I am thrilled to be a part of the No Holding Back Blog Tour and share this amazing book with you!
I loved this book so much and hope you do, too!
Keep reading for more about this great book and for my thoughts on the book!
And be sure to enter the giveaway!
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About the Book
No Holding Back Kate Evangelista
(Dodge Cove #2)
Published by: Swoon Reads
Publication date: October 18th 2016
Genres: LGBTQ+, Romance, Young Adult
A romantic European vacation is the perfect excuse to let go in this highly anticipated sequel to No Love Allowed by Kate Evangelista.
Everyone knows that Nathan is in love with his best friend, Preston…Everyone except Preston. Nathan has always accepted that Preston was too focused on his swim training to worry about love. But Preston is heading off to train for the Olympics soon, so if Nathan wants his chance at love, he has to speak up now. But saying “I love you” is surprisingly difficult, even for someone as confident as Nathan. Maybe a whirlwind vacation in Europe could help? But… what if it doesn’t work out and he loses the best friend he’s ever had?
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About the Author
When Kate Evangelista was told she had a knack for writing stories, she did the next best thing: entered medical school. After realizing she wasn’t going to be the next Doogie Howser, M.D., Kate wandered into the Literature department of her university and never looked back. Today, she is a graduate of De La Salle University – Manila with an Bachelor of Arts in Literature. She taught high school English for three years and was an essay consultant for two. Currently she writes full time and is based in the Philippines. To learn more about Kate, please visit her website at www.kateevangelista.com or follow her on Twitter @KateEvangelista
My Review
Title: No Holding Back
Author: Kate Evangelista
Format: Digital ARC
Source: Netgalley
From the moment I first learned about this book, I have wanted to read it. It didn’t matter to me that I hadn’t read Kate Evangelista’s first book in which we meet these characters, there was just something about the description of this one that called to me and said, “Read me!” And I am so glad that I got the chance to do just that! I apologize in advance if I get a little sappy.
Friends falling in love are some of my favorite stories…because who knows you better than your best friend? It makes a whole lot more sense than suddenly falling for someone you’ve known all of two minutes. Your best friend knows your past, your quirks, your likes, your dislikes, just about everything. And when you find yourself attracted to them, then it seems like it’s meant to be! And best friends Nathan and Preston won my heart in this wonderful story. It was sweet and emotional and everything I hoped it would be!
Best friends since childhood, Nathan and Preston know everything about each other…except for one little thing. Nathan is in love with Preston and Preston is totally clueless…I mean, everyone knows but Preston. Preston, a competitive swimmer with Olympic goals, is completely focused on making it into a training camp. Swimming is everything to him and he has become a bit obsessed over his acceptance to the program. Meanwhile, Nathan, an up-and-coming party planner, seizes the opportunity to get a job planning Preston’s mom’s upcoming social event by bargaining with her. He’ll take Preston with him on his gap year trip to Europe to take his focus off of swimming if she’ll let Nathan plan her event. Nathan figures the trip will also be the perfect time to finally tell his friend how he feels. Well, as you can guess things don’t go quite as perfect as Nathan had planned, but the trip does offer some entertaining and touching moments.
Nathan and Preston are a fascinating pair with an amazing and supportive friendship. They are alike in many ways, yet there are enough differences that they balance each other out. Preston has a tendency to over think things and Nathan is a calming influence in his life. And when the situation is reversed, there’s Preston taking care of Nathan and calming him. They have an amazing bond and relationship so I can understand why Nathan was hesitant at first to take the chance to tell Preston how he felt…he didn’t want to lose his friend if the feelings weren’t mutual. But as his mother tells him, if that happens, then he wasn’t a real friend anyway.
I love that the author chose to showcase the love between two male teens. Love comes in many different forms and we need more examples of healthy relationships between two males or two females or even a healthy relationship between a male and female out there. I am all for a good romance no matter who is falling in love. And I know that it is not always the case, but Nathan and Preston are lucky to have supportive and loving family and friends. Sometimes they were a little too concerned with their relationship, but in this case that was often a good thing and gave the couple nudges in the right direction.
And I also loved the European Vacation that the author took us on through Nathan and Preston’s adventures. The things that happen to them along the way made me smile, laugh, get mad, and I even shed a tear or two. What I thought would be a light read actually made me emotional, something I definitely wasn’t expecting. Let’s just say that my heart broke for Nathan multiple times and leave it at that…I don’t want to spoil anything. As for the getting mad part, Preston frustrated me at times as well as a secondary character who might have a chance of redeeming himself in a future book (I hope)…I only have bits and pieces of one side of that story.
As I mentioned above, I haven’t read the previous book in the series, No Love Allowed, but characters from that book make an appearance as do characters from what I hope will be a future book in the series (I NEED Tash and Jackson’s story!). However, No Holding Back can easily be read as a standalone. But I now feel the need to read the first book…I loved this one and the characters that the author created so much.
My Rating: 5 Stars
*I received a digital ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review…and will be buying myself a copy ;) *
GIVEAWAY!
Win a Print Copy of No Holding Back!
This sounds like such a great read! Great review, Jennifer! I love friends-to-romance relationships, too, there's just something about their connection that makes it more real I find. Glad you liked it! :)
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a book I'd love to read. The best relationships in real life and in books as far as romatic ones go, are those that start with strong friendship and build on that foundation. I'd love to "travel" to Europe and read this book.
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