True by Erin McCarthy

Book Description:

When Rory Macintosh’s roommates find out that their studious and shy friend has never been with a guy, they decide that, as an act of kindness they’ll help her lose her virginity by hiring confident, tattooed bad boy Tyler Mann to do the job…unbeknownst to Rory.

Tyler knows he’s not good enough for Rory. She’s smart, doctor smart, while he’s barely scraping by at his EMT program, hoping to pull his younger brothers out of the hell their druggy mother has left them in. But he can’t resist taking up her roommates on an opportunity to get to know her better. There’s something about her honesty that keeps him coming back when he knows he shouldn’t…

Torn between common sense and desire, the two find themselves caught up in a passionate relationship. But when Tyler’s broken family threatens to destroy his future, and hers, Rory will need to decide whether to cut her ties to his risky world or follow her heart, no matter what the cost…

I'm kind of having a hard time trying to decide how to rate this one, so I'll break it down to a pro's and con's list.

Pro's
• The characters were very well developed.
• Rory's thought process was a refreshing change of pace for the leading lady, especially with the virgin story line going on.
• Tyler was actually a really good guy who did the best he could in his situation. I felt like his troubles were so well written they really put the reader in his position and it was heartbreaking.
• The side characters were a hoot and also well written. (I'm looking forward to Jessica's book next!)


Con's
• The ending felt extremely rushed. While it was a happy one, I felt there could have been more.
• I was hoping for more of a reaction from Rory when she found out about her friends hiring Tyler to take her virginity. Her initial reaction was well done, but I felt like she should have said something to them or confronted him about it or just something different than what happened. On one hand I guess how she handled went with her personality but on the other hand, I don't see any girl letting something like that go. (Maybe I've just seen She's All That too many times) ;)

My initial thought was to go with a 3 or 3.5 but when I really think about it, I had a hard time putting this one down. It was definitely a page turner and the author did great job with the good parts. And the con's are more of a personal preference rather than a reflection on the authors writing. So I deem it a solid 4 star read!


Review copy was provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.