Three Chicks and Their Books: Release Blitz: The Evolution of Us by D. Kelly

Cover Design: Kassi Snider / KassiJean Formatting and Design

Release Date: October 11, 2017

Synopsis

They say most people meet the person they will marry while in high school. Balancing one another perfectly, Holly Ryan and Declan James were together through most of college—until their relationship blew up, leaving Declan with more questions than answers.

For the past two years, Declan has tried everything he can think of to earn Holly’s forgiveness, but even if he manages to help her let go of the past and give them another chance at happiness, she still has a secret. Not to mention, she can’t get over the revolving door of women he seems to have coming in and out of his apartment.

Declan is desperate to prove to Holly she’s the one for him and isn’t above using his celebrity status or enlisting the help of their friends to win her back.
All’s fair in love and war, right?

Goodreads

3.5 Stars

Review by Jen Skewes

I love D. Kelly’s books just as much as I love second chance romances. So I was very excited to read this one. The Evolution of Us tells the story of two people who fell in love when they were teenagers, but at some point their relationship blew up, causing them to go their separate ways. This is their second chance at love, to put their past behind and make things work.

Holly and Declan met as teenagers, they were high school sweethearts. They moved in together while they were in college. But at some point in their relationship things fell apart. A conversation that Declan overheard caused him to react in a way that he didn’t even want to hear an explanation. He was done and that meant breaking Holly’s heart. A big misunderstanding caused Declan to break up with Holly and move on with his life, and trust me he did.

It is now two years later and Declan has been trying everything to get Holly back. He has even gone so far as to move into the apartment across the hall from her. But trying to woo Holly back, beg for her forgiveness, and make her see that he still loves her and that they belong together, is going to be a challenge. Declan broke her heart two years ago and she barely survived. Letting him in again means that there is a risk that he will do it again. Plus she is not too happy with the amount of women she sees going in and out of his apartment. But Declan promises that she is the only one. He is willing to take it slow, become friends again. Holly has been hurt so much by this man and she promised herself that she would never cry tears again because of him. But she also still loves him. Will she give him a second chance?

I really enjoyed this book but at the same time I also had issues with it. I loved the moments where the author took us back in time to see how Holly and Declan first started dating. We get to see the special moments from their past, which I loved. We know at this point that their breakup was due to a misunderstanding but it is not revealed right away. The author makes us wait for it, and I personally could not wait to see what really happened that night. When I did it made much more sense to me but I’m not sure it changed my opinion of Declan that much.

My issue was mainly with Declan. I like him and loved the man he was in the past. But I just did not understand his actions over the past two years. He loved Holly, he missed her, he wanted her back. So much so that he moved in across the hall. So why did he become such a man whore? That is the part that I cannot answer. I wanted to love him but his actions over the past two years made that hard for me. You could see how much he still loved Holly, how she meant the world to him. I saw that very clearly, but his actions just did not make sense to me. I also think Holly forgave too easily. But with all that aside I did enjoy the story, and the rest of the characters. In the end I liked Declan and truly believed they were meant to be together, but I just didn’t love him.

I love D. Kelly’s writing and as always the writing is wonderful, and truthfully I may be in the minority here. I know that many people will love this book and the characters as well. It is well written, going from present to past never once making it feel confusing and just flowed perfectly. I’m sure most people will not have the same issue with Declan as I did, so definitely give this one a try.

Purchase Links

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2xyXV32

Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/2xyx2QV

Kobo: http://bit.ly/2x2pYKY

iBooks: http://apple.co/2fkImFN

Giveaway

Signed Paperback of The Evolution of Us (1 winner) & $20 Amazon Gift Card (1 winner)

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Direct Link: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/b1257f8d188/?

About the Author

D. Kelly, author of The Acceptance Series, The Illusion Series, and standalone companion novels Chasing Cassidy and Sharing Rylee, was born and raised in Southern California. She’s a wife, mom, dog lover, taxi, problem fixer, and extreme multi-tasker. She married her high school sweetheart and is her kids’ biggest fan.
Kelly has been writing since she was young and took joy in spinning stories to her childhood friends. Margaritas and sarcasm make her smile, she loves the beach but hates the sand, and she believes Starbucks makes any day better.
A contemporary romance writer, D. Kelly’s stories revolve around friendship and the bond it creates, strengthening the love of the people who share it.