Credence - Penelope Douglas

⭐ - 4/5

🌶 - 5/5

(No Spoilers)

I'm going to start this review off by saying, this may not be for everyone and that is completely ok. If you aren't a "why choose" lover or even a "step-family" lover, then this book is not for you. But if you are, then my oh my are you in for the time of your life!

I went into this book with a little bit of knowledge on what it was about but I was not expecting it to hit as hard as it did with the content. On first opinion, it was a little hard to get on board with as I've never read anything quite along the lines of this trope before. However, as I kept going, I realised I was becoming unable to put it down because I simply needed to know more and to see where it was going and have my questions answered on why I was craving more of Uncle Jake with each chapter.

Within the story, we have our 4 main characters - Tiernan, Jake, Noah and Kaleb.

The basics of the story (for those who haven't read it yet) is Tiernan is the child of two Hollywood stars who suddenly pass away when Tiernan is only the age of 17. Tiernan is used to being shipped off here, there and everywhere by her parents as they would travel a lot, and she would therefore have to go with them or would have to be placed into the care of someone else or into a boarding school. This then becoming her norm and her way of closing herself off to everyone around her as she wasn't generally around long enough to make a close connection with others - therefore becoming a bit of a 'loner'.

Then comes the day she is informed she is to live with her step-uncle and step-cousins, as per her Father's request in his will. This coming as a shock to Tiernan, because she doesn't know them due to her Father never speaking to them. But nevertheless, Tiernan goes to join them in their secluded house in the mountains of Colorado, where it becomes all four of them, who now have to learn to live as a family - teaching the ways of living in the mountains and to earn money the way her step-family has done for years. 

This is merely a scraping of the cake when it comes to the plot, but I'm not one for spoiling and will therefore keep things to a minimum. However, this a Penelope Douglas story, therefore we have the intense mix-up of tropes that drive us readers completley feral along the way. And the tropes that play-out in this story are WILD. 

Forced proximity, age gap, pseudo-incest and multiple partners just being a few of them. The knowledge of knowing this was all but wrong, made it the more right to carry on and read and fall in love with all three men. At parts making it hard to know which man was the one I preferred. And it did fall down to Uncle Jake and Kaleb - something I'll get into soon.

So now we have a young girl who is two months off being 18 (and allowed to make her own choices as of this age) who now lives with her Uncle and cousins who are of no blood relation and have never met one another before (heavily clarified at the beginning of the book, for good reason). Tiernan is taught what to do, how to live and how to become one of them, which she fights from the start, but soon begins to have a little fun with as it is becoming a norm for her. One thing she is told by her new (non-blood related) family, is they get stuck on the mountains for at least six months due to the snowfall they receive, therefore they need to make sure their jobs get done in time and that they have stocked up their house with essentials before the snow hits them. 

Now what could be the best thing to do in a major snowfall causing a snow in for a long period of time, where there are three attractive men and a young girl, stuck in seclusion together, and said single female is on a road of discovery and wonder in her life, trying to understand where she is meant to be and who she is in the world? Truly a question that makes you wonder!

The character development throughout the story is amazing and very noticeable. You begin to feel the same feelings that Tiernan goes through, gaining more understanding of who she is living with and gaining your own thoughts and feelings of all the characters. At first there are two grumpy characters, Uncle Jake and Kaleb, who show the best character arch through the story (in my opinion) as they begin to open and warm more to Tiernan and show they aren't all grumpy after all. 

Tiernan too has a great character development, because she starts to become who she wants to be, not who she is MEANT to be. She finds her feet and then fights for herself, showing people that she isn't just a child of two Hollywood stars, but instead someone who has her own life, her own value and doesn't live off the backhand of her parents money and fame. From her character development is where we see the difference in the others too, as once they see the change in her, they begin to change parts of themselves, which changes the dynamic of the whole household.

And through it all, I completely fell in love with Uncle Jake and Kaleb. They're both just primal characters who are instinctually protective and hard-working men. They go out of their way for those who are important to them and make it clear that they don't have time for bullshit or people who are going against them. They both also show empathy and understanding towards Tiernan, although it isn't straight away, but eventually it shows. And it really makes you feel for the two of them because, lets be honest, as a woman, all you want is for someone to understand you, right? And there a couple more bonuses to both characters in a similar yet different way, but the read the book to find out what that means😉.

And of course there's Noah. He is a sweet character, the one who makes you think "aww" every few chapters and just has the feel of a best friend to him. He is the first one I liked out of all three of the men, for many reasons, but his humour and friendly feel were the main reasons I liked him and enjoyed when it was his turn for a chapter. 

Through the book, Penelope does an absolutely fantastic job at making the reader fall for all three men, questioning who it is in the end that Tiernan is going to choose. She has also given a really interesting background into all the characters, giving them a meaning, a starting point, a middle ground and a finishing point through the novel, and it was all quite simply, addicting and a hell of a journey to be put on. This was my first Penelope Douglas read as all I saw over Tiktok was 'Credence' and how people were questioning both themselves and the direction of the story. And boy am I glad that I gave it a chance and found myself on the reading path that is Penny D. I honestly don't think I've had as much fun reading a story in a while until I picked this book up. It put me in a tiny reading slump for a couple of weeks because I missed the characters too much. And then I ordered more Penny D books - which I will be reading and reviewing ASAP!

On a total, I 100% recommend reading this book and going in to with open eyes and an open mind! What's the fun of reading if it's like everything else you read on a daily? 

And please, check your trigger warnings and make sure you are okay before going into this book. Your mental health matters. YOU matter. Please make sure you look after yourself before you read anything that is reviewed on this page or on other platforms. 

If you do read this book or have already read this book, then let me know in the comments or through message what you think! I'd love to know what you thought of it and who your favourite male lead was!

Have fun with Credence, and enjoy the journey that is Penelope Douglas! You will not be disappointed!

Happy reading everyone!

B x