A review by lotusross
Whatever It Takes by Krista Ritchie, Becca Ritchie

2.0

“It’s not every day you meet someone that understands the things you love, but somehow I’ve crossed paths with someone who really does.”

Well…
This was a quick read, but also, kind of boring. My favorite parts were mostly the ones with the core six.

I find myself not being able to express anything I felt for this book. Did I like it? Enough, I guess. Did I hate it? Not really.. but then I realized I didn’t care enough to feel strongly about anything happening in this book except its side characters. But the thing that upsets me most, in a very mellow way, (because, again, I didn’t care enough to feel any strong emotion), is the fact that, the two things that stand out the most to me in the “I don’t care” list are the relationship and the main characters. I only started liking them and their relationship and feeling something more than disinterest towards the end.

It seems to me, that when a book is supposed to be about a romance between two characters, it goes without saying that said book should be centered on said relationship… let me tell you, this book did not. Or at least, it didn’t feel like it to me. I found myself more often than not forgetting that this was supposed to be a romance, and this went on for a good chunk of the book (up until 65%). I very much enjoyed the back and forth between the past and present, but most often than not it just felt.. weak, and I enjoyed the past a lot more, at least there you could SEE a “relationship”. The present just made it look like two people leaving separate lives and we’re getting each of them from different POVs. I didn’t feel the angst, I didn’t feel the longing, the hurt and the missing of each other it was supposed to portray. (Although, to be completely honest, Garrison’s POV was a bit better on this). I felt nothing.

In all honesty, this felt more like a filler book than a first installment in a duet.. Which, when you think about it, if this is the first book, what is it filling up for?

I wish I could say this book disappointed me, but I went into it with very low expectations, so none of it surprised me. I guess, at some point, when the authors disappoint you countless times, you just end up expecting it until you don’t feel it anymore because it’s the norm.

The only saving grace to me and the sole reason I’m giving this book more than 2 stars are the core six scenes, as I mentioned before.

I’m still going to give the second book a chance because everyone is saying it’s much better, but as far as this one goes… absolutely not a favorite.