4.5 STARS ✮ BJ HARVEY ✮ ONE SHOT

ONE SHOT

Chances #1

BJ Harvey

✮ ✮ ✮ 4.5 STARS ✮ ✮ ✮

Boy meets girl, boy wins girl, boy nails girl -- boy’s gone by morning.

I think for sure it must've been a dream because there’s no way a guy could look like that, touch me like that and be so in tune with me on every known level, and disappear, leaving me with nothing but a good story to tell my friends.

When he walks into my bar three months later, everything I thought I knew and what we’d had disappears in the blink of an eye and the blinding light of the three-carat diamond on his fiancée's hand.

It seems what I thought was a dream is now my most complicated reality, and I've got absolutely no idea how to fix it - or if I even want to.

Awkward, meet Mortifying. Also, here are Shame, Embarrassment, Anger, Disgust, and over in the corner there is Complete and Utter Confusion and her friend I’m Going to Have to Move States and Join a Women-Only Commune with Cats and Unlimited Batteries.

Can you imagine how you would feel if you met the man of your dreams, the mirror of your own soul, the puzzle piece that falls into place effortlessly? And now imagine him being ripped away from you only having to face him after three months, engaged to another...

“Love isn’t perfect,” he says gently. “It’s how you work through it all that’s important. The hard stuff, the obstacles, the highs, the lows, the triumphs, and the tragedies. It’s a beautiful pain that’s always worth it if you’re both willing to work to make things right.” - Kenzie's dad

Kenzie Sharp is one of those heroines I can't get enough of. She lives by pretty simple rules and one of her most important one: no lies. Ever. Honesty isn't just a word to her, she lives it, daily. Kenzie's last name is pretty suitable because she's sharp as a tack, funny and a straight shooter. She will have you question your own moral compass because the things she does in this story go against everything she ever believed in, and probably against everything you as a reader believe in. Yet, it is easy to judge when you haven't walked in the other person's shoes. So I found myself understanding what she went through, why she acted the way she did, because in all the things wrong in her situation, she never lost sight of herself in it.

Her puzzle piece is Millen Ross, heir to the Ross empire. He is endearing. Stubborn, with an iron will, fiercely loyal, caring, cocky and sweet. He lost his shine a bit when he returned into Kenzie's life but I worked through those feelings because I did have an inkling that not everything was as it appeared so soon Millen was back in my good graces. I loved how easy-going he could be but also determined when he set his mind on something, and that's what he needed with Kenzie because she sure challenged him at every corner.

“You completely and utterly intoxicate me. You just have to breathe and I’m reeled back in.” - Millen

Millen's and Kenzie's connection was palpable and credible. Their banter was super-entertaining, especially in the beginning and I found myself smiling a lot as they got to know each other. And their chemistry? Off the charts!

“Do you realize that apart from the two times I’ve been in your car, we usually have a giant piece of wood between us?” I say, opening the menu in front of me despite always ordering the same thing every time I come here.
When Millen doesn’t say anything, I look up to be met by a huge smirk and a raised brow. “Huge?”

After closing this book I feel completely sore and spent, emotionally, BJ Harvey hit where it hurt most with this story. There were times when I thought the angst was too much. It was physically painful. The minute one setback was in the past the next one was already waiting to strike and I felt a little bit put through the wringer. The last chapter and the epilogue really made up for it. There is no couple who deserved their HEA more.

“When we’re apart I’m broken. When we’re together I’m whole.” - Kenzie

No, this book isn't safe but despite all the roller coaster rides it's real. It makes you feel, most certainly uncomfortable too and gives you food for thought. I definitely found myself asking myself what would I do. It's easy to judge if you have never experienced a love like this or yours was an easy transition.

...there’s a lot to be said for never giving up and fighting for your own happiness. Because when you find that person you’re bound to be with, one thing I’ve learned is to hold on and never let go. - Millen

Go into this book with an open mind, remember that things aren't often what they seem and keep going even if the main characters' actions go against the grain. BJ Harvey has some major talent. I loved how she sprinkled humor into the story. Her words have a very pleasant flow, which gabbed me right from the start and kept me invested.

With so many authors out there it's hard to pin down one favorite but BJ Harvey definitely has proven to be a new addiction. I'll be coming back for more and definitely for the next in this series.