Love Me Back

by Michelle Lynn

[Cocktails and Books]

3.5 Stars

This was one of those books that took so many twists and turns with the characters that you had to wonder if who you thought was going to end up together at the end was really going to happen.

For as long as Maddy Jennings was with Trent Basso. They were best friend but they found themselves in the vicious cycle of being on again, off again boyfriend and girlfriend. That was fine in high school, but as they moved into their adult lives, with Trent becoming a soccer phenom and Maddy going into interior design, they found themselves growing apart and ultimately not speaking to each other. In the year since they'd broken up, Maddy had avoided their hometown because she didn't want to be reminded of Trent and what they'd lost. But her brother's wedding calls her home and forces Maddy to evaluate not only her relationship with Trent, but his older brother Gabe and the entire Basso family.

There were times when I was reading this that I wanted to equally smack Trent and Maddy. Trent because he was a selfish ass that figured he could win Maddy back just because he'd done it before. Maddy for not being strong enough, at time, to tell Trent to go to hell and move on. Trent managed to charm his way into getting Maddy to do what he wanted and when that didn't work, he would punish her by purposefully flirting with other women in front of her. But then Maddie would let him, even when she knew what he was doing. It was infuriating.
Then there was Gabe. He'd been in love with Maddie since college, but because she was "Trent's girl" he always tried to do the right thing and stay away from, despite the fact that he and Maddie had grown close in college. You could understand why he would try to keep his distance, despite how he felt. But as the past between Gabe and Maddy unfolds you start feeling so back for the poor man. His feelings are obvious, but he continues to put the feelings of his little brother above his own...even when he knows his brother doesn't want to have the type of relationship he does with Maddie. It's heartbreaking and makes you just want to toss your reading device across the room.

Despite my irritation with the characters, this was a very well written story. It was told from multiple points of view and different time periods to give readers a full understanding of just how intertwined the lives of Maddy, Trent and Gabe were. It was a story that I could not put down and at times questioned if the two I wanted to have the happily ever after was going to happen. Michelle Lynn is an author I look forward to reading more from in the future.