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A review by kfriend
Addicted To Him by Monica Murphy
5.0
Addicted to Him is EVERYTHING I want in a steamy YA romance- the drama and angst of being a teen, the nostalgic resonance of sweet first love, characters who are refreshingly young and figuring themselves out, and an emotional journey that had me, well, addicted to this story. Eli and Drew stole my heart!
This story can be read as a standalone- but fans will be happy to see this continuation of the Callahan family story. We met Ava’s parents in the very popular One Week Girlfriend series, and the prior two books in this story were the stories of Ava’s older two siblings. The events of this book take place concurrently with those of her slightly older brother Jake’s book, which preceded this, and it was so fun to get to see the happenings of that story from another lens.
Sweet Ava is the youngest daughter of Fable and Drew, the legendary football star who now adorably coaches high school football. Everything her family does centers around football- her brother is the star QB of his team, her sister a cheerleader who is in love with the prior team QB, even her baby brother loves football. Meanwhile, Ava feels like her entire identity is swept up in the passions and legacy of everyone around her- a sentiment only reinforced when she’s forced to go with her family to the team's summer football camp. And suddenly nothing is the same- because her path crosses with the notorious Eli Bennett- her brother’s rival, an arrogant, dirty talking, off limits boy- but after a few stolen moments, their magnetic pull is undeniable But Ava is unwilling to fall for the enemy, to disappoint the men she loves- too bad for her, Eli is unwilling to let her go. He’s struggling enough in his life- and he’s unwilling to give up the one thing that gives him joy- Ava. What follows is an angsty, swoony, delightful enemies to lovers story that broke my heart in places and had me smiling in others….all up until that jaw dropping cliff hanger!
Ava was just so charming- she’s different from everything and everyone around her. She doesn’t care about popularity, she doesn’t feed into her family’s football mania, she keeps to herself- in fact, she’s decidedly average when you look at her on paper. But she’s anything but average as a character- there are so many layers to her. She’s a bit sad and lonely, even though she never says so- and she’s desperately craving to establish her own identity and to make decisions that are not tied to her family or her last name. She’s sweet, innocent, and kind, but her relationship with Eli awakens her- her sass, her direct and proactive nature, and her boldness. She’s not as much of an open book as Eli, and I think we still have much to learn about her ambitions- but I loved her so.
And Eli- oh my heart. I wasn’t sure I could love him, but I loved him so hard. At first, he comes off as an arrogant jerk. He acts like a real teenage boy- self-important, overly confident, horny, impulsive, jealous. But he’s got so much heart- and he’s repressing so many feelings- anger, abandonment, frustration. When he finally moves past the bravado and we see into his soul, I just fell so hard for him. He’s still arrogant and smug, but he’s also so charming and lovable. I loved how vulnerable he gets, and his deep devotion to Ava despite her resistance.
And these two together? OH MY. young love magic. So much angst, that dramatic push-pull, the magnetic tug between them paired with the sweetness of opening your heart to someone for the first time. This is a slower burn- and it makes it all the sweeter when these two finally find their way to fully embrace their attraction and need, because it feels soulful once they do. They are simply adorable.
What I find so endearing and so fantastic about this book (and this series) is how Monica lets these teenagers be just that- TEENS. They are impulsive, at times hurtfully so, trigger happy and overly emotional and dramatic. This is what it is like to be a teen- to be so overwhelmed by all you feel that you can’t always process it all rationally, to not yet have the full emotional intelligence to make sense of the very adult feelings and cravings you are experiencing for the first time- which makes you erratic, unpredictable, and angsty. Monica lets them truly act like teens- especially Eli. And that is what makes me have all the feels- remembering the awkward but giddy stolen first kisses and the unfamiliar and consuming feelings of first love where everything feels like the beginning and end of the world. All while trying to figure out who you are as human. That’s what I love in a YA- that nostalgic magic of young love paired with an emotionally resonant character story. And Monica delivers on both. I really loved every moment.
Be warned- this one ends on a giant, and heart breaking cliffy. All the emotions, all the angst, all the tenderness leading up to it are truly YA magic- and I can’t wait to find out what happens in the second part of this story! Ava and Eli’s book is by far my favorite in this series thus far- and Ava sure is giving Drew and Fable a run for their money as one of the best MM couples of all time! I loved this book!
This story can be read as a standalone- but fans will be happy to see this continuation of the Callahan family story. We met Ava’s parents in the very popular One Week Girlfriend series, and the prior two books in this story were the stories of Ava’s older two siblings. The events of this book take place concurrently with those of her slightly older brother Jake’s book, which preceded this, and it was so fun to get to see the happenings of that story from another lens.
Sweet Ava is the youngest daughter of Fable and Drew, the legendary football star who now adorably coaches high school football. Everything her family does centers around football- her brother is the star QB of his team, her sister a cheerleader who is in love with the prior team QB, even her baby brother loves football. Meanwhile, Ava feels like her entire identity is swept up in the passions and legacy of everyone around her- a sentiment only reinforced when she’s forced to go with her family to the team's summer football camp. And suddenly nothing is the same- because her path crosses with the notorious Eli Bennett- her brother’s rival, an arrogant, dirty talking, off limits boy- but after a few stolen moments, their magnetic pull is undeniable But Ava is unwilling to fall for the enemy, to disappoint the men she loves- too bad for her, Eli is unwilling to let her go. He’s struggling enough in his life- and he’s unwilling to give up the one thing that gives him joy- Ava. What follows is an angsty, swoony, delightful enemies to lovers story that broke my heart in places and had me smiling in others….all up until that jaw dropping cliff hanger!
Ava was just so charming- she’s different from everything and everyone around her. She doesn’t care about popularity, she doesn’t feed into her family’s football mania, she keeps to herself- in fact, she’s decidedly average when you look at her on paper. But she’s anything but average as a character- there are so many layers to her. She’s a bit sad and lonely, even though she never says so- and she’s desperately craving to establish her own identity and to make decisions that are not tied to her family or her last name. She’s sweet, innocent, and kind, but her relationship with Eli awakens her- her sass, her direct and proactive nature, and her boldness. She’s not as much of an open book as Eli, and I think we still have much to learn about her ambitions- but I loved her so.
And Eli- oh my heart. I wasn’t sure I could love him, but I loved him so hard. At first, he comes off as an arrogant jerk. He acts like a real teenage boy- self-important, overly confident, horny, impulsive, jealous. But he’s got so much heart- and he’s repressing so many feelings- anger, abandonment, frustration. When he finally moves past the bravado and we see into his soul, I just fell so hard for him. He’s still arrogant and smug, but he’s also so charming and lovable. I loved how vulnerable he gets, and his deep devotion to Ava despite her resistance.
And these two together? OH MY. young love magic. So much angst, that dramatic push-pull, the magnetic tug between them paired with the sweetness of opening your heart to someone for the first time. This is a slower burn- and it makes it all the sweeter when these two finally find their way to fully embrace their attraction and need, because it feels soulful once they do. They are simply adorable.
What I find so endearing and so fantastic about this book (and this series) is how Monica lets these teenagers be just that- TEENS. They are impulsive, at times hurtfully so, trigger happy and overly emotional and dramatic. This is what it is like to be a teen- to be so overwhelmed by all you feel that you can’t always process it all rationally, to not yet have the full emotional intelligence to make sense of the very adult feelings and cravings you are experiencing for the first time- which makes you erratic, unpredictable, and angsty. Monica lets them truly act like teens- especially Eli. And that is what makes me have all the feels- remembering the awkward but giddy stolen first kisses and the unfamiliar and consuming feelings of first love where everything feels like the beginning and end of the world. All while trying to figure out who you are as human. That’s what I love in a YA- that nostalgic magic of young love paired with an emotionally resonant character story. And Monica delivers on both. I really loved every moment.
Be warned- this one ends on a giant, and heart breaking cliffy. All the emotions, all the angst, all the tenderness leading up to it are truly YA magic- and I can’t wait to find out what happens in the second part of this story! Ava and Eli’s book is by far my favorite in this series thus far- and Ava sure is giving Drew and Fable a run for their money as one of the best MM couples of all time! I loved this book!