My best friend made damn sure I knew the rules. His sister was strictly off limits.UNTIL NOW.KALIGrowing up it was always the three of us. Me, my twin brother, Kyle, and our best friend, Aiden. We were inseparable all the way through high school.Did I picture myself with Aiden from the first moment I laid eyes on him back when we were eight? Hell. Yes. I fell in love with his soul that day. But … Hell. Yes. I fell in love with his soul that day. But he was always more Kyle’s friend than mine. And Kyle made damn sure we both know the rules.
I was strictly off limits. Forever.
But now Kyle is gone. Dead from a freak accident. And Aiden is still here. Looking hot as hell in his grown-up body. Looking sexy AF with those tattoos all over his muscular chest. Sad and in need of comfort. Just like me.
AIDEN
Every time Kyle caught me lusting after his twin sister, Kali, he reminded me of the rule. “You were my friend first.”
If you want to get technical about it, I was Kali’s friend first, not Kyle’s. But that’s not how he saw it. One rule. That’s all we had between us. Just one. Stay away from my sister.
All these years I’ve honored that. I never broke his trust. Until now. Because he’s dead. He left us. And being with Kali is the only thing that makes the pain go away.
I want Kali. I want to marry her, and have kids with her, and keep her in my bed forever.
But I want Kyle’s blessing too. And that’s something I’ll never get.
Pretty Thing is new sexy, brother’s-best-friend romance filled with tender moments, second chances, and steamy love scenes that will make you sigh with happiness when you turn the last page!
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Keep the tissues handy for his one. You just might need them.
Aiden is that perfect blend of tattooed bad boy and boy next door. His body may have changed over the years, but he’s still that same fun, sweet, loving, caring guy he’s always been. He’s protective, kind, and loyal to a fault.
Kali is a little lost. She’s been determined to find her place in the world, her own identity. She’s more reserved than she used to be and keeps her distance from the people she loves.
I really enjoyed this heartbreaking spin on the best friend’s little sister romance! There were so many feels in this story and you really struggled alongside the characters. I wanted to both hug them and shake them out of frustration at times, but by ‘The End’ I was in love, not only with the characters but with the overall story too. This is only my second JA Huss book so far, but I’m definitely liking what I’m reading.
I highly recommend this book.
JA Huss is my all time favorite author and she can write any genre and not one book is predictable. Kali and Aiden’s story is sweet, heartwrenching, and full of love. I hope one day there really is an app like Julie wrote about.
As usual, JA Huss has written another hit! This book is a standalone, friends to lovers book that has all the feels. It’s more tender and romantic than I usually go for, and it made me feel things in my gut. It did hit close to home for me, because I have a twin and this is my biggest fear. That made it slightly more difficult for me personally to enjoy the story, because I was heartbroken the entire book. But that’s my issue, that’s not an issue with the story or the writing. There’s a nod to another character in this book too, nothing that you need to know, but something that will make long term Hussies smile. I think everyone would love this one!
Emotional. Rollercoaster. That’s the best way to sum this up. I loved the characters. I loved the small town setting. There were plenty of tears but they were sad AND happy ones. Oh and I can’t forget sexy. Definitely sexy too.
So bitter, so sweet! After reading so many twisted and crazy stories written by Julie I never thought she had it in her to write such a sweet story. Granted, she writes romance but it’s dark most of the time and I love her for it. But this book came as a big but nice surprise.
Half of the story I wished Kyle wasn’t dead and at the end he will come out of nowhere saying that he had to do it just to bring Kali and Aiden together. But when I was crying my eyes out and feeling for Kali and Aiden and their loss I was ruling that option out because he couldn’t be that selfish and bring so much pain on them just for him to play a game. So half of the book I spend it warring with myself: wishing I could take their pain away but not wanting to believe Kyle being gone. Oh, how I wished to have met and spent more time with him cus he really sounds like a great and fun guy 🙂
Let me tell you, it might have been a bitter and sweet ride but there were some fun moments as well. The ability to read a page and be turned on and then on the next one to cry like a baby it’s something that only Julie can come up with. But she did it and you will enjoy it till the end!
What an emotional read this was! Pretty Thing was a departure from the type of storyline we usually get from JA Huss but it was still classic Huss all the way through. This one is more of a classic contemporary romance, injected with Julie’s usual punch in the gut realism.
I wasn’t sure what to expect with the brother’s best friend trope, but as is typical Julie, she brought us an emotionally charged, heartwarming story, plus so much more. I felt SO many emotions while reading this!
We know from the blurb that Kali, Kyle and Aiden have been best friends from the age of eight, inseparable until tragedy strikes and Kyle is suddenly gone, throwing their dynamic out of balance and Kali and Aiden not sure how to move forward without that glue. Leaning on each other for support, feelings they’ve always had for each other come to the surface, but Kyle always warned Aiden to stay away from his sister, so what should he do?
It is hard to deal with the aftermath of someone’s death who was such a huge part of your life. Julie manages to suck the reader straight into the story so you feel every emotion that Kali and Aiden felt. Not gonna lie, I cried several times while reading this book! But a lot of the tears I shed are happy tears.
Even though Kyle has passed away, there is still so much of him in this story. It was really, really heartwarming to read the sections about him. I can understand why he was such an integral part of both Kali and Aiden’s lives. And not just because he and Kali are twins.
I am amazed at how Julie managed to make me fall in love with this book, even though it was so different than her usual twisted stories. It was just a really good read. I closed the book with a huge smile on my face. Bravo, Julie!
Kali and Aiden’s story is a unique spin on the brother’s best friend idea. I was genuinely taken from the very beginning by this story, which surprised me – the circumstances around this pair deciding to couple up seemed a bit questionable (to them as well, in a big way to be sure) but they just were so perfect together it worked.
It’s hard to discuss much about this book without spoilers, but it was a really fantastically built story around a couple who finally manages to find their way to one another after a lifetime of staying apart because of his friend and her brother despite the fact that they had fallen in love as kids basically.
A great story dealing with loss, change, finding oneself and realizing love. Recommend!
Pretty Thing by J.A. Huss is sentimental and sorrowful with a side of sexy. It is an intriguing twist on the best-friend’s-sister romance.
From the shocking beginning to the delightful end, Pretty Thing is a delicious read. I loved main characters Aiden, Kyle, and Kali. The bond from youth to adulthood is portrayed through flashbacks, and it was completely endearing. It was easy to imagine these three playing and growing up in their charming rural neighborhood.
As Kali and Aiden get reacquainted, the apparition of Kyle is like a pesky child poking at them trying to be the center of attention. They each must work through their loss and determine if striving for what they truly want is worth disrespecting the memory of Kyle.
Author J.A. Huss gives Kali and Aiden a delightfully twisted HEA. Pretty Thing is a quick read that is equally sweet and saucy.
Omg this book gave me all the feels. Once I started reading Kali & Aiden’s story I didn’t want too stop. Beautifully written, characters that you will absolutely love. Kali & Aiden are a couple you will never forget. JA can do no wrong. Every book she writes is a masterpiece and one click worthy because you will never be disappointed. I love every single minute of this book and the ending was perfect.
Just Wow Julie! This touched my heart! Kali, her twin Kyle and Aiden. They were thick as thieves growing up but nothing good lasts forever when Kali loses half her soul. When loss makes Aiden & Kali want to find comfort in each other can they follow their hearts or will Kyle’s parting warning to his friend be enough to keep them apart. When you grow up sometimes feelings turn into more than friends & falling for his best friends twin sister wasn’t part of the plan. Neither was losing Kyle though. This was a beautifully touching friends to lovers story about loss, grieving, love and finding yourself again. Have a few tissues for this one. Told in dual POV
Pure Relationship Feels, Stunning Story!!
Poignant story of Kali and Aiden as they bury her twin, and his best friend Kyle. The three meet at age eight, and when Aiden starts to notice Kali at about age fourteen Kyle reminds Aiden that he is *his* friend first – keep away from my twin sister. Kali had moved to another town to try life as a “single”. She is surprised by the maturity, musculature and tattoos of Aiden when she returns for the funeral.
Feelings are the star of this story. Loss, life, and what it means to be truly living. Can the wishes from the grave affect those still living? Should they? When they are given a phone number of a final message in an App that Kyle used: Dead Notes…. What will they hear, and how will it impact their future.
Amazing read. Read in less than 24 hours – had to gain my own closure on this remarkable story.
*** I am voluntarily leaving my honest review of this book ***
Overall:
I have this secret fascination with J.A. Huss. She has this style that intrigues me. Let me give you a little bit of background about me to help me discuss her style. I wrote my master’s thesis on Ernest Hemingway. If you’ve read any of his books, then you’re familiar with the simple sentences and the space he creates between his sentences that make you pause and think about what resides in those spaces because, with Hemingway, there is meaning in the spaces.
When I read J.A. Huss’s books, it feels the exact same way. Her sentences read curt (don’t ask me…it’s the best way to describe it), but it is the space between the words and the sentences that make you question everything. And this is definitely true of her newest offering, Pretty Thing.
To begin, this was such a deviation from her most recent books which felt emotionally draining and heavy. Obviously, I love those types of books. However, this had a lightness to it even given the subject matter. Now, don’t get me wrong. I ugly cried in a few places in this book. It’s deep, and death is heavy. However, Kali and Aiden (and Kyle) make you love this story.
This is a forbidden “brother’s best friend” book. And Kyle, Kali’s brother, definitely steps in the middle of a burgeoning relationship between Kali and Aiden when they are younger. Honestly, he is fearless in wanting to keep them apart, and this creates the tension in the story. He is the tension in the story in so many ways.
Together, Kali and Aiden are light. The only drama that exists between the two of them is Kyle, which makes their eventual relationship so sweet to read. When they accept their love for each other (which comes fairly quickly), you want to wrap yourself in it because it is beautiful to read. You know, if they can transcend the Kyle complication, that they will have an amazing, loving, soul-matey kind of love. And it makes you swoon.
And therein lies the tension of this story: Kyle. His road block creates the drama. As such, Kali and Aiden continuously complicate their relationship, and the angst ensues. The beauty of this story comes in the end. I WILL NOT spoil it. You really must read it, but come prepared with a box of tissues because it will destroy your heart.
There was something so amazingly simplistic about Pretty Thing and its characters. Once I began reading the book, I could not and would not put it down. This trio will pull at your heartstrings and leave you with the most amazing bittersweet HEA. For me, this is one of my favorite J. A Huss stories.
Pretty Thing is such a sweet, heart felt story that I devoured in one sitting. I honestly spent the entire book waiting for the twist, that I have come to expect with this author and I was shocked when I realized that this author writes sweet romance as well as she writes wtf romances!
Kyle, his twin, Kali and their best friend Aiden were always a package deal…until they weren’t. Now Aiden and Kali are left dealing with their new reality. Then turn to each other in the moment of need and now the guilt sets in and they are lost in the what if’s..
I really loved these characters, both were so loyal and strong. They were willing to sacrifice everything for what they thought was right. They both broke my heart and put it back together and I this is a book you don’t want to miss out on!