Reviewer: Rowena I Wish You Were Mine by Lauren Layne
Series: Oxford #2
Also in this series: Irresistibly Yours, Someone Like You, I Knew You Were Trouble, I Think I Love You, Irresistibly Yours, I Wish You Were Mine, Someone like You
Publication Date: February 2nd 2016
Genres: New Adult
Pages: 260
Add It: Goodreads
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Series Rating:
Perfect for fans of Alice Clayton and Emma Chase, Lauren Layne’s Oxford series heats up in this story of forbidden desire as a brooding jock hoping for a comeback falls for a woman who’s strictly off-limits.
A year ago, Jackson Burke was married to the love of his life and playing quarterback for the Texas Redhawks. Now he’s retired, courtesy of the car accident that ruined his career—and single, after a nasty scandal torpedoed his marriage. Just as he’s starting to get used to his new life as a health and fitness columnist for Oxford magazine, his unpredictable ex shows up on his doorstep in Manhattan. Jackson should be thrilled. But he can’t stop thinking about the one person who’s always been there for him, the one girl he could never have: her younger sister.
Mollie Carrington can’t say no to Madison. After all, her older sister practically raised her. So when Madison begs for help in winning her ex-husband back, Mollie’s just glad she got over her own crush on Jackson ages ago—or so she thought. Because as Mollie reconnects with Jackson, she quickly forgets all her reasons to stay loyal to her sister. Tempted by Jackson’s mellow drawl and cowboy good looks, Mollie is sick and tired of coming in second place. But she can’t win if she doesn’t play the game.
I Wish You Were Mine is the second book in the Oxford series by Lauren Layne. I was a bit surprised at how much I wanted to read this book, considering I’m not a huge fan of the ex-brother in law love trope but as I’m starting to realize, Lauren Layne delivers good stuff. This book was no exception.
Jackson Burke was briefly introduced in Irresistibly Yours and if I’m being honest, I wasn’t all that excited to hear that he was the hero for this book (his introduction was that brief) but from the first page of this book, I was hooked. I was hooked because our first introduction to the couple of the book is at his wedding…to her sister. [raises eyebrows] Yes, you read that right.
Not to fear though, I thought Lauren Layne did a fabulous job of working through the obvious obstacles in this relationship. I was cheering for both Jackson and Mollie to figure out how to be together right from the jump.
Jackson is in a new town, working at a new job and is trying to move on from his old life. It’s hard because he liked his old life but he’s trying to adjust to not playing football anymore at the same time that he’s trying to figure out a way back into his old life. He’s not ready to completely give up on his old life so if there’s any way that he can keep football in his life, he’s going to try to get it. His divorce is final and the only person that has ever had his back is his sister in law so when she starts coming around (ha, they both live in New York now) checking on him, being his friend again…he’s surprised by the attraction that hits him hard. It’s an attraction he’s going to ignore because she’s his freaking ex-wife’s sister.
Mollie fell in love at her sister’s wedding with the groom. It’s not something she’s proud of, but it happened all the same and she’s spent years trying to get over it. She’s not the same person she was back then anyway and seeing Jackson in New York, single and looking at her in a different light is exciting if it wasn’t for the fact that he used to be married to her sister. They’ve been friends forever and falling back into that easy friendship with Jackson doesn’t take long. When they become roomies, it gets harder and harder to forget about those feelings.
I liked both Jackson and Mollie right from the jump. I thought they were interesting characters with an interesting story to tell. I enjoyed seeing their romance progress, seeing their past mix in with their present and the complications that only this kind of story can bring. Layne did a great job of pulling my heartstrings with this one because I felt Jackson’s frustration with letting go of his old life and embracing his new one and I also felt Mollie’s struggles with her changing relationship with Jackson, her unresolved issues with her sister and then helping Jackson embrace the new life he has in New York. It wasn’t easy and when I closed this book, I was satisfied and deeply content with the way their story played out and then ended.
I enjoyed the story so much that I immediately started reading Blurred Lines by Lauren Layne. Her writing style is fun and keeps me laughing one minute then sighing the next. She pulls me into every single book that I read of hers and she’s definitely got a new fan in me. I’m slowly making my way through her entire back list because I can’t get enough of her stuff.
This was a great book and while there were times that I wanted to punch Jackson in the nuts and pull Mollie’s hair (don’t even get me started on Mollie’s sister), it was still an enjoyable read. I definitely recommend to fans of contemporary romance. It’s a good one.
Grade: 4 out of 5
Oxford
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