AUTHOR: J.M. Darhower
PUBLICATION DATE: August 23, 2017
MY RATING: ★★★★★
A new second chance romance standalone from USA Today bestselling author J.M. Darhower.
He's a troubled young actor, Hollywood's newest heartthrob, struggling with fame as the star of the latest superhero franchise. Through scandal after scandal, addiction on top of addiction, a flurry of paparazzi hunt him as he fights to conquer his demons.
She's a single mother, assistant manager at a grocery store, existing in monotony with her five-year-old daughter. Every day when she goes to work, lurid tabloids surround her, the face of a notorious bad boy haunting her from their covers.
A man and a woman, living vastly different lives, but that wasn't always the case. Once, they were just a boy and a girl who bonded over comic books and fell in love unexpectedly.
When Kennedy Garfield met Jonathan Cunningham back in high school, she knew he had all the makings of a tragic hero. With stars in his eyes, and her heart on her sleeve, the pair ran away together to follow their dreams.
But dreams, sometimes, turn into nightmares.
Now, years later, the only thing they share is a daughter—one who has no idea her father plays her favorite superhero. But Jonathan is desperate to make amends, and at the top of his list is the woman who gave up everything for him and the little girl he hasn't yet met.
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J.M. Darhower is an author that has been on tbr for years now, and I have owned a few of her books for the same amount of time. After seeing her latest release making the rounds I was very intrigued, and after finding out that it was not only a second chance romance but also had a single mom I knew I had to drop everything and read it. I'm so happy I finally got to read one of her books because Ghosted was so damn good!! I'm kicking myself for having a mountainous tbr that has kept me from getting to her books sooner!!
In Ghosted we follow our two main characters in a dual POV, and we also get flashbacks into their lives that show how they met, and how they ended up going separate ways. Jonathan is a mega superstar actor that has been the face of Breezeo, a fictional comic book hero that's been turned into a huge movie franchise. He's living the life of the rich and famous, going on red carpet premieres, dating the hottest women in Hollywood, and having an endless bank account.
Kennedy's life couldn't be any more different. She's a single mom working as a manager at the local grocery store, barely able to make ends meet, but determined to create the best possible life for her daughter, and that includes keeping her father Jonathan out of her life for the past few years.
Kennedy walked away from him years ago after is unhealthy addictions, lies, and fast moving life became too much for her. She vowed that she wouldn't raise a child in that environment, no matter how difficult it would be to walk away. And even though it hurt like hell to leave, she knew it was the best decision she could make.
There's just one small issue. Maddy's hero is none other than Breezeo himself. How do you tell a young child that their hero is not only their father, but also a bit of an illusion? And when Jonathan comes back determined to not only win his daughter back and be in every aspect of her life, but also Kennedy's, how will she be able to forgive and move on from the past, and if she does will it even be worth it?
If I haven't mentioned it already I am so glad I finally picked up a book by Darhower, because Ghosted was so damn good!! I was hooked from the very first page, and the characters had me feeling every single emotion that they went through.
As you all know I love second chance romances!! There's something about seeing true love get a second chance and finally stick that just really makes my heart sing. Add in the cutest kid ever and I was a swooning mess while reading this book. I laughed, I smiled, and I even teared up multiple times because the emotions going through these characters touched my heart so much. I was rooting for Jonathan from the moment he knew he needed his family back, and seeing him fight for them, fighting to get a chance to prove he changed into a better man was what love is all about. And seeing Kennedy slowly see that change was possible, and seeing her open her heart again really showed that second chances are possible.
And I cannot write this review without mentioning Maddie!! She was absolutely ADORABLE, and I loved how involved she was in the book, which probably sounds weird, but I say that because sometimes I feel like books that feature a child in the plot and having one of the parents come back in their lives tend to forget about the child altogether. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I feel like if these two things are big plot points then it should be written as such. Reading about how Jonathan and Maddie interacted and got to know one another was so fucking cute, and my heart hurt seeing their relationship form. I think Darhower did an excellent job of writing it in such a natural and realistic way. At the end of the day not only was this book about Jonathan and Kennedy getting a second chance, but it was also about Jonathan and Maddie getting their chance as father and daughter too.
If you're looking for a well written second chance love story that will not only tug at your heart and make you feel the emotions, yet fill you up with pure joy then look no further than Ghosted. By the end of the book you will be put back whole just like the characters, and you will definitely believe in second chances again!!
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