I love that the story did not deviate from the title, and it wasn't an afterthought too. Finding your person and understanding their darkness and the feeling of safety showing it, some people can only hope for that, and this book makes me hope for mine. It is an emotional read, but i loved how the book showed rays of light and stars in the story thru how their lo ed progressed and the love of people around them. This book is about not feeling guilty of the choices you made, the anger you feel. I loved it but i thinki understand it being slow burn, but i hope the twist and turns on some point were lessened but nevertheless a good read.

Thanks Netgally and publisher for the e-Arc✨️

Thank you NetGalley for this Arc.

This was so cute and so unexpected. I loved this book so much.

But even though this was a slow burn I still felt like it took to long some how and when we got to the romance the couple where still confused about the relationship.

Over all i really enjoyed this, her dad/brother was adorable and her niece was such a cutey. A definite recommend.

In Lisina Coney's poignant and introspective novel, "Darkest Corner of the Heart," we encounter Maddie Stevens, a young woman plagued by a persistent sense of inadequacy. Haunted by the belief that she is not worthy of love, independence, or success, Maddie's spirit has been dimmed, eclipsed by the shadows of self-doubt. Her aspirations, including her dreams of a flourishing ballet career, seem to crumble at her feet following an unfortunate injury. As Maddie navigates her path, destiny brings her face to face with James Simmons, a physical therapist whose imposing physique and gruff demeanor contrast sharply with his gentle touch and compassionate nature. Despite the age difference that separates them, Maddie finds herself drawn to James's strength and enigmatic charm. However, their connection is fraught with obstacles, not least of which is her own self-sabotaging beliefs. Through her interactions with James, Maddie begins a journey of self-discovery and healing. James's unwavering support and encouragement slowly chip away at the fortress she has built around her heart. He helps her recognize her resilience, her potential, and her inherent worthiness of love. As their forbidden desire intensifies, Maddie must confront her deepest fears and insecurities. Coney's writing is both evocative and insightful, capturing the complexities of human emotion with raw honesty. She explores the profound impact of trauma and self-perception on our relationships and our ability to live fulfilling lives. Through Maddie's story, she reminds us that it is never too late to break free from the chains of self-doubt and embrace the transformative power of love and acceptance. Ultimately, "Darkest Corner of the Heart" is a testament to the transformative power of human connection. It is a story about overcoming adversity, finding strength within oneself, and embracing the possibility of a brighter future. Coney leaves us with a profound message of hope and resilience, reminding us that even in the darkest corners of our hearts, the light of love can prevail.

This book is the definition of a super-slow burn, as the first signs of a budding romance aren't until about the halfway mark. However, I did appreciate that their relationship was described as doctor and patient while he was treating her, and then it began to unfold afterwards. Lisina did a great job building tension and anticipation between the characters, making the eventual romance feel earned and satisfying.

I would say the only thing that annoyed me was how focused the characters were on their age gap, especially with all the other way more pressing things that were happening at the same time. Overall, I enjoyed how mature and real this book felt; it had such vulnerable and relatable moments that dragged you into the story. Maddie and James were quite a cute couple, and I loved the insight that we had into their relationship 10 years later.

"I love you. So fucking much. I will love you every moment until the day I take my last breath and all over again in my next life."

ARC Review
Pub date: February 20
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of this book!

There are many things to like about this book and was excited to read the sequel to The Brightest Light of Sunshine. Darkest Corner of the Heart follows Maddie, a professional dancer, and the younger sister of Cal, the protagonist from TBLOS (Maddie was 4 years old in the first book). Practicing for an audition, she injures her angle and is in need of physical therapy if she has any hope of continuing her dream as a professional ballerina. Enter Dr. James Simmons- a broody, mature, and off limits physical therapist who becomes her only chance at a full recovery.

It's a good taboo, age-gap romance (i think the age difference fit this book, but sill 10 years, when the FMC is in her early 20s feels odd to me), but I feel like it dragged on quite a bit and some aspects were a bit clunky to me. I also didn't love the 3rd act breakup as it highlighted exactly how young and immature Maddie is. This one was entertaining for the most part, but I still like the first book more!

Read if you like:
- age gap
- taboo relationship
- ballerina FMC

Darkest Corner of the Heart by Lisina Coney is the second book in the series The Brightest Light. This book has age gap, slow burn, forbidden romance written all over it and I’m here for it. I finished this book in a day, it was a nice easy romance read for me. I would recommend this book and reading the first book The Brightest Light of Sunshine.

Thank you NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

It was okay, but it read a bit like a fan fiction at times. The ten year age gap seemed to be a plot point that was pushed repetitively. I think that both characters had some immature qualities (which may be from past trauma), so as a reader it didn’t feel like the MMC was ten years older. I am conflicted because the characters did have some cute moments, but overall seemed to lack genuine chemistry.

🐚 𝐀𝐑𝐂 𝐑𝐄𝐕𝐈𝐄𝐖 🐚
📖| The Darkest Corner of the Heart - Lisina Coney
5 ⭐

𝗧𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝘀: forbidden, slow burn, ballerina x physical therapist, age gap, grumpy x sunshine, cat dad, doctor x patient

𝗧𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿𝘀: alcoholism, dr*gs, death, abandonment, panick attacks

This book is truly a masterpiece. If The Brightest Light of Sunshine was fabulous, wait when you read Maddie and James's story.

Maddie is now a woman ready to take the biggest step in her career, only this dream is shattered when she suffers an injury and had to do physical therapy to get back on her feet. Now we truly discover Maddie and see her fears, insecurities and dreams better, but also how the past affected her and built her into the woman she is today.

James is her doctor, who does much more than treat her. After the period in which Maddie is his patient, they begin to know each other better and more deeply than an ex-doctor would do with an ex-patient. He is a character you can't help but fall in love with. He is grumpy, older than her, has cats and falls in love with Maddie very quickly, who doesn't fear to show her how deep he cares about her.

I loved how the author wrote the development of the characters and how she brought parts of the past into the present and finally gave Maddie the peace of mind she needed, but also the pure chemistry and relationships between her and James.

I loved this book, and I can't wait to see what this author surprises us with in her next book.

Thank you Lisina Coney and Page & Vine for the opportunity to read this amazing book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was provided via NetGalley.

A good romance story. It was easy to get into this book. I’d like to read more from this author. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Super easy to read romance with a lot of tough subjects involved. Loved the connection between the two main characters, even if their age gap was a little big. However you can see they do love each other, and have put a lot of thought into the age gap and what it would mean for their relationship.

Tropes;
-Forbiddddden baby!
- PT and dancer
-sunshine and the grumpiest of grumps
-anxiety rep
-Cat Daddy (yall remember that song?)

Where to begin? I heard about this book on Twitter and I am so glad I got a chance to live in this story with Maddie and James. I am always and forever interested in books about dancers. The mental health rep was so well explored. I was having Twilight flashbacks when he'd say he wouldn't answer her questions haha. I love this book, and I didn't read the first one yet, which means it didn't impact my reading experience at all not having read the first. THANK YOU!

I finished this book in a day!!! I loved the relationship between these two. I love a protective man for her. I have already ordered a hard copy.

I actually found out about this book due to some "drama" on booktwitter, regarding the forbidden love trope in this book. One look at the artwork and the blurb, I knew I both had to read this and would love it. It didn't disappoint. I haven't read the first book in this series with Sammy and Grace, but I definitely will be reading it soon. Maddie and James are just dreamy. I absolutely adored seeing James' wall coming down and Maddie working her way in. I loved the mix of the current love storyline as well as the individual journeys the characters went on. I thoroughly recommend this!

Maddie’s hopes of becoming a professional ballet dancer are dashed after a devastating injury. She is drawn to her PT James, who supports her during treatment and beyond. Whilst Maddie navigates this forbidden romance she also deals with past trauma and current family issues.

I think I would have loved this book in my 20’s. I didn’t feel the age gap was as significant as the characters did, which made the slow burn and complications feel a little unnecessary.

However I thought the portrayal of Maddie and James growth was insightful and engaging. There are a number of challenging topics in this book relating to mental health, substance use, neglect and adjustment, which were handled sensitively and reflectively. I particularly liked the cameos from James’ cats, and Lila and Grace. Overall an enjoyable read, and would highly recommend for readers who enjoy books such as After.

Thank you Victory Editing Co-op, Page and Vine, and NetGalley for a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed are my own.

i really enjoyed Lisina Coney's debut book when I read it last year but this one kind of fell flat.

this book followed Callaghan's younger sister, Maddie. she is a dancer who has hurt her ankle and needs to see a physical therapist. what happens when her and her physical therapist strike up a friendship which turns into something more?

i really wanted to like this book but it didn't captivate me as much as the first book did (Maddie's older brother and Grace). this one started off pretty slow which was understandable considering the taboo aspect of a patient x doctor relationship. they started off as friends and i liked that our Hero, James was there for her through everything and really helped her get past a hard part in her life. however, i didn't feel an overwhelming amount of love between Maddie and James like i have felt in the first book with another couple. this one fell flat and had moments where it dragged awhile, making me lose interest.

i also kind of wish they started a meaningful relationship right away because the attraction and chemistry was there but they kind of started a friends w benefit situation then moved onto something more. i also wish we got more personality out of James. i love myself a quiet, grumpy man but he really didn't give us much and he ghosted my girl Maddie for two weeks bc he was scared smh 🤦‍♀️ ...

safety (from what i remember): no virgins, no omd/owd, patient x physical therapist, 10 year age gap

a very special thank you to NetGalley and Lisina Coney's team for providing me with an e-ARC!

This book was not my cup of tea. I wish I could place my finger on why I didn't enjoy this book, but sadly there's not one particular thing that jumps to the front.

What I can say is that I just didn't connect with the characters all that much, the romance felt very insta-lovey, and there's wasn't really any serious conflict in the book, only mental conflicts which started to get a bit boring to read about near the end. I love books about healing from trauma and bring attention to mental health, but with me already not loving the character, I found it really hard to try and root for her to get through her problems.
I just wanted to get through the book.

This is not to say that this isn't a good book, it just wasn't a good book for me.

Thank you to Netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review

This was a quick read for me. I enjoyed it, as I enjoyed the first book in the series. I liked James and Maddie a lot, though I wish there’d been less hand-wringing. Great spice again. Looking forward to the next in the series!

4.25/5

I read the first book and really enjoyed it, so I was excited to revisit these characters. Seeing Cal and Grace as parents and much older was so fun to read, as was Maddie being all grown up and on her own. The story focuses on the forbidden love between 21-year-old ballet dancer, Maddie, and her 31-year-old physical therapist, James. With a heavy dose of trauma for both characters, they were drawn to each other in unexpected ways. Their romance was a nice slow burn with great tension. I enjoyed digging into both backstories and how they healed from their trauma. I did find everyone treated Maddie like she was breakable, which got a little frustrating, but ultimately her character grew in the end and James was a sweet albeit grumpy MC. The writing from the first book to this one seemed to flow much better for me and I really look forward to other stories by this author!

First of all, THANK YOU for the opportunity to read the arc of this gorgeous book!

TBLOS is my favorite of the two, but this new story comes in a close second. Maddie’s story is one I was curious about and Lisina Coney absolutely delivered.

TDCOTH is Maddie’s story (the first book is about Cal, her much older brother). I’d advise to read The Brightest Light of Sunshine first, but it is not 100% necessary.
After 50% I realized this book is less eventful and more insightful: Maddie’s childhood and the trauma she suffered accompanies her wherever she goes and the quest to find closure felt like it was insurmountable. I did not live the same situation she did but her intrusive thoughts and the fact she had to remind herself to push them away was what made me suffer with her... Her story, from her childhood to the present, is filled with heartbreak and the only brightest light (lol) in it is, beside her family, dancing. But after an accident leaves her without her goal, she starts reevaluating her life and her future. That’s where her ginormous 30-year-old physical therapist comes to the rescue. Step by step (by step by step because it’s a slow burn) Maddie and James start a sort of friendship, they confide in each other and they understand that being alone is not the solution to their problems. They have obstacles of course, like
their age difference looming over them (more him than her) or the fact she’s his client and it’s unethical… but all of this is just grans in the sand in comparison to the absolute devotion they feel for each other. Lisina Coney wrote one of the sweetest, heartbreakingly beautiful stories I’ve read in a long time. I usually read rom-coms because I tend to get too emotional, but after reading the first book I knew Maddie needed her own voice heard and her own story, and I’m so happy James was part of the journey. He’s a cat dad and calls them his “babies” so of course I was immediately sold!

Had I read this 10 years ago, I would have been all over this. Because the yearning and slightly taboo-ness of it all would have been my catnip.

But I'm 35, and I know better now, and the things that are taboo, I find harder to enjoy.

Did I love that she was 21? No. Did I love that his initial attraction of her was because she was so sad? Also no. And did this poor girl need to go through the 7 realms of hell in order to get the same message across? Also also no.
(But to our hero's credit, he was VERY self aware that she was too young).

BUTTTTTTTTT

The healing/ and development of the relationship and found family portion of the book was really good. And although there was an interesting take of having a shitty therapist experience, it is important that people know that if therapy is making you feel worse and the messages are hostile, then they're a bad therapist and yeet yourself out of there. The message of loving yourself and perservering through shit life things was handled well.

The writing was really good and I read the first 80% in one sitting, so it still did the catnip thing, though I feel like I'm definitely not the target demographic for this one.

Thank you Netgalley and Victory Editing for an e-copy.