REVIEW: Transcend and Epoch by Jewel E Ann

OUR REVIEW:

Normally I would make separate posts for these paired novels but I don't think I'll be able to do it without blending the two novels together. Also I should note that this review may contain SPOILERS so read at your own risk. 

I remember when this duet hit the scene a couple of years ago because everyone I trust as a reader was losing their minds over these novels. I don't remember specifics but I do remember a lot of intense emoji and meme action happening in their social media posts and obviously this memory held some weight because when I had the opportunity to get both books for under 2 bucks, I leapt at the chance and then dived right in. 

Y'all. 

Y'ALL. The readers of twitter were not lying. This duet had me alllll up in my feelings. I was bugging Courtney about it. I was texting reader friends asking if they had read it. I just needed to emote and purge. 

So what was it about these two novels?

Well, first I think it was the idea that Swayze had these memories of someone she didn't really know and there was no logical explanation for why she was having them. It was a trip to imagine all three of the characters trying to navigate what the hell was going on in her head. Poor Swayze had zero control over the fact that she was having these memories that weren't hers, Nate was reliving a very painful part of his young adulthood and trying like hell to not freak out about it, and Griffin, poor Griffin, was just trying to keep up with all of it in a way that was healthy. Let's face it, there was nothing healthy about what was happening--it was a messy mess--which was exactly why it was so intriguing. 

Would Griffin and Swayze stay together?
Would Nate and Swayze get together?
Who did I want her to be with?

I was so torn. Some chapters I was rooting for Griffin, others, Nate, and always Swayze. And that's what I really appreciated about Jewel E Ann's narrative. In less capable hands I probably would've walked away from this duet with some really sore feelings about at least one of the characters, but I didn't here. I was a smidge sad but really quite happy with how things turned out. (Especially seeing there will be a companion novel coming out in June 2020). 

I also appreciated how well she creeped me out with Doug. Gah. That psychopath really had me on edge and I kept waiting for him to pop up and terrorize us all. 

Ultimately, reincarnation, serial killer, and possible love triangle aside, I loved the romance. The stories of Griffin and Swayze and Nate and Daisy were sweet and sexy and well done. The angsty bits were just right--enough to make me nervous but not ever too over the top. 

This duet was exactly the absorbing distraction I needed and I'm so excited that the companion novel is coming out in days. I'm also excited that I have a new author to explore and a list of titles to add to my TBR list.

BUY IT: https://amzn.to/2M8nDVP

SYNOPSIS:

Transcend:

“In another life, she was my forever.”

An unexpected tragedy leaves Professor Nathaniel Hunt a widower alone with a newborn baby.

He hires a nanny. She’s young, but well-qualified, with a simple life, a crazy name obsession, and a boyfriend she met at the grocery store.

Over time, he discovers she knows things about him—things that happened before she was born—like a hidden scar on his head, his favorite pizza, and how he cheated on a high school Spanish test.

She speaks familiar words and shares haunting memories that take him back to over two decades earlier when he lost his best friend in a tragic accident.

“I’m afraid of what’s going to happen when you realize I’m not her.”

Transcend is a sexy, mind-bending journey that uncovers possibilities, challenges beliefs, and begets the age-old question: is there life after death?

Epoch:

After a horrific incident, Swayze finds herself trapped between two lives. Patchy memories and fear for her own safety thrust her into a gut-wrenching journey to uncover the truth.

Will she let her dreams slip away to seek retribution and find the missing pieces to a puzzle that existed a lifetime ago?

“I’m not going to watch you self-destruct. I’m not going to watch you fall in love with another man.”

Or will she discover the only truth that matters?

Epoch pushes the boundaries of what we believe and what we know. It redefines fate and proves that the only thing separating the heart and the soul is an infinite timeline.

“I think a part of you will be mine to love in every life.”