Release Day Review: Could Have Been Us (Willow Creek Valley #2) by Corinne Michaels

 

 Could Have Been Us by Corinne Michaels
is now live!

New York Times Bestselling author Corinne Michaels returns to the Willow Creek Valley Series in this stunning small town, brother's best friend romance.

Fifteen years ago, I fell for Jack O'Donnell.

I was just a girl, but I knew my brother's best friend was the only man I'd ever love.

On my eighteenth birthday, when I asked him to kiss me, I never imagined it would change my life so completely.

I gave Jack everything that night.

In order to move on, we had to go our separate ways and pretend like nothing happened... as though it wasn't the greatest moment of my life.

But even that wasn't as heartbreaking as the secret we were forced to keep.

I've tried not to think about how much I still love him. How I long to be back in his strong arms or the way his hazel eyes make my heart race.

Until he kisses me again. And this time there's no turning back. This time I know what it means.

We belong together and there's no use denying it any longer.

But our feelings aren't the only thing that won't stay buried, our past resurfaces and threatens to destroy our second chance at happiness.

When our love is tested once again, will we be strong enough to stand together?

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What I thought about Could Have Been Us

This book starts with a heart-wrenching scene from the past and doesn't let up until the final pages.  Stella has always been in love with Jack -- Jack has always been in love with Stella -- it's just that they've been kept apart -- first by Stella's nasty father, and then by Jack's friendship with Stella's brother.

I can't say that best friend's brother is my favorite trope because I think the bro-code around this is just silly. If a man is good enough to be a friend for life, then he should be good enough for his sister, but that's not the way things work in romance!  Anyway, Jack has always been afraid to tell his best friend Grayson Parkerson that he's in love with Stella because he's relied so much on the Parkerson family throughout the years.  He doesn't want to risk damaging that relationship, so he keeps Stella at arms length, even though he's in love with her.

And Stella -- she's a terrific romance heroine.  She's stayed true to her feelings for Jack over the years and she's kept all the secrets they needed to keep. There's a lot of anguish in this story, the anguish of love denied.  I know that's a bit cryptic, but I don't want to spoil anything.  

Just as Stella and Jack finally come to their senses and decide to be together, they are hit with a tragedy that will cause them to have to make some really difficult decisions.  Gotta love Jack -- he tries to protect Stella and his own heart through it all, and he ends up being the one who has to bring the solution home. The depth of love between Stella and Jack as they go through this all is epic.  I really liked that about this story -- the circumstances they were forced into never dimmed the love between them and that made this romance worth reading.

I also liked that there is more page time with the rest of the Parkerson family as they move into their business venture together and it made me excited for more in this series. 

Could Have Been Us is a quick and satisfying romance with two main characters who are meant to be together. If you've read this author before you know there might be a tear or two as you read the story and this one has some major feels at the start and delivers with a terrific heart-felt conclusion that left me feeling good.  

Meet Corinne

Corinne Michaels is a New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of romance novels. Her stories are chock full of emotion, humor, and unrelenting love, and she enjoys putting her characters through intense heartbreak before finding a way to heal them through their struggles.

Corinne is a former Navy wife and happily married to the man of her dreams. She began her writing career after spending months away from her husband while he was deployed--reading and writing were her escapes from the loneliness. Corinne now lives in Virginia with her husband and is the emotional, witty, sarcastic, and fun-loving mom of two beautiful children.

Connect with Corinne

Website: http://corinnemichaels.com

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