Meant to be More (Meant to Be Series, #4), by Amelia Foster

Publication: June 25, 2020

meant to be more About:

My best friend has spent the past several years traveling the world with Doctors Without Borders. It’s been her life’s dream and something I’ve always admired about her. But somehow, after twenty years of friendship, our last goodbye brought about the realization of a truth I hadn’t yet recognized.

I don’t just respect Jillian, I am in love with her, and it’s time she knows.

But upon her return home, she manages to lay her own shocking news on me before I can even form the words to tell her how I feel. It seems she needs access to the fortune her grandfather left her in his will. But there’s one problem.

The caveat being an antiquated, but ironclad stipulation that she can’t receive the funds unless she gets married and stays that way for eighteen months.

Naturally, I’m the only person she can trust with such a delicate arrangement. And I’m also hopelessly in love with her, so I’ll greedily take the chance to fake-marry my best friend.

This way, I can prove to her that we are meant to be more than just friends.

My Review

I’m so excited to review the final installment in Amelia Foster’s Meant to Be series, Meant to Be More! I must admit that this is a bittersweet moment because I have adored this series and don’t want to see it end, but this may have been my favorite in the series, so it went out with a bang.

In Meant to be More, we get the story of the youngest Carlisle brother, Dean, and his best friend Jillian. She has been traveling the world with her job but is finally returning to Asheville. Dean has a huge secret to tell her because he realized this time that she was gone, that he had fallen in love with her. Before he gets to explain to his best friend that he loves her as more than friends, she asks him to marry her in order to fulfill stipulations of her grandfather’s will.

So, the basic premise of needing to get married because of stipulations in a will is kind of silly in this day and age. However, it worked beautifully in this story. I mean, what better way to push two people together that are living in denial about how they really feel? Typical of Foster’s writing style, this story was told from Dean and Jillian’s dual POVs and also went back and forth between past and present from when they first met at seven years old to when they were graduating from high school. I will admit that the present-day storyline held my attention the most, but the past storylines provided a great deal of history regarding what shaped each of them growing up and how they developed their amazingly strong bond.

Meant to be More is a happy, romantic, and sexy read that leaves you feeling every warm and fuzzy emotion imaginable. This book is pretty much drama-free except for their internal conflict about their feelings and Jillian’s snooty mother, but it didn’t need a bunch of conflict and challenges to make it a beautifully complex book. This is about two people that have always loved each other as friends as they try to come to terms with their changing feelings and potential risks to their friendship. You will laugh, cry, and swoon while you read this one. I cannot recommend this one enough!

*Although part of a series, you do not need to have read the previous books to enjoy this one! They are all stand-alones!

**Thank you to Amelia Foster for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

Order Meant to be More on Amazon!

Book Reviews

Book Review: Meant to be Different (Meant to Be #2), by Amelia Foster

July 8, 2019July 8, 2019 dandelionsinspired

Meant to be Different (Meant to Be #2),

by Amelia Foster

Publication: Limitless Publishing; July 9, 2019

meant to be different About the book:

As a teen, I had my life figured out: graduate and make my dream of being a bull riding champion a reality. That is right up until the goth girl transferred to my school. Georgia laid the snark on as thick as her eyeliner, but I saw through the toughened façade and fell for her. Hard.

She was willing to give up her own dream to follow me as I pursued my passion, but I couldn’t let her do that. So, I made the hardest decision of my life…and walked away.

It’s been twelve years since I left home without her and the all-grown-up Georgia is just as feisty and fiery as she was back then. It’s clear she has no intention of making redemption easy for me. Thankfully, I’m a patient man who knows what he wants. I’ve never stopped loving her, and I know she feels the same.

Back then I was a rhinestone cowboy, and she was a dark angel, complete opposites, yet we fell in love anyway. We weren’t meant to be like every other cookie-cutter couple, we were meant to be different.

My Review

Back in January I read and reviewed Amelia Foster’s debut novel, Meant to Be Kept, and just in case you have forgotten, I loved it! So, of course, I am crazy excited to bring you my review of the next installment in her Meant to Be series, Meant to Be Different. You don’t need to have read Meant to Be Kept in order to enjoy this one, but if you did, you will remember that Tanner’s major screw-up occurred while on the road with his rodeo/cowboy brother, Wyatt. This is Wyatt’s story. Told in dual POV’s between Wyatt and his high school love, Georgia, this is a beautiful story about an unexpected couple, an unexpected love story, and love that stands the tests of time.

After a life of fame as a rodeo star, Wyatt decides to retire and the only thing on his mind is to return home to Asheville (after 12 years) to start a rodeo training program and to see Georgia again, of course. Georgia and Wyatt met in high school when she moved to Asheville from Tampa and she was the unusual goth girl, whereas, Wyatt was the epitome of southern charm, cowboy, and gentlemen wrapped all up in a pretty package. But alas, he broke her heart. When Georgia first sees Wyatt again after the way he left, she is reluctant to trust him, but it doesn’t take long to realize that all of those old feelings never really went away.

Ladies, prepare yourselves for Wyatt Carlisle because, my goodness, this man is a charmer! He’s sweet, sexy, mannerly, and so on, but the thing that truly gripped my heart was that he was just that way naturally. There was no added flair, acting, etc. This character hat Amelia Foster created was just honestly that good of a person.

Georgia (Gigi) was also an amazing character and believe when I say that this women had been through hell and back in the span of 12 or so years. Constantly battling whether to take care of her family or take care of herself, this woman still managed to maintain a fantastic sense of humor and I adored her for it.

Much like Foster’s debut novel, this one has a lot to do with forgiveness. Although the subject matter in Meant to Be Different is nothing like its predecessor, Meant to Be Kept, there is still the ongoing theme regarding forgiveness. Moreover, Foster clearly celebrates those unlikely or somewhat mismatched couples, which I loved! While growing up, Wyatt didn’t care about her dark eyeliner, fishnets, and Doc Martens and how they strongly contrasted with his cowboy boots and hat. This story is about finding your person, regardless of the package they may come in, loving them with every fiber of your soul, and learning to forgive and move on when one or the other screws up.

As I reflect on this novel, I can’t say that I truly adored it as much as Amelia Foster’s debut, however, this one was wonderful nonetheless. I realize that I shouldn’t compare the two because it’s not as if it were a sequel, so just as it is, it’s a highly recommended read. Especially for those who love second-chance romances, you will eat this one up.

*A special thanks to Amelia Foster for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Pre-Order Meant to Be Different on Amazon!

Book Reviews

Book Review: Meant to be Kept, by Amelia Foster

January 20, 2019 dandelionsinspired

Meant to be Kept, by Amelia Foster

Publication: Limitless Publishing, LLC; January 22, 2019

meant to be kept About the book:

One night. One too many drinks. One mistake. That’s all it took to derail my marriage.

Now, all I can do is beg for a second chance. To try and redeem myself in a bid not to lose the love of my life.

I’m determined to use every second, every moment I have to show my wife how much she means to me—to rebuild the trust I shattered.

But the harder I try, the more I start to realize our marriage had fallen into a routine of complacency and misplaced priorities long before my indiscretion.

Isabelle is a strong, passionate, beautiful woman—a wife who has sacrificed so much for me. I just hope it’s not too late for us, and that I’ll be able to convince her that our love is meant to be kept.

My Review:

I have to start with a huge and sincere congratulations to Amelia Foster and her debut novel, Meant to be Kept. Really, just, wow! This novel is about the amazing love story between Tanner and Isabelle, the huge hurdle that they face, and the lengths Tanner goes to in order to keep them together as husband and wife. Told in dual points of view and flashing back and forth between the past and present, author Amelia Foster provides an in-depth look into where Tanner and Isabelle started, how their relationship changed, what went wrong, and how they tried to make it right again.

Without giving spoilers, I have to mention that this is an interesting story because I absolutely adored Tanner from beginning to end. There were times I felt I shouldn’t like his character because of things that had happened but I just couldn’t help myself! I truly loved Isabelle also, except for one little thing that annoyed me from time to time. Tanner and all of his family had apparently put Isabelle up on a pedestal many years ago and several characters mention her “perfection” throughout the novel. Yes, I thought she was fantastic, but no one is perfect. The more her perfection was implied, the more everyone shot Tanner down (including himself). I get that we should all be thankful for those we have in our lives, however, I don’t really agree with feeling undeserving or making others feel undeserving of someone’s love.

Anyhow, this is Amelia Foster’s debut novel and I want to warn you that you will not believe this is her first novel as you read it. The flow of the writing and the development of the plot moves along beautifully and flawlessly, even with dual POV and changing time periods. Her characters are well-developed, honest, and relatable. The events within the story are certainly believable, as well as, the roller-coaster of emotions that Tanner, Isabelle, and their family experience throughout the novel. Besides being a romantic and outstanding read (that you will immediately get sucked into), Meant to be Kept will probably make you give your spouse/significant other an extra kiss before work tomorrow morning, pick their dirty clothes up off of the floor without comment, or even let them take charge of the remote for the evening. It just leaves you with the feeling that it never hurts to take the time to do random, little things to show someone you care.

I absolutely loved this novel and it certainly has earned a 5-star rating from me 🙂

*Many thanks to the author for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest review!