Danielle Pearl

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Beth Caplan sees college as her chance to start over, to make something of herself beyond what her family sees her as. She's more than the depressed little kid that they picture her as, she left that behind three years ago, but no one else has. College is supposed to be a time of learning, growing, and having fun, but her brother's best friend is making that nearly impossible. Not only is he her first, and oldest, crush, but he takes overprotective just a step too far.
David fought for Beth once and he lost, her older brother shutting him down, now he will do anything in his power to make sure she gets what she deserves, the best. He doesn't believe it's himself, but he doesn't believe it's anyone else either. As he stands in her way of making new male friends and continuously finds ways to protect her from anything negative he discovers that his feelings definitely aren't that of an older brother. He's willing to risk his friendship with his best friend for her, because he wants more than her safety, he wants her.

"I half-lie. Because it's more than that, and I suspect she knows."

Brother's best friend trope? Check.
New adult that actually features relatable situations? Check.
A romance that's sweet and swoon worthy? Check.
Danielle Pearl creates a world around Beth and David, their relationship changing as they come of age in a fun college atmosphere. I immediately pictured the characters as students at my old University, the fraternity events brought back memories, and the rush of emotions Beth and David felt as they navigated the power of feelings was so accurate to how my own once were. Everything in college is heightened and Pearl captured that perfectly with her characters.

"But Beth is still Beth. She's still Cap's little sister, even if the more time I spend with her away from him, the easier it is to forget why she's off limits."

Told from the alternating POV's of Beth and David, In Pieces follows the pair as they fight their feelings for one another, discover what it really means to be an adult, and face situations that are all to real. Pearl writes about unique family dynamics, providing us complete backgrounds on both characters without really dragging the story too far into the past. Though they've known each other forever and harbored crushes just as long, In Pieces really is about the two getting to know one another without any outside influence. They go to classes and parties, they work out, they bicker, and mostly they fight the lust they share for one another, the chemistry burning even brighter when they find themselves sharing a living space.

"And it's more than that. It's always been more than that. Beth is just...different. More."

I have such a massive love for childhood crushes turned something more, they just get to me, so it's a given that In Pieces hit it out of the park for me. The story is definitely focused on Beth and David's adventure into romance, however there is a lot more going on in the novel as well. I love that Pearl addressed some seriously real life events in the novel (they are brief, but could be triggering), but at times the downs that the characters experienced seemed to weigh down the novel. My heart ached for Beth, she'd been through so much as a youth and her first year at college seemed bogged down by drama and angst. Though the events are significant to her growth, I felt overwhelmed and almost distracted from the overall plot of the novel.

"She doesn't resist. She should resist. Because I'm not sure I can."

In Pieces features well developed characters, an intriguing story line, and the kind of forbidden romance that gives the feeling of those falling in love butterflies. I loved taking a break from my life and living in Beth and David's for a little while. Readers of sweet romance will love this angst-y duo as they discover that letting their hearts guide them just might be the right solution to all their problems.

ARC provided in exchange for an honest review… (más)