Reasons Why Not to Date Your Nemesis | Blitz

There’s a new sheriff in town…
And he’s her worst nightmare.

Reason #1: Ben Crawford is Olivia Knight’s long-time arch rival. They’ve been sworn enemies ever since she wore overalls to school one day, and he asked her in homeroom where she parked her cow. Now that he’s back, it doesn’t appear much has changed. He’s still arrogant. He’s still trouble. And this time, he’s got a badge and handcuffs. Which will make murdering him and disposing of his body much more challenging for her.

Reason #2: Sheriff Ben has done a lot of growing up during his time away from Shell Grove. He went and got himself some muscles and tattoos, and has the nerve to wear that sheriff’s uniform absurdly well. For some reason, that’s all she can seem to focus on whenever they cross paths. All the nice changes he’s made, instead of how vehemently she’s vowed to hate his guts for all eternity.

Reason #3: The complicated connection that has forever entwined their lives doesn’t have a pleasant backstory. As adults, they should be able to forget what happened when they were teenagers and move on. But in a small town where everyone has long memories, there are reminders everywhere of the nasty events that destroyed both of their families years ago. And she’s not sure their growing feelings for each other are enough to forgive the sins of the past and carve out a future…together.

Ben has a secret. A big one. The longer he’s in Shell Grove and surrounded by people who know his sordid history, the more likely that secret is going to come out. But if it does, Olivia will never speak to him again. Which will not do. Because he’s finally realized that Olivia is the reason why he came back to town in the first place. And if he doesn’t want to lose her forever, he needs to correct the mistakes he made a long time ago and prove he’s not the NEMESIS she’s always thought him to be.

How it’s possible for this series to keep getting better and better is beyond me. I loved this book so much that I’m not sure I can even properly express it in words. But I’m going to try.

We have Olivia and Ben, sworn enemies since high school, that are reunited in the small town of Shell Grove, and things get messy. The banter between the two was phenomenal! They knew exactly how to get on each other’s nerves, what buttons to push, and it was so entertaining to read it. It was funny, clever, and oh so romantic. I particularly loved it in the first chapter because it really set the mood for the rest of the book.

Even though this was a bit of an enemies/friends-with-benefits situation, it felt different than other books with this trope. I’m the first to admit I’m not a fan of friends-with-benefits stories, but this one did it right. We didn’t really get into the benefits part until well into the book so a good relationship had already been built between the characters and I, as the reader, knew the characters better and knew what their true feelings were for each other. the natural progression in their relationship was inevitable and done so smoothly that I couldn’t help but swoon. Truly, a very different vibe than friends-with-benefits.

As per usual, I loved the characters in this book. I think I said this in my review about book 1, but the side characters are truly so well written. They are each unique, but true to themselves. I know exactly how each character is going to react because they’ve been well-developed and thought out.

And then were Olivia and Ben who I loved from the start. Olivia and Ben both had family issues from the past that they were working through in this book, more Olivia than Ben. But Ben had his own demons he had to confront and move past.

Jealous Ben was amazing! I loved that we got multiple scenes of it because I was swooning the whole time. Also, I’m not usually a fan of possessive men in books, but Ben’s possessiveness was very well done. He let Olivia be her own person, have her space when needed, and make her own decisions, but he was still very much involved in her life. It was so great!

Totally unrelated, but I just found out there is a Jade and Hunter story so if you need me, I’ll be reading that and probably fanning over it for the next few days.

Overall, I’m in love with this series, in love with this town, and all it’s characters. I can’t wait for our favorite best friends to finally figure their love for each other out! 5 stars

Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed a gifted and advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

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