- Jackson has centered the tale on three childhood friends Aly, her brother Christopher and their neighbor Jared. In the first two books, we deal with Aly and Jared. This time around, we see the impact an event in their teen years had on Christopher and met his first love Samantha Schultz. At its heart, this story is a second chance romance.
- Jackson brings us up close and personal with both Christopher and Samantha using dual points of view. I love this perspective especially when there is a shared history. We get to see how both felt and reacted to the past events that ripped them apart and get their current perspectives as well.
- Come to Me Recklessly picks up almost seven years after their relationship ended, when Aly and Jared bump into Samantha at the supermarket. A dinner party and an unexpected visit from Christopher have the two meeting again and we feel their emotions from seeing each other to dealing with the scars from long ago. It is at times messy and others are simply beautiful. Jackson gives us flashbacks from their youth giving us a sense of their feelings, mindset and revealing miscommunications.
- Besides weaving in beloved characters Jackson also shares a wonderful bittersweet tale about Samantha’s little brother that will have you giggling and shedding a tear. It was a beautiful thread that served to remind us to live each moment.
- Updates from secondary characters and Jackson's ability to make you understand each character whether you agree or disagree with their behavior makes her one of my favorite authors in this genre.
Decaffeinated Aspects:
- When Samantha and Christopher encounter each other, Samantha has a live in boyfriend and while it is a very complicated situation, I struggled when the lines blurred. Since both have unresolved issues I agree, they needed to work things out, clear the air and heal but beyond that I had very little patience when a third party is involved. Samantha should have lived on her own for a bit to sort shit out. However with age comes wisdom and I realize not everything is black and white. Did Jackson change my mind? Nope. I still say leave and figure your stuff out.
Come to Me Recklessly was beautiful, complicated and bittersweet. I recommend the Closer to You series for fans of Colleen Hoover, Jamie McGuire and Jessica Sorensen.
Copy provided by publisher. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Book Reviewer