An Amazon Charts and Washington Post bestseller.From New York Times bestselling authors Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward comes an unexpected love story that started with a boy and girl and heats up when the man and woman reconnect.I’d never forgotten him—a man I’d yet to meet.Griffin Quinn was my childhood pen pal, the British boy who couldn’t have been more different from me. Over the years, through … been more different from me. Over the years, through hundreds of letters, we became best friends, sharing our deepest, darkest secrets and forming a connection I never thought could break.
Until one day it did.
Then, out of the blue, a new letter arrived. A scathing one—one with eight years of pent-up anger. I had no choice but to finally come clean as to why I stopped writing.
Griffin forgave me, and somehow we were able to rekindle our childhood connection. Only now we were adults, and that connection had grown to a spark. Our letters quickly went from fun to flirty to downright dirty, revealing our wildest fantasies. So it only made sense that we would take our relationship to the next level and see each other in person.
Only Griff didn’t want to meet. He asked that I trust him and said it was for the best. But I wanted more—more Griff, in the flesh—so I took a big chance and went looking for him. People have done crazier things for love.
But what I found could change everything.
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Synopsis:
I’d never forgotten him—a man I’d yet to meet.
Griffin Quinn was my childhood pen pal, the British boy who couldn’t have been more different from me. Over the years, through hundreds of letters, we became best friends, sharing our deepest, darkest secrets and forming a connection I never thought could break.
Until one day it did.
Then, out of the blue, a new letter arrived. A scathing one—one with eight years of pent-up anger. I had no choice but to finally come clean as to why I stopped writing.
Griffin forgave me, and somehow we were able to rekindle our childhood connection. Only now we were adults, and that connection had grown to a spark. Our letters quickly went from fun to flirty to downright dirty, revealing our wildest fantasies. So it only made sense that we would take our relationship to the next level and see each other in person.
Only Griff didn’t want to meet. He asked that I trust him and said it was for the best. But I wanted more—more Griff, in the flesh—so I took a big chance and went looking for him. People have done crazier things for love.
But what I found could change everything.
It did change everything, my sweet Luca, didn’t it?
I adoooored this book, I literally devoured it, because I couldn’t put it down.
This proves yet again that Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward are an amazing duo, just like our sweet Luca and Griffin.
Did I laugh while I was reading this story? Of course I did. Do you remember Furby? The little children’s toy? You’ll definitely see it in a new light.
Did I cry? Obviously. This book was sweet but also so, so sad. Griffin and Luca lead completely different lives and her inability to spend time in crowded places made her feel like she wasn’t enough for him.
I don’t want to spoiler Griffin’s big secret, so I can’t tell you more about what happened but trust me, this book is really worth reading.
I really appreciated the fact that the authors decided to focus on the spiritual connection between the characters (despite the title), but don’t worry, there were sex scenes LOL.
If you believe in soulmates and love sweet romances, this book is perfect for you!
This was brilliant, amazing, and such a beautiful story of Luca and Griffin.
Luca has been dealing with a lot and in her life she had been dealt a lot tragedy. Until, one day her childhood pen pal, comes back in her life. I honestly, loved Luca. She was a fighter. You just watch her grow as a character and when she faces those fears, there’s such a beauty in it. Griffin, geez a rock star. But he’s so much more than just some famous musician. His love for Luca is off the charts.
There’s a surprise at the end of the story that seriously just completes the whole thing. There’s always so much depth in Vi & Penelope’s stories that I’m always left speechless. So amazing.
Overall, Five Boundless Stars
I really enjoyed this one! It was sweet and sexy, but also dealt with some serious issues too. I liked how the authors didn’t create some magical solution, but rather took a more realistic approach to Luca’s fears and anxiety. It was so cute how Griffin and Luca reconnected and their meet cute couldn’t have been sweeter when they were kids. I did think it was a little odd that their letters turned sexual so quickly after reconnecting, but I enjoyed their chemistry and playful banter. I loved that from the moment they come back in each other’s lives, Griffin is all in. The lengths that he went to take care of and support Luca were incredible.
I both read and listened to this one and the narration by Jacob Morgan and Andi Arndt was wonderful. I’m not used to hearing Jacob Morgan with a British accent, but honestly you can’t go wrong with this narrating duo. An enjoyable read/listen that left my heart happy!
Audiobook Review
Overall 4 stars
Performance 4.5 stars
Story 4 stars
First things first..wow, that cover is hard to resist, so I didn’t bother trying! I love this writing team more than I can say, so of course I one clicked this new book of theirs. One reason I enjoy their books so much is that their characters are always perfect for the story they are telling at the time and every time I read one, I think- THIS is has to be my favorite Keeland/Ward book to date.
Well, this IS my new favorite, no doubt. Griffin and Luca’s relationship began in a way that most people’s wouldn’t. At age 7 years and an ocean apart they become unlikely friends who had never met. How is this possible? Luca chooses a name from a list of pen pals her teacher offers and she randomly picks his. Fate’s journey has now begun!
The 10 years they spend faithfully writing to each other, telling each other their deepest secrets, bring them as close as a boy and girl can be while living on separate continents and besides one photo exchange at age 12, they have no idea what the other even looks like. Those letters, those letters, oh boy! Then, a tragic, life changing moment causes one to withdraw without explanation while the other mourns the loss of an irreplaceable friend.
An scathing new letter arriving out of the blue many years later sends Luca into an emotional tailspin, questioning what she’d done in the past. A chain of events, unlikely occurrences and a wild decision made by the reclusive writer brings everything full circle but what will she find waiting for her there? This was such a good part..I loved it!!!
Luca, with her sad tale pulled at my heartstrings as I watched her struggle along in life when what she wanted and what she thought was possible were at odds. Her polar opposite in so many ways, Griffin has achieved what he always dreamed of only to find it tainted by the results of his success.
Griffin had to be one of the swooniest H’s I’ve read from Vi and Penelope. His sweet and sexy sides were balanced out by his ‘dirty letters’ and his revealed profession was a very pleasant bonus surprise I was not expecting. His love, affection, care and patience with Luca and her issues made him even more appealing, if that was possible.
I loved their beautiful epilogue but I needed a few tissues to wipe some happy tears after the wild ride this emotional dual POV took me on to get to the ‘perfect for me’ ending I was hoping for. Sigh…I’m sad to let Griffin and Luca go now, but glad to have read their sweet, hard fought love story.
What a beautiful story- this story gives you a true perspective of how someone so vibrant
at on time can change in a instant. Luca and Griff reconnect after many years apart, but is Luca going to tell Griff why she didn’t respond? That is why I loved this story. Luca survives on so many things in life, but she is missing something, her best friend Griff.
See more of my review here on YouTube https://youtu.be/9RUoa1wkpOc
5 @penelopewardauthor and @vi_keeland never disappoint. Dirty Letters is an emotionally and intense book that touched every fiber of my heart. I was crying along with the characters with theirs struggles, and I cheering with their success. Luca is an extremely courageous young girl that all she wants is to live a normal life when nothing about her reality resembles a normal life. Griffin is the guy that becomes her champion, best friend, lover, and together they will create their new normal . I Highly recommend it.
Las autoras @vi_keeland y @penelopewardauthor nunca decepcionan con su trabajo. Dirty Letters es un libro emocional e intenso que tocó cada fibra de mi corazón. Estuve llorando con los desafíos de los personajes y animándolos en sus aciertos. Luca es una joven extremadamente corajuda que quiere vivir una vida normal cuando nada se de su realidad refleja una vida normal. Griffin se convierte en su protector, mejor amigo, amante y juntos crearán su nueva realidad . Lo recomiendo altamente
Dirty Letters, great story, great characters!! I really love the way this book starts and even ends.. love how we get to meet these two when they were just kids exchanging their emotions and feelings in long letters from across the ocean.
Luca and Griffin met through letters many years ago, they didn’t know each other, they never met or even know how they even look like but life and circumstances made these two to continue writing each other for years… Until things got out of hand and something terrible happened to make their connection lost for a while.
Dirty letters, is one of those stories that will make you fall in love with the characters since the very first pages of the book. We can see the characters grow with the story, their feelings and emotions are not the same but yet even stronger than before .. their constant battle with life comes out of the surface making them aware of their vulnerability but not letting any fear or doubt messing around with what seems to be the most important relationship in their lives.
Griffin a very powerful character that takes care of what belongs to him, even if that means to miss a few days at “work”
Luca a beautiful character that gets to flourish with love and patients..
great characters, love the story!!
Keeland and Ward’s ‘Dirty Letters’ came out of nowhere and exceeded all of my expectations. While I’ve read previous novels by this writing duo, I’ve always been a little underwhelmed. Sure, I’d read the buzz, loved the cover, and thought, “Why not?” But I didn’t expect to react to the story the way that I did.
Luca and Griffin became pen pals in the second grade. After Luca experiences a traumatic, life-changing event, the two fall out of touch. That is, until years later when Griffin sends another letter.
I think the reason this story hit me in all my feels is because the heroine grapples with anxiety and other debilitating effects of her trauma in a wholly authentic way. Her mental illness isn’t treated as a trite plot device to garner sympathy, nor does she become magically “healed” by the hero.
The dynamics between Luca and Griffin read as wholly authentic, and the way they struggle through defining their connection and the way they have to contextualize their relationship as adults is very compelling to read. There’s also a beautiful secondary friendship and bond between Luca and her therapist that is beautifully crafted.
If you’re already a fan of Keeland and Ward, you won’t be disappointed. And if you’re new to their work, I think this novel represents the best of their collaborations.
”WHAT COMES EASY WON’T LAST LONG, AND WHAT LASTS LONG WON’T COME EASY.”
Griffin and Luka became pen pals at 7 years old…He was in England and she was in the US…And, by writing letters, they became closer to each other than they had been to anyone else…ever…..But, 8 years ago, Luka just stopped writing to Griffin …..No explanations….While he is drunk, Griffin, who, now, is a famous rockstar, decides to write one more letter to Luka, who is, now, a famous author who has lived through some horrific tragedies and is, now, suffering from agoraphobia and PTSD……Luka, unbelievably, gets the letter… (Fate is alive and well in DIRTY LETTERS)…..and their lives are changed forever…
I loved Griffin and Luka…Their chemistry is smoking hot, and Griffin is a real sweetheart….I laughed …I cried… I could feel the love and angst and frustration and anger in them both…Griffin and Luka have a different kind of love story, and it’s a good one…It’s exactly what we expect from Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward….I loved this book…
And, at the end, when you are offered Griffin’s song “Oh Luka” if you sign up for the authors’ newsletter, SIGN UP!!! You don’t want to miss that song…I’m trying to figure out how to get it on my playlist….
This was a quick sexy emotional read. Not as dirty as the title would make it sound. I really enjoy this duo writing together.
Two long-time pen pals reconnect and find they each of a penchant for “oversharing” some of their steamy desires. Who wouldn’t want to escape into this story? Add an eccentric psychiatrist, a pet pig named Hortencia, and a few key chain Furbies, and you have the makings of one wildly entertaining story. I loved this book from the first page through the very last word.
This book was raw, authentic, and had so many feels! I adore how these two authors always write a book that completely engrosses me and takes me on a ride I can’t get enough of! This is another must read!
I enjoyed a lot about this unusual pen pal story. All the characters are different and interesting. Not only the Hero and Heroine but her quirky Doctor as well. It really focuses on Luca and her issues and personal growth and how Griffin is a catalyst for this. Griffin might be a Rockstar but he not a normal Rockstar hero and for that I am very grateful. The letters back and forth are a great touch and really add to the reading experience. I did find it to be a tad bit sappy (and humorous) which I guess helped combat the angst and conflict in the story which there is also plenty of. The surprise at the end is Epic and something I really wanted and was so happy about. I didn’t look to see what it was until after I read the whole story and so I really got a spark of excitement when I saw what it was.
Not a story I will soon forget.
This was my first full length book by Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward but it definitely won’t be my last. I loved this book. I often worry when you have more than one author that the book won’t flow as easily but this one was seamless. The story line was unique and refreshing. I loved both Luca and Griffin and how their relationship started. Doc was a great addition that cracked me up but also had great words of wisdom. This is definitely a recommend for me.
Luca–she suffered a great tradgey at 17 leaving her with survivors guilt and a few fears (undertsandably so). It aslo led her to cut off all communication with her long time pen pal Griffin. Imagine her surprise when a letter unexpectedly shows up…8 years later! It’s the start to a beautiful and rocky romance.
Griffin–suffered two big losses back to back in his life leaving him angry and hurt. One night while drunk his anger is put to paper and mailed to his now former pen pal. Imagine his surprise when he receives a correspondence.
Their relationship was not easy but Griffin shows that love CAN be enough if you are truly willing to fight for it, if you can have some paitence and stand by the one you love through thick and thin
I haven’t read a book by these authors before and i was very intrigued as everyone was talking about it.
When I saw the cover for Dirty Letters that also pulled me in.
Luca and Griffin met when they were young and became very close as children and as pen-pals.
Luca is in the USA and Griffin is in the UK as a boy. They start to write alot of letters to each other sharing absolutely everything and communicated alot through these letters, that was until one day everything changed, suddenly the letters stopped…. nothing…
When Luca goes through a tragedy during high school, her life is changed forever. She goes through alot of pain, guilt, hurt and anxiety and she struggles to move on with her life.
Griffin doesn’t understand whats going on. Years later Luca gets a letter out of the blue and is shocked.
Luca ends up having to go on a road trip to her fathers home to clear it out, but as she suffers with agoraphobic and severe anxiety and asks her doc to ride with her.
Luca has separated herself from the world and society.
Griffin now lives in California and the two happen to reconnect.
The authors brought the characters to life completely in an exceptional well whilst they also did highlight the struggles in the book extremely well.
The letters did take me on an emotional roller coaster sometimes.
I will say at first i actually thought that Luca was male which we find out not.
I would recommend this book although at times i did struggle with some parts and i found it sometimes difficult to read.
Thank You
The dynamic writing duo of Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward have done it again. Dirty Letters is absolutely incredible! I am one that doesn’t normally read all the teasers from my automatic one-click authors, because I like to be surprised. I’m so glad I didn’t, because I really got to experience this book. I loved everything about this book. Dirty Letters should be on everyone’s reading list.
It’s taken me a few days since finishing this audio book to review it. Not because it wasn’t good but because it was amazing and I needed to find the words to explain how amazing this book is. Seriously. This book touched every part of my heart and soul. This is the ultimate friends to lovers story. Griffin and Luca are pen pals from second grade to their teen years. Then one day Luca stopped writing. Fast forward to years ahead and we find out why. Luca went through something traumatic and shut down from life. She now is recluse afraid of crowds of people. Her father passes away and she goes to clean out his apartment. That’s where she sees the final letter Griffin had sent her. This causes her to write him back and they pick up where they left off. They both have secrets and they both are the same but different. It isn’t until Luca takes a big chance and visits Griffin that they learn the truth about each other. From there the friendship can’t survive. Because love blooms. Love that was there all along. But Griffin has a life that Luca doesn’t think she can survive in. But that doesn’t mean he gives up. They have to find out if love is enough.
This book had my heart gripped from the beginning to the end. It had me in actual tears of sadness and joy. These narrators really brought it to life. Especially during the letter reading. I can’t express enough love for this book. I have read this duo before but this book really proved how amazing they are writing together. I would love to see more Griffin and Luca in the future. I can’t shout it loud enough, read/listen to this book! You’ll become consumes as well by it.
I wanted to love it….I really did. The premise was good and it started off strong but ultimately it was boring to me and I found myself fast forwarding the audio. That being said the narration was fabulous.
Absolutely wonderful book. I highly recommend it!
Luca was on her way mother clear out her fathers apartment in New York and her shrink went with her. Luca and Griffin had been writing to each other for years and then all of a sudden her letters stopped. When they reconnected he told her he moved to the states and lived in California. She was still in New York with her therapist who went with her on the road trip. She wanted to meet Griffin and they figured they could go out to California when she found an address at the bottom of the box she received from Griffin. Twists, turns, and a lot of love makes this a good read