Once upon a time, there was a solitary, grumpy man who would spend his days watching the world around him without ever attracting any attention to himself.
Once upon a time, there was a man who stood aside, imagining he could live someone else’s life and dreaming of something which would never be his; yet he wasn’t ready to give it up.
Once upon a time, there was a man who loved a woman. His only wish was to watch her achieve her dreams – without knowing that the only dream she ever wanted to achieve was him.
Once upon a time, there was a woman afraid that no one would ever be able to love her – without knowing that there was a man who had loved nothing but her for his entire life.
That man is me: Reid Johnson. And that woman is her: my deepest secret. Fine, so I have a few secrets – but it would be best not to reveal them, as they could take everything I have away from me. And without those secrets, I’d have nothing to dream of.
There are two things you should know about me before deciding whether or not to read this story:
I’ve never been the person everyone thinks I am.
I’ve never been the man she believes me to be.
Purchase Links
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Review
Reid has loved Sloan for years. Mostly from afar, and sometimes up close. He's seen her marry another man, watched her raise her daughter, and never missed a delivery of his family's whiskey to her family's hotel. Sloan has loved him back for almost as long, but Reid has spent a long time pushing people away - even the woman his loves more than anything else. There's a lifetime of secrets and mistakes between them and a happy ending but Reid is having a hard time pretending he doesn't care.
When you start this book, you're going to think the title is a lie. Reid comes off as heartless and a bit mean - way too good for Sloan, a single mother just trying to raise her beloved daughter. Only as the book goes on do you realise that Reid has a giant heart that he hides behind impenetrable walls and he's hidden it so well, he's convinced himself. I found myself liking Reid more and more and he comes across as being on the autistic spectrum, which contrasts nicely with Sloan's physical disability. I might've wanted to shake them (seven years of politely dancing around each other!?) but I believed in their happy ending.
As the third in the series, there are a lot of characters to keep straight, but once you understand that Alex is sometimes called by his last name of Brennan, and the various sibling and romantic relationships, it's easy to get swept away in the comforting mess of family. Sloan's daughter Sam is the real MVP - wiser than the adults give her credit for and a real sweetheart, she always knows what to say.
I know a double POV told in first-person present tense may not be for everyone, but I found it an immersive experience, even with flashbacks.
Best enjoyed with a glass of whiskey or maybe a hot chocolate by the fire; come read about mutual pining growing into love and family.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher via Rachel's Random Resources; all opinions are my own.
Author Bio
A. S. Kelly was born in Italy but lives in Ireland with her husband, two children and a cat named Oscar. She’s passionate about English literature, she’s a music lover and addicted to coffee. She spends her days in a small village North of Dublin, looking for inspiration for her next stories. Rainy Days is her debut novel.
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Amazon page UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/A-S-Kelly/e/B06WVKZ3NX
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