Love Unwritten (Lakefront Billionaires, 2)

This was a fantastic story with wonderful characters. Rafael and Ellie had so much sexual tension that it was only a matter of time before they acted on their attraction. They both tried to keep it professional, because they didn’t want to affect her relationship with his son, who she was a nanny for. He came across as unfriendly and untrusting, which was due to his childhood trauma. Now, his son is facing a disease that will have him go blind sooner rather than later, and his ex is flaky as all get out. When he learns that Ellie kept something from him about his son, he overreacts and fires her. Ellie is loving her job as a nanny, even if working for her high school crush is difficult. She loves his son and tries to give him time to tell Rafa about his eyesight (he doesn’t want to ruin his birthday), but an accident happens. When she is fires she decides she is no longer going to let people walk all over her, so she doesn’t readily accept when he offers her her job back. I loved the progression of their relationship and how he grew as a character. It was also nice to see her grow stronger in her self esteem and go after her dreams. The outcome of the lawsuit was surprising but I really liked her response. His son was the cutest and I loved his relationship with both Rafa and Ellie. Duet narration is my favorite and Noah and Vanessa did wonderful jobs of bringing emotion, depth and realism to the characters. I enjoyed the slight accent of Noah, especially when he spoke in his native language. I enjoyed this book and can’t wait to see what happens next. I would also listen to these narrators again. Fantastic. I received an ARC, ALC, and bought my own copy of this book, and this is my honest, voluntary review.

This was the ultimate slow burn, with tension and growth and thought. I liked that the attraction was there from the beginning but they waited to act on it until they were both willing to open up to each other. There was a lot of focus on Rafael and Ellie working on themselves individually and I loved that. Rafael had such a drastic character arc. He had a lot of baggage from his childhood and his experiences with his ex wife really compounded that. He loved his son, but carried a lot of guilt over his medical condition and the fact that his mother was uncaring and absent. He was hiding his heart and once Ellie convinced him to start letting people in it really changed him. He was able to be comfortable being himself and exploring what he liked without feeling overwhelming guilt. Ellie carried her own baggage. She had been betrayed by someone she thought was her best friend and came home to find a new dream to chase after. She fell in love with Nico, Rafael’s son, long before she fell for Rafael. I loved her loyalty to Nico, even if it caused her to lose her job. I loved that she brought Rafael back to life and showed him how to be in a relationship with someone who was willing to be a part of your team. There was an underlying theme of trust in this book. Both main characters struggled with trust after having their trust broken. It took time to develop the trust between them. Rafael was convinced he was okay being alone the rest of his life but Ellie really showed him what he was missing.

Audiobook: Narrated by Noah B. Perez and Vanessa Edwin Single Dad / Nanny Billionaire romance This was such a heart warming story, not only between the two main characters, but also between father and son. The writing was so beautiful and really painted a picture of the difficulties this small family was navigating. Rafael’s character progression through this story was so fulfilling. Elenor also grew so much and I truly appreciated the emphasis on mental health and dealing with difficult emotions in healthy way, not only for themselves but also as a legacy for Nico. The banter between Rafael and Elenor was so fun and a pleasure to experience, especially on audio. Great characters, interesting plot and epic chemistry! This is the first time I’ve listened to a book narrated by Noah B. Perez but I will be looking for him in the future. He has the perfect tone to voice a broody alpha male character. Not only that, his vocal dexterity in playing multiple characters was impressive, particularly when voicing Nico’s young character. I literally forgot until near the end that this was the same person. Vanessa Edwin was also a wonderful choice. She has such a beautiful lyrical tone to her voice that was so pleasing to listen to for long periods of time. The emotions came through in spades in this audiobook.

Highly anticipated read for me. I’m a sucker for the grumpy single father trope. I did love Rafael and I did understand his walls being up and how he reacted about things, for some reason I just felt like the connection was kind of forced. Ellie starting out the narration in chapter 1 telling us readers how she feels so unwelcome in their family because Rafael hates her YET a second later she’s telling us about how he’s checking her out? Umm? They did not have a whirlwind romance? Like the pull didn’t feel like it was there? The flirty banter wasn’t there, the question of wow he hates her through her eyes but deeply wants her through his eyes wasn’t there? They trauma bonded by opening up for the first time to someone other than friends or family. Then when the finally get together, all of a sudden Nico is not even being brought up? Like he just went to summer camp, went to his aunt and uncles house like he was the whole reason they needed Ellie to be around. And then when he came around again, there was no mention of his vision? Like such a heavy plot in the beginning to literally not even a thing to talk about? Even the intimate parts felt forced to be added to their story because around 70% of the book, the author remembered she had to have the burn show up sooner or later? Mixed thoughts, if I were to recommend reading this book, I’d say get the audiobook like I did because they were reallllllyyyy good!

This was such a cute book. You had fluffy scenes and heavy ones, which I don't see too much. There was talk of cutting, abuse and anxiety. I enjoy a book that has some good heavier topics mixed in. I thought the communication between the two MCs was pretty well and you could see the growth in their communication. I feel that I'm not a miscommunication trope girlie and this one didn't hit me in that aspect which was so pleasing. This book gravitated more to a slow burn for me, but I enjoyed it. I feel that I rated it 4 instead of something higher because it felt very long, where would I cut anything out? I have no idea but at the 75% mark I was ready for it to be closer to the ending. All in all, I fully enjoyed this book and would recommend this book if you like a romance book that have some more deeper topics in it.

It was a marathon, not a sprint, but I had such a great time going along for the ride. This is a true S-L-O-W burn between two characters who need to battle their own demons before they have any chance of getting things right together. I loved that it was a new spin on the single dad/nanny trope, where spending time together has actually made their relationship worse. Getting to know the grumpy man has extinguished the teenage crush our heroine once had, while watching the sunshine nanny effortlessly bond with his son has made this single dad jealous and resentful. It takes some time before they can build up a level of trust - or even like - and I loved seeing them slowly make their way together. It’s tender and emotional with plenty of darkness in both characters’ pasts, so watching them grow stronger and brighter together was immensely satisfying. It’s the kind of love story that requires some patience, but there was never a dull moment for me - I loved it! The story follows Ellie, a songwriter who is working as a nanny while her music career is in shambles. She’s been working for the man she used to crush on as a teenager, but living with the closed off, jaded and depressed dad has changed her feelings about him. Rafael has shut down since his messy divorce, so he has all kinds of trust issues. But once the two are able to let down their walls a little bit, they quickly realize how much they have in common - and that their broken pieces might just fit together. Asher likes to write beefy books - sometimes too beefy - so I was a little nervous to see that this is even longer than the first book in the series. However, this took no time at all to draw me in, and I was never bored with it. I loved the slow burn, actually. It was important for these characters to build trust with each other before becoming something more, and it was still easy to see the undercurrent of connection and chemistry beneath the surface. They’ve both gone through a lot in their lives, and it was only by opening up about those experiences that they were able to grow together. Rafael was such a great guy - imperfect and vulnerable, yet loving and steady. He’s the perfect counterpart to Ellie, and I also loved the side she brought out in him. It’s such a quiet love story in so many ways, but their connection shone throughout. And when they finally made their way together? It felt so, so good. Audio note: The audio is excellent, highly recommended! It’s duet-style, which I love, and so well done. Vanessa Edwin is a talented narrator, and her performance was very good. I was nervous about Noah B. Perez because I’ve only listened to one other audiobook from him and he really played up his accent in that one in a bad way - I’ll forever be haunted by the way he said “Lucas” in The American Roommate Experiment. That was not the case this time; I actually loved his accent and had no trouble with it. The audiobook is nearly 15 hours long, so I listened over the course of three days, but I was never bored or disinterested. I was excited to pick it back up each time. It’s also a super slow burn with just a bit of spice, so it made a great workday listen. All in all, very pleased that I chose this format.

🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺 4⭐️ 1🌶️ This book will make you fall in love with love. Lauren has a way with writing the best slow burn love stories that just make you really appreciate love in new lights. 🥰💕 This pulled at all of my heartstrings, and I even teared up at one point (which is not something I normally do). 🥹 There were heart wrenching moments, endearing moments, swoony moments, fun and flirty moments.. just all the moments! All wrapped in a book that will capture your heart. 💗 I listened to the audiobook done in duet style by Noah B. Perez and Vanessa Edwin, and I loved it so much! Both narrators did a stunning job with the characters and I can’t recommend listening to this enough! 💖 Notable tropes: 🌺 nanny/workplace romance 💫 single dad 🌺 grumpy/sunshine 💫 past trauma 🌺 mental health rep 💫 billionaire romance 🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺

“Rafael isn't just rekindling the crush I had on him all those years ago. He is fanning the flames and making them burn stronger than ever before, and he has absolutely no idea.” Read if you enjoy: 🌺 Small Town Romance 🌺 Billionaire Romance 🌺 Single Dad x Nanny 🌺 Forced Proximity 🌺 Grumpy x Sunshine 🌺 Slow Burn 🌺 Music Rating: 5⭐️ “Look at me." When she finally slides those pretty hazel eyes toward me, I speak. "You may see a broken masterpiece, but l'only see you.” Welcome back to Lake Wisteria! Ever since reading Love Redesigned, I have been waiting to return to read all about Rafael, the grumpy single dad who loves to rescue farm animals and lives outside of town. This has become my favorite book yet! I loved seeing all the layers peel off from Rafael and Ellie. Their characters had so much personal growth due to their past trauma and Lauren did such a good discussing and portraying the struggles behind it. Their journey to heal, including Nico, was so good. The depth of their feelings as they start falling for each other while navigating their inner battles is palpable. While we all know Lauren Asher as romance-driven, this story felt like more. While it was a slow burn, I did not care about waiting. The story had so much to offer! A very good and beautifully written story that will make you appreciate friendship, love, and family. Trigger Warnings: Check warnings on Lauren Asher’s website before reading as it touches sensitive topics.