ONE WAY BACK TO MEby Carrie Ann RyanSeries: The Wilder Brothers #1
Publication date: April 18, 2022
Format: Kindle
Source: Purchased
3.25 Stars
The Wilder brothers have retired from the military and as
they’re forced to learn a new life, things get interesting fast in this kickoff
to a brand new steamy, contemporary romance series from NYT Bestselling Author
Carrie Ann Ryan.
One dance at a stranger’s wedding. That’s all it took for me to fall for
Alexis. And then? Disaster. Another man—her boyfriend—gets down on one knee and
proposes to her. I never thought I’d see her again.
Years later, I’m in desperate need of a wedding planner—not for myself, but for
my company.
My five brothers and I need to get our new Wilder Resort off the ground, and
Alexis is the only one savvy enough to help us.
But there’s the little matter that I still have it bad for her. Alexis has
changed since the night we met. She’s gun shy. But there’s a spark between us
that will not die. We both fight it, until we don’t.
Until history repeats itself. The same guy who took her away from me is back to
do more damage. But this time he’ll have to go through me to get her.
GOODREADS | AMAZON
Other than the prequel to this book (A Night for Us),
this was my first by Carrie Ann Ryan. I was hopeful that I would be wowed and
have a new must-read author. But for the most part I was underwhelmed.
Nothing was inherently wrong, but I wasn't bowled over and my thoughts after
finishing were more along the lines of: well, that was okay.
Eli and his brothers have gone in together and bought an
inn and winery. After being separated due to military service for most of their
lives, Eli wanted something that would keep them together. When he needs to
hire a wedding planner for the resort, the most qualified candidate happens to
be a woman he had a brief encounter with a few years previously. The attraction
is still there, on both sides, and after much push and pull, they start a
relationship. But there is drama with a nearby competitor and drama with
Alexis’s ex to contend with.
My random thoughts:
• Six brothers all with "E" names meant that it
took way longer than necessary to keep everyone straight and remember who was
who.
• It was repetitive. Evan constantly “growled”.
Everything was described as “gorgeous”. And Eli and Alexis seemed to have the
same conversations over and over. ("We really shouldn't be in a relationship. But I really want you." Repeat, repeat, repeat.)
• It was sometimes hard to distinguish between the main
character's POV's. There wasn't a lot of distinction in the voices of Eli and
Alexis. I often had to flip back to the beginning of a chapter to determine
whose POV I was reading.
• When it came to the villain(s), the writing
was pretty heavy handed. It was almost over the top with the way their actions
were screaming: take notice, I am the bad guy!
That being said, based on the plethora of 5-star ratings
on Goodreads, it looks like my issues are very much a 'me thing', so take my
rating/review with a grain of salt. :) Because I'm definitely in the minority
here. ⭐⭐⭐.25
Have you read anything by Carrie Ann Ryan?
