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A review by bookishlychar
The One I Want by Chelle Sloan
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Wes comes home from announcing his retirement from professional football to find his wife packing her bags and leaving him. She doesn't want the kids or anything to do with him, she is done. Wes is taken by surprise and left to pick up the pieces. Turning to the help of friends and family he decides to move back to the town he grew up in, so it is easier to get the help he needs. Knowing he can't continue to rely only on family, he hires a nanny, Betsy. Betsy is undeniably attractive, but as Wes sees her with his kids more and more feelings develop. They both agree that they cannot get involved, for the kids and the mess a break-up could cause.
I loved Betsy. She came off as a bit chaotic, but her love and devotion to Wes's three kids were amazing. She gave them exactly what they needed and built them up strong. I did struggle a bit with Wes, he was completely blindsided with his divorce and that left some trauma. He transferred some of his feelings of being abandoned onto Betsy and that was not fair to her. It was clear why he did that, but unfair to Betsy. That said, these two seemed to be great for each other. They were what the other needed where they were in their lives. Wes gave Betsy unconditional love, and family while Betsy broke him out of his stress bubble.
I never thought I could hate the ex-wife as much as I did. She not only abandoned her husband by blindsiding him but left her kids and moved to another state. She barely had any contact with them. My heart ached for these poor little ones. That said, Betsy was amazing for them! She brought out the best in each of them.
This was such a heartfelt romance that was full of laughter, pain and healing. I love that we got to meet the future characters of the other books and can't wait to read them!
Read if you like: single dad/nanny, football, found family
I loved Betsy. She came off as a bit chaotic, but her love and devotion to Wes's three kids were amazing. She gave them exactly what they needed and built them up strong. I did struggle a bit with Wes, he was completely blindsided with his divorce and that left some trauma. He transferred some of his feelings of being abandoned onto Betsy and that was not fair to her. It was clear why he did that, but unfair to Betsy. That said, these two seemed to be great for each other. They were what the other needed where they were in their lives. Wes gave Betsy unconditional love, and family while Betsy broke him out of his stress bubble.
I never thought I could hate the ex-wife as much as I did. She not only abandoned her husband by blindsiding him but left her kids and moved to another state. She barely had any contact with them. My heart ached for these poor little ones. That said, Betsy was amazing for them! She brought out the best in each of them.
This was such a heartfelt romance that was full of laughter, pain and healing. I love that we got to meet the future characters of the other books and can't wait to read them!
Read if you like: single dad/nanny, football, found family