Say You Swear - Meagan Brandy

 Say You Swear - Meagan Brandy

⭐ - 5

🌶 - 2.5

This book. THIS DAMN BOOK! 

It took my heart, shredded it, danced all over it and then healed it back together with the man that is...Noah Riley. 

There are good book boyfriends and there are steamy book boyfriends. And then you get the golden retriever, would do anything for her, love you softly forever boyfriend, and he is called Noah Riley.

He made this book absolutely PERFECT and I wish, oh wow do I wish, that I could go back and read this book again. I had to sit with myself for a good while once I finished this book and recalibrate my brain to try be ok with the fact that it was over. But nothing was good enough. NOTHING worked. This book straight up put me in a book slump for over a month because I was so sad I couldn't read it again and that I had to allow in a new story and characters to my life. 

But alas, the reading slump broke and she was able to move on to other boyfriends (she's lying, I want more. Meagan please do a SYS pt2).

The main character, Ari(anna) is starting her first year at college and is beginning the life of an independent girl - an independent girl who goes to the same college as her best friend (Cameron), her twin brother (Mason) and his best friends (Brady and Chase). They're a super tight knit friend group, go everywhere together, do everything with one another and are basically the only people they all really talk to. 

And Ari is completely in love with her brothers BEST friend - Chase. 

And if there was ONE problem with this book (for me)...it's him. Chase was the character that you wish was simply not there but also would possibly maybe miss? Because although he is kind of understandable and you do kind of fall soft to what he's saying and what he wants from Ari, it's all basic jibber jabber that does NOT deserve the time of day, whatsoever! And how he acts with Ari when he fully knows she is in a VERY vulnerable position in her life...absolutely absurd and clearly only thinking about himself. Bullshit. Just, bullshit. 

So with that, the trope of this book is love triangle, brother's best friend, sport college romance. A fabulous cocktail of tropes if I say so myself. 

Anyway. Ari is in love with Chase and has been for a very long time, and these feelings are something which Chase plays upon and then decides to do a whole U turn and says "yah that was a mistake" - bullshit behaviour. And then we have a very distraught Ari who then finds a saving grace within our beautiful man candy that is Noah Riley.

Noah is on the same football team as Ari's brother (Mason) and his best friends (Chase and Brady) and is the quarterback of the team (because we like a man in charge). He meets Ari and is given the 'warning' from her brother to not be a douche and blah blah, protective brother speech (we love Mason x) and he does in fact listen to what he says, because he has respect for everyone around him. Noah is not a douche and does not do anything, whatsoever, to ever hurt Ari.

Noah becomes a very good friend to Ari, teaching her how to cook, being there for her through her heartbreak, introducing her to his friends and asking her to tag along to their games, parties or nights in. He even introduces her to his Mum - who is an absolute angel and is the true heroine of this story. Noah is there for Ari and shows her what a real man should act like, how a woman should be taken care of. And throughout it all, Art starts to fall for him in a way she never thought she would. And soon he's all she wants...until Chase catches a sniff of it all and decides to double back on his U turn.

Once the big "disaster" happens (don't want to be giving away any spoilers) that is when my heart temporarily lived in my stomach because I was seriously so worried about where this book was going, simply because it was getting way too close to the end and I simply could NOT. Through the disaster, we see what a MAN Noah Riley truly is. Giving the space needed, being a fair man, waiting everything out, not being overly clingy and simply fighting from the only spot he can. In comparison to Chase who is the equivalent to a stone in my shoe.

Summarising it all up, Meagan Brandy did such a fantastic job of making the reader feel every emotion they possibly could. There's tears, shock, happiness, love, embarrassment, a wee bit of spice and a whole lot of wonder for the "what is coming next?". I genuinely LOVED this book, so much and highly recommend it for those who want something that is a genuine story of love and heartache, something far away from sex every scene but still includes a tiny bit just to influence a connection. 

The main characters growth throughout this book was clearly seen and was written so well. It was relatable through the independent hurdles they had to jump over, seeing what was truly worth it within their lives and what battles they were willing to fight and willing to give up on. It was just, beautiful. 

Well done Meagan Brandy. Simply, bravah. 10/10👏

Let me know what you think of this book if you've read it or if you want to read it! You will not regret it!

If you have any book recommendations for me then let me know!

Happy reading guys and gals!x