Sempre (Forever, #1) by J.M. Darhower

5 Stars

WHAT A FREAKING G.R.E.A.T READ!!! ….

There’s a movie deal and a sequel in the works, OMG, PLEASE …. YES!!!

I <3 Sempre

I <3 Carmine

I <3 Haven

I <3 Vincent

I absolutely love finishing a good read, I feel like I am on such a high. I want to do diligence and convey all of my emotions properly, so let me take a *breath* and here it goes…

[SUMMARY/BLURB]

The blurb is fantastic and you don’t need to know anything else, but I will paraphrase. Haven is a second generation slave and is purchased by the wealthy Dr. Vincent DeMarco. Carmine is the son of Dr. Vincent DeMarco. Carmine is sort of the “prince” of the mafia. Although Haven and Carmine are from two completely different worlds, they use past pains and experience to help each other …. heal.

My summary doesn’t do justice, I mean, you read it and you’re probably thinking meh? BUT do not be fool…. it’s all in the writing.

[REVIEW]

I’m going to use this word a lot, so be prepared to see it sprinkle throughout, I LOVE Darhower’s writing style. The writing is 100%, completely, absolutely how I LOVE to read. Sempre is character and dialogue driven. Some people may equate “character-driven” with slow writing, but it is not, I PROMISE you.

530 pages is a long book and I had my doubts prior to reading and although I love a long book, it always worries me reading something that has so much hype, but you will not want Sempre to end. 30% into the book, so much has happened, I questioned if there was enough story to go on and there was. There was just so much to uncover, when I didn’t think there was and just bam, I’m hit with another reveal.

[Dr. Vincent DeMarco]

I usually start my reviews with an opinion on the heroine, but I have to say, my heart goes out to Dr. Vincent DeMarco. I know the story is about Carmine and Haven, but I was completely involved with Dr. DeMarco’s story. He’s the complete alpha male, who is loyal, lovable, completely whole-heartily passionate and major swoon-worthy in my opinion.. Dr. DeMarco is a complex character and just when you think he’s figured out, he kind of surprises you.

On to the Heroine and Hero…

[Haven]

Oh sweet, lovable, timid, shy, slave-girl, Haven. Let me just explain, this isn’t a BDSM or sexual story, but it’s 100% die-for-each-other romance. There are some mild scenes, but that’s about it and it’s perfect really. Haven is a great character, at first we see this sad, scared, small “child” and slowly as the layers peel off, we really get to know Haven’s inner struggles especially with past issues and her current situation. YOU.FEEL.FOR.HER.

[Carmine]

Then there’s Carmine, what can I say, I LOVE bad-boys who are well let’s just say it, act like a$$holes. Carmine is melt-your-panties worthy. Oh the Italian terms of endearments he uses and Italian poetry he rephrases, anything Italian coming from his mouth was making me combust. Carmine is a complex character with deep rooted issues and not all is apparent at first and of course he gets into trouble, but as Haven and Carmine interact with each other, a lot more is revealed.

[Overall Opinion]
I love dialogue-driven books, but what I love most is when authors create unique voices for each character and Darhower did that 10-folds. There’s no question who I was reading because each character had his or her own unique voice.

Let me talk about the title reference (something I ALWAYS look for in a book), I don’t speak any Italian, so at the 50% mark and the title is finally referenced, I think almost fell off my couch, because I was so ecstatic when I found out how Darhower references “Sempre”. You will not be disappointed.

About 70% in, there’s a lot of drama, action, deception and pull-your-hair-out, I’m stressing, need-to-calm-the-F-down moments. It was the perfect shift that was needed in the story.

Sempre is a sweet read and has mild tension in the first half, but overall, there’s plenty of OMG, did-that-just-happened-situations. It is also not your cookie cutter book, but because of that, it makes it more emotional, real and RAW.

I CAN.NOT.STRESS how much I LOVED Sempre and completely utterly recommend!

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