Make no mistakes about it. I know what I look like to others. Young, government-aided, pregnant mom. They see Lucy on my hip, and they see a mistake. I mean, why else would someone have a child so young, right? They couldn’t be more wrong. I’m too busy most days between parenting, work, and finishing up my last year of nursing school to let their judging gaze tear me down until he moves into the … the vacant house next to the apartments I live in.
His cold, blunt observation of us doesn’t differ from any other stranger. He doesn’t know me, but he’s already painting a picture of who he thinks I am in his mind. He judges my very round belly, Lucy’s inability to leave him alone, the bags under my eyes, and the fact that I couldn’t care less what I look like anymore.
He’s a rude guy. Stays that way for months too. Then something happens, I’m not even sure what. Judgmental Guy decides Lucy and me—as well as baby Eli, are worth his friendship.
Turns out, Judgmental Guy isn’t too mean—okay, he kind of still is. But he graduates to Elijah. I build an unlikely friendship with him which deems it necessary for him to start smiling around me and my kids.
I’m wrong again. Elijah isn’t rude. He’s terrifying. His strange acts of kindness are unraveling me. Elijah is only my friend.
Right?
Oh, fudge. I think I’m wrong.
Again.
Single mom slow burn romance.
more
I need this book
Wonderful Story & Narration A Captivating Delight!
One Percent of You
By: Michelle Gross
Narrated by: Christopher Solon
Wow, I was completely taken in by this story, it grabbed my attention right from the start and held it straight to the end, it is the type of book you do not want to put down. Michelle Gross is a new to me author so I was not familiar with her work and I must say she is one gifted and impressive author. I enjoyed her writing style as well as the storylines and characters she created, they are realistic, easy to relate to and connect with. Hadley, the lead female, a 21 year old is juggling work, school and parenting a three year of all while she is expecting another child. She is on her own after throwing out her loser of a boyfriend, thankfully she has her parents to help her some. She learns she has a new neighbor, one that is not very pleasant and leaves a bad impression not only on her but her daughter Lucy too. Lucy is adorable and often steels the scene, like her mother she is wise beyond her years, speaks her mind and says it how she sees it. Elijah doesn’t want anything to do with kids, he doesn’t know how to deal with them nor does he want to. But he finds himself drawn to the girl next door and her mother. After terrible first impressions he winds up doing the right thing, first trying to apologize and then coming to the rescue when Hadley goes into labor. I loved how everything plays out in this book, the story is beautifully plotted and there is a lot of depth and layers to it. I admired Hadley’s ambition and hard work to get her feet on the ground with her career without losing focus on other important things, like her daughter. I adored Elijah and how much he grew as a character, I thought he and Hadley were perfect for each other and great together, he turned out to be a natural especially when it came to Lucy. There is never a dull moment in this book, there is plenty of drama, heartfelt and emotional moments, some angst and a wonderful, slow burn romance.
I listened to the Audible edition, Christopher Solon is a fabulous narrator and voice artist. He is perfectly casted to bring these characters to life, humanize them, giving each their own voice and personality. His portrayal of each character is perfection, making them his own and sounding just as I picture them to sound. I loved his Lucy, his take on her was adorable, he also nailed both Hadley and Elijah’s role too. You could hear how much heart he puts into his work as he captures the characters emotions, as well as their strengths and vulnerabilities which is reflected in his performance. He is an entertaining storyteller and a pleasure to listen to. Thank you for another wonderful listen
This turned out to be a bit of a surprise. I will admit that I wasn’t so sure if I was going to like this book at the beginning. I’m really glad I stuck it out. By the time I finished the book, I really, really loved it.
This will appeal to a lot of readers who likes a hero that starts out as a jerk who was pretty judgmental, but then turns into one of the most devoted heroes by the end of the book. He became so protective of this single mom of two kids. The way he wanted to spend all his time with them and provide for them had me hook, line and sinker. The end far outweighed the rough start.
The heroine was very likable as well. She was a bit of a doormat, at first but after what happened to separate her from her ex showed that she was just loyal. When that loyalty wasn’t returned, she stood her ground. That’s pretty admirable in a heroine. She was an awesome mom as well, however that also made her cautious so that means this is a very slow burn romance.
I ended up liking this so much I can see myself re-reading this one many times. I highly recommend it.
Such a fantastic story
Story:
Trope: grumpy/sunshine
Angst:
Smexy:
Triggers: none
This was such a heartwarming story with really wonderful characters. You become super invested in seeing the heroine and hero getting their HEA. Super smexy how he is fascinated by her post baby, lactating body, lol.
Overall, a very sweet, romantic story, but it has a bit of a rough start. Elijah is a complete jerk, very judgmental, and self absorbed, and pretty much hates kids without apology. Then he meets Lucy, who takes the last bag of Funyuns, which he wants, so he basically scares her into dropping them so he can take them from her. Seriously, he’s a total asshat. Then he turns around and judges Hadley, Lucy’s mom, who also happens to be 9 months pregnant, automatically assuming she’s playing the system, and is a total bane to society. Making him more of an asshat, is that he was raised by a single mom (who then eventually remarried), and he thinks she’s the only one who didn’t take advantage of the system. Actually, Hadley married young, and the day she found out she was pregnant with baby 2, she walked in on her husband with her cousin, and she kicked him out. She works full time, while going to school, while raising her daughter and pregnant. She’s really a bad ass. Then they discover that said asshat has purchased the house adjacent to the apartment complex Hadley and Lucy live in, and they keep running into each other.
With how much of a douche Elijah was in the beginning, I really did have to push through to keep reading, but I’m glad I did. Lucy is the cutest thing, and she eventually wraps Elijah around her Funyun loving little fingers. Their interactions are quite humorous, as the sassy, filter-free three year old repeatedly puts him in his place. And the relationship between Hadley and Elijah slowly grows from annoyance, to friendship, to love. It’s nice to see the evolution Elijah goes through, showing that even the biggest jerk can open their eyes and change. We also get Hadley’s strength in dealing with her ex, who, let’s be honest, is the real asshat in this story – he cheats on her but is constantly bad mouthing her and lying about her to his family, and coming on to her, saying he wants her back and she’s selfish for kicking him out. I was often wishing Hadley would do more to stand up for herself, but she was much more the adult in the situation, really, and refused to stoop to his level. When she finally lets Elijah in, their chemistry explodes, and she finally gets the love she really deserves.
I’ve never read this author before, I’m very happy this book was recommended to me. This was such a great book, if you ever need a book that you want to zone into and yet still feel completely relaxed, this would be a good one to read.
I can’t get enough of Hadley, Elijah, Lucy & Eli! Such great characters, I never wanted this to end actually.
I am definitely going to read more books from this author.
Pacing: This Book (to me) flowed easily and doesn’t feel rushed, true the end before the epilogues felt immediate, but ‘looking outside the box’ I appreciate it because, I can’t express enough on how much this book helped me keep focus and my anxiety didn’t become its usual front runner in distracting me while I read.
I will most certainly be rereading this over and over in the future.
I Give this Book a 4.5/5 Star Rating, Listing as 4.
HEA(?): Absolutely!
Relationship Type: MF
Romance: 4-4.5-5/5
Heat: 4-4.5ish/5
Drama: 3/5
Suspense: 3.5-4/5
One Percent Of You
By Michelle Gross
This was my first book by this author and as I started reading I wasn’t sure at first. I really disliked Elijah in the beginning of the book with his attitude, remarks and overall outlook on life. Then as the story progresses it begins to peel back the layers of his life. He sees that what he has done was wrong and begins to make admends. He becomes their friend, champion, and protector.
Hadley is a young mother with a boyfriend who she loves yet time and time he finds excuses for not working, not being able to watch their daughter not providing any kind of support. She works and goes to school and takes care of everything while he claims he has things he has to do. Then after finding out she was pregnant again and excited she left work early to tell him only to discover him in bed with her cousin with their daughter on the couch. He and especially his mother were a piece of work and I wish she would of stood up to them sooner. Thank goodness she kicked him to the curb. I loved Lucy and how she was loving and loyal to her mom. The back and forth banter between Lucy and Elijah once they got past that initial stage was so funny, emotional and touching. His bond with Hadley and her two children was truly beautiful. I fell in love with their story and hope everyone gives this book a read.
4.5
This story hits so close to home in certain areas. That makes it all the more endearing to me. The story is just wow. Spot on! The characters are what make this story gold. These two main characters both are living the stereotype but once they actually get to know each other they are completely different.
Elijah who hates kids and only lives to draw and do tattoos. He has the biggest growth of all. I loved the wonderment he has for women with babies. He makes me smile with his determination and words to convince Hadley to give him a chance.
Hadley who is struggling to make her life better for herself and her children. She Hates taking help unless it from her parents. She really changes as she becomes stronger. My love to her parents for helping support her instead of condemning her.
Then there is Lucy. She is the most adorable kid. Her love of Funions and dislike of the demon man along with her speaking her mind almost make her the star of this story. She makes me smile just about every time she is in a scene.
This is a first time author for me. Overall it’s a great I would recommend keeping an eye on the time line in the future. There were a few time I was confused. I really can’t say enough about the characters in here. They are excellent! The Epilogues were wonderful. Both of them!
I listened to this on audio. Christopher Solon is the narrator and a first time for me as well. The women’s and kids voices were down well but he rocked as Elijah. I could really picture him with that voice.
I will keep this in my re-listen folder.
This is a poignant, slow burn romance, with a single mom. Hadley worked nights, mom of one, and pregnant. She kicked out her boyfriend, Scott, when she came home from work found him cheating with her cousin. A new neighbor, Elijah, moved in next door. He was tall, tattooed, and rude.
A war between Hadley and Elijah began, when he and her 3 year old, Lucy, fought over the last bag of Funyons in the store. That was hilarious. The interactions between Lucy and Elijah was was priceless throughout the story. He didn’t want to get involved with them, but Hadley intrigued him.
Elijah realized his misconceptions about Hadley, when he realized how hardworking she was. Elijah told her she was the most devoted mother he’s ever known. It’s ok to be that devoted. but it was also ok to allow to keep 1% for yourself and he wanted to know that 1%
“Family bonds come from more than just blood. Sometimes it was just there. You didnt question it.” Hadley never had to worry about Elijah, he was her constant and strength in her life.
Christopher Solon is a new narrator for me. I was really impressed with his narration by bringing all the angst, emotion, heartbreak, and love in this story. He really real captured each character’s personality, especially the sassiness of Lucy. I was gifted this audio and offered my honest review
I stumbled upon this book late one night while in a major book slump. After reading the blurb I was instantly intrigued but the reviews made me doubtful. I decided to put the negative opinions aside and dive in. Hadley is a recently single mum with her second child on the way. As she struggles to get through nursing school and mum life she has a misfortunate run in with her next door neighbour. Our hero Elijah is a grumpy tattoo artist with a bad attitude who recently moved back home. Elijah was quick to make unkind assumptions about Hadley from the get go which prompted the bad reviews. However, I do believe in second chances (in some cases) and you couldn’t hate a man who instantly regretted his wrong doings and worked hard to apologise and make it right. Who knew an unlikely friendship could form over a bag of funyuns.
3.5 Stars
I’m glad that I stuck this one out. I love the premise of this, but after reading the first chapter, I was a little hesitant to continue. Elijah was a jerk. Especially to a kid (okay, I do have to say, though, that while it didn’t sound realistic, I got the biggest kick out of hearing the little girl, Lucy, call him a “demon worshipper”), although Lucy really held her own with Elijah and played him so well! I think I actually liked their relationship as much as the relationship that formed between Elijah and Hadley. Hadley was a little hard to take. I loved that she was such a hard worker, wanted so much for her daughter (and baby on the way), and was so strong and fierce when it came to her kids. I did not like how she was weak and insecure when it came to her relationship (I couldn’t stand that she was with Lucy’s father so long, despite him not pulling his own weight).
As the story progressed, I really began to enjoy the plot more. I’m glad that I didn’t give up on it after the first chapter! I’ll look for other books by Michelle Gross!
It was so cute and sweet and everything good!
Yes, Elijah was judgemental and an a-hole at the beginning, and I wanted to smack him over the head a few times. However, as the story progressed, he redeemed himself. His interactions with Lucy and Eli were sigh-worthy, and his devotion to Hadley was beautiful. He continued to be an a-hole to everyone else, but for Hadley and the children, he would move mountains. AND HE KEPT HIS PROMISES.
Highly enjoyable read!