Book Review: Thrive

Title: Thrive

Author: Aly Martinez

Rating: 4.5 stars

 

“long as we’re together…we thrive.”

 

I can’t resist a new book by Aly Martinez. I loved the first book in the Guardian Protection series, so Thrive was a must read. This book focuses on Jeremy Lark and his second chance with the girl he loved seventeen years ago.

 

 

Jeremy Lark fell in love with Mira York when they were young. The only problem? Mira was dating Lark’s best friend, Kurt, making her off limits. There were many circumstances that made their situation complicated but it didn’t stop them from growing closer. But when things come to a head, everything falls apart.

 

Fast forward seventeen years, Jeremy Lark has changed his life around and is working for Guardian. All in all his life is pretty good. The same can’t be said for Mira. Mira’s life hasn’t been great and her relationship with Kurt went from bad to worse. Kurt has brought her into all of his illegal activities but this time her life is in danger.

 

Mira calls the only person she knows she can trust, Jeremy Lark. To say that Lark was surprised to hear Mira on the phone was an understatement. But after hanging up on Mira only to have Mira call him back- he decides to help her out.

 

“One fucking phone call and I was a dumbass, out of control, twenty-something all over again.”

 

 

Lark and Mira’s story made my heart hurt at times, but they were there for each other.Lark held a lot of resentment for Mira not choosing him all those years ago, but she still has his heart and he hasn’t been able to fully move on. Mira made the wrong choice all those years ago and she had to live with the consequences but she was young and scared of the future.

 

“She’d wasted my entire fucking life. And I knew this because she’d been back not two days and that was all it had taken to realize that, for the last seventeen years, I hadn’t been living.”

 

But Mira and Lark work once reunited, can’t help but come together. There is still so much love and passion between them but also a lot of angst as they work through their past. This was a great second chance romance, filled with heartache, healing and suspense.

 

“I did love you. Jesus, Mira. I’ve always loved you. You’ve been back in my life three fucking days now. We’re goddamn strangers. I am not positive I’ll even like you two weeks from now. But I know with every fiber of my being that I love you, Mira York. Because it never died. Not for me.”