Love Me Like That - Book Review

By Marie James

Synopsis

Two strangers trapped together in a blizzard.

One running from the past; one with no future.

Two destinies collide.

London Sykes is on her own for the first time in her life after a sequence of betrayal and abuse. One man rescues her only to destroy her himself. An unfortunate accident lands her in a ditch only to be rescued by the most closed-off man she’s ever met, albeit undeniably handsome.

Kadin Cole is at the cabin in the woods for the very first and the very last time. Since his grief doesn’t allow for him to return home to a life he’s no longer able to live alone, he’s finally made what has been the hardest decision of his life. His plans change drastically when a beautiful woman in a little red car crashes into his life.

How can she trust another man?

How could he ever love again?

Will happenstance and ensuing sexual attraction be enough to heal two hearts enough that they can see in themselves what the other sees?

Review

Given the synopsis, I don’t think I’m giving anything away when I say that Kadin has plans to end his life. His plans are thwarted when he finds London trapped in her car after having an accident. With a blizzard coming down, he can’t just leave her there, so he offers her a room at his cabin. Neither of them are in a good place⎯he’s ready to end his life and she’s just had her heart broken by her long-term boyfriend and best friend⎯but they can’t deny the attraction they feel for each other. So they don’t, and they end up in bed together on the first night, leaving them confused about their feelings regarding what just happened. London feels cheap and Kadin feels guilty because he felt happiness for a brief period of time and wants to feel it again.

I liked both Kadin and London, but both of them have their flaws. Kadin is a nice and loyal man, but given his desire to end his life, I found him a little weak. I’m glad he changed his mind, but I’m concerned at how quickly his emotions shifted. London is a young woman who’s been through a lot in the past decade and in some ways she’s very strong. She hates confrontation, and while that can be a good thing in certain situations, other times it just makes her look like a coward. I guess they’re perfect for each other, because both of them prefer to run away instead of dealing with their problems head on.

LOVE ME LIKE THAT is told in dual POVs and currently appears to be a stand-alone, but perhaps we’ll see a story about Kadin’s brother, Kegan. It deals with some heavy stuff (abuse, rape and suicide) so be warned if these are triggers for you, but it does come with a HEA. It was the perfect mix of fast and slow, which I think makes it more realistic. There’s nothing I hate more than a story where the conflict is resolved in two pages. LOVE ME LIKE THAT is a story that will grab you and not let go until the end.