Review: Lovely Trigger (Tristan & Danika, #3) by R.K. Lilley

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Review

Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful!

4.5 ‘my heart is healed’ stars

I have been desperately waiting for the finale to Tristan and Danika’s story and, thank God, RK Lilley has given us a beautiful ending to this epically passionate yet tragic romance as Tristan and Danika finally find their way back to each other.

Warning – this is going to contain spoilers for the first two books of the series.

Rock Bottom finished at exactly that point – rock bottom. Tristan lost himself to alcohol and drugs, leading to devastating consequences for Danika, and the two of them were left heartbroken, going their separate ways after their short but all-consuming love affair. This book picks up during the final scenes of Rock Bottom, this time from Tristan’s POV, and OMG, I was right back there in that gut wrenching scene in the diner. My heart was instantly aching reading how destroyed Tristan was by all that had happened. So much emotion!

The story follows them through the next few years as they try to move on from each other, both of them failing dismally. While Danika does her best to try and forget Tristan and create a new life for herself, he holds on to his love for her, nurturing it, and clinging to the precious memories of their time together.

That’s how love works. It doesn’t die, even when you don’t feed it. That’s just the way it is. I wouldn’t change it, even if I could. Loving her has become a part of who I am.

They have some very brief, tension-filled interactions over the years they are apart, but when James and Bianca’s wedding brings them back together for the first real time in six years (yes, six years! *sniff*), they finally decide to try put their issues aside and become friends again.

It’s not an epic, sudden reconnection, it’s a slow process, and as much as I wanted the fireworks, tears, and heart-pounding bliss of that one perfect moment, the way it’s done is actually very realistic, and I absolutely loved it.

It very quickly becomes apparent that the passion between them is as intense as it ever was, and neither of them are able to resist it – HOLY HELL! Once again, these two steam it up and Tristan reinforces his sex-God status (damn, but that man has stamina!) But the actual rebuilding of their relationship is a slow process. Finding their way together as friends again while trying to manage their crazy lust for each other makes things a little dysfunctional at first, with Danika pushing Tristan away with one hand, and grabbing hold of his dick with the other. But Tristan is one determined man and is happy to take whatever Danika is willing to give him. And, much like the first book, they cannot dispute what is actually happening between them, and I love the way they handled it.

He ran his nose along my jaw, breathing on me. “We’re friends, right? This is going well, don’t you think?”
The man was demented. “By what criteria are we judging it? If going well means we’ve both lost our ever-loving minds, then yes, I guess it’s going well! If we’re basing it on us being just friends, we’re failing epically.”
He pulled back from me and grinned.

I love this relationship! It completely captivated me in Bad Things, and after the drama of Rock Bottom, I lapped up the happiness and humour that is Tristan and Danika together. They manage to recapture the magic of their early relationship where they laugh, tease and banter constantly, and I loved that! I love the silly, funny little games they play with each other, the dares, the inside jokes, and the way they both absolutely blossom in each other’s company

Spoiler
The ‘dick pic’ scene at the baby shower had me in hysterics! OMG, that whole scene was GOLD!!

Through all of the fun times, they still appreciate the importance of what they shared together in the past. But at the same time, they have to deal with the issues that forced them apart in the first place, as well as the guilt that they feel and all that they have been through in “the lost years” in between (I love how Tristan refers to their time apart as “the lost years” *dreamy sigh*).

“Love doesn’t let you walk away clean. Love is messy. I don’t have to tell you, of all people; Love takes a fucking piece of you before it’s done”

I love these characters! Their journey has been tumultuous to say the least, and I have laughed, cried, swooned, and gotten all hot and flustered over and over again while reading these books. RK Lilley has done an amazing job bringing their story to life and putting so much emotion into it that every time I opened a book in this series, I was completely carried away as she took us right into the heart of both of them.

I was fully supportive of Danika’s actions when it came to Tristan, even when it broke my heart, and I continued to empathise with her in this one. She is terrified of losing herself to him again, and terrified of the pain that they have the potential to inflict on each other, and I absolutely understand that! At the same time, my heart broke for Tristan when he realised the full extent of all that was standing between them. But I absolutely love the way that he owned it, fought hard for her forgiveness, and went after Danika with single-minded determination. They had a lot to overcome, and there was a lot of healing needed, but he never lost faith that they could overcome it all together.

“I feel so lost.”
He took my hands in his. “Not anymore. I’m right here. I’ve got you.”
“There is this hollow place inside of me, where my faith in you used to be. I am so full of fear, and I
do not know how to let myself trust you again. I don’t have the strength to do this. Not again.”
“I’ve got enough for both of us.” He moved closer, wrapping me in his arms.

And as if all of that swoon isn’t enough, there is an amazing ending which wraps everything up beautifully! If you’re a sap like me, and like your love stories all tied up with lots of gorgeous details, you’re gonna love it!

“Oh, sweetheart. You haven’t been paying attention … I am the guy who has been in love with you for over six fucking years. I am the guy that has thought about you every day. I miss you every day. What happened —what we lost together— breaks my heart, but it doesn’t change anything.”

I was left grinning like a fool, my heart bursting with happiness.

I loved it – 5 stars.

 

The Tristan & Danika series

Bad Things  Rock Bottom  Lovely Trigger

Bad Things (#1)
Review
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Rock Bottom (#2)
Review
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Lovely Trigger (#3)
Review
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For more great reads by this author, check out our R.K. Lilley Author Spotlight.

 

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