Series Review: Always Series by Ellery Rhodes

Series Review: Is this series worth your time? Does it get better as the novels progress? Or does it get worse? Find out below:

Always & Never | Always Series

Series: Always
Author: Ellery Rhodes
# of Books: 2 (Always, Never)
Book Order: Chronological
Complete?: Yes
Genre: New Adult, Romance, Contemporary, Drama
Heat Rating: Warm
Point of View: First Person, Alternating

Thoughts:

I always enjoy stories about childhood loves reuniting and add to it the drama of the son of a rich family falling for the maid’s daughter (Devious Maids anyone?)–Always was an easy buy for me.

It was also an easy read. While I did find it to be predictable, I enjoyed watching the plot unfold. There was a lot of sexual tension that built up between the two characters and that really propelled me to read.

The book wasn’t very long which I think has its positives and negatives. On the positive side I didn’t feel like the plot was dragged out. However, on the negative side, I would have liked Juliet and Lucas to communicate more because they hadn’t seen each other in so long. I just felt like they were falling in love based on assumptions and not realizing that the 14 year old person they knew isn’t the same as the person they are now. It just seemed like a sudden switched was turned on for Lucas and he remembered the girl he loved when I initially got the impression she hadn’t graced his thoughts in years (though to be far as the true events of the past unfolded I could somewhat understand why he hadn’t thought about her).

Which is why I enjoyed the plot that unfolded in Never. I felt like it picked up on the idea that they really didn’t know each other as well as they thought. The plot had a more realistic and mature (one of the plots at least) edge to it which made the sequel darker than its predecessor. It was annoying to watch the communication breakdown that happens between the two of them in this next book–which made the plot feel petty at times–but the other plotlines in the book were more enjoyable to me.

I found both books could have used a proof-reader. There were a few typos throughout the books as well as words missing from sentences. The missing words irked me a bit because sometimes I couldn’t grasp what the sentence was trying to say at all. The typos weren’t enough to deter me from reading, but they did frustrate me at times.

Conclusion:

I think that the two books could have been combined into one, but I did enjoy each book in its own way. Definitely not disappointed in them and I enjoyed watching the romance unfold. I’m excited to read the spin-off series with Kim and will be keeping an eye out for that!

Rating: 4/5

Similar Reads: Bully by Penelope Douglas (Fall Away Series #1)

Synopsis for Always (from Goodreads):
A new university, a fresh start, and no falling in love.

After a freshman year from hell, Juliet Stowe’s heart is in a million pieces. She transfers to a new school, determined to leave the past behind.
But when she’s paired up with Lucas McNamara, the ‘boy next door’ all deliciously grown up, she knows she’s in trouble. Back then she didn’t understand why her mother, who used to work for Lucas’ family, told her not to get attached. But they were inseparable -until her mother was fired because the McNamaras don’t mix with the help.

He never thought he’d see her again…

Lucas McNamara knew there was something familiar about his biology partner and is floored when it hits him. She’s ‘Julie’–the barefoot beauty who was unlike any girl he’d ever met then or since.
While years have passed and he’s far from the carefree kid that Juliet once knew, one thing remains the same. He wants her. He’s always wanted her–but he’s the heir to the McNamara multi-million dollar empire and his family is hell bent on keeping them apart.

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