Torn apart by a series of miscarriages, Levi O’Devlin is no longer in the market for a relationship. How can he, when the alpha of his dreams craves a baby so much? Instead, Levi spends his days as a cashier, daydreaming of a better life.Cole Lancaster had an omega, a long time ago. But a devastating accident happened, injuring Levi’s friend and driving Cole and Levi apart. To escape his guilt … his guilt these days, Cole works as a firefighter, borrowing his nephew just so he has a baby to hold.
It doesn’t hurt that Levi’s working right where Cole’s nephew is… and Levi always smells so good.
When Levi’s gran makes an irresistible offer—on the condition that Levi produces a great-grandchild—Levi’s faced with a difficult choice: to give up the house of his memories, or to find someone to stand in as the ‘boyfriend’ he’s been telling Gran about.
Cole doesn’t mind being a pretend boyfriend, right? Never mind that Levi’s heart still yearns for this alpha, and never mind that Cole’s giving him another baby he can’t carry to term. This is all just a pretense.
The Pretense is a 72k-word standalone non-shifter MPreg romance novel, with family bumblebee outfits, hurt/comfort themes, and an alpha who has secretly never stopped loving his omega.
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I was routing for these two since the last book. They have so much baggage and pain to deal with. There were a few moments when I was worried for them but I love the outcome.
Levi and Cole’s story pulls hard on your heartstrings. The two love each other so much but the past still stands in their way. When the two agree to pretend to be in a relationship the chaos begins. Emotions come rushing back to the forefront for both men. Can they let the past go and try for a future together or is the pain too much to forget?
I love this series and enjoy being able to see each couple find their way to happiness. Cole and Levi make a good couple and the love that they have for each other shines through everything. The author does a wonderful job of showing the depth of these characters and the pain that they go through to find a happy ever after. This series continues to be fresh and engaging and each book leaves the reader eager for more from this world.
This was another great addition to the Men of Meadowfall series. There was so much pain and angst here, with Levi and Cole both unable to let go of guilt for a fire years ago that injured omega MIcah. Levi also had the added sorrow of five miscarriages in his past, the first of which was a baby he created with Cole. Despite strong feelings for each other, they broke up and had been apart for years when Levi suddenly needed a pretend boyfriend. Cole happily stepped in.
These characters were sweet and sensitive, and I really wanted to send them to counselling for most of the book. They had so much pain inside, and neither was sure he deserved a happy ending. It was an emotional ride watching them try to find their way, and waiting to see if their latest pregnancy would end as Levi’s previous ones had or if this baby would survive. The story was strong, and the characters were very well written, and I needed Kleenex several times. There was also a bit of humor, a lot of love, and the couple had a good support system when they needed help. I’m really enjoying this series, and I hope Micah will get his own HEA soon!
3.5 rounded up: Poor sentence structure, but good storyline
While this is the next installment of The Men of Meadowfall series, it is not necessary to have read the other books in the series. However, that being said, you will be introduced to many side characters who you just KNOW have, or need, a story of their own. When that happens, go back to your retailer of choice, and check out the other books that have come before The Pretense. You may find what you are looking for.
This is a pretend boyfriend, second chance, hurt/comfort romance of Levi and Cole. The trigger warning for this book is miscarriages. It’s mentioned in the blurb, but stated more plainly at the beginning of the book.
Levi and Cole were together when they were young, and got pregnant. Levi lost the baby, but that is not what ended the relationship. A tragic accident that affected the lives of others causes guilt in both MCs that neither could deal with, thus causing the breakup.
As far as I can tell, Cole has never moved on from the love he felt for his first omega. However, in a bid to prove to himself that he is not broken, Levi has had several partners with devastating results. When Levi has the opportunity to relive memories from his childhood and it comes at the time he needs it most, he tells his gran that he has a boyfriend and will provide a great-grandchild within a year. But now he’s stuck; he only has a few hours to get said boyfriend, and he knows that the baby will never happen.
Cole walks into the music store his brother owns, and at which Levi happens to work. Ollie, ignorant of much information, pushes Levi to accept Cole as his boyfriend. Eventually, the two come to an agreement that they will act out this Pretense.
As they come to know more about each other, their feelings reignite, and the pretend becomes real. But now Levi is carrying Cole’s child, and old terror threatens this new budding relationship. Cole is also still dealing with the weight of the guilt from the accident from years ago. The two must find ways to support each other and prove that the past does not rule their future.
Overall, this is a very sweet story. The characters are well developed and easy to like. However, the flow of the writing is interrupted by the misuse of punctuation. It made reading the book feel stuttered and awkward. But, I felt that the story was good enough that I was willing to keep reading, despite the flaws. Oh! The sexy times were hot ! A touch of kink was thrown in, but not too much.
Happy reading!
* I received an ARC of this book. *
I think that I liked Levi and Cole’s book the best of all of the books in this series. I understood Levi’s despair over not being able to carry children to term. I understood how that led him to feeling broken and undeserving of any alpha’s love. I also liked how his personality was set, from the beginning, as one that tends toward martyrdom. It made his choices and the sacrifices that he made very firmly within his character.
There were still times that I wish Micah would have gotten Levi and Cole together to knock some sense into their guilt-fest. I also wish that Cole could have been a bit more self-assured rather than always letting Levi railroad him into allowing Levi to abandon him.
I also was very surprised that Cole, at the very least, didn’t insist on Bryce being born in a hospital with a medical doctor in charge. I don’t have an issue with birthing centers, or midwives, but Cole’s personality would suggest to me that he would, out of an abundance of caution, have some pretty strong feelings about giving Bryce and Levi the most medical saftey he could think of. Additionally, even if the doctor felt the risk was less now, I can’t think of any OBGYN that wouldn’t consider Levi to be a high risk pregnancy, and thus want to be present at Bryce’s birth. Needless to say, I didn’t find the birth to be particularly believable for these characters.
I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.
Once again, have tissues handy
For full disclosure I received an ARC from the author in exchange for a honest review.
Levi and Cole’s story is one marred by a tragic accident and miscarriages.
Last we saw of Levi and Cole, Levi was hiding from Cole at Ollie and Eric’s wedding. His Grandma is sick and offers Levi a place to stay, with a couple of conditions. He has to move in with his boyfriend (which he doesn’t have), fix-up the guesthouse, and have a baby by the end of the year (he’s never had a successful pregnancy, which no one knows). He has a hour to find an Alpha to pose as his boyfriend and pick up the keys. Only Cole seems available and willing to help. But then grandma throws a curve ball and things start getting out of hand…