ARC Review: Defining Love Serial by Elizabeth Reyes

Defining Love is a serial told in three parts by Elizabeth Reyes. As with serials, each part needs to be read in order and will leave things unresolved until the final part. While I am not the biggest fan of serials, I was excited to read this story since I was able to read them back to back. Luckily, all three parts are live now so there is no waiting for readers in between installments. One thing that I was unaware of that I think readers should know ahead of time is that Henri's best friend that she is with is another girl. While it was made clear that Aaron and Henrietta are with others in the blurb, it failed to mention that there was some bisexuality in this book and I believe that that is important for some to know since it isn't for everyone. I will say that I don't typically read Female/Female. In this case though, I felt like Elizabeth Reyes was very respectful and things were not overly graphic, but it is definitely something readers should be aware of. 

Volume One

Volume 1 starts with the reader learning about Henri's life growing up. Henri and her sister were abandoned by their mother and were left to live in foster homes. Henri has abandonment issues and fears that everyone she gets close to will leave her. She ends up moving to live with a previously unknown aunt where she meets Edi. The two quickly become friends and move away to attend college together. Things between her and Edi begin to change when she finds out that Edi is gay and they start a relationship. She then meets Aaron who is also in a relationship, and the two feel an instant connection. Aaron is engaged to his high school sweetheart and would never cheat on her, but he can't stop thinking about Henri the same way she can't stop thinking of him. 

I liked these characters a lot, and I feel like we are just starting to scratch the surface with them. Henri's past is one that would be tough for anyone to get through, and yet she has emerged smart and strong, if a bit damaged. She has insecurities, and it is clear to the reader that a lot of what she does stems from those fears. Though she loves Edi and the two are best friends, their relationship is new, and it really seemed to me that it was more out of fear of losing Edi than actual romantic love on Henri's side. Edi is clearly in love with Henri though, and I can tell that is going to be something that they will have to deal with in the future. Aaron loves his fiance Mia, and they have been together a very long time. They are comfortable with one another, but you can also tell that their love isn't passionate or explosive. The connection he and Henri feel is already becoming strong, and these two really haven't had much interaction at this point. I had to keep reading to see what would happen next, and I couldn't put it down. I really liked seeing Henri and Aaron meet for the first time and I felt like their conversation was really a turning point for both of them. It was interesting how instantly they started to see each other differently, and yet there was no cheating or drama. I liked that they didn't start off together right after they first felt the connection, and I am curious to see how things will proceed from here. 

Purchase Volume One: | Amazon |

Volume Two

Volume 2 continues the story of Henri and Aaron, with Henri just having accepted a job working for Aaron. As the two begin to spend more time together, they get to know one another better and the attraction between them intensifies. Aaron and Henri are both still in relationships though, and neither of them would ever hurt their significant others by cheating on them. But the closer they grow to one another, the more they begin to rethink their relationships. 

In this installment it was so clear that while both Aaron and Henri cared about who they were with, it was also different from how they knew they should care about the person they were with. Aaron loved Mia and didn't want to hurt her, but he also knew that he didn't feel passionate about her as he did other things in life. His growing connection with Henri made that very apparent, and he knew that he needed to make some changes. Henri was still struggling with her relationship with Edi, knowing that she wasn't gay but that she didn't want to lose her best friend. She knew that her growing feelings for Aaron were changing things in her life, and yet she also knew that because of the path she had started on with Edi, ending things would completely change the friendship that she had with Edi. I really loved seeing Aaron and Henri grow closer as they got to know one another. It was so clear that they were passionate about the same things and that they connected in a way that they didn't with others. They had such a natural ease with each other, and it was impossible not to see the attraction between them. But what I loved most about these two is that they never crossed that line, and there was no cheating. Though they were bonding emotionally, they had never done anything that was entirely inappropriate. I'm not saying that their feelings or thoughts were completely innocent (because they weren't) but they never acted on anything or took it to that level, which I found really refreshing.

Purchase Volume Two: | Amazon |

Volume Three

In the third and final installment of Defining Love, Aaron and Henri can no longer deny the feelings they have for one another. Though they love their significant others, they also love each other in a completely different way. Aaron and Henri must make the tough decision of whether they should take a risk on the connection and love they have found with one another or stay with the ones that they have loved for years. Both of them know that whatever decision they make with change their lives forever.

I have really enjoyed seeing Aaron and Henri get to know one another, and it has been clear to me from the start that these two had a connection that they didn't share with anyone else. They had everything right from the start, and it really felt like they had been meant for one another. Their friendship and bond was easy and natural, and the passion and attraction between them was undeniable. I did have a few moments in this book that Henri drove me nuts, and I really wanted to shake her. I felt like she was a bit weaker in this installment than the previous ones, and it seemed like she struggled more than ever. While I understood part of that, it also got a bit old at times. But what I loved about this book was how fantastic Aaron was. He was sweet and thoughtful, and he was so supportive and understanding of Henri. He understood just what was going through Henri's mind, and he really could not have handled things better. He absolutely made this story for me, and I really loved him!

Purchase Volume Three: | Amazon |

Overall

Overall, I thought that this serial was a really good story and I was surprised how different and new it was. This is not the same old story told with slightly different details, and it was great to read something refreshing and unique. The epilogue was my favorite part of the whole story, and I loved getting to see down the line at how everything had worked out for everyone. I thought that Elizabeth Reyes did a great job on the story and the ending, and I will definitely look for more from her in the future.

**ARC Provided by As The Pages Turn**

Purchase Set: | Amazon |

Feature and Giveaway: Suspicious Minds by Elizabeth Reyes

Good girls cheat too.

It's a bitter reality Lorenzo Moreno knows all too well.

After his "good girl" fiancée blind sides him by cheating on him with her ex Lorenzo swears off relationships for a while, if not forever.

Until Fate steps in.

Unable to fight the incredible pull he feels to Olivia, a girl who was supposed to be just a meaningless one night stand, Lorenzo gives into his heart. But only after making one thing utterly clear. He will not deal with any exe's or other men in her life. Period.

She's not that person anymore.

For too long Olivia Romero shamefully put up with an manipulative and overly controlling boyfriend. So when fate pairs her up with the gorgeous but intense Air Force pilot she's ready to stand her ground. Cutting all ties with her ex is no sacrifice for Olivia. It's why she willingly complies with Lorenzo's uncompromising stipulation.

As their relationship intensifies so do Lorenzo's suspicions about any man in her life. Determined to not be that weak girl anymore, Olivia demands to be trusted. Despite how vehement her new boyfriend can be, her diligence seems to be working.

But when an unforeseen crisis arises Olivia is forced to make a decision. A decision she knows in Lorenzo's jaded and suspicious mind could be unforgivable.

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Review: Felix by Elizabeth Reyes

I was really excited to read Felix by Elizabeth Reyes. I am a huge sports romance fan, and I love me some sexy fighters. That being said though, this book was good but not great. For some reason I found myself not really connecting with the main characters as much as I had hoped for. While I liked Felix, I just never really cared about Ella. I think that she was my biggest problem in this book, and that kept me from really enjoying this one as much as I could have.

Ella works hard to attend school, work and take care of her family. But she also devotes most of her time to working at the 5th Street Gym teaching self defense classes and educating the community. She has personal reasons for being so dedicated to the cause, but she has made it her mission to make self defense classes affordable for those that need them. When she first meets the sexy fighter Felix, she judges him based off what she has heard about his reputation. But she can't help but be drawn to him and knows that she is nothing like what he usually goes for with women. Soon though, Felix is pursuing her and is determined to show her that he isn't like what she has heard. Can Felix and Ella get over their pasts and let each other in? Or will Ella have heard too many things about Felix to give him a chance to show her who he really is?

I liked Felix. He definitely never had a shortage of women, and he never made any apologies about who he was. But he was so take with Ella that he had no problem giving that up. He wanted to be a better person and prove to her that he could be exactly what she needed. He was sweet and kind with her, and I loved the patience he showed. He was great with her and really showed just how much he was interested in the whole package with her. Ella was the one I had issues with. Although both her and Felix had both been through a lot and handled things differently, I actually didn't care for the way that Ella let her ex Grayson have such control of her life. While I didn't agree with Felix drowning himself in women, Ella let Grayson treat her horribly and take things too far even though they had broken up. Ella might have been clear with her words to Grayson, but her actions told a completely different story. I wanted her to do something and she just kept letting things go for reasons that I thought weren't even close to good enough. It was amazing to me that Felix was as calm and cool about everything as he was. He handled things far better than she did, and I wouldn't have been so understanding had it been me in his shoes. While they had chemistry and connected, the crap with Grayson was just too much for me.

Overall, I thought that this could have been such a great story. Felix and Ella were good for each other, and I really believed that the love and support between them was a great foundation for a relationship. I just sort of lost the bond between them with all the drama and the way that Ella continued to let Grayson interfere in their relationship. As much as I wanted for her to grow a pair, she never really seemed to. Then besides all that drama, it seemed as though every other bad thing that could possibly happen did. It just got to be too much and was kind of a downer. The whole thing was a bit depressing, and I was wanting something more upbeat. I liked the idea of the epilogue, but I felt like it was just okay. We got a lot of different POVs, but it just didn't do much for me and I was left wondering why it was really even there. I think that this book had a lot of potential, but for me it just fell flat.

**Review Copy Provided by As the Page Turns & Author**

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Feature and Giveaway: Felix by Elizabeth Reyes

They say the only good thing about hitting rock bottom is that it can't get any worse . . . or can it?

World famous boxing champ, Felix Sanchez, had it all—the fame, the fortune, and all the women any man could ask for. When the hours of partying followed by hours spent in court and in rehab begin to outnumber the hours he spends training, losing his title comes as no surprise to everyone. The world assumes he deserved to lose it.

Only those closest to Felix know the real truth behind his sudden downward spiral. And if Felix has his way, no one else ever will. With an uncertain future ahead of him, he heads back to his roots—5th Street—the gym that started it all for him. It's where he meets the humble but mighty little Ms. Ella.

The only times Felix had ever decided to forgo the usual meaningless fling and try a real relationship he was burned badly. Now the adorable but tenacious self-defense instructor has him considering this love thing one more time.

Then just when he begins to worry that his past is letting his possessive and jaded heart get the best of him, he's blindsided in the most brutal way—he's brought to his knees—to what could be the one low in his life he may never recover from.

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