No one would suspect shy Lily Calloway’s biggest secret. While everyone is dancing at college bars, Lily stays in the bathroom. To get laid. Her compulsion leads her to one-night stands, steamy hookups and events she shamefully regrets. The only person who knows her secret happens to have one of his own.
Loren Hale’s best friend is his bottle of bourbon. Lily comes at a close second. For three years, they’ve pretended to be in a real relationship, hiding their addictions from their families. They’ve mastered the art of concealing flasks and random guys that filter in and out of their apartment.
But as they sink beneath the weight of their addictions, they cling harder to their destructive relationship and wonder if a life together, for real, is better than a lie. Strangers and family begin to infiltrate their guarded lives, and with new challenges, they realize they may not just be addicted to alcohol and sex.
Their real vice may be each other.
New Adult Romance recommended for readers 18+ for mature content
ebook, 2014 Edition, 324 pages
Published May 22nd 2014
Published May 22nd 2014
Source: Netgalley
~Our Review~
I wasn't really sure what to expect after I read the blurb for this book but I decided..what the heck? And y'all..I'm so glad I did. My thoughts are a little scattered so be patient with me because I don't want to spoil anything and yet I want to give you enough so that you are encouraged to read this. *thumbs up*Hmmmm. So where to start? I guess I can honestly say that at first this novel seemed like many novels that we read and review. Young protagonist/antagonist, affluent, conflict...you know how it goes..and I remember thinking: okay? I was honestly a little skeptical but the more I read, the more I wanted to read. I became invested in what was happening with Lo and Lily. Their grasp on normality was tenuous at best and the path of destruction they were wreaking on themselves was painful to think about...and yet, I kept going.
OMIGAH. I read this a little later than Shel, and I was absolutely like WHAT? What is happening here? OMG. Even at 40% I knew. I effing knew that things were going to get really hard. Torturous. Soul sucking/soul crushing. I was pretty much effing right. But...as ever the masochist I am in love with these characters, and the writing...and I cannot wait to devour the rest of the series.
I think what intrigued me was that this could've easily been a whiny "I'm rich, woe is me" type novel but it never turned into that. Instead Lily and Lo's feelings of being beholden to their addictions and spinning out of control..that sense of them feeling completely lost and out of it was compelling to me. I imagined that many have felt those same feelings. I truly appreciated that the Ritchie sisters did not make excuses or try to pretty up their characters; they left them raw and grimy and never shied away from giving us their ugliness.
No. Their actions are very ugly. Lily is the first one to tell you how messed up she is, how great her family is, yet she identifies that both her and Lo's issues and selfishness make them such awful people...but they are not at a point AT ALL that they are willing to give it up. I could appreciate the honesty...but sometimes it hurt. But I couldn't stop! I could NOT stop! And I hope that you don't wanna either.
I also appreciated the little bits and pieces of Lo and Lily's back story that were given, as well as the inclusion of Connor and Rose and Ryke and Daisy. These extra characters, while annoying to Lo and Lily, helped give perspective and provided that outside pressure to help move us along instead of mire us down deeper in the destruction of Lo and Lily.
The friends! I loved the friends. These two loners do not let people in easily, or well, at all. And when Connor and then others keep putting themselves in their path, and do not give up...you see that outsiders see more than Lo and Lily want them to see. I absolutely loved Connor and Ryke. I loved every smart mouth, way to brutally honest thing that came out of Connor's mouth. They all seem very gossip girl, and I fracking love it. Love, love, love it. I love this series. Am I getting ridiculous now? I'm sorry...but It Is So True!
SIDE NOTE: There's a lot of mention of sex in this novel but interestingly it was so interconnected to Lily's addiction that I really never found it steamy. I found it sad (for Lily and Lo) and sometimes tender (in the way that Lo handled things) but more than anything, I thought it was something I'd never really thought about. ..and the note about sexuality at the end made me fall even more in love with the writers.
Yep. The story is well rounded. Well researched. The characters made me feel, and there was much more depth to the way they are than I realized.
And omigawd these girls (the authors) are TWENTY THREE!! WOW! I am in love with them too. Haha.
I am really hoping to squeeze in the rest of this series at every chance that I can. It was different and interesting and engaging. What she said!
Shelley: 4 1/2 Stars
Courtney: 5 Stars
~About the Authors~
Becca Ritchie claims she's from Mystic Falls, but really, she lives in Atlanta where humidity is her greatest foe. She loves comic books, blue nail polish and Jonathan Taylor Thomas circa 1995. She frequents Twitter to dish about too many TV shows, and when she's not blogging, she writes novels and has teamed up with her twin sister to collaborate on a New Adult series.
Krista Ritchie has a clone...or someone who looks exactly like her. If she's not writing books with her twin sister, she's pouring over entertainment news and ingesting copious amounts of pop culture. She likes tennis, that thing called the TV, and beating Becca (her clone) on Sega Genesis.
Krista & Becca Ritchie write New Adult books that make you cringe, gasp, and go ooh-la-la. (If you do that sort of thing.) They are currently working on the spin-offs and final books in the Addicted series. Connect with them on twitter and their website: kbritchie.com
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