A novel about a shattered family, broken hearts, and healing love by Rachel Van Dyken, the number one New York Times bestselling author of Stealing Her.Coming out of a coma was one hell of a wake-up call. While I was in the dark, my estranged twin brother, Bridge, had replaced me in the company I owned and swept up my fiancée in the takeover. With my ruthless reputation, can I blame them for … reputation, can I blame them for falling in love? I have to look long and hard at where I’ve been and where I’m headed. Alone time? The universe has other plans.
Our family’s secluded Vermont cabin comes with a gorgeous—if at first, unwelcoming—surprise. She’s renter Keaton Westbrook, a social media superstar struggling with her own private grief. As a winter storm bears down, we’ve found something to keep us warm—an intimacy neither of us expected and both of us need.
After we say goodbye, what happens then? Keaton and I are longing to reconcile with our painful pasts. I can’t bear to do it without her. Is it too much to ask of fate to give us a second chance at life and love?
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After reading Stealing Her, I was not a fan of Julian. The Julian that came across as a bitter and angry guy & wasn’t shy about showing it was also hiding his vulnerability. When he reluctantly agreed to take a break in the family cabin he encountered Keaton who was also there to deal with losing a loved one. There is a little friction between them at first until they agree on a truce. I loved how Julian started to reflect on little things about his past behavior during different interactions with Keaton, and how spending time with her started showing his softer side. When Keaton asked Julian to help with her book they strengthened the connection they shared and as Julian helped Keaton gain closure he was also doing something selfless as well as being the man he knew his mother had always believed him to be.
Absolutely beautiful..
When I met Julian in a previous book, I didn’t like him at all. He gives off the total jerk vibe, so I am honestly surprised to tell you that I have totally fallen in love with him.
Being in a coma changed him and when he meets Keaton we see just how much. These two…. these two stories will absolutely break your heart. Both trying to pull themselves out of a whole so full of grief that they can’t find themselves out. But together, with the others help, they slowly learn to start living again.
I absolutely loved this heartbreaking story. Everything from the characters, their story and the writing was perfect. This is a definite must read.
*Review by Michelle
Absolutely beautiful..,,
When I met Julian in a previous book, I didn’t like him at all. He gives off the total jerk vibe, so I am honestly surprised to tell you that I have totally fallen in love with him.
Being in a coma changed him and when he meets Keaton we see just how much. These two…. these two stories will absolutely break your heart. Both trying to pull themselves out of a whole so full of grief that they can’t find themselves out. But together, with the others help, they slowly learn to start living again.
I absolutely loved this heartbreaking story. Everything from the characters, their story and the writing was perfect. This is a definite must read.
I bet you will cry multiple times while reading Finding Him by Rachel Van Dyken. I bet this story is going to shred your hearts and fill you with hope. Julian and Keaton’s heartbreaking and angsty story won me over completely!
I have been dying to read Julian’s story since I read Finding Her because I needed him to get a HEA. So this is Julian’s story. Julian Tennyson. The misunderstood bad guy Billionaire businessman. After waking up from coma, he found his ex has married his twin brother and soon he loses his mom. He is forced to take a vacation to a cabin in mountains associated with their childhood memory. He is angry, bitter, depressed and hopeless. And he finds the cabin is not empty. Keaton Westbrook has booked the cabin too. The Keaton Westbrook. America’s sweetheart, celeb daughter of Celeb couple and someone who fall in love with Noah, a terminally ill cancer patient and who lost Noah. She has come to cabin to write a book about the epic love the world is swooning about. But what about her emotions?Two broken souls. Seeking peace and closure. Too much wound and negativity. Can they come together to heal?
The story is in dual POV which is perfect as we need to know inner struggles of Julian. My heart broke so hard for him. He is such a great man who always cares for others but thinks himself to be despicable and selfish and worthless. Keaton made him feel like a better man in a long time. Can I just say that I want to hug this girl so much? I wish I had a fraction of her bravery, tenacity, loving heart and ability to be compassionate unconditionally? This is a torturing slow burn with loads of scintillating chemistry and intense feelings. A lot of resistance and struggle will occur but the inevitable! The ups and downs make this even more dramatic and breathtaking story.
Rachel Van Dyken’s brilliant writing filled the pages of Finding Her with some truly amazing experiences. I loved Julian and Keaton. I loved their epic, unique and souldeep love story. Another bestseller from Rachel Van Dyken!
Received ARC for honest review
Grab the tissues! I knew going into this book it was going to be special. This book dealt with promise, love, betrayal, healing, heartache and death. It was packed with so much emotion. Julian was so angry with betrayal and loss. He had woke up from a coma to find out that his entire life has changed. He was able to reconnect with his mom, only to loose her shortly after. He was so alone! His twin brother, Bridge told him he needed to take a much needed vacation to get his head together. So, he took off for the family cabin. However, it was not empty!
Keaton had just lost the love of her life and had made a promise to Noah that she would tell their story by writing a book. She needed to have peace and quite to deal with her grief and to be able to write the words down. But that peace and quiet didn’t last long. Julian showed up and stirred everything up!
Julian and Keaton tried to fight the attraction they had for one another. But Julian was not the same man he was before his coma. He was really trying to be a better man. And Keaton was so sad. The loneliness these two shared bloomed into more.
Their stay at the cabin was cut short when Keaton was injured. So they ended up back in the city. They ached for one another, but didn’t have a way to reach one another. When they do meet up, they pretty much became inseparable. Julian helped with the book, while Keaton helped fill Julian with hope.
Can these two make it together? Or is Keaton always going to have her heart with another? Will Julian remember to be this new reformed man he is becoming and not resort back to his playboy ways? These two help one another in ways they never thought possible.
Rachel wrote another fantastic book and it is a most definite read!! But make sure you read Stealing Her first!
I was dying to read Julian’s story because I wasn’t a fan of him when we’ve met him previously but as the story went on and Rachel Van Dyken redeemed him, I knew that I would fall head over heels for him. Finding Him didn’t disappoint.
Keaton was the perfect heroine for him, both grieving and coming to terms with loss. Keaton and Julian helped each other grow and overcome their issues, bringing emotion, lots of chemistry and some swoony scenes.
5 Stars
Another great read from RVD!
I waited not so patiently for this book and have to say was worth the worth the wait.
Keaton and Julians story was so full of emotion and those chemistry was amazing and the humor in between with them. I laughed and I cried and honestly what more can you ask for in a book…
As always RVD writes her stories in such a captivating way that you have no choice but to get sucked into the pages of a fantastic read. Well done!
Forever Love The Second Time Around
Heart-wrenchingly beautiful! I wanted Julian’s story and the author blew me away with this emotional love story. Two broken hearts that were drawn to one another and healed by acceptance and unconditional love.
Keaton has survived a terrible loss. She’s just trying to move forward. She’s been asked to write her story about how she fell in love and lost that love tragically to cancer. She’s a social media princess and the world wants to read her romance first hand.
This is her chance to heal, let Noah go and move on with her life. The life he felt she deserved.
She never imagined that when she rented an isolated cabin to finish her book, she’d end up snowbound with the billionaire bad boy Julian Westbrook.
Neither wants to be stuck with the other. An accidental scheduling conflict forces two strangers to be stuck together for days. Julian makes his discontent known and comes off as a real jerk. Sparks fly!
He was on a forced vacation from work. After losing his fiance to his twin brother and then watching his mother slowly die, he needs some time to find his way. He’s not the same man he was a few months ago. He’s trying to figure out his new normal.
Julian offers to help Keaton write her story. It’s exactly the push she needs to get it done. And he’ll get to spend time with the woman he can’t seem to stop thinking about.
Both of them are suffering. Together they’ll help each other heal. It’s heart breaking. It will touch your soul. This story is so incredibly beautiful. It’s full of special moments and intense chemistry. It will break your heart and then piece you back together. So many poignant words and a story that will remain in your heart.
You know how there’s sometimes a main character that you love to hate? Well Julian definitely fit the bill in the previous book Finding Her. I couldn’t wait to see how RVD was going to turn him around. He wasn’t nice, he didn’t play well with others, would do anything to get a little bit of that a boy from his dad. I honestly could punch him in the face and be ok with it.
Then there was this book…well I definitely have a different view of Julian now. He did start out pretty much the same for me but to watch him change. Watch him grow and learn to love made my heart go pitter patter.
When Keaton first meets Julian, yeah, her opinion was pretty much the same as mine from the previous book. What happens though when you start to open up to someone you never thought you would, it brings life to your soul. It makes things a little better until it all changes. Are the changes going to be what they both want? Is it going to be too much for one of them?
Julian and Keaton’s story is one of grief and learning the heart wants what the heart wants. Both met by chance trying to deal with their grief and both were able to help the other in ways only they could for each other. This book is emotional and takes you on a roller coaster of their highs and lows of how they feel versus how they think they should feel. Neither Julian or Keaton expected the other person but they were exactly what they needed.
4.5 Stars for Finding Him by Rachel Van Dyken
If you are looking for a book that’s emotion and heartfelt look no further than book 2 in the Covet Series, it’s a story that has all the feels and it will touch you in places you didn’t know you had.
Keaton and Julian are characters you will find easy to connect with and I’m sure like me you will be rooting for Julian to come to his senses, he is a Playboy that’s needs someone strong woman like Keaton in his life to make him see the error of his ways.
Finding Him is about two people grieving the loss of a loved one and when they find themselves stranded and stuck in a cabin in the middle of nowhere they find themselves at peace with not only themselves but also with the future, in the time they are stuck in the snow they both find an inner strength that helps them both to find love again, when they least expected it.
This was a easy read with characters I loved, it had no twists or turns but it wasn’t predictable either, all in all a entertaining enjoyable read.
I received this ARC from the publisher through NetGalley.
What a wonderful story this was! I wasn’t sure what to expect with Julian after the first book, but he did not disappoint!
Julian is forced to take a vacation from work to get his head on straight. He decides to head to the family’s cabin in the mountains. Unbeknownst to Julian, the cabin had been rented by Keaton Westbrook, a daughter to celebrity parents. She has recently lost Noah, her boyfriend, to cancer and promised to write their story. The quiet is just what she needs.
She and Julian butt heads big time, but since there is a big winter storm approaching, they are stuck with each other for awhile.
“Think of it this way…” He smirked. “If you don’t build a fire, we’re going to have to get naked and share body heat, and I highly doubt that would be your first choice, since you’re already so f**king frigid.”
As the spend time together, they both realize they are struggling with grief.
A grieving girl who worshipped Noah.
A grieving man who missed his mom.
The only thing we had in common was our grief and money.
Maybe that would be enough.
For now.
Maybe for now was all I needed.
As the story unfolds, they realize they are helping each other through difficult times. I loved both of these characters, especially Julian who started out as a smart ass but once you got to know him, realized how caring and kind he was.
I hesitated then asked, “Why a kiss?”
His lips pressed into a smile. “Because it’s the only thing that exists in this universe that tells you everything without saying a word.”
Rachel Van Dyken is a wonderful author and this is not the first book of hers I’ve read but I would recommend anything of hers!
ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Wow! After I finished the first book, I couldn’t wait to see where the path would lead Julian in book 2 now that Bridge and Izzy found their HEA.
Julian is understandably not happy with his life since his brother and ex fiancé are married and have a baby on the way. He’s super stressed and working way too many hours and is grieving the death of his mother.
Bridges corners him and Julian reluctantly agrees to go on a vacation to the remote family cabin that they used to go to with both his parents when they were still a family.
When he gets there he definitely get a surprise. Ends up the house is already rented out for a month by the famous, Keaton Westbrook, who is also grieving the death of her boyfriend. Their story ent viral and she’s there to finally write the book she’s promised to her publisher. Julian suddenly shows up and is such a jerk to Keaton but I love how she gave it right back to him!
This story starts out very much with the enemies to lovers storyline but slowly turns to so much more after Keaton is hurt and Julian agrees to help her.
The chemistry between these two were off the charts and soon things heat up between the two but their time is cut short. What happens when they both get back to the real world?! Keaton has a reputation to hold up and she doesn’t think it can handle a real relationship with Julian Tennyson. Her followers won’t understand her moving on so fast. Will she give up a second chance at love?!
This books definitely has all the feels! Loved how these two slowly healed each other. Such a beautiful, heartbreaking story. Absolutely love how it ended though! 5+ stars all the way!!
Finding Him is the second book in the Covet series by the very talented, Rachel Van Dyken. You can read it as standalone but I highly recommend reading Stealing Her so you get the full story. I wasn’t a huge fan of Julian in the first book but omg!! Now I just want to swoon when I think about him. The synopsis is amazing so this should be quick.
Loss. It’s what they have felt over the last few months. And now it was time to find peace. To find themselves in the process. Since Julian woke up from a coma four months ago, he woke up like a different man. He wanted to be a man his mom would be proud of. Not the man who was wanting his father’s acceptance. Keaton’s life changed eleven months ago and she was trying to heal her heart and herself. These two might be night and day but they both were grieving in their own ways which brought them both to a cabin in the woods.
Two souls. One cabin. It was unexpected. It wasn’t something they were looking for. It was complicated. It was messy. It was beautiful but what will happen when their little bubble pops and they are in the real world?
Wow. I knew it was going to be good but damn…it was everything. An emotional ride full of teasing, sadness, swoon, passion, and wild animals. And donuts! It gave me every. Single. Feel. I laughed. I cried. I got frustrated. I cried again. And laughed even more. I loved it all. The characters. The story. The banter. The journey.
Quotes:
“You’re the annoying twin, aren’t you?”
I narrowed my eyes at the back of her head. “Actually, I’m the charming one.”
She looked over her shoulder. “Hmm, can’t see it.”
“Don’t force a demonstration you’ll enjoy too much.” I winked.
“A man without a destination isn’t lost . . .” She shrugged. “He’s just exploring.”
“If you’re suggesting I’m taking cold showers because I told you I’d keep my hands off you and you’re just that fucking irresistible that I’m having a hard time keeping my promise . . .” I leaned down and whispered, “You’d be right.”
Finding Him is book two in the Covet duet by author Rachel Van Dyken. Stealing Her is book one and while technically these two could be read as stand-alone titles, there’s so much in Stealing her that you really want to know before starting Finding Him because it picks up right about where book one ends. Trust me…you want to read them both!
Julian Tennyson woke up from a 4-week coma to a world he didn’t recognize as his own. Now, he’s trying to sort through it all and figure out who he is and where he wants to go in life…and coming to terms with––as well as figuring out how to repair––his relationship with his twin brother, Bridge.
Keaton Westbrook is America’s darling. Her first love didn’t win his cancer battle, and now, she’s struggling to write their story. Caught up in the cycle of grief, and with wicked writer’s block, she escapes to a mountain cabin to regroup and to work. When Julian shows up, and they are stranded due to a bad snowstorm, they slowly begin to build a tentative acquaintanceship. When the real world hits them both hard, they both struggle to find their ways.
Let’s talk characters because the Julian we got in Stealing Her is a very different Julian than we see in Finding Him. He’s a bit like one of those Pit Bulldogs that have been rescued from a dogfighting ring. Heavily scarred emotionally, snapping at those trying to help do what’s best for him, and generally mistrusting of all people, while at the same time desiring love and to love someone. And Keaton is a lot like a rescuer who is suffering from their own grief and insecurity. There’s a lot of moving forward only to have to retreat to lick their wounds…ones inflicted by others as well as those they inflict on each other. But in the end, the work is worth it.
NICUnurse’s Rating: Where Stealing Her puts you IN the emotional wringer, Finding Him turns the darn thing on and puts you through the heaviest cycle! It literally took me days to process everything that this book pulled out of me emotionally. The grief was nearly overwhelming. Julian has lost so, so much and has so many deep regrets. And while Keaton is also grieving, she’s also on this journey to figure out who she really is and what she really wants in her life. Both are struggling in their search to make sense of who they are without the lives they always envisioned they’d live. If you like emotional and angsty books, Finding Him has it all in spades. I laughed at the witty banter between Julian and Keaton, I cried over all that both had lost and their struggles with themselves and each other and sighed a happy sigh when Rachel took my poor, shattered heart and stitched it back together perfectly.
I give Finding Him by Rachel Van Dyken 5 out of 5 stars!
4.5 stars
After reading Stealing Her, I knew I needed Julian’s story. Once I started it, I couldn’t put it down. You feel the whole gamut of emotions: loss, heartache, hope, love… This was a emotional read.
In Stealing Her, Julian’s twin, Bridge, impersonates him, while Julian is in a coma. When Julian wakes up he realizes he lost his fiance. Now he is suffering heartache and just angry. Bridge makes Julian take a sabbatical to there place in Vermont.
The house is simultaneously rented out to Keaton Westbrook, who is also suffering her own loss.
Stuck due to a snow storm, Julian and Keaton become close. While they would like to move forward outside forces are at play. Not to mention they both have issues with trust and people using them.
So what happens? You’ll definitely want to one-click for Julian’s story. You won’t be disappointed.
4.5 stars
Waking up from a coma is hard, but waking up from a coma to find your fiance in love with your twin brother is a world changer. Especially when it feels like the entire world moved on while you were sleeping. Julian Tennyson has some soul searching to do as he works to find his place now that he is awake again, and his brother and former fiance think some time alone at the family cabin is the perfect place to figure out his next steps. The only problem is the cabin isn’t empty.
Keaton Westbrook grew up with the spotlight of Hollywood on her family. Now she is a social media influencer looking to find some peace and quiet to write a book she is already behind schedule on. A month in a secluded cabin should be the perfect place to sort through her grief and find the words to tell the story she promised to share. But a snow storm blows in and she finds herself not as alone as she thought in the cabin she rented.
I loved both of these characters. Julian is the kind of guy who grows on you. When he was talked about in Stealing Her, I thought I was going to hate him forever. But as we get to know him as he recovers, he makes changes that make it impossible to hang on to the animosity. I loved watching him give of himself as he tried to help Keaton reach her goals. Keaton is just trying to grieve and move on as best as she can, but being in the social media spotlight makes it difficult when her fans expect her to react one way even as she begins to feel something different.
The arc that Julian has made throughout these two books had me rooting him on as he works on forgiveness (of those around him and of himself) and acceptance of his new situation had me cheering for him from the beginning of this book. I loved watching him step out of his norms to help Keaton so she could walk her own emotional journey as well. This was exactly the story I was hoping for Julian as he began to change at the end of Stealing Her, and I couldn’t be happier for the final outcome!
I LOVED the first book in this series and after what we knew of Julian in that book, I was curious. He was a jerk to say the least. He was the villain in that story, despite being in a coma. I had no idea what to expect with this book and it completely blew me out of the water. I fell in love with this story, these characters and the second chance at love.
Julian is fresh out of a coma and being forced to take a break from his job, especially after the loss of his mother. He takes a break from the city life and heads to his family’s “cabin”, what he doesn’t expect is to find someone else there. Keaton is still mourning over the loss of her boyfriend, but she also needs to write his story. The story she promised him. With a month planned in a cabin this was going to be her time to write, that is until a stranger shows up.
Julian and Keaton started off as enemies, they didn’t like each other much, but as time went on, they formed a connection. They were both broken in different ways, both grieving the loss of loved ones, but also found support in their newly formed relationship. They both helped each other grieve. To overcome the loss and move on.
I loved the connection between Julian and Keaton. I loved learning how their pasts were connected in ways they never even know. These two beautifully broken souls were able to heal each other in ways neither of them thought was possible.
Finding Him is a MUST READ!
Julian’s world completely shifted while he was in a coma forcing him to work with the brother, Bridge, that stole his fiancé, to take over the family company from their devil of a father. Now he finds himself lost, carrying anger toward Bridge but knowing that he pushed Isobel away with decisions he had to make to compete with his father. Then the last person keeping him sane, his mother, passes away, and any foundation he had is gone. The company forces him to take a vacation which sends him to the family cabin in winter but he never expects to find a woman in residence when he arrives. Keaton has a beautiful soul and found a pure love with Noah, as he battled cancer. She has spent her life as an influencer on social media and their love story became legendary. With his death, she is faced with writing their epic love story but can’t find the words. Heading to the cabin in the woods that Noah wanted to take her to, she hopes to find peace to write. Being invaded by a belligerent, sexy smelling man, never crossed her mind. Julian is easy to hate based on what he did to Isobel but his motives were driven by bigger goals for the company. I wanted him to find his happiness again, he deserves love if he can allow himself to accept it. Keaton is a breath of fresh air while being a bit lost. Her love for Noah was incredible but was born out of compassion not passion. I love how she doesn’t back down to Julian, pushing him out of his comfort zone. Julian is the perfect balance to Keaton; she needs someone to lean on and show her that moving on isn’t wrong. But will Keaton let her followers dictate her future, keeping her from a new love? I devoured this story, wanting Julian to find peace and love again, to know that he is worthy. I voluntarily read an ARC of this book and this is my honest review.
*5 Stars*
ARC kindly received in exchange for an honest review.
I really didn’t know what to expect from this one, after the first instalment. I didn’t think I would be that fond of Julian, especially after the way he was painted in the first book. That being said though, I wasn’t overly in love with Bridge either.
Julian and Keaton’s story took me by surprise. They had a great connection, even if Julian was a bit of an ass at first. Once they got to know each other, and to be able to understand in each other in a specific way because of the lives they both live, and the recent events they have endured.
I actually really loved Julian. It seems the coma really changed him, or maybe it just brought back the person he used to be. I really enjoyed this book, and these two characters getting to know each other and lean on one another.
A really nice conclusion to this duet. Would recommend.