I adored this book. Another classic Paige Toon read that got me hooked. I loved the setting on the farm and wished i was right there within the book seeing the events and romance unfold for myself. Both Anders and Jonas were great characters, that had we swooning, as well as the lovely Wren as well. An emotional book that had a deeper theme just it amongst the romance. Quite thought provoking.

Another enjoyable and emotionally wrought story from Paige. This is the story of Wren and her family, her break up from fiancé Scott and how she builds new relationships on the foundation of old ones.

There isn’t the immediate sucker punch of recognition that I felt with other Toon novels. Wren and Anders’ relationship, whilst powerfully emotional, didn’t make me sick with nostalgia and yearning that 5 years from now did, for example, but it does deal with some tough and familiar subjects.

There is reference to depression, suicidal thoughts, broken relationships, estranged families and tragedy but it does feel that the the big subjects are dealt with a little more superficially than some other Paige Toon stories.

The setting is lovely and I want to visit the Indianapolis that Wren goes to. As ever, Paige creates a world and an environment I feel I could be part of.

I recognised a lot in the early descriptions of Wren’s relationship with her father and with just a few sentences she captured so much and articulated so clearly what Wren felt but it did feel a little too easily and resolved. As did Jonas’s problems. Jonas is the son of the farmer who lives next door to Wren’s dad’s farm. He’s the reason Anders is in town, they’re brothers and Anders is worried about Jonas because he’s depressed and Anders is concerned he might be dangerously so. There isn’t a lot to evidence that though - the massive themes that come up in the story don’t get very deep scrutiny.

Wren begins to spend time with Jonas and Anders, as well as with her own half sister Bailey and their friendships blossom. But Anders is giving off mixed signals and Wren is confused…. It seems to take a long time to find out what the real issue is and when it comes it’s much worse than I could have imagined. Then the pain and anguish comes in strong.

All in all, it’s an enjoyable, well written story but much like this review (sorry) I feel like it takes far too long to get to the crux.

Whilst I enjoyed it and fans of Paige’s work will definitely want to read it, it won’t stay with me the way that her previous novels have.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for a preview copy.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. Having enjoyed Paige Toon books before I was excited to read this one and not disappointed in the least. Wren travels from then UK to the US to spend time with her dad and mend her broken heart she doesn't expect to fall in love again so soon
The problem is that the man she meets is closed off emotionally and unavailable to Wren,for reasons that aren't too clear at first.
I loved this book and style of writing, it kept me hooked and turning the pages well into the night. A sad tale at times with a storyline developing that will leave you empathising with a lot of characters
A gorgeous read.

Another emotional book from Paige. I loved meeting Wren and thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. There were so many stories within the book, siblings, step siblings, struggling to move forward, wondering if you still enjoy your job, the Airstream and romance.

The Wren / Anders relationship is beautiful and heartbreaking. Happy to recommend

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this ARC. This is a really beautiful, heartwarming and emotional romance and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I usually reserve the spring/summer Paige Toon release for my summer holiday however having read this ARC in November, I can only ask WHAT ON EARTH WILL I READ NOW?!

The story of Wren and Anders is more than just a romance. This is a story of new beginnings, forgiveness, healing old wounds, family and friends. I was absolutely blindsided by the truth about Anders’ wife, how could this outcome have not possibly entered my mind?
But this is the beauty of Paige Toon and every single one of her novels, I’m never disappointed and always surprised by the turn a story will take. Paige has a way of connecting her characters with your soul and creating such an empathetic response, my heart soars when they’re happy and I feel I cry alongside them when they’re sad. I would never fail to recommend a Paige Toon book to family and friends, Only Love Can Hurt Like This is no different. One of my favourite books for a long time!

Lovely story to get away from everything. Perfect.

Wren stays with her father in Indiana to get away from the break up from her fiance Scottafter he falls in love with someone else. She builds up a bond again with her father after splitting up from Wren's mother. Whilst staying on the farm, Wren also bonds with her step sister and step mother but also meets the neighbouring farm boys Jonas and Anders. They become closer once Wren discovers an abandoned Airstresm and work on the project together to organise a movie night for the community.

Anders is harbouring a secret that holds him back from falling in love. Everything and everyone comes together beautifully at the end.

I wasn't expecting a lot from this book. It's not really my genre. But I found the characters very endearing and I really did get caught up in their lives and romances. Perhaps I should deviate from my normal more 'literary' picks into the odd bit of romance more often. Or perhaps it was just the strength of Paige Toon's writing that brought it all alive on the pave.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for my copy.

I absolutely loved this book!! Finally after a few predictable reads, I found one that gripped me from the start! It’s been such a long time since I couldn’t put a book down! This story was heart wrenching, we follow Wren who moved back to the UK. after her parents divorced. Her father stayed in the US, we follow her story as an architect and her fiancé Scott. When the relationship breaks down she decides to take a break away. Wren goes to the US to stay with her Dad and his family. Now we are expecting a romance, but in no way could I have predicted the emotions this story would bring! I don’t want to ruin this story for anyone. I just recommended you give this book a chance you won’t regret it!!

Only Love Can Hurt Like This by Paige Toon
Earc:NetGalley
Publisher:
Random House UK, Cornerstone, Penguin
Publication Date: 27th April 2023
Genre:General Fiction, Romance, Women's Fiction

Wren is newly single after her partner Scott leaves her for another. This book's writing style is easy writing to follow. However, I did find the pacing a bit slow for my liking. In this story, we have Wren. She is an architect currently living in England and has just broken up with her fiancé, Scott. She goes to America to get away from it all and spend time with her father, her half-sister Bailey, and her stepmother Kelly.

One of my favorite things about her in this book is her photos. It's so detailed that you can imagine exactly where the characters were and who they were with.

I loved the storyline and loved watching the friendship grow between Wren and her half-sister Bailey. They loved each other and had a lot of fun together. I also loved seeing how her bond with her father and stepmother developed. It's always a struggle when you're in a different country, so I loved seeing them become a real family. I loved Jonas and Sanders. They have gone through a lot in their short adult lives.

I enjoyed Sanders for Len. They had a great connection and felt very deeply for each other.

I don't like spoilers, so I try not to give anything. All I can say is that this book is full of great characters with great storylines and settings. I recommend pre-ordering this book as you won't be disappointed.


#NetGalley #bookstagram #bookreview #booktok #arc #earc #womensfiction #romance #generalfiction @Random House UK, Cornerstone, Penguin @Paige Toon #onlylovecanhurtlikethis

Everything you look forward to in a Paige Toon story is in this book. Great descriptions, a romantic love story and of course the dramatic twist that turns everything on its head!

Thanks to Penguin Random House and Netgalley for this ARC

Grabbed me from the first page. Any book by Paige Toon will keep you engrossed.. Heartbroken and escaping turns into a new adventure with unpredictable twists and turns. Totally invested in the relationship and it's outcome.
No spoilers but get tissues at the ready for tears of happiness and sadness.

Paige Toon doing what she does best. Charming, heartwarming, character driven romance reads that you can devour in one sitting.
4 stars

I am a big Paige fan and I spent this whole book waiting for her to rip my heart out. She is a master at heart wrenching love story’s and this is no exception! A packet of tissues WILL be required during this book, it had me tearful in a few places as I’ve come to expect from Paige’s books she is a complete legend at plot twists and she makes me fall in love with the couple every single time!

This author is already on my autobuy list I have every single one of her books! I cannot wait for the paperback to come out next year and I will certainly be getting a copy for my shelf!

Thank you so much to the publisher for a copy of this book via NetGalley! One of my favourite ARCs that I have received!

Paige Toon is one of my favourite authors, predominantly because she always puts a little bit of her heart and soul in to her characters and storytelling, and you just feel that instant connection so naturally and fluently through the books. Only Love Can Hurt Like This is a beautiful plot set mainly in the US around Indiana, which was a beautiful setting to be immersed in for the summer of peach harvesting and corn cropping on the family farms.
I particularly loved the exploration of the relationship between Wren and her younger half-sister Bailey, and how we navigate big life changes and emotions when we are younger differently to when we are adults. It was heartwarming to see their connection, and the wider implications, from them spending more time together, and how healing that became.
An engrossing and heartfelt read about heart break, love, friendship and family.

This book should genuinely come with a health warning! I absolutely sobbed my heart out reading this book! Amazing story, based on Wrens failed relationship in the UK when she decides to go to the US to stay with her dad. Being in the US makes Wren reevaluate her life especially when she meets Anders, her dads neighbours son. This book investigates their relationship battles and with a twist I did not see coming! This page turning novel broke my heart in many stages of this story but would read it again in a heartbeat! This was my first novel by Paige Toon (I genuinely thought I had read more by her before) but will not be my last! Beautiful book!

I love Paige Toons writing. This isn't my first book of hers. Her books always make me kind of emotional. Same with this one. Very good story with very realistic characters.

A heartwarming and heart breaking story from Paige Toon. I enjoyed the characters of Anders and Wren and their stories. A live story that also covers family, friendships, lots and grief. Would recommend.

After finding out her fiancé’s in love with another woman Wren travels to visit her father even though their relationship is strained just to get away from it all. There she meets Anders who lost his wife four years ago. Neither of them expected to fall in love.

The title really says it all, this is going to hurt a lot. Every relationship seems to be strained, whether it’s family, friendship or romantic. I cried, I laughed and my heart completely broke for these characters. Only love can hurt like this.

Once I started reading I couldn’t put it down. The beautiful setting and vibrant characters really jump of the page. There are quite a few storylines built in which I enjoyed, it kept things interesting.

Anders might sound like an unfamiliar name to most, it’s actually a Swedish. The entire family has Swedish names in the book. I thought this was a fun edition since I to am Swedish. Slightly weird because my dad is named Anders but I tried to block that out.

I feel like I need to mention the twist, I didn’t see it coming. That took the sadness to another level and makes you understand why the characters are acting a certain way better.

This would be a great read if your into womens fiction and a story that pulls on your heartstrings. But if you decide to read it, which I highly suggest you do keep an eye out for trigger warnings.

It’s been a few years since I have read any of Paige Toon’s books so I was so happy when I saw this available for request on netgalley. Once again Paige has written a beautiful story with lovable characters. I thoroughly enjoyed the relationship between Wren and Anders and their families. This is a heartwarming romance with just the right amount of angst and heartbreak.