Member Reviews
An absolutely brilliant book, i was hooked from the first page. It's not your typical love story, plenty of twists and turns in it. Will be keeping an eye out for future books form Paige Toon.
As an avid Paige Toon lover, I was so excited to read this book, and I have to say, it did not disappoint. I laughed, I cried, I loved. I feel like my heart is both full, and heartbroken at the same time. This was beautifully written.
Wren is a beautiful character, and her love for Anders was beautiful to watch unfold. Their love story was so unique, and heart breaking, it was bitter sweet. I truly feel like my heart was shattered into a million pieces watching them fall in love.
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.
I'll be posting this review along with others on both Instagram and TikTok at @blondesbooknook
This felt a bit different for Paige Toon. It was still amazing, as always! Loved the characters, their stories and their relationship together. Will absolutely recommend.
Wonderful, another hit from Paige Toon. When Wren decides to escape to her father's home in America, after discovering her boyfriend no longer loves her, the last thing she expects to find is love in a completely different way. Great characters, beautiful setting, what's not to enjoy
Wow. This book has blown me away. Honestly I absolutely adored it. So beautifully written and had me in tears more than once. Wren and Anders were just such great characters, the situation that they found themselves in was so unbelievably difficult and tragic (no spoilers!) and I really felt invested in both characters. Amazingly well written character development, even the supporting characters. Seeing Wrens relationship with her sister blossom was really heartwarming and even the friendship group that formed between the 2 sisters and Jonas and Anders. Just a really amazing book. I will be recommending it to everyone.
When Wren realises her fiancé is in love with someone else, she thinks her heart will never recover.
On the other side of the world, Anders lost his wife four years ago and is still struggling to move on.
Wren hopes that spending the summer with her dad and step-family on their farm in Indiana will help her to heal. There, amid the cornfields and fireflies, she and Anders cross paths and their worlds are turned upside-down again.
Beautifully crafted.
Board the emotional rollercoaster and follow Wren and Anders on the journey of self discovery
I laughed and sobbed and couldnt put this book down
Fabulous characters exploring so many difficult subjects including depression, inclusion, heartache, heartbreak and family dynamics
When Wren sees the moment her fiance falls in love with someone else, she realises her life is going to change. When he admits his feelings and leaves her for someone else, Wren wants to get away from the town they both live in.
She decides to spend a few weeks with her dad in the US, on his fruit-picking farm, with his wife and Wren’s half-sister Bailey. She hopes it will be a chance to move on from Scott and get bond with her estranged family, what she doesn’t realise is that she’ll fall in love with the son of the neighbouring farm, Anders. As the days pass, the chemistry between Anders and Wren is clear and she finds herself falling for him. She decides to extend her stay and work remotely so she can spend more time with her family and Anders. Even though he’s still mourning the loss of his wife, Laurie, Wren can’t help but notice the spark between herself and Anders. But when she finds out the secret he’s been keeping, she realises that as wonderful as Anders is, loving him hurts…
Paige Toon writes such sweet wonderful romance books and Only Love Can Hurt Like This tugs on the heartstrings and makes you want to give all the characters a hug. There are so many brilliant dynamics in this story. I loved the slow way that Wren begins to bond with her US family, especially her sister Bailey who is clearly desperate to bond with her older sister. That’s not the only great sibling dynamic though, Anders and his brother Jonas are close knit and care deeply for one another and Jonas’s love for Anders acts as a catalyst for the eventual unfolding of the love story between Anders and Wren.
The farm setting is beautiful too and adds a stunning backdrop to a wonderful romance. I loved the depictions of rural farm life, fruit picking, outdoor movie nights and evenings barbecuing at the lake, true escapism at its best. This would be a great holiday read!
My only criticism would be that the novel is just slightly too long, especially towards the last chapters of the book and the epilogue. I was ready for it all to be romantically wrapped up but that might just be my natural impatience!
Thank you Netgalley and Random House for the eARC.
Only Love can Hurt Like This by Paige Toon
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Publication date: 27/04/2023
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Wren loses her fiancé to a new lover. Meanwhile on the other side of the world, Anders is still grieving the loss of his wife from 4 years previous.
Neither expected to fall in love again but when Wren decides to visit her father in America and their lives cross paths, there is little they can do to resist the draw of love.
This book had me gripped from the beginning. The will they, won’t they story of two potential lovers had me willing them both on to take the first step forward. There is a clever twist which is unlike anything I’ve read in a romance novel and had me welling up in parts. Another fantastic novel from Toon.
Thank you to NetGalley, Paige Toon and Random House for this ARC in return for an honest review.
This book is perfection! It broke my heart so bad. Poignant, heartbreaking piece of literature! This was my first Paige Toon can't wait to read all of her books and get my heart shattered.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me an ARC in exchange of my opinion.
Paige Toon owes me some new heart strings! This book tugged on mine so hard they’ve all snapped. Such a joyous, heartbreaking, emotional, gripping, addictive read that broke me and put me back together. Utterly utterly perfect romantic fiction from start to finish. Loved it.
Romance isn't my normal genre. It is something I enjoy reading when I lose my mojo or just to break it up a bit and for me Paige Toon is one of the very few that I love and have her whole collection of books. So you can Imagine how excited I was to get an early copy of this.
For me this story lacked what I love about her stories: the fun and excitement of a romance. Don't get me wrong the romance is here but this book tells the story of two people who have been heart broken for totally different reasons and find each other.
I found the story very descriptive. It is a harrowing, emotional read with no funny moments. Like I would have expected. It is an emotional rollercoaster with no twists.I feel like someone else has written this book. There are people out there that will love it. But I am on the fence with this one and would have liked a more upbeat story rather than a saga.
It's a 3.5 star read from me. Thank you to the publisher for a copy all thoughts are my own and not biased in anyway.
Thank you so much to Netgalley and of course Paige Toon for the chance to read this book early in exchange for an honest review. Only Love Can Hurt Like This is set to be published April 27th 2023. ❤️
Neither of them expected to fall in love. But sometimes life has other plans.
I DEVOURED this book in practically one sitting. If you're looking to be transported into a small-town rural Indy farmlife setting then this book is for you! The slow burn between Wren and Anders was great and full of angst due to them both being 'flawed' in one way or another. There are many funny moments within this book as well which offsets the angst nicely.
The supporting characters were brilliant too. The book explores Wren's relationships with different people, not just her budding romance with Anders. It tackles her fractured relationships with her father and half-sister, Bailey and her new lifelong friendship with Anders' brother, Jonas. You can see Wren's character grow as the book continues and it's great to see how Wren's time away in sunny Indiana has healed her in a realistic way.
Paige Toon has a way of making words on a page both lighthearted and gutwrenching at the same time. Thank you again for the chance to read this book early, I thoroughly enjoyed it and I can't wait to read more from you in the future! ❤️
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What a stunning story. The way Paige writes is simple yet perfect. Paige is a go-to author for many and this long awaited tale will not disappoint. In true Paige-style, you will find yourself simultaneously smiling and crying as the story unfolds. You will feel moments of frustration screaming at the characters, followed by moments where you just want to hug yourself and those you love. Only Love Can Hurt Like This is an incredibly appropriate title and a story to savour.
Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.
This was a 'I fell in love with the cover' pick, thrillers used to be my go to genre but last year I enjoyed so many romantic fiction books that I had to have this.
This was my first Paige Toon book and it was beautiful.
I loved Wren and how determined she was to move on with her life. Anders and Jonas were brilliant characters and the relationships they all had with each other were so believable.
This is the perfect romantic novel, not too cringy and a few shocks that I wasn't expecting!
Would recommend this to everyone, a five star read!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, Random House UK, for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.
Wren decides to visit her dad, stepmum and half-sister, Bailey, in Indiana while getting over a breakup. She soon meets two brothers, Anders and Jonas. Wren becomes friends with both but develops feelings for Anders. Anders has a very complicated past and the question is, can they overcome that to become something more than friends? I loved the setting of Indiana and enjoyed watching Wren reconnect with her father and family.
I haven't read a Paige Toon book in years but now I want to read her older books if they are as good as this story was.
Loved this book so much!
I'd never read anything by Paige Toon before but i'm headed straight out to find more.
The characters were so warm and believable that it didn't matter where the story went it was real.
An enjoyable and easy read. Interesting to watch Wren’s relationships change and grow as the storyline develops.
I loved reading this one. I just love this kind of books.
4 stars read for me. I love this author snd her writing style.
Thanks to netgally for this arc.
It has been a long wait for a new Paige Toon novel, but I can say with all certainty that is was definitely worth it for this wonderful book.
I loved Wren's story, and it is all about love but I wouldn't necessarily call it a romance. For it is about all kinds of love.
And Anders backstory once we get to the heart of it, really emphasises that point. He is a wonderful man and I felt privileged to be able to read all about him.
And the setting of Indiana was great to see as I don't think I've ever read a book set in that part of the USA before. I also adored Anders job, even though it isn't a big part of the story.
I also enjoyed getting to know Jonas, and seeing him come into his own as the story progresses. And I enjoyed getting to know Wren's step sister and that side of her family along with her.
Just everything about this book spoke to me, and I couldn't put it down. It's another triumph from one of my favourite authors, that kept me on my toes and had me completely unsure about just how it would end.
Thank you to Penguin and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.