Review: Always Mine by Kennedy Fox

ALWAYS MINE

Kennedy Fox
Publication date: January 7, 2020

Series: Liam & Maddie #1 | Roommate Duet #5
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Format: Audio
Source: Hoopla
4 Stars

College parties, beer, and one-night stands—that was my life.

Now, I hunt criminals. Drinking and women are still included, though I can’t seem to forget the underage girl who almost gave me her virginity. I stopped it before it happened and kicked her out.

Years later, we’re reunited. She’s no longer underage but still equally off-limits. After ignoring her relentless advances, she wears me down. I only have so much willpower when she’s around, which is all the damn time now that we’re roommates. Just when my restraint starts to crumble, my poor choices finally catch up with me, putting us both in danger. 

There’s no easy way to explain why I betrayed her, but I’ll do whatever it takes to keep her safe—even if it means breaking her heart.

ALWAYS MINE is book 1 in the Liam & Maddie duet and must be read first.

After the bombshell reveal at the end of the previous book (Truly Yours, the second book in Mason and Sophie’s duet), the conflict for Maddie and Liam was already in place.  Maddie has appeared in all the previous books, and made her interest in Liam obvious, but as the youngest Corrigan sister her life still revolved around college classes and dance rehearsals, rather than careers and relationships.

Liam had serious game but avoided relationships like the plague. After his mother walked out on him and his father, he saw that love could lead to loss. He had a near-hookup with Maddie a couple years ago but when she confessed her age, he shut it down fast. When he met her again a few years later and realized she was the sister of Lennon and Sophie (the girlfriends of his best friends) he knew he’d be seeing her plenty. And when Maddie moved into the house he shared with Mason and Sophie, there was no escaping her relentless flirting and advances.

As a bounty hunter (or, as Liam like to say, a fugitive recovery agent) he traveled a lot and his trips to Las Vegas led to some serious gambling. When he was approached with an offer to play some high-dollar games he was unable to ignore the lure of big money. And there began the trouble.

Maddie was a character I struggled with because her immaturity showed. She was several years younger than all the others and the difference in life experience was obvious. There were times when her relationship with Liam felt more like a girl with a crush who was determined to prove she could get the guy, instead of a woman with genuine feelings for a man.

Despite my feelings for Maddie, it was impossible not to be sucked into the story. One decision by Liam snowballed and set off a series of events that grew increasingly worse – and more dangerous. He was determined to keep his friends removed from his mistakes and keep them out of the fray, but that meant he was going it alone, with no support. There were times I wanted to shake him for making such asinine decisions, but I could also see how he get caught up in the moment before it all spiraled out of control.

Always Mine was filled with Kennedy Fox’s trademark steam, humor, drama, and OMG moments. While I was slightly less invested in Liam and Maddie’s relationship as I have been in the others in the series, I was completely hooked on Liam’s circumstances and his efforts to extricate himself from such a dangerous situation. The cliffhanger at the end proved just how far the villain was willing to go and had me instantly reaching for the next book.

Note: Always Mine is the first book in the duet that makes up Maddie and Liam’s story. While the two books can be read as a duet, the experience is much fuller if you read the previous duets, Baby Mine and Baby Yours (Hunter + Lennon’s story) and Truly Mine and Truly Yours (Mason + Sophie’s story) first. 

HAVE YOU READ THE ROOMMATE DUETS SERIES?