We fell in love. Then our world fell apart. I wished so hard for Cole Danforth. And one day, he came true. He was my first crush, my first lover, my first and only love. He should also have been my last. But in a split-second, we were ripped apart, our lives broken, my heart shattered. After ten years, I’ve returned to my hometown, the place of my greatest joy and darkest pain. Cole is still … joy and darkest pain.
Cole is still here, but the beautiful boy I’d loved is gone. Now he’s a ruthless, unforgiving man determined to feed both my resentment and my lust.
Then our torturous past encroaches again, trapping us in a violent storm.
But this time, there is no escape.
The reading order of the WHAT IF series is:
IF WE LEAP
IF WE FALL
IF WE FLY
more
This story is unfolding piece by piece… Ten years ago tragedy ripped apart Josie & Cole’s beautiful sweet relationship. He is constantly reminded of it and Josie has amnesia of it. It’s still a mystery as to what really happened. I definitely recommend reading the prequel just so you can fully understand the depth of Josie & Cole’s relationship and how much they’ve changed.
I loved it!! I gasped at the last line and am dying to get into the finale, If We Fly. I have a feeling I’m going to need tissues.
* A review copy was provided by the author for the Blog Tour *
I am going to start this review by apologizing, because this review is going to be very vague and short. I don’t really know how to review If We Fall without spoiling it, so I am limiting what I will say.
Let me just say….What another AMAZING read by Nina Lane. I have to be honest and say this is my favorite book/series so far by Nina. I am so invested in Cole and Josie’s lives. I am in love with these characters and their tragic and at times heartbreaking story.
If We Fall is the second book in this series, after the Prequel If We Leap. I know it has been stated that you don’t have to read the prequel before starting this book, but after reading both the prequel and Book 1, I am so glad I read the prequel first. It filled in so much backstory between Josie and Cole. Plus the prologue of If We Fall starts off right where the prequel ended. Then we fast forward 10 years to the present time in If We Fall. I am also going to tell you, so far both of these stories have ended with Cliffhangers. So if you aren’t a fan of cliffhangers, you will wan to wait until all the books have been released. Thankfully the wait isn’t too long. This series/duet is complete on September 13th when If We Fly releases.
In this book we watch Josie and Cole go from friends to lovers (more in the prequel) to enemies to lovers again. This is truly a second chance romance. I will say that even though I am not a huge fan of cliffhangers….I LOVED the way this story ended. I am excited to see where Nina takes these characters is the next book. I think I have an idea, so I look forward to seeing if I’m right 😉 Josie and Cole’s story is filled with ups and downs and it is interesting to see how they handle them. I was left with many questions after this book, so I hope they are all answered in the next book.
This story was a fairly quick read. Definitely something that can be read in less than a day. Plus you won’t be able to put it down so it will go even faster. This book is told in Dual POV, so we get to see how each character is feeling. I will say I was glad we got to hear from Cole also in this book, because at one point I wasn’t to thrilled with him and his actions, but it was more understandable once we got unto his head.
I don’t want to say much more, so I will leave you with this…. READ THIS BOOK!!! You won’t be sorry. If you are a fan of Nina Lane’s books you aren’t going to want to miss this Duet!!!
I didn’t want things between Josie and Cole to change. I wanted them happy but knowing that they were not together tore me up. I was shocked to know the catalyst that drove them apart. It completely gutted to me to find out the reason why. So much heartache.
This is the second book of the What If series, continuing the story begun in If We Leap. It’s rich and angsty, yet not at all manipulative as Cole and Josie struggle with tragedy. The book has so many twists and turns and is so beautifully written, you’ll be sucked in and dragged along before you realize it.
Josie and Cole’s romance was once sweet and full of promise until tragedy tore them apart. The last few pages of If We Leap, the prequel to this book, are devastatingly heartbreaking. If We Fall picks up ten years later and is the beginning of an emotional journey for these characters who, though separated by years, have never stopped loving each other.
The story is compelling and well-written, pain filled yet hopeful. Josie and Cole’s poignant story touched me deeply and I couldn’t put it down.
I am voluntarily reviewing an advance reader copy of this book.
Reading the prequel, If We Leap is a must before starting this story.
This is a great series.
The book is an incredibly, beautiful second chance love story of the endurance and depth of true love is what many people spend their whole life trying to find.
I can’t wait to see where their journey takes Cole and Josie in Book 3.
This book does end on a cliff hanger.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book for Hidden Gems
I was so afraid of this book, it had me on edge the whole time. It’s like I can’t stand the suspense but then I don’t want to know. Then I cave and it’s a wow/ omg moment. I must say that I love Cole, he is so protective of Josie. I see why he did what he did, But at the same time it hindered her growth by not knowing the whole truth.
OMG!!!! This is an unbelievable story of a love lasting an entire lifetime. Josie Mays is an artist haunted by gruesome images that keep her up late at night. She translates her fierce some ghouls onto canvas and has become a well-known and prosperous artist. She returns ten years after the death of her parents and little brother to paint a memorial mural in the center of her small hometown of Castille to honor her parents. One her first night back, she has a panic attack because she fears the dark. Cole shows up unexpectedly and ready or not they face each other. Cole does not know the terror Josie has been living with. He witnesses some of it that night and takes a trembling distraught Josie to his house for the night. He tries to push her away and tells her to leave town and go back to where she came from. She puts her foot down and tells him to get over himself she is not going anywhere until she finishes the mural. Cole puts a stop to the town project of the mural citing city ordinances. The town cannot fight it. Cole shows up at Josie’s doorstep, they talk and he relents and tells her she can paint the mural he no longer objects. One thing leads to another and their old feelings surge through them. That night is the beginning of many nights of passion for them. Josie is happy to reconnect with Cole and he feels the same. Josie cannot remember anything from the night of the accident. But now since returning to Castille she is having flashes of her night terrors during the day. Cole is supportive of Josie and is there to ground her. She begins to see the Cole of her youth again and she is happy for once. Then things start to make Josie question the night of the accident all over again. I cannot wait to read the next book in the series If We Fly. I highly recommend this series.
God! This book! Nina Lane has a way of sucking you in from page one. I couldn’t put this book down after starting it.
I needed to know what happened that would cause Cole to turn into what he turned into. LOL!!! I needed to know why he would push Josie away. Their love was so pure, soul-deep, unbreakable. But he turned into such a jerk. *cries*
Josie has had her own set of issues since her life was flipped upside down. She’s making the best of it though. But coming back to her home town and facing her demons head on may be too much for her to handle.
Nina Lane is a fantastic storyteller and this book is no exception. It’s so real! I felt like I was living all this with Josie and Cole. It. Was. So. Good. And I seriously cannot wait for the next book. Read it!
Yet again Nina Lane has written a magnificent Story. Now if you haven’t read the prequel please do so, if not you definitely will be missing out on a huge chunk. It’s absolutely important to the story that you do.
I promise you that you will be hooked from the first page.
If we Fall ,is so beautifully intriguing, it’s heart breaking and spell bounding.
Cole and Josie have been childhood friends. They fall in love and when they are 19 start a romantic relationship.
Cole is undoubtedly my favourite hero of Nina’s. He is this damaged hero, almost like an injured animal. He caring, protective. He is powerful and hot. Most of all through everything he has the ability to love like no other. I’m fucking in love with him.
Josie is a heroine that my heart breaks for as well. What she has been through no one not even my worst enemy should be put through. She is so in love with Cole and knows that with him by her side she can never fall. That is until one dreadful night everything changes.
One decision changed so many lives. It’s haunted them both for so many years. It’s something that ripped them apart at the same times changed them irrevocably.
This book is suspenseful, hot, soul crushing but even more it’s absolutely addicting. I Loved every single word and read it all in one sitting.
4.25 STARS
Off the coast of Maine, in the town of Castille, Josie May had once been happy and very much in love. Now, ten years later, she returns to the place she previously called home—where her once happy memories are now marred by a devastating loss and untold heartache.
Haunted by cryptic nightmares and plagued with various phobias, Josie wants nothing more than to finally heal her broken soul. But in order to truly move forward, she knows that she must confront her past, along with the one man at the very center of it all—Cole Danforth.
Following a prequel that highlights the beginning of Cole and Jose’s “friends-to-lover’s relationship, “If We Fall” picks up the pieces, scatters them, and then glues them back together. But not before we encounter a cold and callous Cole—a man that’s the very antithesis of the boy that Josie once knew and loved.
Despite Cole’s hardened exterior, my heart ached for the misunderstood boy that turned into the town’s misunderstood, rich and powerful pariah. Because early on, I understood Cole’s motivation; the how and why of his behavior. Hence, the ending was hardly a surprise. It just solidified my belief that Cole made the ultimate sacrifice when he first let Josie go. And now that they’ve reunited, he’ll do everything in his power to protect her from any additional hurt.
Through it all, Josie’s love for Cole never truly died—it had only slightly dimmed. Even when confronted by Cole’s heartless demeanor or assaulted by his hurtful words, Josie could see past this façade to the man she’d once loved and lost that was now hidden deep beneath. It’s her unwavering faith in Cole that had me in Josie’s corner right from the very start and then continued on throughout. Because Cole’s outrageous behavior often had me questioning Jose’s resolve to ever give that man the benefit of the doubt.
For me, it really wasn’t difficult to figure out the direction this story was headed. How it plays out in the second half of this duet, however, is another matter altogether. Sure, I have my theories, but I’m anxious to see if my theories actually pan out and for the entire truth to fully be revealed. With a release date of September 13, thankfully, the wait won’t be very long at all.
On a final note, fans of “The Secret Thief” will surely enjoy this book’s familiar tie-in to that story. For me, it was the cameo appearance by Professor Dean West from Nina Lane’s Spiral of Bliss series that had me doing my very own happy dance.
I always say this, but it really is far more difficult to review stories I loved and I very much loved this story.
‘If We Fall’ is the first book in a duet series and it answers some of the questions left after reading the prequel ‘If We Leap,’ but leaves us desperately wanting more.
It’s been ten years since Josie and Cole tragically separated and throughout the book we catch clues and glimpses of what lead to their demise.
Josie is returning to her hometown after being away for ten years, she’s hurt and lost and haunted by a tragedy that drastically altered the course her life. She hopes returning home will not only help heal her relationship with her sister and honor her parents, but also help slay her demons and bring her the closure she desperately needs.
She encounters Cole and is shocked and sadden to realize he has turned into a seemingly cold and ruthless tycoon. He doesn’t resemble ‘her Cole’ at all.
Cole in turn makes is very obvious to Josie that he does not want her back in town, he’s quite honestly a jerk and almost cruel, but still Josie feels like her Cole is still there somewhere.
Though tentatively, Josie and Cole start to form a relationship again and it is quite obvious that though he may fight it, Cole still very much cares for Josie. Which poses the question; why is he pushing her away, still?
The masterful and nail-biting cliffhanger ending makes it clear that Cole is only trying to protect Josie!
I cannot wait to read “If We Fly” and find out how Josie and Cole’s story ends!
‘If We Fall’ was full of angst and romance and mystery and it may be my favorite Nina Lane book to date.
This book picks up 10 years after the prequel If We Leap when Josie’s life was split in two after a tradegy she can’t remember much of but she ended up losing the love of her life Cole and is left with the nightmares.
After ten years she’s come back to her hometown and Cole is still there but he isn’t the boy she once knew and loved. He’s hardened and ruthless.
These are the first books I have read from Nina and I have really enjoyed her style of writing with them. She has gripped her readers from the beginning and her writing is flawless and draws you in with such beautiful emotion.
Soon as Cole and Josie bump into each other again all the old feelings have come rushing back but the walls between them are huge. They will always share an undeniable connection that time and distance hasn’t been able to erase. Will they get a second chance at love? can they let go of the past or will it destroy them?
Looking forward to If We Fly out 13th sept to see if they finally can get over their demons and get their HEA.
5 They Do More Than Fall Stars!!!
Talk about a book that delivers so much more than I thought it was going to be about. In this book we get to the heart of Cole and Josie’s romance and then everything changes. What Josie thought was going to be a life filled with love with the man who was her first everything doesn’t happen the way she planned in her head.
Cole is a man that is a tortured soul thanks to a home life that no one could even conceive was going on because that just “wouldn’t be happening” in their house. When Josie, who is the only bright spot in his life, convinces Cole that they can be so much more than friends, they made big plans. Their lives were heading in the direction they both wanted. Their connection was on so many levels that I could feel it coming off the pages. Their love was all consuming…
Fast forward ten years and Josie is back in her small town to pay tribute to her parents. The only problem is that Cole doesn’t want her there. And he’s changed in ways Josie can’t recognize. And she’s not happy about it because she doesn’t understand. What I loved was that he still as that spot in his heart for her, but he doesn’t let her or anyone know about it. He’s bulldozing his way through that town and many unhappy people. But as I’m beginning to understand, there’s a reason for everything he’s doing even if it means destroying any remaining feelings Josie has for him.
As I continued reading I really thought I knew what was going on. There’s so much Josie isn’t telling people which affects so many things she’s trying to accomplish by coming back to the town that holds so much pain for her, but I really thought oh how much worse can it get? How much more pain either emotional or physical can this young woman withstand? Well, given how this book ends, there’s quite the shocker coming our way because holy moly, I was left gasping with the last scene.
I cannot wait to find out what really happened all those years ago….
Oh my gosh, I can’t breathe. I think my heart reached the quota of skipping so many beats the whole time I was reading this, and my mind is still a huge mess. This was so much more than I freaking thought it’d be! If the prequel, If We Leap, pinched at my heart, then this one squeezed and stomped on it like there’s no tomorrow. I couldn’t put this book down. There was no way. I just wanted to devour every page, every chapter, until I reached the end. And even then, all I wanted was more…
“When I was eleven, I had very few defenses against Josie Mays. Now, at thirty-three, I have none. She demolished them with one look.”
Cole and Josie’s story will melt you and break you and rip you to shreds a million times over. The more the pieces of the puzzle fell into place, the more it felt like they were pouring alcohol on my deeply wounded heart. Their love was written in the stars. They have the kind of chemistry and connection that’s all-encompassing and intense and just out of this world that there’s no denying how much they’re just meant to be.
These two were fated to be together—like their souls have always been tethered onto one another. But when life throws you a curveball, sometimes, it’s hard not to strikeout. And Cole and Josie’s relationship took a hit none of them expected, and never had the chance to recover from. Until ten years later when they were both brought back to where it all started. But no matter how strong their love was for one another, it didn’t seem like it was strong enough to keep them afloat. Now there’s a darkness looming over their relationship ever since that night. A crack that doesn’t seem like it could be fully mended. And that truly broke my heart in more ways than one.
“He’s still the only man in the world who knows exactly how to kiss me.”
The ending of this first book shouldn’t have been surprising to me, but the impact still felt like a massive sledgehammer to the head. It left my mind reeling, thinking about everything else that happened. The urge to reread the entire thing with a different perspective the second time around was so strong and real. Like I needed to experience it with both eyes wide open, so this time I’ll be able to pick up clues that I might’ve missed the first time.
If We Fall isn’t just a heart-wrenching tale of two people who got ripped apart by life’s unfortunate circumstances, but it’s also one that will leave your mind completely boggled, and you yearning for the next book because you just need all the answers so damn bad.
Nina Lane, I don’t know what I’m doing with my life, but I’m so damn glad this is the first book of yours (aside from the prequel) that I’ve read. You’ve undoubtedly rocked me to the core with Cole Danforth and Josie Mays—I can’t wait to know more and see what happens next with these two—and you’ve absolutely got a new fan in me.
4 stars
My first book by Nina Lane was the prequel to this book, IF WE LEAP. And, in a few pages, the author has conquered me. I was crazy to read the continuation of the story of Josie and Cole. In IF WE LEAP we discover how the couple met when they were children until they grown and became a couple. It was a great introduction. However, the author left the drama for IF WE FALL. And, oh my God, what a story! I got stuck in the pages, I even hated Cole and then fell in love for him again. And then, the author topped off at the end of the first part of this story leaving me in a awe since in none of my theories, I came to think of this result. And how I love an author who surprises me! I finished IF WE FALL even more anxious to read the sequel than when I started.
I NEED IF WE FLY!! And I already foresee a lot of heartache.
Why did it take me so long to read this author’s work? Nina’s writing is so good to read and flows in a way that you do not even notice the number of pages, you get immersed in the story. Cole and Josie really love each other. It is palpable. We feel that within that supposed hate it really was a lot of real love. I can’t wait for IF WE FLY and thank God it will not take long to launch. I highly recommend it!!!
Having read the gripping prequel If We Leap, I couldn’t wait to read this, and my goodness I was not disappointed, it was a fab read, I was engrossed within minutes and couldn’t put it down. I needed to know what happened to the all consuming love that Josie and Cole had in the prequel and what had happened to them!!
It’s 10 years later and Josie is coming back to her hometown of Castille for the first time since she left. She’s coming back home a different person than the one that left. Josie is now an artist in her own right, being known for her the darkness, edginess and horror that comes out when she paints. These stem from her nightmares and her insomnia and fear of the dark that started 10 yrs ago. She back in her hometown to draw a mural for the town and to support her sister who is expecting. What she’s not looking forward to is meeting Cole again.
Cole is not the same person either, he’s turned into the local business tycoon, a ruthless businessman who lets nothing and no-one get in his way. Dark, brooding, angry – there is nothing left of the boy Cole once was. But Cole can’t believe that Josie has come back, all he ever wanted was for her to stay away and find her happiness, now he will do everything in his power to force her out of town and away from him.
There is so much unresolved between these two, so much to sort out, the chemistry is still there and is practically jumping off the pages as they meet up again. They have so many memories and firsts between them that staying away from each other becomes impossible.
A great read, well written, entertaining, angsty and emotional with some dark undertones – I really enjoyed this, but didn’t see that ending coming at all, another cliff hanger of an ending that threw my whole thinking about what had happened for six!! I can’t wait to read the final book in this duet and see just what has happened. Fantastic reading, highly recommended!
There’s a lot to unpack in book one of Cole Danforth and Josie Mays’ duet, and even though I’m left with a large amount of unanswered questions at the end of If We Fall, what has been made more than clear is that the love that Cole and Josie once shared before their lives and worlds were upended in tragedy still remains and even though it has laid dormant for 10 years, with Josie’s return to Castille, Maine, these two are, once again, in each other’s lives, which will force them to confront their past choices, rehash old wounds, and reconsider decisions that were made that didn’t quite have the expected outcome.
Since that fateful night ten years ago, darkness has become Josie’s enemy in more ways than one because not only does it control her life, her sleep, her everyday living, but it also directs her artistry and it continues to force Josie to be riddled with phobias that refuse to release her. In returning to her hometown to paint a mural to honor her parents, Josie’s hope is that the love and light that her parents brought to her life will help her to overcome her phobias, her fears, and the knowledge that the man she loved is no longer someone she recognizes when she learns about the man he has become.
Cole desperately wants Josie to believe that the man he was…that she loved more than anything is no longer who he is, but as their story continues and Cole’s perspective is brought into the light, readers feel how desperate he is to touch Josie again…to give them both what they seem to so desperately want and need, but he’s held back by details we are not privy to, and as he gives into his old desires, readers witness his struggle to remain the tyrannical business owner who doesn’t care who likes or hates him…the same man who made a choice to walk away from the only woman he ever loved because he thought that was the only way she could move on from what happened.
There are reasons as to why Cole Danforth did what he did a decade ago…reasons he continues to push Josie away now, but there are also reasons why he can’t stay away from her when she returns to town…can’t shut his true feelings off for her when his mind tells him that that’s his only option to protect her.
It’s clear that Cole and Josie can’t escape their pasts…their unrelenting memories…their emotional connection…their beneath the surface love, but it’s also obvious that there is information that Josie doesn’t know about that fateful night, and with the small piece of information that Nina Lane leaves readers with at the end of If We Fall, I’m sure that the entire dynamics of what Josie can’t remember will be unraveled, but what that means for Cole and Josie’s relationship…for their second chance…for their ability to fly together is something I’m struggling to predict. But I trust that Nina Lane and her characters will guide the story where they need it to go, revealing all the unanswered questions and providing some light to both of their darkened lives.
4.5 Poison Apples
This is my first time reading this author and I really love her writing style. I don’t know why I waited so long to read one of her books. If We Fall was an emotional ride I didn’t want to stop. I am in dire need of If We Fly. Thank goodness we don’t have to wait long for it.
My heart broke for Colt and Josie. These two were so in love and perfect for each other. This was a page turner and kept me up late at night reading. I don’t want to give anything away so I am not going to say much. I will say you need this book in your life. You will fall in love with Colt and Josie. I highly recommend this duet. If you haven’t already grab If We Leap before starting this book.
This is something that you would want to read. It’s amazingly written, something that will touch and break your hearts, and it’s just the first book. It will make you wonder, how much more can you take for the next one?
Cole and Josie have been so in love then, but a tragedy separated them. Ten years later, Josie comes back to their small town and their paths once again crossed. But Cole was no longer the boy she fell in love with. Instead, he was a hardened, ruthless man. Fate will always find a way to get back two people that are meant to be together. No matter how much Cole tried to stay away from Josie, she seemed to be everywhere he is. Past feelings, happy and painful memories resurfaced.
Josie tries to break the walls that surrounds the present Cole. She could not believe that there wasn’t an iota of the Old Cole that remains in there. She wanted that back. And despite the fact that Cole would try his best to scare her away, she didn’t falter. Day by day, Cole’s wall crumble inch by inch, and I without a doubt believed that it wouldn’t take so much time before they’re back in each others arms.
I love the air of mystery with regards to the death of Josie’s family years ago. The one that drove them apart. It will keep you asking questions, will keep you guessing – especially with Josie’s flashbacks. Nina Lane allows her readers to get into Cole and Josie’s past – the ones that made them live, the ones that hunted them.
Just like any Nina Lane book – you’d just fall in love over this one. If We Fall is simply an epic start of a duet – one that will leave you breathless with your jaw dropping in anticipation of what’s next.