RoomHate by Penelope Ward Review
5 Smooches
Synopsis
Sharing a summer house with a hot-as-hell roommate should be a dream come true, right?
Not when it’s Justin…the only person I’d ever loved…who now hates me.
When my grandmother died and left me half of the house on Aquidneck Island, there was a catch: the other half would go to the boy she helped raise.
The same boy who turned into the teenager whose heart I broke years ago.
The same teenager who’s now a man with a hard body and a hardass personality to match.
I hadn’t seen him in years, and now we’re living together because neither one of us is willing to give up the house.
The worst part? He didn’t come alone.
I’d soon realize there’s a thin line between love and hate. I could see through that smug smile. Beneath it all…the boy is still there. So is our connection.
The problem is…now that I can’t have Justin, I’ve never wanted him more.
Review
‘Living with Justin Banks was not an option, even if just for the summer.’
A NEW Penelope Ward book . . . YES PLEASE!!! An enemies to lover story . . . YES PLEASE!
‘What excuse could I possibly give him that would explain why I was hiding behind his door, watching him ejaculate like it was a Fourth of July fireworks performance?’
I am not entirely sure what I was expecting with this story but what I got blew me away. Like most of Penelope’s books, Roomhate was divided into two parts and the angst and drama building up from one to the other had me all kinds of nervous and anxious. Justin was hot, sexy and mean and completely unavailable.
“Trying to hate you is exhausting.”
These two former best friends are now full of hatred and thanks to Amelia’s grandmother leaving the beach house tot he both of them they are now tied together. They both decide to spend the summer in the house (along with Jade . . . Justin’s girlfriend) From the beginning Justin is a complete ass to Amelia and damn if it didn’t just make him sexier to me. The history and pain of these two former best friend runs deep and while they were never romantically involved when they knew each other as teenagers it is clear from the beginning that the feeling were there and when it all ended both were changed forever.
“You were being careful, and I was just clueless. Together we were . . . careless.”
You would think it would be easy to hate someone like Justin, he goes out of his way to be an ass to her and yet when needed he is always there. I couldn’t do it, I just could not find a way to dislike this man. He wears his pain out in the open for all to see but when he shows his sweet it just melts it all away.
‘It occurred to me that certain situations could be even more arousing than sex itself, those situations where you wanted something so badly but couldn’t have it. My body was experiencing an impossible state of arousal.”
For me the hardest part of the book was Jade. It would be so easy if I disliked her. I would root for him to come to his senses and just dump her already. But she is sweet and friendly to Amelia. She goes out of her way to ease the tension and befriend her and honestly I grew to really like her. To me this made the story feel so real to me. Real love is not clean and easy with everything falling in place. Real love is dirty and messy and full of obstacles that seem impossible to overcome.
‘I wanted him to spank me again. I never imagined the pressure of his hand would feel so good; but it did.’
I have been a fan on Penelope’s book since her very first one and have devoured them all. I can honestly say that if you enjoyed Stepbrother Dearest you will love Roomhate. While completely different the tones are similar. Roomhate hits the spot and is the perfect way to spend a lazy afternoon reading!
~miranda
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