An epic new saga from the author of The Bride Series! Marc The state took me away from my mother when was I twelve and sent me to live with an uncle, who worked on some fancy estate. That’s when I met Ash, she was ten and the daughter of the man who owned the estate. She thought I would be her new best friend but I only wanted to be left alone. For years she was always there, always annoying …
For years she was always there, always annoying me, always wanting more from me. But our roles were clear. She was the princess and I was the chauffeur’s charity case.
I told her not to fall in love with me…she didn’t listen.
Don’t Love Me is Book 1 in a 3 Book series.
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This book has so many of the elements I love. (Alpha hero, rags to riches, an innocent heroine…) Ash is innocent but smart and determined to get what she wants. What made this book different is the honesty of the characters. Just when I thought I knew what would happen, it didn’t.
The honesty of the characters didn’t stop the unexpected ‘villain’ from getting his way. The book does end in a cliffhanger, but the second book comes out soon!
This is a great book with a great story. You have Ashliegh and Marc who were brought together under some unforeseen situations. However, Ash has been sheltered due to other reasons. So what is going on with these two. Marc, seems to have a chip on his shoulder and Ash just wants to help him. Only as they grow older, feelings change. But for who? One fights the attraction and one just does everything to get noticed. However, someone is going to do anything to keep them from having a relationship. What will happen? I loved this book because you get to know both Ash and Marc. This story is sad but can they happiness. You need to read this to find out. I loved it.
This book!!!! The push/pull between Marc and Ash was strong. Their lives couldn’t be any more different but these two had something between them. Ash was a princess banished to her castle, while Marc was the kid with unfortunate circumstances, with a chip on his shoulder. And Ash could always read him, even when he didn’t want her to. Their friendship was unique and the emotions were INTENSE! I craved all the words and I didn’t want this book to end! Looking forward to Don’t Hate Me!
Don’t Love Me is a wonderful and hugely enjoyable start to this trilogy. Fortunately I didn’t take any notice of the title and did in fact love it!
Ashleigh and Marc first meet as children, when they are 10 and 12 years of age respectively, and Marc comes to live with his uncle. They have very different backgrounds but both are a little lost and lonely, both have their own sorrows and struggles to deal with despite their tender years. Although Marc has his protective walls firmly in place, Ash is determined and tenacious when it comes to offering her friendship. She doesn’t let his sometimes mean words and offhand comments put her off and often deals with them by way of humor, or pays them no mind. At no point did I feel that she was a doormat, however, probably because in those early days she chose not to take his comments to heart. Kind and caring, she knows exactly what she’s doing and in fact what Marc’s doing too, and why for that matter. She sees him for what he is and in my opinion this makes her extremely strong and resilient, albeit in a quiet and unassuming way. A little naïve due to her upbringing but a strong young woman nevertheless. She’s the light to his dark, his rock, offering stability and solidarity and I loved her.
Over the course of the book these two grow up together and the progression of their relationship through to their late teens is heartwarming. Marc is determined to deny his true feelings and I really hoped that for him realisation would dawn before it was too late. Its quite an emotional story and I thought it was all very well written. The pacing of the story for me was just right too.
At one point, however, the story starts to take a slightly darker turn, one which had my senses on full alert. There’s some psychological manipulation being used by one particular devious character which gives the tale a definite edge. It’s all something of a mystery and I can’t wait to see what’s going to happen there. I feel this person has not yet done his worst.
Of course being a trilogy book one ends on a cliffhanger. I must say, I love this author’s writing style and I finished Don’t Love Me hugely invested in the wonderful characters she’s created. I can’t wait to find out what life has in store for this couple and Don’t Hate Me can’t come soon enough.
Don’t Love Me is an angsty kind of beginning to this trilogy. S. Doyle knows how to draw me in, one page at a time and the way she creates characters who you can’t get enough of, is why she has become a favorite author of mine. With this latest book of hers, Marc is the ultimate in arses. But yet since we know the pain he has endured, we can understand right along with Ash, why he says and does the things that will no doubt cause some hurt. And his target is the innocent Ashleigh, the literal girl next door, two years his junior.
Although their living arrangements are a bit unconventional, the rich girl and the poor boy have this love/hate kind of relationship that only gets more muddied as they get older. I wanted to throttle Marc more than once but watching as Ash fully understood him and could see the better in him, showed me that perhaps he could eventually be more than just her constant bully.
The story goes by at a good pace as they grow up before our eyes and the attraction between them seems to intensify even as Marc denies it over and over again. We are left on a cliffhanger of sorts as an uncertain future away from one another could mean the end of a hopeful beginning for both of them.
There is a ton of emotion laid bare with each of them having parents who have disappointed them whether or not it was the best for them in the long run. I love how Doyle crafts a story that has the right amount of push and pull and deep feelings felt even when it is almost excruciating to do so.
Looking forward to the next installment, I happily give Don’t Love Me a solid 4 stars!
What a great start to this series! I love Marc and Ashleigh!
This story starts from the time Marc and Ashleigh were kids through to their age of college. I loved watching the growth of their friendship. I felt for both Marc and Ashleigh. They both lead very different lives, and each had their own struggles in different ways. I love how full of life Ashleigh is and how she’d always push Marc. She is his light and rock in all things, even though it takes him some time to come to terms with his feelings and all he’s been through, watching him slowly let his walls down is heartwarming.
This story is written to make you feel so much. I had a knot in my stomach so many times. I was anxious to know what was going to happen and how things were going to turn out. I can’t wait for the next book as I’m sure dear old dad isn’t finished yet.
Fantastic start to this series and I’m looking forward to the next book!
“Because I was starting to understand something else she’d been right about. I needed her like air.”
I am loving on Ash and Marc’s story so hard right now. This is only the first book in this couple’s romance, so of course that means having to deal with the waiting and the being left hanging. After reading this book I feel that the wait and the craving will be well worth it. This is a very well written book that offers up a engaging blend of emotions, drama and angst. I would say that it is a mash-up of friends-to-lovers and the enemies-to-lovers. trope. Which it is really depends on from whose opinion you are looking at it from. If it is from hers it is the former and if it’s from his it is the latter. Regardless, I feel that you will quickly find yourself attached to these two as each of them easily sneaks into your heart. The roots of this couple’s history start in childhood and that is exactly were this book begins. I felt the pacing was good and fit perfectly with the story being told. Considering that close to ten years pass during this book I suppose that you would classify it as a slow burning read because steam wise things don’t heat up and get a bit kinky (spanking) between these two until just about the end of the book. Again though, I thought that worked. The author had plenty of time to develop these characters, their relationship, the complex feelings they had for each other and layout the groundwork for that ominous cloud of strife and doom that is building over their heads. If you are a reader that enjoys investing time in a couple and their evolving relationship this looks to be a series that will be well worth the time commitment. However, If you want fast-paced and some instant satisfaction, you had best keep looking. As, just so you are fully aware, there is some content in here that may not appeal to all readers. There is a scene of physical abuse (not graphic) and an overall feeling of mental abuse. So, if this might be a trigger for you be warned. As for me I totally enjoyed it and I am very eager to continue Marc and Ash’s romance when it picks up in book two. This is my independent, Impartial review.