- By – Ilsa Madden Mills
- Release Date – 2nd February 2020
- Series – Standalone
- Genre – New Adult, Contemporary romance
My Rating –
Synopsis –
The rich and popular Sharks rule at prestigious, ivy-covered Camden Prep. Once upon a time, I wanted to be part of their world–until they destroyed me.
The last thing I expected was an anonymous love letter from one of them.
Please. I hate every one of those rich jerks for what they did to me. The question is, which Shark is my secret admirer?
Knox, the scarred quarterback.
Dane, his twin brother.
Or Chance, the ex who dumped me. . .
Dear Ava,
Your eyes are the color of the Caribbean Sea.
Wait. That’s stupid.
What I really mean is, you look at me and I feel something REAL.
It’s been ten months since you were here, but I can’t forget you.
I’ve missed seeing you walk down the hall.
I’ve missed you cheering at my football games.
I’ve missed the smell of your hair.
And then everything fell apart the night of the kegger.
Don’t hate me because I’m a Shark.
I just want to make you mine.
Still.
Review –
The more I read Ilsa Madden Mills, the more I love her work.
“Dear Ava” has rendered me speechless by the end. The story is about Ava and Knox. The story is about how desperate Ava is to find out the truth alongside being there for her brother, and how Knox is there with her, taking care of her.
The story begins with Ava waking up in the woods, all alone, with no memory of what had happened. That night and what had happened then is the major plot of the story. Whatever had happened that night was the doing of one the shark members.
The story then continues ten months later with Ava coming back to Camden. She comes back to show everybody how strong she is and also because coming back would help her brother.
The more I proceeded with the story the more I thought about how mature the characters are for their age, in the sense that they deal with soo much in their lives.
Ava is an independent and strong willed girl. She is barely eighteen and with nobody to look after her. She studies, works and also looks after her brother (who has some mental issues). Knox is always there taking care of his brother and helping him deal with his problems, when he clearly has his demons to fight too.
The chemistry between Ava and Knox was from the moment they saw each other the first time, which we see in the flashbacks. There was an undeniable connection even when Ava was dating Knox’s best friend.
One thing that I loved about the book was you definitely should judge it by its cover. Seeing the cover I thought it would have many explicit scenes, but I was so wrong. They were very less and mild. Hence, you should judge a book by its cover.
Now, while reading the book I found the two main spotlights, namely, the romance between Ava and Knox and how Ava deals with the aftermath of what had happened to her. She faces everybody headstrong and doesn’t take shit from people anymore, and in the way meets some real friends.
Let’s talk about what shook me the most – the ending. I did not see the ending coming that way, but Ilsa Madden Mills apparently finds ways to amaze me with her writing. Although I am a love seeing the couple together most of the time, I was glad the end happened the way it did (it is a happy ending if I am confusing y’all).
I loved the book and al is dynamics and I can’t wait to read more of the author’s work.
“Sometimes the loneliest place on earth is in the midst of a crowd”
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