Reading this instead of the other one. Nice light read and progressing along. After finishing Dark Queen I came back to this. Still a nice easy light read. Yes, things were a little obvious, but sometimes we want to just have easy and light. ( )

Zack was the school bad boy who made good. Jane was the good girl who still lives by that precept. When they reunite to work on a project for there old school, sparks fly. Throw in Jane's elementary school class playing matchmaker and a secret admirer who has been sending Jane sweetly meaningful charms for her charm bracelet every Valentines Day and it is a recipe for romance.
Zack and Jane are a cute couple and their relationship is twenty years in the making. Both have demons and insecurities. Both are good people trying to live up or down to expectations. Both deserve the happy ending.
A little bit predictable but still charming. ( )

**I received a copy of this book from LibraryThing Early Reviewers in exchange for an honest voluntary review. All opinions are my own and not influenced by my source.**

How cute is that synopsis?! I thought it was fun that the kids were so invested in their teacher's love life. I also love the idea of a "loved you forever" type of second chance romance.

To be honest, I thought the kids were more involved with the matchmaking process. I'm not sure how they could pull that off (lock them in a classroom? write notes?), but I thought they'd have more of a hand in getting these two to finally realize their feelings. They really don't which is a shame because the kids were definitely a highlight for me. They were so charming and they stole ever scene they were in.

Nevertheless, the story was entertaining and kept my attention. It was a touch predictable but the characters were engaging and likable so I enjoyed watching everything unfold.

While these two shared some great chemistry, I needed a little more to convince me that they truly loved each other and not just the idea of each other. What foundations did they have to establish such an emotional connected based on a few interactions as children? We do get a few of those moments as the story progressed but I craved a little more.

Overall: This is a sweet romance that will capture your heart from start to finish!

Check out more spoiler-free book and series reviews on my blog SERIESousBookReviews.com as well as read book series recaps!

Full Review: https://wp.me/p7hLUw-2vD
Actual Rating: 3/5 ( )

Such a cute story. Love the kids. Jane and Zack have known each other since they were kids. Jane's mother told her to stay away from Zack because he was trouble. Zack had a bad home life and would do anything to get attention, including being bad. One day Jane did a very kind thing for Zack and he never forgot it. Now, all these years later, he is back in Jane's life. She is still a little afraid of him, but he isn't like that little boy anymore. She decides she might be attracted to Zack, but he is way out of her league. Does he feel the same? ( )

This story was a delightful read until nearly the very end when the author decided to write in an explicit love scene. I am just not a fan of graphic descriptions of lovemaking. They always seem too forced and are definitely unnecessary to furthering the plot. The best romance stories I've read are when the author eludes to the physical intimacy but focuses instead on the emotional intimacy between the main characters therefore establishing a relationship that is truly believable and sustainable. This particular author did a fantastic job with the emotional rollercoaster of falling in love and learning to care about the other persons feelings and experiences. But I wish they would have left the bedroom details to the imagination of the reader. Authors always seem to try too hard in their love scenes to make it sexy and and end up describing things in ridiculous terms that are outright laughable. This book was not an exception to that. I absolutely adored Zack and Jane. Their love story, 20 years in the making was so sweet and delightful. Who doesn't love a tough "bad boy" with a soft heart and a heroine who is a genuinely nice person? I just wish I could recommend it to my friends and book club but they too do not care for x-rated scenes. Would have been 5 stars if the author could have trusted her own story and writing abilities and not resorted to unnnecesary sex scenes.

*I received a free copy from Librarything in exchange for my honest review* ( )