A new, sexy standalone from #1 New York Times Bestseller, Vi Keeland.When I first encountered Ford Donovan, I had no idea who he was…well, other than the obvious. Young, gorgeous, successful, smart. Did I mention young? If I did, it bears repeating. Ford Donovan was too young for me.Let’s back up to how it all started. My best friend decided I needed to start dating again. So, without my … dating again. So, without my knowledge, she set up a profile for me on a popular dating site–one that invited men ages twenty-one to twenty-seven to apply for a date. Those nicknamed Cunnilingus King were told they’d go straight to the top for consideration. The profile wasn’t supposed to go live. Another point that bears repeating–it wasn’t supposed to.
Nevertheless, that’s how I met Ford, and we started messaging. He made me laugh; yet I was adamant that because of his age, we could only be friends. But after weeks of wearing me down, I finally agreed to one date only–my first after twenty years of being with my high school sweetheart. I knew it couldn’t last, but I was curious about him.
Though, you know what they say…curiosity kills the cat.
My legs wobbled walking into the restaurant.
Ford was seated at the bar. When he turned around, he took my breath away.
His sexy smile nearly melted my panties.
But…he looked so familiar.
As I got closer I realized why.
He was the son of the neighbor at our family’s summer home.
The boy next door.
Only now…he was all man.
I hadn’t seen him in years.
I left the restaurant and planned to put the entire crazy thing behind me.
Which I did. Until summer came.
And guess who decided to use his family’s summer home this year?
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What can I say?! Vi never disappoints! Ever since I read my first Vi Keeland book, I have been hooked. There have been some that I have enjoyed more than others, but I have enjoyed every…single…one…. All Grown Up, is a prime example of why she is so good. So if you are on the fence about reading this, dont!! If you are looking for a feel good story to read while you vaycay? Guaranteed to entertain you, I promise!!!
All Grown Up is about Ford and Valentina. These two will just make your heart feel good. Together they are perfect, From the moment that we see them interact, to the ending, we get a nicely evened flow that tells their story. What a story it is, filled with a few twists and turns, lovable characters and so many feels. Which is typical with a Vi read.
You will fall for Ford just as fast as I did. He is everything that you didnt know you wanted, and everything you need. Valentina, is perfect for him. And he is perfect for her. Pretty sure he will win you over just as quickly as he did me!!
So, if you are a Vi fan, this is another great reason she is a Queen storyteller. If this is your first time reading her, prepare to experience a book hangover. She will leave you a fan, but don’t worry. She has alot you can catch up on until her next release!!
I greatly enjoyed this book. I love Vi’s writing style and how she helps really connect her characters to the reader as well as the fact that this book is unlike anything else Ive ever read before (its age gap romance but the woman is older guy is younger) I loved Ford as a character because despite his young age he is mature and smart and loveable, and you will love him too. And I loved Val because she’s been through a lot and is wise, but seeing Ford bring out the best in her makes you smile throughout the whole book. Sometimes the age difference between Val and Ford got to me, but as the story went on (just as Vals character develops and grows) I too felt better and better about it. Val and Ford are perfect for each other and I loved their chemistry so much. This is my new favorite Vi Keeland book. It has everything Ive loved about her other books, plus more. I cant wait for her next book.
Ford Donovan is the ideal book boyfriend!
Ford is the male lead in Vi Keeland‘s latest release All Grown Up. He’s a successful twenty-five year old living in New York. He’s running the family business and also the guardian to his younger sister who’s in college. The town of Montauk has been the family’s summer getaway and it is also where Ford has previous met the female lead of the story.
Valentina is the female lead in All Grown Up. She is a thirty-seven year old divorcée with a college aged son. She is studying to become an Italian language teacher now that she is single and on her own. She and her husband share their summer home in Montauk following their divorce; and its her summer.
Valentina’s friend urges her to create a Match.com profile and she connects almost immediately with Ford.
As you can probably already tell, the characters age is a big factor in this story. And once again Vi Keeland creates a universe and story that one enjoys escaping to. And As I’d previously mentioned, Ford is the ultimate book boyfriend. He’s successful, he’s intelligent, he’s sexy and has a dirty mouth. Everything a fabulous book boyfriend should have.
Guys, I AM OBSESSED WITH THIS BOOK!!!! Vi Keeland NEVER disappoints, All Grown Up was amazing.
Valentina and Ford were fire!!! I loved these two so much. The chemistry was off the charts, I want my very own Ford!!
I loved Ford, he was someone who was always there for his sisters, he always did the right thing, and he knows what he wants. He never expected newly divorce Valentine to come into his life and change it. Valentina just got divorced, so the last thing she was expecting was 25 year old Ford to come into her life and change it. Valentina has a hard time accepting her attraction and feelings for Ford, her being 12 years older than him is a big obstacle for her.
I love how Ford is so grown up, he doesn’t care about age. I loved how hard these two fell for each other, I loved seeing Ford win Valentina’s heart little by little. This was such an amazing story, a must read.
Valentina Davis doesn’t think she is ready to date again after her divorce, but her best friend is ready to see her happy again. Without Val’s knowledge, Eve sets up a dating profile online. Val decides to strike up a conversation with one of the responders to test the waters, and winds up forming a friendship. Ford Donavan doesn’t usually use online dating, but needs to test a marketing campaign. The woman he meets checks all his boxes and he is interested enough to give her time to become comfortable with dating. He knows she is hesitant and is willing to let her set the pace, including on when they meet face to face.
I loved the moment they put together that they actually knew each other in real life and that had to be one of the cutest first dates I’ve ever read. The age gap is a big hang-up for Valentina, though Ford is over it almost immediately. But it’s a big deal to Val and she doesn’t think she can go further than one date.
Ford was my favorite character in the book. He is so patient and confident. He knows what he is looking for and knows Valentina is exactly who he wants. I loved that even though he was in his mid-20s, he had a maturity far beyond his age. His experiences put him on a level playing field with Valentina to the point where if she hadn’t mentioned it so often I would have forgotten that there was an age gap.
These two start with a summer fling, but what should be a casual thing turns challenging. They may say they only want the summer, but there is more developing for each of them. The bigger challenge is how to get on the same page at the same time.
I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Valentina and Ford have to be two of my very favorite Vi Keeland characters. So well written that they had me swooning off the pages. You won’t notice the age gap but it’s there and since Ford was the younger neighbor next door who grew to be hot it’s so well worth it.
Valentina is a divorced single mom who is now taking “her turn”. She has a great friend on her side, Eve, who just wants the best for her.
You will laugh out loud and be the biggest cheerleader for Ford and Val. Going to want to take that Ford for a ride.
All Grown Up by Vi Keeland Val finds her single with a college age son. Her ex husband who was her high school sweetheart cheated on her. Now after 2 years of being alone her best friend sets up a profile on a dating site. Val met Donovon. Donovan decided to give a dating site a chance. He is sick of the regular girls he dates. He wants an older mature woman. The conversation between the 2 is great but when they finally meet in person they realize they know each other. Ford Donovan is not only 12 years her junior but he use to live next door to their summer home. Donovan could careless about any of that. Val is sexy as hell and everything he wants. Even though Val is interested in Donovan she is struggling not only with the age gap but her insecurities. Her issues only intensifies Ford’s efforts to win her over. I loved this story. I enjoy the way this author tells a story. She does not disappoint. I not only love the story but the characters. Ford was any women’s dream come true with a body to drool over. Val’s struggles are real, something many women deal with in their lives. Hated to see this story end. 5 star read for me
All Grown Up by Vi Keeland is an emotionally powerful and amazing read that will have you rooting for Valentina and Ford. This older woman/younger man story is full of feels, romance, angst, twists, forbidden love, heartache, passion and love. I enjoyed the characters, plot, heat and chemistry. Loved the emotions that this story brings!! Ford is very much swoon-worthy and total book boyfriend material. Valentina is a woman who is finally realizing what she wants in a man…years later. This is after she goes thru a bad divorce and is ready to start dating again. She is learning how to make herself happy after making others happy…her and Ford make a really amazing couple. Great read!!!
My Rating: 4.5 stars ********
Ford Donovan is my new Book Boyfriend of 2019!! I loved this book!
Vi Keeland has written a fantastic age-gap slow burn romance and I can’t get enough of! Val is a divorced woman whose son is off at college and she is finally getting out and living for herself. Her best friend Eve convinces her it’s time to start dating, even if it is just a one night thing, to dust off the cobwebs. (I loved Eve by the way. Was she a meddler? Yes. Did she have the best of intentions? Absolutely!)
Ford is a businessman who goes on an online dating site for business purposes only. At least until he sees Val’s profile and is intrigued. She looks like she loves life and when they start messaging each other, he wants to meet her. Val is extremely hesitant as she finds out Ford is only 25. He finally wears her down to at least meet for dinner (and can I just say, chapter 4 is my favorite of the whole book and it is one of the best written meet-ups I’ve ever read).
I had butterflies throughout the whole book because Ford was just so patient, so hot, so flirty, and just the fact that he had no issues with age just made him so swoonworthy 🙂 He was mature and levelheaded and cared about Val’s goals just as much as she did. I could go on and on about this man!
Vi Keeland is a great writer and I loved everything about this book!
4.5 stars~
There once was a woman who was getting over a divorce and was encouraged by her pushy best friend to get back into the dating game. And there was also a man who was looking to expand marketing campaign. Add in a chance encounter on a dating site of two people who are so much strangers and let the story take off from there. Meet Valentina and Ford.
What sold me on this story is how irresistible Ford proves himself to be. Intelligent, charming, witty, a great big brother, and confident. Lordy, that man is confident without the arrogance. Is there is big age gap between the two? Sure, but Ford is the one who proves that age is nothing but a number.
This doesn’t mean I don’t love me some Valentina. Especially as a native speaker, I so greatly appreciate how Keeland got all of the translations correct. But that’s not really what I liked about Valentina. It was her struggle to be vulnerable and decide to love again. Because isn’t that the best? When you find a character who can finally let go and become the version of themselves you want them to be. Yeah…all that.
As always, solid writing by Keeland. In fact, I wanted the story to keep going. Yet another sign that the author has gotten it right. I wish I had grown up with this boy next door!!
I don’t read much of the older woman, younger man romance trope but when one of my fav author writes it, I’ll read. Not that I’m surprised since it’s written by Vi Keeland, but All Grown Up was so good. It’s sexy and sweet and oh so HOT!
Every emotions Valentina went through I went through them along with her and I can’t help but fall in love with Ford too. He’s caring and very mature (most of the time) for his age but then age is just a number. I was rooting for them the whole way and the ending was very satisfying. A 5-stars read for sure! I highly recommend!!
I had so much fun with this book. It was funny and sexy hot… I had so many laugh-out-loud moments and as soon as I was done, I spend over an hour telling my aunt about the book and why she should read it!
Val is easing back into the dating scene after being married for 20 years. Being a teen mom and then marrying young, she never truly dated and so when her best friend sets her up on Match.com – she was way out of her league. But there was one guy who made her feel so at ease… the only thing, he’s 12 years younger than her.
When Val finally gives into meeting “Donovan” face to face – the last person she expected to see what her old neighbor – Ford Donovan, who used to babysit her son!
Val has a hard time letting go of the age difference, but Ford is determined to make her see that age is more than just a number.
Val’s best friend Eve provides a lot of the comic relief and everyone needs a friend just like her. I loved Ford from the moment we met him and Val… oh how I could relate with her. I think any woman who is older and trying to find herself would.
Like every Vi book, you get the humor along with a great storyline. I could not put the book down and ignored my family for the day – locking myself in my room so I could see what came next.
Whew! What a fun, sexy and sensual book about a younger man and older woman! This was a great story and Ford and Valentina had awesome chemistry. Even though this isn’t a huge trope I read, it was definitely done in a more realistic and relatable way! I really really enjoyed it!!
I absolutely loved this book! Ford and Valentina’s chemistry was off the charts. This book has everything you’re looking for in a great romance. Steamy, sexy, romantic, heartwarming. Great story line. I’ve enjoyed every one of Vi’s book but this was one of my top favorites. Love, love, loved it!!! A must read!
5 Stars!
Valentina Davis is a beautiful 37 yr. old woman living in New Jersey. She married her high school sweetheart, had a son, and thinks her future is set. Then her marriage crash and burns, and she’s suddenly single for the first time in twenty years. Now divorced for almost two years, she’s lonely and still not moving on with her life. Her best friend decides it’s time for Val to put herself back out there, and sets her up a profile on a dating site. She really isn’t interested, and then a hot, younger guy starts messaging her that makes her laugh and feel good about herself. She looks forward to hearing from him, and figures what’s the harm in just talking. Weeks go by, and he finally talks her into meeting in person. She arrives for the date, and from behind he looks like an underwear model. Then he turns around and she recognizes him. It’s the boy next door from her summer home. She hadn’t seen Ford Donovan in years, and the boy she remembered is now all man, but still completely off limits.
Ford Donovan is a 25 yr. old gorgeous, successful businessman in New York. He works in real estate, and his dating life has become mundane. Then he meets a stunning woman online that intrigues and excites him. He wants to get to know her better. They meet in person, and he’s shocked to see it’s his neighbor from his family beach home in Montauk. When they cross paths again over the summer he decides he wants to explore their strong connection. He’s persistent and wants her to take a chance on him. Before long, he’s crazy about her, and she’s all he can think about. He’s determined to show her what he see’s when he looks at her.
Val wants to focus on herself and take her life back. She’s not ready for anything serious with expectations, but Ford makes her feel alive again. He was so easy to talk to, and convinces her to live in the moment. Somewhere along the way they both want more, and it’s becoming harder and harder to remember his age. He’s too young for her. She could never go there, or could she? When real feelings get involved will they be able to walk away at the end of the summer?
All Grown Up by Vi Keeland is an all new sexy standalone beach romance about an older woman and a younger man. An emotional, steamy, witty, forbidden love story where age is just a number. I loved this book so much! Vi Keeland delivers a passionate, seductive, humorous, heartwarming story that reminds me why I’m so addicted to her writing. This book was simply fabulous!!!
This is another great stand alone by Vi Keeland. It will have you laughing. It did make me a little mad at Valentina at some parts.
Valentina has been divorced for two years now. Her son is away at college.
It’s time for her to get back out there!
Now, I do understand some of her hangups about Ford.
Age, and that he used to babysit her son.
Ford is an amazing guy. I did feel bad for him in some parts, especially when he was in Chicago. But when he wants something, boy does he go after it.
I really liked this.
There are good books and then there are great books. All Grown Up is exactly that a great book! The author is a masterful storyteller and the writing is so very good. I was so caught up in the lives of Valentina and Ford and all the people who are important to them. It all seemed so very real. The conversations, the banter, the questions, the risks, fears, and of course the undeniable attraction. I loved everything about Ford. He was forced to grown up faster than his other 25 year old friends when his parents died in a car accident and he had to take care of his younger sister and also take his father’s place in the family business. Valentina having to face life after a difficult divorce after being married since 17, finds it very uncomfortable getting back into the dating scene. With a huge push from her best friend Eve and due to work for Ford, Val & Ford start on a beautiful journey. It’s not easy but its genuine, it’s not always kind by others but it’s patient by each other, and when the love happens it is so beautiful to watch. “Age is just a number to use to count all the years I’m going to love you”. There are a lot of feels in this book. I cried hard, I laughed out loud, and I absolute loved the HEA. My new fav BBF is Ford Donavon 🙂
All Grown Up was such a wonderful story! I fell in love with Ford and Valentina so quickly and easily. It was impossible not to. Their story not only entertained me but it moved and inspired me as well.
Society has always been accepting of older men and younger women. There is a lot of unbrainwashing to be done after centuries under a patriarchal society. The stigma of older women and younger men is real and one that Val struggled with from the get go. Despite their strong attraction and easy connection, she had trouble separating the young and sexy man in front of her from the young boy next door she saw grow up.
This story follows Valentina as she begins a new chapter in her life. Single with a grown child and on a new career path. Her funny, caring and pushy best friend is trying to get her back into the dating scene. As reluctant as she is to do just that she’s nowhere near ready to start something where an age gap is constantly in the forefront of her mind.
Ford; however, only sees the beautifully attractive women he can’t stop thinking about. And oh how sweet he is when he tries to ease her fears about not just dating but his age. The guy is so dang DREAMY!
I completely adored Ford Donovan. He made me swoon at every turn . The guy was perfection.
Vi Keeland delivered a brilliant love story!!
#RAWR dayum, Ford can bring out the cougar in any woman! I mean, that man is so delicious who wouldn’t want him?
Ford may be quite a few years younger than Val in numbers, but he’s been through a lot and had really had to mature for his young 25 years. It made him a man anyone would want to be with, sexy, successful, caring, and sweet, and all Alpha! #Swoon. His words, his attentiveness and the way he shows how he cares is something we all want in a man, no matter his age.
***He looked me up and down and shook his head. “You look in the mirror and see the woman your ex made you feel like—a thirty-seven-year-old mom. I look at you and see what you actually are—a sexy-as-f*** woman who has a killer rack, curves I want to memorize in the dark, and a laugh that’s contagious. She can’t hold a candle to you, Val.” He cupped my cheek. “And if our summer together is all you want, I hope that at least by the end you can look in the mirror and see the woman you are.”
****“Fifty years?” Her eyebrows raised. “I don’t even want to do the math on how old I’ll be by then.”
“Good. Because age is just a number to use to count all the years I’m going to love you.”
#Swoon
I can’t tell you how much I loved, LOVED Ford! Him and Val are my new favorite couple! Vi weaves a story that is so sweet, so sexy and so romantic that you get completely lost within the pages and then are shocked when you find out you’ve finished the book in just a few hours, it was that good!! Ford is my new fav book boyfriend!
Vi Keeland writes an heartwarming, angst filled and steamy romance about an older woman and younger man falling in love. While age gap romances have not traditionally been my favorite trope, since Vi wrote it I of course wanted to read it. She is one of my auto-buy authors.
I love how relatable and real her characters feel to me. She has great character development and gives us enough to feel as though we know them without going so far into who they are that she loses sight of the story.
The chemistry between Ford and Valentina is off the charts and Vi writes some really steamy scenes that kind of force a reluctant Valentina into realizing that there really might be something worth fighting for between her and Ford despite the age difference.
I would definitely recommend this book!
****review copy provided by author***