{"id":24888,"date":"2014-11-24T11:06:00","date_gmt":"2014-11-24T16:06:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/?p=24888"},"modified":"2017-08-22T11:21:50","modified_gmt":"2017-08-22T15:21:50","slug":"review-cherry-girl-a-blackstone-affair-novel-by-raine-miller","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/?p=24888","title":{"rendered":"Review: Cherry Girl (A Blackstone Affair Novel) by Raine Miller"},"content":{"rendered":"

Buy:\u00a0 Kindle Ebook<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 <\/strong>Paperback<\/strong><\/a><\/h4>\n
\n

\r\n <\/div><\/div>\n
\n

Review<\/strong><\/h4>\n

4 dreamy second-chance stars<\/b><\/h4>\n

If you\u2019ve read the Blackstone Affair<\/i> books, then you will already know about Neil and Elaina. Neil is the best friend of Ethan Blackstone, and his relationship with Elaina is touched on in that series. Here, we get the full story, and I absolutely loved it! It\u2019s a beautiful second-chance romance with lots of feels, a bit of angst, and a whole lot of swoon and steamy time.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love you, Elaina Morrison, and you\u2019ll always be my Cherry Girl. Always. Nothing will change it for me.\u201d He leaned forward and kissed me sweetly, whispering, \u201cBelieve me.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Neil and Elaina met when he was 17 and she was 10 and her older brother brought him home for dinner. She was captivated by him on the spot and he very quickly became a part of her family, calling her \u201cCherry Girl<\/i>\u201d and always being there to look out for her. Years later and Neil is a solder serving overseas and Elaina\u2019s world has been turned upside down by tragedy and she has descended into a wild life. Her love for Neil still burns bright, but it\u2019s not until she is 18 and he is home from deployment in Afghanistan, when he swoops in to save her once again and tells her that he feels the same.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ve been waiting\u2026\u201d
\n\u201cI have.\u201d He leaned in toward my lips but didn\u2019t touch them. \u201cWaiting and waiting forever. For you. Waiting for you to grow up. Waiting for you to see me as something more than just a friend of Ian\u2019s. Waiting for the right time to tell you how I feel about you.\u201d He whispered so close, I could feel the brush of breath from his beautiful words. \u201cJust a very long time of waiting, Elaina.\u201d
\n\u2026 \u201cI don\u2019t want to wait anymore.\u201d His eyes melded into me and held on. \u201cPlease don\u2019t make me wait for you any longer,\u201d he pleaded. \u201cI can\u2019t do it, Cherry. I just can\u2019t.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Neil and Elaina\u2019s relationship is an absolute swoon fest! They are so completely in love, and the close relationship that they have shared over the years becomes something incredibly special as they embark on a blissfully romantic and steamy love affair, both acknowledging that they have found \u2018the one\u2019.<\/p>\n

It was good. We were so good.
\n\u201cIs this all right?\u201d I asked her.
\nShe nodded back. \u201cLove me.\u201d
\n\u201cI do. I will. Always.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

But they are torn apart just as Neil is set to return to the war, and their devastation sends them in different directions which keep them separate for long years. The moment when they see each other again is absolutely sensational and it is becomes instantly clear that all of the feelings they had for each other are still there, and the rollercoaster of emotions is beautifully expressed.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a lot that they have to sort through, and I loved Neil\u2019s determination as he sets about reclaiming his girl, while still allowing her time to sort through what she\u2019s feeling. But neither of them can deny that their attraction is hotter than ever and once they give into it, just like before, their love and passion for each other is both swoony and blisteringly hot.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want this, Cherry \u2026 I want this mouth screaming my name when I\u2019m inside you and you\u2019re about to come. I want you in my bed so we can fuck all night long\u2026over and over until you\u2019re a slave to it \u2013 just as you used to be.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I love second-chance romance books. I\u2019m always intrigued to see how a couple in love can be torn apart, and how they overcome their past to come back together. In this case, the separation is so freaking frustrating! It could have been so easily overcome, and I was so pissed at Elaina, then at Neil. The whole thing could have been avoided if they just talked to each other! But Raine Miller has done a fantastic job with their reunion. Once they see each other again and the truth about the past is finally revealed, the guilt and devastation that they both feel is heartbreaking. They acknowledge how easily and stupidly they let go of each other, and they both totally own it, but they put it behind them in order to build a future together, and it was exactly what I wanted to see.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t have to worry anymore, babe. I know I hurt you badly, and I own up to what I did to you by leaving like that.\u201d I put my hand on his face. \u201cBut I\u2019ll always come back to you. I love you and I can\u2019t live without you. There is nothing that will ever keep me from my man again. I\u2019ll always come back to you. Promise.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The story is told in dual POV, letting us experience all of the feels right alongside Neil and Elaina, and I fell in complete and total love with Neil! Such a strong, alpha-type guy, but so vulnerable, gentle when he needs to be and beautifully in love *dreamy sigh*. Their story is an emotional ride, and angsty at times, but it\u2019s beautifully told with lots of sexy time, lots of heart, and a beautifully happy ending.<\/p>\n

This little book really surprised me. I wasn\u2019t expecting to love it as much as I did but I was very quickly sucked in – I actually connected more with Neil and Elaina\u2019s story than I did with Ethan and Brynne\u2019s. While technically it does form part of the Blackstone Affair<\/i> series, it could easily be read as a standalone, and I\u2019m looking forward to their continuation of their story in My Captain<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Loved it \u2013 4 stars.
\n <\/p>\n

The Blackstone Affair<\/strong><\/h4>\n

\"\"\u00a0 \"\"\u00a0 \"\"\u00a0 \"\"\u00a0 \"\"<\/p>\n

Naked (#1)<\/strong>
\nReview<\/a>
\nBuy:\u00a0 Kindle Ebook\u00a0<\/a> |\u00a0 Paperback<\/a><\/p>\n

All In (#2)<\/strong>
\nReview<\/a>
\nBuy:\u00a0 Kindle Ebook\u00a0<\/a> |\u00a0 Paperback<\/a><\/p>\n

Eyes Wide Open (#3)<\/strong>
\nReview<\/a>
\nBuy:\u00a0 Kindle Ebook\u00a0<\/a> |\u00a0 Paperback<\/a><\/p>\n

Rare and Precious Things (#4)<\/strong>
\nReview<\/a>
\nBuy:\u00a0 Kindle Ebook<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 Paperback<\/a><\/p>\n

Cherry Girl (A Blackstone Affair Novel)<\/strong> (Neil & Elaina)
\nReview<\/a>
\nBuy:\u00a0 Kindle Ebook<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 Paperback<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Buy:\u00a0 Kindle Ebook\u00a0 |\u00a0 Paperback Review 4 dreamy second-chance stars If you\u2019ve read the Blackstone Affair books, then you will already know about Neil and Elaina. Neil is the best friend of Ethan Blackstone, and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":24878,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","yasr_overall_rating":4,"yasr_post_is_review":"","yasr_auto_insert_disabled":"","yasr_review_type":"Product","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[51,9,24,29],"tags":[499,48,701],"class_list":["post-24888","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-military","category-romance","category-second-chance-romance","category-steamy","tag-raine-miller","tag-review","tag-the-blackstone-affair"],"yasr_visitor_votes":{"stars_attributes":{"read_only":false,"span_bottom":false},"number_of_votes":0,"sum_votes":0},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/Cherry-Girl.jpg?fit=150%2C225&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7gaNL-6tq","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24888","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=24888"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24888\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/24878"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=24888"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=24888"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=24888"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}