Be with Me (Wait for You, #2)

by J. Lynn and Jennifer L. Armentrout

[Leah]

Last year I read and thoroughly enjoyed Wait For You by J Lynn. It was a super amazing New Adult novel, one I would happily recommend to all and sundry! So when I knew there was going to be a sequel I was pleasantly surprised, especially when I knew it was going to be about Cam’s sister Tess. I was super excited to find Be With Me available to download from Edelweiss and, of course, I had to read it immediately because I was desperate to read Tess and Jase’s story! And it was very interesting, and also slightly disappointing, mostly because Jase kept doing my head in because he was a flaky as a pastry, but more on that later!

Tess has been in love with Jase every since they kissed a year ago, but since they he’s been incommunicado, doing everything he can to keep out of her way, until Tess blows her knee and ends up at the same college as Jase and her brother Cam. Suddenly Tess and Jase are always around each other, and Jase is even helping Tess out with getting to and from her classes with her weak knee. But every time Jase and Tess get closer and closer, Jase keeps pulling away, blowing hot and cold more than the Katy Perry song. Both Jase and Tess have secrets in their past, but can they overcome their obstacles and fall in love or are they doomed from the beginning?

Tess and Jase were super interesting characters, and initially I was super excited to dive into the book, and it was all going along smoothly, until the first time Jase decided it was all too much for him and he bailed. And that was my main issue with the book because Jase kept doing it! Everytime I was getting excited about where Tess and Jase’s relationship was going, Jase kept bailing and it was SO frustrating. I wanted Tess to woman up and just ignore Jase, instead of still allowing him to drive her to and from her classes. But I did like it when it was good for them both, because it was fun. I enjoyed the scenes set on Jase’s parents farm – the lake, the horses, Jase’s family, Jase’s brother Jack, those scenes were all super cute. But Jase and Tess spent a bit too much time going around in circles, and Tess was quite fawny, which I can probably accept because she’s only 19, so it’s hardly unheard of for her to get fangirly over a guy. And as much as I love hearing about a guys abs, I’m almost sure Jase was just a figment of Tess’s imagination – he had abs that rivalled the best abs you’ve ever seen! (Ryan Reynolds, for me. I love Ryan Reynolds.)

It was so great to see Cam and Avery again, they’re SUCH a cute couple and the love they have for each other make me believe that there is a Cam out there for me somewhere. BUT WHERE IS HE? Who knows. Still looking, probably. I loved getting to know Tess because there was more to her than drooling over Jase’s abs, and she had quite a sad backstory. Jase, too, had hardly had a great life and his story made me sad as well. The book wasn’t always sweetness and light, though, and there’s quite a few tragedy’s that occur, one that was really tough to swallow, but these types of things do really happy so I really appreciate J Lynn writing about them. J Lynn is a fantastic writer, and although Be With Me wasn’t perfect, and I did wish Jase (and Tess) would grow a pair, I did enjoy their story. It had a lovely message, I loved the characters (and would have loved them even more if they weren’t such scaredy-cats, afraid of each other!) and I loved seeing Cam and Avery again! I can’t wait for Stay With Me; I’ve got no idea whose story it is – I called Calla, but it could be Brittany’s story, too, whosever it is, I can’t wait to read it and be with these characters again!