks Amy! You will definitely enjoy these if you liked her Billionaire ones!
DeleteLeave me some comment love! And I will get around to commenting back!
My blog is an award-free blog, however, as I just do not have the time to follow-up.