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Review

5 stars!

Oh, what a gorgeous read! A rockstar/forced proximity new adult romance full of fantastic banter and chemistry, this is a heartfelt and entertaining read that made me laugh, and had me grinning from start to finish. It’s my first book by J. Bengtsson, and I’m now desperate to read more from her. I absolutely loved this one!

Bodhi Beckett is a massive celebrity. A former child star, he is now a member of the world’s biggest boy band, but at only 24, he’s feeling completely burned out. Under constant pressure from mad teenage fans and his demanding father/manager, and with the reveal of a potentially life-changing secret about his past, he’s reached breaking point. So he travels to a mansion in the mountains of Southern California to escape from everybody and everything.

Breeze is a quirky young woman who upended her life after a devastating betrayal and started fresh in Southern California. She’s a fixer, who is driven to help others whenever and however they need it, and it’s that nurturing spirit that has her pet-sitting a menagerie of animals in a mansion in the hills.

A firestorm brings Bodhi and Breeze together when they are both desperately trying to escape the flames. He rescues her and all of her furry charges, and she welcomes him into her home when he’s left with nothing. The intensity of their life-and-death situation forms a strong bond between them, but they quickly manage to overcome the seriousness of it all, and they are soon talking, bantering, teasing and joking like old friends, and exploring their mad chemistry in all the ways. When Bodhi opens up about what bought him to town, Breeze volunteers to help him search for answers, and they take off on a road trip together.

The easy and playful dynamic between these two is SO much fun! I loved their banter, their acceptance of each other, and the way they just ‘got’ each other. They are supportive and understanding of other as they open up about their lives and past pains, and they help each other sort through things and figure out what they want. I loved watching them fall for each other. What starts as lusty attraction and sexy time, naturally becomes more as they effortlessly fall for each other. Yes, it’s fast, but it felt so real. Hell, I fell hard for the both of them, so I could totally understand how it happened for them as well! The romance is beautiful and real, and I loved watching them give themselves over to it.

“Maybe we were meant to meet, meant to protect each other, meant to fall in love.”

But despite the happiness that they find together, the demands of the real world are never far away, and when they are forced to face up to the reality of their lives, their new-found love will be put to the test in ways that neither of them are ready for.

It’s a great set-up, and Bengtsson brings so much heart and humour to Bodhi and Breeze’s story. There is some drama along the way, most of it external to the relationship, and it’s all a part of them figuring out who they are and what they want, and I thought all of it was handled beautifully. I love these characters, unique but relatable, I so enjoyed getting to know them! Their thoughts, and the way they describe the world around them had me laughing out loud. We also get to meet the boys from Bodhi’s band, his family who bring a lot of emotion to the story, and I loved getting to meet Breeze’s family – God, her parents are hilarious!

This is such a fun, enjoyable read, and I honestly loved every moment of it. The ending is a bit abrupt, and I was left wanting more, but thankfully the author has an epilogue on her website which I absolutely devoured, and it provided the perfect ending for Bodhi and Breeze (read the epilogue here).

I read this as an audiobook, and it’s such a great one to listen to! Narrated by Zachary Webber (long-time fave) and Callie Dalton (new fave), they bring Bodhi and Breeze to life with so much humour, heart and emotion, and I definitely recommend listening to this one (though I’m going to need to actually read it at some point because there are SO many quotes I want to highlight!). It’s always a great sign when you actively search for housework to do so that you can keep listening to your audiobook, and that was me while reading this one. I finished this book with a clean house, no laundry, a fully-weeded garden and a massive smile on my face.

5 stars!

Disaster Love