Having just left the world of Drazen in Pretty Scars, I was ready for whatever C.D. Reiss was creating and while Only Ever You is not anything like the insanity of the Drazens it was equally as compelling and hard to put down: I only stopped reading to sleep and inhaled this novel in a matter of hours.



Only Ever You is a stand out, for me, because it seems rooted in characters and a plot that feels realistic. Rachel and Sebastion are, with a few exceptions, just like you and me. They're weak in some areas, stronger in others, and just so failingly human and I'm here for it. I love everything about their romance--from their teenage contract, their meeting years later, and their falling in love with a raw honesty about who they are and where they are in their lives--it's pitch perfect. Throw in their parents, a sister, and friends who provided humor and sage advice and I found myself smiling and nodding a lot.



I've yet to come across anything from C.D. Reiss that doesn't hold my attention. I appreciate that she can create a completely messed up world like the Drazens and then write something more down to earth like Only Ever You. Fans of her work will find many of the trademarks that are distinctly hers--succinct exposition, good dialogue, steamy sex scenes, and a well paced plot--and I bet they'll be as enamored as this new novel as I am.

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I loved Reiss's Songs of Submission series. And I mean I L-O-V-E-D it. It's been a while since I read it but I remember being completely engrossed in the story, the writing, the characters.
Which is why I'm pretty baffled right now. And I'm finding it hard to believe that this book was supposed to be written by the same author.
It felt incredibly unpolished, the writing was disjointed and strangely paced, the dialogues were confusing - just like many other reviewers, I often didn't even know who was speaking.
And while there really wasn't anything wrong with the characters (in another book, I might've even enjoyed them), they didn't manage to make up for the rather lackluster plot or the above mentioned writing flaws. I just didn't care that much about them or their love story.

I was ecstatic when I got the approval for this ARC. I'm a huge sucker for the friends-to-lovers trope, and C.D. Reiss had a big hand in introducing me to the romance genre all those years ago.
I don't know, maybe I'm being unfair, maybe my expectations were just too freaking high to live up to. And maybe I'll reconsider my rating once I'm over my disappointment.
For now, however... 2 stars, sorry.

2.5 stars
Loved the premise, loved the beginning of the book. Then, it slowly got repetitive. I thought I was going to love this book! A wedding contract?? How adorable. But there was a few flags for me. And I didn't love some aspects of it.

I had a hard time putting this book down. Two friends make a contract to get married at 30 if both are single. Get ready to read their wild ride to marriage and possible love. This book has lots of feels the good and the sad. Rachel goes through some hard times but Sebastian keeps her head up. There are lots of moments between Rachel and Sebastian that will melt your heart. I loved the journey these two took as a couple and each on their own. This was a great read.

CD Reiss is a very versatile writer. I sometimes forget that she can do romantic fluffy as well as she does heart stopping angst.

Only Ever You is the romantic fluffy version of CD. Sebastian Barton is the grandpa cardigan wearing dweeb. But he isn’t the same bullied little dweeb he was in school. Now he’s hot, rich grandpa cardigan wearing but dweeb no more.

His childhood protector and bully slayer was Rachel Rendell. Grown up a Rachel has had it tough. Life didn’t quite go they way she planned it but the planets are aligned and her future is going to change.

This book is a hodgepodge of tropes. Childhood sweethearts, yes. Second chance romance, a little. Pretend fiancée/fiancé, yes. It was an enjoyable read with a few surprises along the way and some plot lines you might, if you’ve read the CD Reiss back catalogue, recognise.

I fear I am in the throes of an epic book slump.

This is yet another book that looks like it should work for me. The cover is gorgeous. The blurb seems right up my alley. And I've loved CD Reiss books in the past.

But it didn't work. I felt completely disconnected from the story. I felt like Sebastian could be the exact kind of charming nerd that I find so irresistible, but unfortunately I couldn't attach myself to his story enough to really invest or care. And I didn't really care for Rachel at all which made it hard to really root for them together. I wanted my heart to flutter and my pulse to race, but...I was mostly kind of bored.

There was a lot going on here and I felt like it convoluted what could have been a light, sweet story. Ultimately, I didn't have the patience to trudge through it all and it was a DNF for me at 30%.

"Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy of this book, in exchange for an honest review."

Loved this book very much. It had just enough sweet, sexy romance and the storyline was great! I highly recommend!

Sebastien and Rachel were neighbors and best friends growing up. She had hollywood dreams and he was the nerd and many times she defended him against bullies. 15 years go by and now he is very wealthy and she is in a deadend career that went nowhere.

They meet at their parents at age 30 and their parents bring up their childhood pact that they would marry if both were single at 30. But they havent seen each other in 15 years so S tries to get to know R. This story was really about how much we change from teens to adults and how liffe can really get you down and build you up.

It was a wonderfully told story and I loved exploring this theme and getting to know the characters. I have not read this author before but I was very impressed with the writing and story and characters.

Rachel moved into Mandarin Lane when she was eleven and became firm friends with the resident Dweeb, Sebastian. Rachel was always there protecting Sebastian from the bullies who made his life miserable. Both have their lives mapped out, but sign a contract stating that if neither is married by the time they both turn 30, they will marry each other. Of course nothing ever goes as planned and that is why Rachel and Sebastian end up with a fake engagement. This was a fun read, easy going with plenty to keep you turning the pages. and good peripheral characters that complimented the story.

This was a sweet story of childhood best friends & a pact they make that changes the course of their life. Sebastian and Rachel are joined at the hip until growing up separates them as is often the case. Reunited ten years later at a very difficult time in her life Sebastian is again the best friend she needs. But then he become more. I loved their ease with each other, their genuine affection and their eventual chemistry. Sebastian is a great BBF and he ticked all my boxes. I will definitely be recommending this one to friends.

Only Ever You by C.D. Reiss a five-star read that will make you see stars. This was such a great read, I haven’t read anything by her before, but have just added a bunch of novels to my tbr pile as I enjoyed this one so much. This was a full story, it just kept getting better and better. I loved how Rachel and Sebastian grow with the story, it gave me such heart watching Sebastian go from Dweeb to Dude…..(said with a bit of drool down my chin). The romance was real and believable, it had a great down to earth ness about it. I must say being a Capricorn my heart did break a teeny tiny bit.

I am sad to report my disappointment in Only Ever You by C.D. Reiss. Sebastian, the hero, is the only thing that saved this book from being a one star review.

I have a thing for nerds and Sebastian qualifies as one, although he got hot and rich. But hey, it's fiction, right? Sadly, there ends the happy with this book. I wanted to like Rachel and though I did a few times, overall she annoyed the mess out of me. She constantly thought one thing and immediately did another. She was all over the place which made the book hard to read. And speaking of being all over the place... the dialogue. It was so hard to follow I didn't know who was talking most of the time.

Their background of friendship did tug at the heartstrings a few times but mostly it seemed glossed over in favor of the heroine's woe is me current storyline. And even though some of the side characters were fun, almost nothing they did seemed remotely realistic to the point I was rolling my eyes. I end up skimming half of the book.

What should have been a promising and cute story fell flat in every way. The pacing and flow were off, a lot of repetitive whining on behalf of the heroine. It's killing me to write this review as I wanted to love it. Maybe Ms. Reiss' writing is just not for me? I don't know but whatever the case, skip this one.

Only Ever You was an alright story. It has a childhood friends, second chance, only thing for me is,
I didnt't feel the connection between the characters. Shouldn't childhood best friend be happy to see eachother after years apart? Rachel was so self absorbed, I didn't care for her at all, and Sebastion was okay. This is just my opinion, I normally like this author work, but as we all know some stories are hits and other misses, but it won't stop me from reading her next book.


I received this from Netgalley.

This was pretty tame for C.D. Reiss. It was more of a light read but with some heavy subjects still. It was a balance that was pulled off well.

At first I thought this might be a little too tame, but then you get pieces here and there that would jump out and pull at you. I liked those little bits of surprise. It had a way of making me care more about Rachel and Sebastian.

These two seemed almost flipped. Sebastian had characteristic you usually see in a heroine and vice versa for Rachel. I would normally say that wouldn't be for me, and yet it worked. It made their story unique in a common theme.

I'm a sucker for a good ending and this ended in a perfect way. We got to see an epilogue a few years later and it was beautiful.

4.5 Stars!!!
CD Reiss has a real gift for writing great romance novels! She has absolutely become a sure thing for me! I actually didn’t even read the book description before diving into Only Ever You (that very rarely happens)! I always enjoy the friends to lovers premise and I loved CD Reiss’s fresh spin on it! I found the main characters (Rachel and Sebastian) endearing and relatable. I love a novel that makes me literally laugh out loud at times and also manages to pull on your heartstrings at other parts (spoiler alert- both happed several times). Only Ever You is a complete standalone, but I really, really think it would make a fantastic series! I highly recommend every romance novel fan read Only Ever You!!

Rachel and Sebastian have known each other since they were eleven. They are neighbors and attend the same school. Obviously, they are best friends.
Rachel has her life all planned out, but just in case, she agrees (in writing) to marry Sebastian if they are both single when they turn 30.
Now, they are 30 and single. Their parents find out about their agreement and want them to get married.
After years without seeing each other, they will learn to know each other again, to be best friends again... And to fall in love!
Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC of this book.

Rachel and Sebastian were childhood best friends who were there for each other, but grew up and apart, until more than a decade later when they reunite and the possibility of fulfilling a childhood pact rears its head.Both main characters' lives are heavily impacted by their families and as each decision revolves around the pact,they find themselves questioning the validity and validation of love for a successful happy future.The story started well enough and maintained a steady pace throughout, so it kept me engaged and anticipatory.Had a hard time rationalizing Rachel's decisions and behavior at times, even in the setting of her disappointment at the direction her life has taken,but Sebastian's steadiness kept the novel from becoming too tedious and predictable.Also liked the fact that Sebastian's innocence did not dilute the intimacies in the book.Quite an enjoyable read that stayed true to the title.

Great book and great story, I just felt there was a little something missing. Not sure what. I did love it. It just didn’t keep me engaged, or have me overly rooting for the heroine, until the last few chapters, then I was all in. When Rachel was younger she was a bit of a ball buster, as she got older she lost her fight and became a little lacklustre, and if I’m being honest a little whiny. That aside, I really liked the rest of the crazy characters, Sebastian and his mum appealed greatly to my sense of humour, romance and love. I love geek next door turns into mega successful hunk stories, and all said and done it was a sweet enjoyable friends to lovers romance, you know the one, a pact is made if neither one is in a committed relationship by a certain age. I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley, this is my honest review.

I have read numerous CD Reiss novels beginning with the Drazen family to her more recent Edge series but none have impacted me like "Only Ever You" has.  I loved this story so much and am borderline obsessed with Sebastian. He was so charming, honest and steadfastly in love with Rachel. It has always been her for him and it was so touching watching their love story play out. I loved this story so much and never wanted it to end!

Reiss remarkably pens a lovestory between two childhood bestfriends and neighbors who make a wedding pact at sixteen years old to wed if they are single at thirty. But when the once strong, sassy and protective Rachel sees the sexy, successful and handsome Sebastian, she wonders where her nerdy and often bullied bestfriend went and is shocked by her strong feelings for him.

I felt this was not only a love story between Sebastian and Rachel but a powerful story of a woman, now lost and trying to find her place in the world, reconciling who she is now against the formiddable young girl she once was. Rachel was strong and sassy but her self-doubt and feelings of inadequacy coupled with her burgeoning feelings for Sebastian created a quagmire of epic proportions. I loved how human and relatable she was and how Sebastian made it a mission to uncover the strong and self-assured woman he knew she was deep inside. 

I was captivated with every word the author wrote as we watched Rachel come into her own with the help of the man that remained a constant in her life. He was her true sanctuary and with him by her side, she would always find her way home. Gahh! I loved every single think about this breathtakingly emotional story! Bravo! 5 stars! ~Ratula 

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book for an honest review.

Review published: http://bit.ly/2I5Wy49

I really like the friends-to-lovers trope and the blurb was very promising. Rachel and Sebastian were friends ('a long time ago... we used to be friends') and living in the same street when they were teens. Rachel was very feisty and always defended Seb as he was a bit of a nerd. He was totally in love with her and at 16 they make a pact to marry when they are 30 and have no others in their lives. They even write a contract and of course this contract is still in Seb's possession when Rachel hits 30 and is still single.

Rachel is disappointed in the way her grand life plan has stalled. Her career is not taking off and she is still single. When she visits her parents she sees Seb again - after 10 years - and their parents talk about the contract. I had a bit of an issue with the way the story was told. It was a bit stilted at times and the conversations seemed off.
Seb is hoping Rachel will honor their contract but Rachel is only busy with herself. I actually did not like her very much. The parents just hire a wedding planner and stuff and I was like : What?!

I have read this author before and really enjoyed her work. This one is a miss for me, unfortunately.