The Life That Mattered by Jewel E Ann

Item: The Life That Mattered
Rating: 5
Author: Lily

February 14, 2020 Lily Book Review 0 ★★★★★

The Life That Mattered by Jewel E. Ann
Series: The Life Series #1
Published by Self-published on February 6, 2020
Genres: Romantic Suspense
Pages: 368
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Available on KU at posting: Yes
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Sex isn’t love. Love isn’t sex. And friendship is neither.
The son of a French Olympic skier and a Malaysian fashion designer, Ronin Alexander has lived the life of a nomad, traveling the world to find his next adventure.
Life takes a dramatic turn when he meets Evelyn, a beautiful scientist who owns a bath shop in Aspen, Colorado. They defy all the rules of relationships, falling hard and quickly in love.
Their world intertwines with Evelyn’s two best friends, the Governor and his soon-to-be wife. The four become close—very close.When tragedy strikes, things from their pasts are unveiled—unimaginable truths and the grim realization that life will never be the same.
Jewel E. Ann steps into another dimension with this mind-bending thriller, a provocative story that pushes boundaries and tests the true meaning of love.

This book may be unsuitable for people under 17 years of age due to its use of sexual content, drug and alcohol use, and/or violence.

I was lured into reading The Life That Mattered by the blurb alone. Add to that, it was written by Jewel E Ann so I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this book. It took seconds for me to hit the 1-Click button when the news came through that TLTM had published early. The prologue left me with the sensation of being an unannounced voyeur observing strangers. Intrigue set in and I wanted more!

Before I knew it, I was swept up in Evelyn and Ronin’s journey from strangers to lovers. Ronin was perfection personified and totally Book BoyFriend material. He was easy on the eye, fun to be with and absolutely swoon worthy. The chemistry between him and Evelyn was effortless, helped on by Ronin’s magnetic charm.

There were dark elements to the story, but the romance between Ronin and Evelyn left me in awe. They experienced challenges which played into the cliffhanger ending. I was expecting to be left hanging but not in the way that it panned out. Cryptic I know, but navigating through the plot twists is what makes this book so good!

This is a fast pace story that shines light on the beauty and challenges of friendship, love, marriage and family and will keep you on edge. The story includes matters that may be triggers for some readers View Spoiler » but I thought all the challenging content was pivotal to the plot and handled thoughtfully.

Courting and no-sex-until-the-third-date rules didn’t apply to women in their thirties.

Mature characters meant the steamy shenanigans were hot and always entertaining. There was one scene that took Evelyn out of her comfort zone but she manipulated herself out of it once the fear of regret emerged. The sexy times and witty banter blended well with the growing mystery and shifting friendship dynamics.

With the next book due out in a couple of weeks, the cliffhanger ending didn’t faze me. Knowing I have time to ponder the possibilities enhances the suspense. I can’t wait to read on to see how this story will pan out!

5 Stars