In writing this review, I’ve realized two things. I’m consistently apologizing for huge gaps in posting. Maybe I’ll try thanking you for your patience this go ’round? Not that I think any of you are checking daily. The other thing is this is the second book in three reviews by Saffron A. Kent. Fun facts, amiright?
So, Dreams of 18 is an age gap romance that starts with our shy heroine on her 16th birthday. Things move quickly through the exposition of her kissing her best friend’s dad and neighbor. She’s caught, small town drama follows, and we move to the question of “will there be a HEA?” that’s not typically a real question in the romance genre.
Now that we’re all on the same page for plot, let’s settle into the good stuff…
Things I loved about the book:
- Steamy scenes. Kent is an expert at scenes that have your Kindle glowing extra bright. *wink* Those that are bothered by an 18 year old with a man twice her age OR some extra items, like food, in the bedroom may want to pass. I’m not kink shaming here, but am giving a PSA for those with different ideas of what’s hot.
- The journal entries at the beginning of the chapters. I really enjoyed the snippets from Violet’s journal. It felt like they captured something universally human about being young or in love. They felt a little bit J. Iron Word inspired, which I extra loved.
- The refusal of the author to have a man fix mental health issues. Although it was pretty underdeveloped, we still saw the outline that hard work outside the relationship was required to help Violet fight her demons.
Some things I didn’t love…
- Overall, the details felt skipped. The story felt rushed. I hated that we saw the main characters’ story develop almost exclusively in the bedroom. The exposition felt short, and anything from Graham’s perspective was surface only. It led to the book feeling rushed and any attempt at delicious tension felt almost nonexistent. I like Kent’s books because she typically does this so well.
- I’m not entirely sure how we got to the end of the story. It felt like Graham was pushy, ultimately not fulfilling Violet’s most recent dream entirely, I have no idea what job he ended up with to support them after the move (except for roses at the cabin?), and it’s unclear if Graham experienced any true growth as the story closed.
Ultimately, I recommend if you’re more focused on getting some face-fanning holy hotness out of a read than a fully developed story. If that’s where you’re at, you should give it a go.
Reading Minds 