I’ve tried to figure out how to start this review a million times over, because there is so many thoughts running through my head. Before you wonder if I am going to tear this book apart in a negative way, let me assure you I am not. I really did love Scandalized.
Before I start a book, I always read the back cover and the last chapter. I know, I know, I shouldn’t. It’s never the epilogue. It’s the last chapter. I want to know what the book is about and if it doesn’t have an ending that intrigues me, I don’t want to bother getting there. If you can’t wrap up a book in a way that makes a person want to see how you got there.
And reading the last chapter made me want to see how we got there. Scandalized was definitely intriguing.
But I got distracted for a second by the author bio, and how it said that Ivy Owens has been best selling romance novels under a different pseudonym for a decade under a different pen name.
Wait, hold the phone. This could be someone whose books I have read before? I have to admit that made me even more excited. I like a good mystery. I did have an idea that it was Lauren from Christina Lauren, because the writing felt like a book I read on Wattpad a few years ago from her. I was glad to see I was right when she announced it on Instagram.
But, settling in and picking up the 300 page book, I lost sight of worrying about Ivy Owens and fell into the pages of the book.
A one-night stand between two old childhood friends turns into something more, but when a scandal threatens to tear them apart, they must decide how hard to fight for love—a steamy romance debut perfect for fans of Tessa Bailey and Kennedy Ryan.
Exhausted and on deadline with a story that could make or break her career, investigative journalist Georgia Ross is on the verge of a meltdown when a cancelled flight leaves her stuck in the airport overnight. But when a familiar face appears—the older brother of her childhood friend—and offers help, Gigi seems to have caught a break.
Alec Kim is handsome, humble, and kind—exactly the sort of man that Gigi has forgotten existed after her own painful heartbreaks. An evening of reconnection followed by a night of no-strings-attached passion with Alec feels like a gift—that is, until Gigi finally realizes that their childhood connection isn’t the only reason he seems so familiar to her.
Alec is determined to prove to Gigi that he is truly the man she thinks he is, even if it means coming clean about his fame—and his family’s connection to the story Gigi’s been working so hard to break. But as their feelings for each other grow deeper, Gigi and Alec must navigate a new reality…one where both of their hard-won careers are put directly in the path of an international scandal.
Sounds juicy right? Well, it definitely is.
Ever seen someone and you’re convinced that you know them but you aren’t sure from where? You’re in an airport and a face looks so familiar, but you can’t place it. It’s the worst day and everything is wrong, until all of the sudden you place him.
He is your childhood best friends big brother. It takes him a second but he places you and after ten years, you reconnect.
Gigi and Alec are characters that from the first page, you wonder, what secrets are they hiding? They both seem to be guarded, both driven and focused on their lives. Georgia (Gigi) focused on the big story that he’s working on, Alec on his job in television.
Did we mention that he’s one of the most famous Korean actors in the world? Gigi didn’t recognize him until they fly back into Los Angeles and his entourage and security are there. Quick google searches tells her exactly who he is.
The thing about Scandalized is that at first you think you’re reading a reconnection story, one where they will fall in love and happily ever after will come. You’ve got two people who are supportive of each other and recognizing that their connection is deep and instant.
From the first page, the connection to the characters in Scandalized is there. Even Yael, who doesn’t seem to the be nicest person, but also being an assistant myself, I get the stand offishness and focus on ones job. In this book, there is not a single character that doesn’t stick with you and cause you to look forward, hoping nothing but the best for them.
You get drawn in, turning the pages and not realizing that all of the sudden you’re 100 pages in, and then 200, and then you’re like wait, how am I done.
Owens crafts a story that moves fast, in some points too fast, leaving you wanting more. Yes, yes, there are some really hot and steamy moments, but the sex comes secondary to a story that is different.
A story that well, in all honesty, I didn’t see the twist coming.
Scandalized is a page turner, one that has you believing in love, reconnection, the power of standing up for the things that you believe in and doing what is right. Alec and Gigi are two characters you will love, root for, and will leave an impression on your fandom loving heart.
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