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Tuesday, August 26, 2014

ARC Review: Endless Affinity by Brooklyn Taylor


Endless Affinity is the second book in Brooklyn Taylor's Forever series, but this book can be read as a standalone. I had never read anything by Brooklyn Taylor before this one, and I didn't have any real problems understanding what was going on in this book. I will say that while this one can be read as a standalone, I think that a lot would be gained by reading these books in order. I was surprised to find out that not only do we get the story of Grace and Kyle and their POVs, but we also get those of their friends as well. While there were things I liked about this one, there were also a few things that didn't work for me personally.

Grace Ingram and Kyle Chandler have been together off and on for years. While they might have broken up a few times, they always knew that the love they shared was it for them. Grace had always felt that she was never good enough for the lifestyle in which Kyle was raised. She is a hard worker that prefers to spend her days working in her dad's shop underneath the hood of a car. She grew up blue collar and would work even if she didn't need to, which is why it bothers her that Kyle hasn't had to work for anything in his life besides her. Growing up going to Country Clubs and having everything provided for him, Kyle has never had to put much effort into anything. He never lacked for girls before Grace, but he knew that she was worth the effort. After years of dating he is ready to take things to the next level and wants his ring on Grace's finger so they can start their family. But Grace isn't convinced that they can make a relationship work forever if they don't see eye to eye on important issues like their careers. Can Kyle convince Grace that they are meant to be and can get past anything as long as they are together? And what happens when there are those that would stand in their way?

I liked and disliked both Kyle and Grace. While Grace was strong and independent and had a great work ethic, I felt like she also judged Kyle a bit harshly. She didn't really give him a chance to make something of himself, and I felt like she was kind of being a reverse snob. With the exception of Kyle's father, it didn't matter to Kyle or his family how she had been raised or where she came from. If it didn't matter to him, I don't see why it was such a big deal to her. If she really trusted in him and the love between them it shouldn't have been such a big deal to her. I did like that was so smart though and that she wasn't your typical girly girl. It was nice to see such a different and refreshing character. I thought that Kyle didn't really give Grace the chance to make things right when she screwed up and tended to jump to conclusions. It really bothered me that he would do what he did without even talking to her and seeing where things stood between them first. I think that her actions were horrible and she should have supported him more in his time of need, but he absolutely handled things poorly and caused a chain of events that easily could have been avoided. I thought that they had so much history though and you could really see the love between them. I guess that's why it bothered me so much when they both screwed up so badly!

Overall, I liked Kyle and Grace together and I thought that they were perfect for one another. They might have screwed things up a few times, but I was glad to see that they never really gave up on the other. They fought for one another and that was what really mattered. My biggest complaint with this story is that I felt like the majority of it wasn't really about Kyle and Grace at all. I felt like there was too much going on and their story almost seemed to be a side plot because of all the stuff with their friends. While it was nice to see everything happening around them, I felt like it really took away from Kyle and Grace's story. I often times got confused between the constant switching of POVs between characters as well as the jumps in time back and forth. It really didn't work for me, and I felt like that is what made the difference between this being an okay story and what could have been a great story. I will look for more from Brooklyn Taylor in the future, because despite the issues I had I did like the story and the characters. I just thought that for me personally this one could have used some work.

**ARC Provided by Book Plug Promotions**

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