Feature Friday - "Defining Love" by Elizabeth Reyes

I'll be honest, I feel like I'm cheating a bit here because I published this review on Goodreads and Amazon a couple of weeks ago. But I really enjoyed the read and so here is what I thought of Defining Love by Elizabeth Reyes. This review is for all three volumes together, since I read almost all of them in one night (and finished one hour the next).

I picked up "Defining Love" with my Kindle Unlimited, and I'm glad I did. I've read many of the 5th Street and Moreno Brothers' stories, and I just keep coming back. I would say that in comparison to those which are related to each other, these are not (yet--will they be?) tied into other stories. That was a little bit refreshing for me. Also, while I still felt Aaron would be considered "alpha," it seemed played down a bit, which worked well with the story. Along those lines, most of the "sexy" scenes are closer to the end, and a bit played down as well. I think these were good things for Henri and Aaron's story, as their's was such an emotional journey.

I really enjoyed Henri's resiliency, and I think that made her moments of weakness so much more poignant. There's one particular scene where she is explaining to Aaron what is wrong with her and as a reader it was so emotional and even visceral to watch her deal with her demons.

I think really one of my favorite things about this story is how the characters know one thing but act like another. It reminds me of real life, when you know one thing in your head but you keep holding out hope in your heart that what your head knows just isn't true. I know this was a source of conflict for the characters, and it was done really well. I think too often we get to see the "noble" character who always uses their head and nips any problems right when they arise. But here, it is the combination of hope and fear that keeps the characters from taking action, and like I said, this was really well done and as such, one of my favorite components of the story because hey--those characters aren't perfect and noble.

I also appreciated how, as I suspect is intended by the title, different types of "love" are realized, as well as the difference in loving someone and being in love with someone.