Becca Ritchie

I try to express only my most honest opinion in a spoiler-free way. Unfortunately, there is still always a risk of slight spoilers despite my best efforts. If you feel something in my review is a spoiler please let me know. Thank you.

Holy effing crap. This book was frigging amazing. I literally didn't want to put it down. It had me resenting the fact that my daughter and husband wanted my time and attention. Ok so that part might be a bit of an exaggeration, but you see what I'm saying. I show more think this might be my favorite in the Addicted series so far.

One of my favorite things about this book was how you get to see Lily and Lo's relationship from a different point of view. It gives such a different perspective that I think it actually helped to understand the impact that their addictions have on those they care about.

Another thing I loved was how they made Rose a submissive. It was unexpected and that made it great but it also shows that a woman can be strong and independent, but can still have a vulnerable side. I'm not surprised she likes it rough though, it seems in character for her if you ask me.

I also think that Scott rates high on the most loathsome characters list. I mean what a complete POS. There are few characters out there that I hate more than him.

Luckily the series isn't even close to done yet and I intend to read them all. The next book is about Ryke and Daisy. This one has had me twisted in knots. I ship them. I ship them so hard, but the age difference has me a bit on edge. So I'm really excited for this book but I'm praying that its done right so the Ryke doesn't come out looking like a sleaze, cause that would be a total injustice to him. show less

ok. as with nearly every other book in this series, i'm conflicted.

i'm just... not the target audience for these books, and YET, something brings me back with each new one. i don't even remember how i stumbled onto the OG addicted series, bc they were all het new adult romance which is not my vibe, but i got hooked/attatched to the characters and... like 20 smth books left, here we are. these twins have written ONE sapphic book and it was a standalone (i loved it, so, ya know, i'm desprete show more for them to write more but not holding my breath). these are all largely het romances that i tend to have issues with (they are SO attatched to age gap romances where the girl in question is always younger, and nearly always less sexually experienced at it's Such a thing at this point i hate it!!! it drives me nuts the way they write them, and YET).

and yET, is a theme, for me and this series.

it is very much not my vibe, but i've devoured each and every new book, and not only that, i COME BACK TO THEM every once in a while. for me, the draw is the familial dynamics. the sister dynamics is what drew me into the OG series, and the siblings/cousin dynamics is what keeps me here, despite the fact that they tend to take the backseat/get skipped over a LOT. the glimpses of what we get, i like. i've long since made peace with the fact that i'm not the target audience, and largely just stopped worrying abt it, but there IS a frustration that lingers when i get glimpses of stuff i'd love to have explored more, only for it to be skipped over and another drawn out scene of the male love interests, usually.

in this specfic one, there were things i liked, and things that annoyed me. i liked seeing a bit more of the hale family and luna and her parents (but was rlly irritated to see both those dynamics way overshadowed with donnelly bonding with lily and lo more than luna) and seeing more of luna and the cobalt boys friendship was fun, but i was super bummed that we got basically nothing of jane or sulli and hardly anything at all with kinney. as a series finale... i was rlly bummed at the lack of the other characters. i would have loved something kinda like Some Kind of Perfect where we get multiple couple povs again (especially jane, got she got so shaffted by this series--least amount of books and also (imo) some of the worst/most boring books at that). it bums me so hard at the lack of female relationships in this family. we always get lines SAYING they are close/hanging out, and never get to see much of it, yet we get a ton of scenes of the bodyguards bonding.

my MAIN annoyance and frustration with this one was the way they talked abt sex. it was SO heteronormative the way they kept being like "we can't have sex yet" bc luna was a 'psedo virgin' bc she lost her memories of the time when she was sexually active before she got with donnelly, and THEY WERE CONSTANTLY HAVING SEX. ORAL SEX, IS SEX. JUST BC IT'S NOT PIV SEX YOU ARE STILL HAVING SEX. THIS DROVE ME WILD AND NOT AT ALL IN THE GOOD WAY. it only futher cemented my irritation at how they write smut, het dynamics, and experienced older men/younger virginal-like girls.

overall, i enjoyed this one more than i thought i would since i don't really like the luna/donnelly dynamic all that much. and i know i'll likely check out the new series centered on the cobalt brothers, for nothing else than the hopes of glints of jane, rose, and audrey, bc i love them. show less

Review - https://booksteacupreviews.com/2024/05/10/addicted-to-you-addicted-1-by-krista-r...

I decided to download Addicted to You after receiving the latest installment in the series from the publisher. Thankfully, I had access to Kindle Unlimited to start from the beginning, as it became apparent that the series revolves around the journeys of addicted couples.

I initially hesitated before diving in, and it turns out my reservations were justified. Addicted to You wasn’t an easy one to show more digest, filled with characters consumed by their own selfishness and addiction, seemingly oblivious to anyone else’s needs. Yet, the more I delved into their story, the more I started to like it.

The authors’ writing held my interest through the first half of the book. While the plot itself is straightforward, centering around the characters’ addiction, it’s the complexity of the characters themselves that adds depth to the narrative.

Addicted to You is a character-driven story, narrated from Lily’s perspective. Lily, the daughter of a Fizzle tycoon, and Loren, the son of the biggest baby product company, have known each other since their childhood even their biggest secret that they kept from their family, their addiction.

Lily is sex addict and Loren is alcoholic and they are attached to their addiction to the point they cannot live without it. To shield their secrets from their families, they’ve fabricated a fake relationship, successfully evading familial scrutiny for three years. However, when Lily’s family orchestrates a surprise trip, their charade is threatened to be exposed, compelling them to try real relationship.

Forced into a genuine relationship, they find themselves teetering on the edge of co-dependency, their fates irrevocably intertwined. Success now hinges on their ability to prioritize their love for each other over their respective addictions.

Their journey is complicated and filled with challenges. They know they must take risk to gain the one thing they truly desire: each other. Witnessing their struggle to break free from the grips of addiction and nurture a genuine connection is a compelling journey indeed.

I enjoyed introduction of both Lily and Loren’s family in first half. Lily have 3 sisters but it’s Rose (second sister) who plays important role in this story. They didn’t have friends until second half and I enjoyed meeting Ryke and Connor. while Lily’s family were precursor to change in Lily and Loren’s destructive system, Ryke and Connor were technically the catalyst who pushed Loren and Lily to better path.

I get why they would want hide their addiction from their families. It’s natural after see how Loren’s father was, how clingy and opinionated Lily’s family was but with each other they at least should be plain without all these complicated layers, but they find themselves entangled in a web of lies and dependencies, making their mutual understanding and system they created all the more challenging.

Lily’s sex addiction is hard to understand and yes, I could see not everyone can get that and why she would have preferred to keep it hidden. The emptiness she feels, and her attempt to fill it with sexual encounters, hints at deeper emotional wounds and unmet needs.

But when Rose finally got to know about her addiction near the end, we discover there was no experiences of neglect or emotional trauma. It made me more uncertain about her addiction as one don’t get addicted just like that so I hope that will be explored more in next books.

I didn’t like her reactions and actions before they started relationship. I hated how she reacted to Lo bringing girl home who stayed for weekend which made her spiral into mind numbing sex and then feeling better when Lo tells her he ditched that girl. I mean what right did she have!

I also didn’t get why she made that rule of not sleeping with Lo after that one time when they’re 15. When Loren finally tried to make things better, I didn’t like how whiny and immature she was acting.

I could understand her hesitation to pursue anything further with Loren. Despite his obvious love and care for her, it was clear that his first love had always been alcohol. I wouldn’t trust him to prioritize anyone over his addiction, and her doubts about their uncertain future were justified.

I could understand her hesitation to pursue anything further with Loren. Despite his obvious love and care for her, it was clear that his first love had always been alcohol. I wouldn’t trust him to prioritize anyone over his addiction, and her doubts about their uncertain future were justified. However, I also couldn’t see her excelling at anything other than sex, which added to the complexity of their situation.

Loren’s challenges are somewhat clearer due to his difficult relationship with his father. I didn’t like his overbearing father from the beginning. The expectation he set and the pressure he put in his life made him feel unworthy and failure. This toxic environment drove Loren towards alcohol as a coping mechanism from a young age.

What was revealed about his father in the climax makes me sad for Loren. No one deserves to be treated like this, to live life like this. It was great to see Ryke coming in Loren’s life, offering support and guidance to help him overcome his addiction and rise above the destructive patterns ingrained by his upbringing.

I somewhat figured why Ryke was suddenly interested in Loren’s life and the hint just before climax was enough to cement my theory but it still surprised me to know about his real identity as it revealed so much about Loren’s father and all the lies he feed Loren.

I admire Loren for his decision in the end. I agree with Rose, he did the most heroic thing in his life and it wasn’t about saving someone else but saving himself.

I admire how the authors approached the narrative with a focus on the internal struggles and emotional complexities rather than relying on explicit scenes. Even though Addicted to You is centered around sex addiction, the story delves deep into the characters’ struggles, portraying a relationship that is far from a traditional happy romance. Their dynamic is marked by a high level of codependency, fraught with angst and behavior driven by addiction. Yet, amidst the turmoil, there’s something profoundly stirring about their journey.

It was all so realistic, raw and intense that drew me in, and despite their flaws, I found myself rooting for both characters. I’m eager to read the rest of the books in the series, hoping to witness their growth beyond their selfishness and addiction. I want to see them not only succeed in their relationship with each other but also find healing and reconciliation with their family and friends.

Overall, Addicted to You is an emotional, raw and realistic new adult contemporary romance that have authentic portrayal of struggle with addiction. show less

The prose is so purple it's like you can smell grape kool aid while you read it. The characters are vapid, shallow, superficial--there is absolutely no way for a reader to connect. Their descriptions of themselves are so over-the-top and then they even contradict themselves when a situation arises to make themselves sound even better than they did before. It's like the authors wanted to set a new standard for the concept of a Mary Sue--and succeeded. And then as we meet the entire family, we show more learn that they are all just as ridiculously shallow, self-involved, and Mary Sue as the main characters--and their sudden "concern" for Maximoff seems out of character, disingenuous, and completely ridiculous. I had to put this down several times and eventually just powered through to get to the end, which I only did because I had to read it for a reading group challenge. I hoped that as I came back to it each time it would maybe get better...but it only seemed to get worse.

I can't remember the last time I gave a book a one-star review. I'd give this a zero if it was an option. show less