A billionaire and a single mother have more in common than they know.
He’s a billionaire businessman …
Luciano Donati, entrepreneur and eligible bachelor, lost his first wife to cancer. So though he lives in romantic Charleston, SC, he has every intention of ignoring the upcoming holiday for lovers … at least until he sets eyes again on his younger sister’s best friend.
He remembers …
He remembers Anastasia as a teenager who idolized him, not this lovely, fragile woman with heartbreak in her eyes. Heartbreak that he finds himself wanting to cure. Her smile warms his soul, her touch ignites his desire, and her little girl Soo-Min melts his frozen heart. Adopted internationally himself at a young age, Luciano understands all too well the strong need to belong somewhere.
She’s a single mom …
Anastasia Markow, cancer survivor and divorced mother, didn’t come to Charleston, SC, for romance. She’s here to make sure she has custody of her adopted daughter, Soo-Min. But when she encounters the first man she ever loved, here in the city of horse-drawn carriages and candlelight, her battered heart can’t help but bloom again. And when Luciano and Soo-Min take to each other, resisting his charm becomes even harder.
Handsome, self-assured, every inch the successful billionaire, Luciano is out of Anastasia’s reach. But when a hurricane strands them together and they must trust each other to survive … things heat up despite the driving rain and gale winds.
Can Valentine’s Day bring this unlikely pair together … this time for good?
Author’s Note: Thousands of families around the world have opened their homes and hearts through international adoption. Soo-Min is the embodiment of many, many fortunate adoptive children and parents who’ve together created forever families.
Don’t miss this poignant story of love, loss and renewed hope—get your copy of the novella today!
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A sweet Valentines romance. I loved the characters and the different issues waded through. The side theme of adoption was handled very well with multiple perspectives given.
I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.
I Love You More by Josie Riviera
Starts out with reviews and praise for the other works by the author.
Anastasia is going to spend some time with her friend Jaclyn and arrive as Jaclyn’s brother Luciano shows up as he works nearby when he’s not in other countries selling his company product.
She just needs a bit of time to file for custody but she is also a cancer survivor and has found a spot that is causing her problems.
Like hearing about the international adoption and how her daughter is the love of her whole life.
Love the different locations and descriptions of how they live-the surrounding and also at the same time so glad to hear of parks and being outside.
Love Vermont in the winter with all the snow and ice scultures. The lawyer doesn’t go quite as planned and with her having time to really think things through she makes a decision about the whole thing.
Story is also following Luciano and what his agenda is-quite fascinating, the endeavor.
They are able to spend time with one another and know each other so well even though they’ve not spent any time together since they were little kids.
Love precious gift she is able to give him. Special recipe is attached, yum!
Other works by the author and about the author are included at the end.
Excerpt from Oh Danny Boy is included at the end. Great read, can’t wait to read more.
I received this review copy from the author and this is my honest opinion.
This story is power packed with life’s choices,
regrets, loss, grieving, family issues such as
divorce, cancer, international adoption, fear
to love again, being overprotective, miss
judgement, personal growth, friendship plus
love all wrapped up in a beautifully, well
scripted novella.
The characters are vivid, colorful, well defined
and interesting. The main characters have an
undeniable chemistry between them.
Anastasia Markow is a cancer survivor with
an internationally adopted daughter by the
name of Soo-Min. She is a single mother
whose ex-husband has remarried a very
young woman. She feels the woman is not
capable of caring for her daughter. She is
traveling to Charleston, SC to meet with a
lawyer to seek sole custody of Soo-Min.
Luciano Donati, a high school crush of
Anastasia and brother of her best friend
lost his wife to cancer. He is an
entrepreneur who lives in a beautiful
house in romantic Charleston.
This is where her best friend arranged for
her to stay.
A hurricane ravishes the coast destroying
Luciano home while he and Anastasia are
Inside. He takes hold of her and they both
flee. His intentions are only to keep her
safe but things just get more and more
complicated from that time until the end.
This couple needs to come to grips with
their past to move into a future together.
Will there be a chance for them? Will they
be able to find forgiveness, healing and love?
Will they be able to overcome what they face?
This is a eye opener that makes you evaluate
priorities in life. This novella is an engaging
story, entertaining and you will connect with
the characters plus there is romance.
A Highly Recommended Read!!
Read with Kindle Unlimited.
I Love You More, by Josie Riviera is a sweet romance and it starts out with a bang as Anastasia and Luciano are caught in a hurricane. Their relationship begins quickly too as they have been reunited after many years. The characters are likable and each has their strengths and foibles which make them relatable. The author realistically deals with some rather gritty subjects, such as cancer, child custody, and adoption. I enjoyed this ‘clean’ romance story and look forward to reading more from this author. Liz Baechel did a great job narrating Anastasia and Luciano’s story which made for an enjoyable listening experience. I listened to a complimentary copy of the audiobook and was not required to write a review. The opinions are my own.
An Old Love.
A divorced young woman seeking sole custody of her daughter bumps into her high school crush, and her life changes. Many highs and lows with this book, with faults on both sides but then that makes them more human.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
I Love You More is a really wonderful story about the bonds of love is several ways. It tells of the love of a child, adopted from South Korea and among a divorce and cancer, plus shared custody all taking a toll on our heroine. The bonds of friendship from long past renewed but with a greater strength and more than friendship as the two hero and heroine are both realizing they are meant to be. Love in a variety of ways and amongst many odds and twists that you start out reading and get drawn in so fast you can’t put this novella down. It’s beautiful, heart breaking and scary due to nature. So many twists and turns to get to the good stuff. The love of family anew. So many things to take in but oh this is so worth the read.
I haven’t read many from this author but the few of have read have all been so wonderful I will keep reading more of this author.
I received this ARC without compensation of any kind and this review is of my own unbiased opinion.
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This is a sweet romance novella which not only is a well written story, but it also shares the importance adoption can play in a child’s life.
Former Charleston, SC resident Anastasia returns to town to meet with an attorney about changing the custody agreement for her adopted daughter. She has plans to stay with, Jaclyn, an old friend, and is completely surprised when she finds out that they are both going to be staying with her teen-age crush, Jaclyn’s handsome and very successful brother Luciano. Her daughter has remained in Vermont with her ex-husband and his wife.
Anastasia and Luciano are thrust alone together when a hurricane rapidly develops off the Charleston coast. Old feelings resurface, but are they reciprocated? How will this impact her decision to change the custody agreement with her ex? This is a romance, so the happily-ever-after ending is anticipated, but some of the bumps along the way are surprising and make this book one that is hard to put down.
My one reservation at the beginning of the story, and it took me awhile to get past this, is the rapidly developing hurricane in February. This very off-season storm caught me off guard. In perspective, that is a very minor detail. There is too much to love about this book and I was sorry to reach the end. The relationships – not just the romance – are very honest throughout.
A fun note: There is a wonderful looking recipe for Chocolate Covered Strawberries included. I just might have to try it!
I received a review copy from the author. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.
I Love You more, is a beautiful story.
This touching book is about Anastasia,
a divorced, single mother. She wants to fight for full custody, of her four year old daughter, Soo-Min. With the help of her friend, she flys to Charleston, to meet with an attorney. What she never expects, is to see Luciano, her teenage crush. He is just as gorgeous now, as he was then. He runs a very successful business. Anastasia & Luciano’s chemistry is undeniable. They realize that there are feeling between them, that have always been there. Anastasia must decide about her daughter custody, or leave as is. And if they’ll be a future with Luciano. I loved this story, & really enjoyed reading it!
A MUST READ FOR EVERYONE!!
Anastasia feels like her world is unraveling after a divorce and melanoma treatment. When she visits her friend, Jaclyn to consult a lawyer, will her world return to normal or unravel even more? Anastasia has harbored a crush on Jaclyn’s brother, Luciano since she was a kid but will it develop into more now that they are adults? I absolutely adored this sweet, heartwarming story and couldn’t read it fast enough. My only complain is I want more of this story!
On the surface, this would seem like a light hearted romance. However, even though it’s novella length, it has enough depth to be a full length novel.
Anastasia Markow is struggling to hold her life together. She’s endured cancer and divorce which means she now has to share custody of her adopted daughter with her ex husband. Convinced that her ex’s new wife is incapable of properly caring for her daughter, she flies to Charleston, SC to consult with a lawyer friend of her childhood best friend. However, instead of staying with her friend, she ends up staying at her friend’s brother’s mansion. Luciano. Her high school crush. The boy who’s grown up to become a billionaire.
Luciano Donati recognizes his sister’s friend. He remembers how she idolized him. 16 years have passed and she looks frail and vulnerable. Can he overcome his personal insecurities and fear of loss to reach out and help her?
When a storm blows in and threatens their safety they have no one else to depend on except each other and the old emotions reemerge. But is it enough to last beyond the storm?
What follows is a multi layered story. Anastasia grows from someone reacting out of personal bitterness, to someone acting in the best interest of those she loves. She also realizes that forgiveness is as important to herself as the other person. Luciano grows from someone who’s angry and afraid to love again to someone who realizes that he needs to take some responsibilities for events in his life.
I have to agree that the story would benefit if it were expanded to a full length novel. It would fix some of the issues with the timeline feeling so short. But, I do want to praise the author for writing a story with such depth that I was emotionally engaged with the characters.
Themes include – what defines love, forgiveness, international adoption
Romance – PG, kissing only
Language – PG / Clean
My rating – 4.5 stars