Wren has just been dumped by her fiancé as he has fallen in love with someone else and so she decides to escape to Indiana for a couple of weeks to see her somewhat estranged dad and step family. Straight from one unrequited situation to another, and another…? Sometimes when we feel like we are lost we need to search for something, anything to ignite our soul and feel a sense of belonging, opening ourselves up to something new or searching for those parts of ourselves that we had forgotten.
However, as with most matters of the heart honest communication is key, but it is often hard to communicate what we can’t even decipher and rationalise in our own heads and heart.

Love hurts for so many reasons. Life rarely goes to plan. What we want to be to the ones we love is not always aligned with what we can be – and that hurts. This book is a beautifully written bittersweet journey of not just Wren but all those around her trying to find love, acceptance and be the best they can be.

This is a genre of fiction I would never read usually, but it did keep me interested in the outcome of this doomed affair. It had all the hallmarks of a heartbreak waiting to happen, the jilted and the grieving lovers finding solace in each other. The writing was good, though the irritating references to hair and clothes was totally unnecessary, descriptions like these made me skim over quite a few passages. We get to find out about farming in this region of America, and how things are tough (no news to anyone) trying to battle against weather, production and just general hard conditions, but that opportunities exist to change with changing times. A pleasant read, with some surprises and plenty of relationship highs and lows.

It's maybe the second Paige Toon's book I read and I loved it. It's poignant and heartwarming at the same time, there's a romance but there's also grief, family, moving on.
The author is a talented storyteller and the story kept me turning pages. I loved the characters and rooted for them.
A good story that I strongly recommend.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

With thanks to Netgalley and publisher in exchange for an honest review. Paige Toon is my favourite author. I can't think of any other writer that their words emerse me the way a Paige Toon Novel does. Wrens story is all the feels. In some parts of the story I literally had butterflies. Wren and her partner relationship ends. She decides to visit her father and his family in America. There she meets some interesting people and slowly starts to heal. Pick this book up in April when it's released. I will never stop raving about a Paige Toon novel so much more than a typical romance novel. All the feels.

I started reading Paige Toon books quite a few years ago and have never been disappointed. This one is probably my favourite have read. It takes you through every possible emotion you could feel.

Anders and Wren are complicated characters with their own struggles and real life problems. To be along for the journey is an honour.

Absolute perfection.

To be honest this book has stayed with me for quite awhile after reading and I find myself thinking about Anders and Wren often. Highly recommend!

When Wren finds out her fiancé is in love with another woman, she's unsure if she'll ever be able to open her heart to someone else. To get away from it all she decides to spend the summer with her father and step family on their farm in Indiana. She's not really close to them and she feels totally out of place but Wren is looking forward to finally trying to bond with her younger stepsister. But her sister isn't the only one she's starting to bond with because she also gets to know Anders and Jonas, whose parents own the neighboring farm. The two brothers are going through a difficult time themselves. Anders lost his wife a few years ago and Jonas seems to be struggling with depression.
As Wren tries to figure out what she wants to do with her life and also tries to understand why her father left her all these years ago, she realizes that there is still room for love in her heart. But the man she‘s falling for has a big secret.

Paige Toon just knows how to write a good love story. But this story is not just about love. It’s about grief, family, friendships and loss. About new adventures and letting go of the past. About reinventing yourself and chasing dreams that were long forgotten.

This one’s for you if you’re in the mood for a heartwarming, heartbreaking, romantic and funny story.

Just gorgeous! I loved this romantic, complex and ultimately wonderful read. Family, love, loss and second chances - one of my favourite reads this year!

This is the first book that I've read from Paige Toon but I would definitely be up for reading more from the author in the future.
Is it predictable? Yes. But that wasn't necessarily a bad thing when it came to this story.
You almost know what you are getting and are along for the ride with the characters.
I liked that it wasn't just wholly focused on the romance, it also looks into the relationships between parents and their children, as well as blended families.
I also enjoyed the way that it transported me to the other side of the world.
The characters also felt believable.
As I say, I will definitely be keeping an eye out for what Paige Toon does next and be going back and reading some of her previous books, when I can.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What an incredible story. I was truly blown away by this heart wrenching romance that pulls on all of your heart strings. Paige Toon is a master storyteller and has done it again with ‘Only Love Can Hurt Like This’. She has a way with words that are intelligent and evocative. Towards the end, I found my face was streaming with tears as I felt so invested in Wren and Ander’s decisions. The characters were built up and described beautifully. A perfect story!

Well what can I say, as with most Paige Toon books it’s a lovely heartwarming read yet heartbreaking at the same time. I love the way she layers her characters, you feel like you really get a real insight into them and really get to know them. I was really rooting for Wren, she was just so beautifully written - charming yet insecure at the same time. I also loved Anders, so sweet!

Overall I’d recommend this book, if you like fluffy books with a touch of heartbreak.

💭 ᴍʏ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛꜱ:
Wow, I absolutely LOVED this one. I was intrigued from page one and felt so connected to these characters. I adored the setting, which gave me major Gilmore Girls vibes. Wren took me on a heart shattering journey that I wouldn’t want to miss. Giving me all the feelings I could possible feel at the same time; smiling uncontrollably while tears streamed down my face. I could not recommend this one enough!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

🤓 ʀᴇᴀᴅ ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ʟɪᴋᴇ:
Romance
All the feels
Gilmore girls (the TV show)
The Simple wild series (by K.A. tucker)
It Ends With Us (by Colleen Hoover)

ꜱʏɴᴏᴘꜱɪꜱ:
𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘞𝘳𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘤é 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘦𝘭𝘴𝘦, 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘱-𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘧𝘢𝘳𝘮 𝘪𝘯 𝘐𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘢.

𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘞𝘳𝘦𝘯 𝘮𝘦𝘦𝘵𝘴 𝘈𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘨𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘶𝘱𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦-𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯.

𝘈𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘷𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘴, 𝘞𝘳𝘦𝘯'𝘴 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘈𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘸 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘈𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩-𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘵, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘧 𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘞𝘳𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘭-𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦.

𝙒𝙖𝙡𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙝𝙪𝙧𝙩 𝙒𝙧𝙚𝙣 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙞𝙢𝙖𝙜𝙞𝙣𝙚. 𝘽𝙪𝙩, 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙧𝙪𝙩𝙝, 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙮 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙮?

This is my first book by Paige Toon. It was a really good read. Kept a great pace all the way through. The story turned in unexpected directions all the time. Human emotions were stretched with most of the characters in different ways.
Definitely recommend this book and I shall read more books by the author.

Only Love Can Hurt Like This
by Paige Toon


Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre: General Fiction (Adult), Romance,Women's Fiction

Women's fiction...Bah, humbug! Lets get rid of this category please.

So, the book. I found Paige Toon some years back by way of the wonderful Johnny be good, and its follow up. I loved it, and its still my favourite novel of hers. Might just be reread time ;-)
Since then I've read many, some I loved, others not so much. This one falls in between. The plot and that reveal – excellent. The fragile family relationships equally so, as was Wren's fiance – such an honourable man. I liked Anders too though his brother Jonas was far more interesting! I loved the day to day stuff, Bailey and her irrepressible humour, the Air-stream renovation, the little issues that make up real life. I loved that it covered a decent time period, months not the weeks or even days of some romances. How quickly do those broken hearts mend sometimes ?

What didn't really work so well though was the actual relationship between Anders and Wren, I just didn't feel that magic spark, that sizzle of passion. It was potentially there but kind of damped down IMO. I wanted Fireworks, Blazing Heat, sizzling sensuality but felt it was all pretty tealight candle, not Sensual Eastern Promise fragrance but Winter Cotton Pjs...... I just felt they were more good friends than lovers.

Its a good read – does Paige ever write a bad book – just not going to become one of my favourites.

Stars: Three, a good read but not one of my favourites from Paige.

ARC supplied by Netgalley and publishers

Classic Paige Toon strikes again - heart-warming romances with a bite! Paige Toon is a genius at writing love stories that are fun and easy to read yet don't shy away from the real stuff of life - tragedy, illness, blended families and dealing with regret.

Wren is just about holding it together after her fiance leaves her for another woman so she takes the opportunity to go and visit her father and his new family on the other side of the Atlantic. Set mostly in the sunny summer months of Indiana, Wren finds herself intrigued by the neighbouring family's two brothers, Jonas and Anders. Having spent most of her childhood and adult life feeling like she doesn't belong to her dad's family, she needs to re-evaluate judgements she's made in the past - and this also extends to her love life.

Lots of twists and turns made it easy to keep picking up the story and I finished it in about 3 days. The characters are well-drawn and believable.

Highly recommend. Many thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for an advance release copy in exchange for an honest review.

When Wren realises her fiancé is in love with someone else she leaves England and goes to visit her Dad and stepmother in Indiana. She hopes that spending time on their farm will heal her heart. 

Wren locks eyes with the mysterious Anders in a bar and she feels a connection. But Wren doesn't know that Anders is harbouring a secret, one that could cause a serious fall out if he decides to choose Wren. 

Wren finds out his secret and walks away broken hearted once again but will she ever forget Anders and the love she has for him.

Loved, loved, loved this book. I was rooting for Wren and Anders from the moment they met. Some sad parts but a perfect ending. I just love how Paige Toon books have you feeling several emotions in one book. I laughed, I cried and I fell in love with Anders myself. Brilliant book which I highly recommend.

I really enjoyed reading this story about Wren, her family and the twists its twists and turns. It was a compelling read from the beginning. I loved how the story flowed to follow Wren's journey with its highs and lows. A very touching read at times, sad and fun in equal measure. A riveting read which I didn't want to end.

A story of lost love, heartache, deep passions and tragic circumstances.

A romance with the inevitable ending. With apologies to the author, not one for me, but recognise its wide appeal and understand why this author has such a strong following.

2.5*

Thank you NetGalley.

Oh my goodness I loved this book so much!!
Having read all of Paige Toon’s books I knew what to expect and hope for, and she doesn’t disappoint in this new novel. Our main character, Wren, is so easy to warm to, I loved watching her relationships with her family grow, the friendships she makes in America and the twisting journey for her and Anders. As always, it isn’t a straightforward journey, but it keeps you hooked until the last page. This is an absolute must-read-in-one-day type of story. Thank you so much for this arc, I will be reading it again very soon!

This book has been written so well that it is so east to read. It is one of those books I didn't want to put down or finish.
It is a lovely romance all about family and friends.

I went into this book fairly blind, with only the knowledge that I've never read a Paige Toon book I didn't love. As soon as I found out this book was set Indiana, a place that firmly has my heart, I was in love.
Wren is so relatable but also admirable, I'm not sure I could be that forgiving about some things! My heart broke for her reading about some of her sadness regarding her childhood/family. I loved every character in the book and seeing them all grow for the better, as well as it being such a fun and heartwarming journey to go on with them.
I absolutely wasn't expecting the twist, towards the end the story was so bittersweet and I found myself frustrated with it, but what a perfect ending.
Overall a thoroughly enjoyable reading, and definitely one to watch out for next year. Thanks so much to @netgalley and of course @paigetoon for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.