ONE by JEWEL E ANN

“Let’s never be in love. Let’s fall every day without ever touching the ground.”

Be still our beating hearts because we’ve fallen head over heels in love with this book! We never thought Jewel E Anne would produce a hero to equal the divine Luke Jones from the Jack & Jill Series –  in Cage Monaghan she has! Talk about sweeping us off our feet. Cage is an explosion of swooon!

‘Lake was her own universe, and when I had the pleasure of being part of it, I wasn’t a famous football player and I wasn’t the man grieving his father. I was the guy who wanted to make being with her a full-time profession.’

The words swoony, romantic and heart-warming don’t adequately express the feelings we had for this love story as our hearts overflowed with huge helpings of sharp wit, happiness, laughter, love, romance and a few heart gripping moments. What more could we ask for?

“When your season begins and we don’t see each other as much, can you do me a favour?”
“Anything.”
“Don’t forget to love me.”
“I’ll forget how to throw a football before I’ll forget to love you.”

Jewel E Ann has a true gift. She’s such a seamless storyteller. Her comedic timing is perfection, knowing exactly when we need that blast of humour when she’s breaking our hearts.  Not only does she deliver the most gorgeous hero’s, but her heroines are ones we want to emulate. We want to be Lake Jones! She’s kick arse, sweet, grabs life by the balls and she doesn’t mind laughing at herself. This girl doesn’t shy away from the truth and she’s funny as all hell though she did have one moment towards the end that had us questioning her actions and reasoning.

We first met Lake, Luke’s sister in the Jack & Jill Series  (if you haven’t read this series…you need to because it’s spectacular), after Lake had a brief encounter with Cage Monaghan yet he had a profound effect on her life, and they shared a connection that began that day… ‘I knew him for a few hours. One day. One kiss. One moment. One unforgettable memory.’ at a time when Lake had been working through the unimaginable grief of surviving a car accident that claimed the life of her boyfriend Ben, and was feeling pretty much at rock bottom. Not only that, but she had to cope with losing her lower leg. However Lake doesn’t just accept her disability, she embraces it and oh my God, didn’t the witty banter between Cage and Lake in regards to her missing leg have us in fits of laughter.

“Time is too precious to waste. I don’t want to plan. I want to live.”

It’s three years later and they pick up where they left off, each feeling the connection once again ignite “And Lake…I remember the kiss. I remember it well” and although their feelings were instant in the timing of the story, not once did this feel like insta love as we experienced every ounce of feeling between them and not only that, we believed in their love. They’re soulmates but that doesn’t mean their relationship isn’t without its ups and downs as their way through family and careers.

‘After his whole body visibly relaxed and I was certain that he was asleep, I looked in the direction of God and whispered, “Can I keep him? Pretty please?”

These days it’s so rare to experience a book that focuses solely on the love, romance and fun of the evolving relationship between a couple, and considering Cage’s profession it would have been so easy for this author to have taken us down the overused celebrity cliché route, but she didn’t and in return this story felt like a bit of a refreshing change.

We were completely invested One, positively giddy with  hearts swelling and faces grinning. So…it was with a smidgen of disappointment that we were met with, what we felt, unnecessary angst so late in the story. Sure, it pulled at our heartstrings but it also had a downside in that it seemed to change Lake’s persona. Lake came across a little self-centred, the very opposite to how she was throughout the rest of the story. Whilst we wish it part of the storyline hadn’t been there (and that’s a purely personal thing), we soon realised that after that beautiful epilogue and coming to the end, this was a small hiccup in an otherwise immensely enjoyable read.

“Football is my job. Let me worry about it. You are my life…worry about that. “

We can’t possibly leave without once again mentioning our hero Cage Monaghan *insert huge swoony sigh here*. Oh Cage, you sweet, irresistible, gorgeous man! Not only are you a gifted NFL Quarterback but you have a romantic heart the size of Texas where our girl Lake is concerned. Nobody but nobody does romance like this guy. We highlighted so much of this book we could use the quotes as a review and you’d be swooning and swaying, 1clicking this book, going ga ga over Cage. Passionate, loving and a bit of a dirty talker, this guy is it and so is this book. We adored every character and for all that’s holy, please give Flint Hopkins a book! We desperately loved One and know you will too!

‘I nodded, giving Flint a blank stare. The man was an enigma – a hard-ass with a million layers, and I had no idea what he kept hidden beneath them. I wasn’t sure I really wanted to know.’