From New York Times Bestselling author Corinne Michaels comes a heartbreakingly beautiful standalone story about letting love in.
I’m losing myself trying to save everyone else…
As a doctor, I walk a dangerously delicate balance of being compassionate but not overly invested. The same is true in my personal life–love is a luxury I can’t afford.
It isn’t until Dr. Westin Grant breaks … until Dr. Westin Grant breaks down all my walls and offers me a future, I find myself wondering if I’m brave enough to risk my heart.
When who I was and who I’ve tried to become collide during my clinical trial, the fate of one patient changes everything.
In a single moment, everything I’ve worked for is jeopardized. My integrity, my career, and even my relationship with Westin.
He loved me once, I just hope he can love me always …
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DEFINITELY ONE OF MY TOP READS OF 2021!!
This book deserves all the stars!! It gave me all the feels, and it gutted me to the core. I was so scared diving into this book because everything Corinne writes is always so emotional especially when she said Grey’s Anatomy meets This is Us. I honestly can’t keep track on how many times I’ve cried. There were times when I wanted to cheat and read the ending first, BUT I didn’t do it. Lol It hurts but keep on reading.
Serenity tries to help everyone around her, but she herself was still struggling trying to move on from a past that broke her. She lost her mom to cancer so she just have her father and a brother who is struggling with life. Serenity and Westin were both doctors. They were definitely friends with benefits, but Westin started to want more. Ugh. I LOVE WESTIN so much!!! He’s definitely goals! But Serenity just wouldn’t gave in to Westin. Ugh. I was so irritated of her at times, but I see where she’s coming from. Makes me feel so bad for both of them. My heart!!!
But what would Serenity do when her broken past came knocking on her door?
You need this book in your life!!! HIGHLY, HIGHLY Recommended.
If your looking for a typical romance story…this isn’t it!
Deeply moving, prepare yourself to experience a highly intense and emotional story.
This story is about Serenity’s journey and the choices she makes. As the story evolved and developed, I struggled with her character. Some of her characteristics were so unlikable, and selfish. But as the story unfolded, I began to understand why and I changed my opinion of her.
Serenity was a study of a complicated woman going through some deeply sensitive and emotional issues. She demonstrated how the human condition can overcome some obstacles.
Having Westin by her side pulled it all together.
I just wish some elements of the story were more realistic.
An intense and sensitive contemporary romance in a world where emotions run high. Serenity tells us about her fight against the disease and her struggle not to suffer from the loss of a loved one. I missed a few surprises and a more elaborate ending but it remains a very good story that touches the heart …
10 Stars! Best Corinne Michael’s Story to Date!
Elizabeth @ Carolina Chic’s Read
You Loved Me Once gripped me from the start I got all the Angst I love from romance and all the butterflies in my belly. I am an avid reader of this author and this is her best story to date. Serenity and Westin’s story is one of opening your heart to love after it was crushed in the past. When that same past intersects your present you question everything… your life, career and love.
Top Read for 2021!
I cannot say enough… I love Ms Michaels writing… I would read any book… any article she writes. This book is no different… such an emotional roller coaster ride… you didn’t want to get off! Loved the story line… LOVED the characters… LOVE THIS AUTHOR!
Corinne Michaels really brought her A-game in You Loved Me Once! This story was absolutely fantastic! It might be considered women’s fiction, but that did not bother me at all. It was just a beautiful and emotional story that had quite a few gut-punches that I wasn’t sure I would recover from., and I was hooked on every moment of Serenity’s story. It was one of those stories that truly made me think – would I have done the same thing if I was in Serenity’s position? Maybe, maybe not. But she did what she felt was right and there’s nothing wrong with that.
This truly is just a wonderful story with one of the swooniest heroes in Westin, and while it may not have the steam factor that some of Corinne’s other stories have, you will love it just the same.
When Corrine releases a new book, sign me up. Let me be the first to say, she did not disappoint!! This book is amazing. Its heartbreaking and heart powering individually and at the same time. Renn is a smart string will women g willing to go the extra mile doing the work she loves. Renn learns to truly find closer for herself while also finding what truly is important to her. West is the underdog that I truly was rooting for the whole time. When you find a string man willing to fight for you, hang on to him. Great read!!!
This story has the typical hard headed, fiercely independent woman you love to get mad at in a Corinne Michaels book. The one that makes you batty with the wrong choices they make but ultimately it’s for the right reasons.
Serenity’s story gave me strong Grey’s Anatomy vibes but better. Doctor Westin Grant (Serenity’s love interest) is a brilliant surgeon with a heart of gold. The one who Serenity has been having a serious fling with for quite sometime. She hasn’t quite opened up to him completely, she keeps apart of her distanced until she finally decides its been long enough. Yet a blast from Serenity’s past nearly ruins everything she’s trying to make work. Not just her relationship with Doctor Sexyass but with her career she’s worked so hard to achieve as well.
Intrigued yet?! You better! I don’t want to give much away besides the little tid bit I gave, but I absolutely loved this story. It’s definitely a game changer in women’s fiction! One of my top favorites so far for 2021!
This story is full of sacrifices! The sacrifices one makes to try and move on in life and determined to make a change to hide the inner demons.
Serenity had to make a huge sacrifice in life. One that has happened to, too many of us in this lifetime. But she did not expect it to turn her whole life upside down.
She changes her belief in love, her belief in existing, and ventures on, but doesn’t move on. She feels she has it all, until that moment. The moment they lock eyes and reality sets in.
A story of sacrifices many of us make in life, to justify others but not ourselves.
Beautifully written, so realistic you have to take a step back and breathe.
Once again, Corinne Michaels takes you on an intense emotional journey. Full of all the feels, heartbreaking realness and twists and love. This is not a light read, but it’s everything. Serenity & Westin are everything. Just read it already!!
5 incredible stars. A must read of 2021!
I love Corinne Michael’s books and writing. I’m going to be super upfront with that. Liam is probably still my top book boyfriend ever. But let me just say, this may be not only the best book she’s ever written, but one of my top five favorite books ever.
This isn’t a book you’re going to read mindlessly. It will challenge you. It will make you question right from wrong. It will make you wonder if you can do the wrong thing for the right reasons. It will frustrate you. Anger you. Make you sad. But overall, it will stick with you, and that is the sign of a powerful, well-written book. I am still thinking about it days after reading it, and I’m trying not to gush in this review too much, but wow.
Serenity is a doctor, her specific field chosen due to personal experiences. She wants to help save lives and save women’s choices and give them what her mom didn’t have. She finally gets to run her first clinical trial, that she strongly believes in, when her past shows up in the worst of ways.
Serenity is stuck a bit in the past. We’ve all had that love that we just couldn’t let go, and given what she was also going through at that time, it’s understandable. She’s scarred, and frankly, a little bit messed up. It’s almost like she’s this strong, powerful woman in every aspect of her life… but in her love life she’s stuck in her college years. She doesn’t want to let love in, because she’s still in love with her past.
But, that doesn’t mean she doesn’t have physical needs or that she doesn’t get lonely. Enter Westin Grant, a way-too-understanding hottie surgeon who truly loves her. He’s willing to wait for her to figure all of her stuff out, and it’s amazing to see a man be so supportive. Westin is absolutely out of this world, and while this book is so much more than their relationship, I adored him and how hard he fought.
Serenity has to make a lot of choices in this book. Choices about her past, about her future and about her career. Some of them had me biting my nails seeing how they’d play out… was she right? Was she wrong? Was she taking unnecessary risks?
Of course it played out even differently than I expected, with so many twists thrown in, because Corinne doesn’t take the easy or formulaic way out. She is thoughtful in her plotting and her approach, and it leaves the reader in suspense and on the edge of their seat.
Please, please read this one. As a reminder, it’s “Women’s Fiction” and not a romance, but Westin will bring you plenty of book-boyfriend vibes. As always, YMMV, but go one-click this one today!
I usually can expect a certain type of Corrine Michaels book, but on this one? This one is something else, on every single level. You Loved Me Once is a once in a life time kinda book that pushed boundaries and rung every single emotion out of my body.
As always, I will never get tired of this authors work. Her writing in general is out of this world, and I know I shouldn’t be surprised that she ups the ante every single time, but daggone it, You Loved Me Once is something special and the writing was phenomenal.
Michaels took such a complex storyline and complex main character and crossed every ‘T’ and dotted every ‘I’. I mean, talk about great world building. The development was flawless, set at the perfect pace. The depth pretty much carved out my soul to the point of no return, (but in a good way). The dialogue was rich and beautiful. The slow uptake onto ‘more’ than the spicy times showcased how these characters really feel. It shows that nothing worth having doesn’t come without its ups and downs.
I loved the main characters. They were simple, but they were not. The devotion that both Serenity and Westin had showed through every word, every move and made them feel so authentic. They had truly beautiful hearts both professionally and personally.
I foresee, You Loved Me Once being my favorite book by this author, “ Until My Last Breathe.” and to be perfectly clear, Shonda Rhymes ain’t got nothing on Corrine Michaels.
** I recommend this book.
It’s really interesting and refreshing reading a predominantly women’s fiction story by Corinne Michaels. You Loved Me Once is packed with emotional turmoil, decisions that will effect so many lives, new love, and love lost. Serenity’s life and personal growth is woven into so many different paths that you are really guessing what is going to happen until the last few chapters. This was a roller coaster that I was not wanting to get off of!
Dear Corinne, please write more standalones! You Loved Me Once was fantastic!
Let me just say that for the first little bit, I did not know where this book was going relationship-wise. Was Serenity really in love with Westin? Was she going to end up with Bryce? Thankfully I trusted the author and stuck it out. This book ended up being one of my favorite reads of Corinne Micheals, up there with Consolation and Conviction (if you haven’t read those, YOU ARE MISSING OUT.) Cancer is such a heavy subject, and it is no less heartwrenching in this book, but the love stories from a patient, Mrs. Whitley, and the love story of Serenity’s parents, mixed with Serenity, Westin, Bryce, and Allison made for one amazing read. Keep a box of tissues handy, and trust Corinne to bring you through this one.
Serendipity has suffered so much loss in your life so she is afraid to let her walls down. Westin works at hospital with her and has been trying to get her to drop her walls. Will he succeed? Can she love again? She has worked very hard to develop a clinical trial but will everything be ruined when her past comes back?
“There are times in life when you need the loving arms of a man who never fails you—and this is one.”
Powerful, emotional, absolutely unforgettable. This standalone medical drama romance gave me all the Grey’s Anatomy vibes and the rollercoaster of angst and drama that I love. Dr. Serenity Adams is about to start a trial for her breakthrough treatment for cancer patients, the pinnacle of her career and the best way to honor her mothers memory. Serenity has lost a lot over the years but being a doctor is as fulfilling and at times heartbreaking as she imagined. Never letting her own emotions get in the way of treating her patients, that is until the past comes back and everything she has dedicated her life to saving comes in jeopardy.
“Time heals all wounds, but when you’re fighting a broken clock, each second counts.”
A story of unthinkable choices, where morals are fighting for what is right, and what happens when your heart gets in the way. Every decision we make has a consequence, some good, some bad and this story definitely had me wondering what I would do if I were in Serenity’s shoes. Along with the medical drama aspect there is the romance that she shares with a fellow Doctor, Westin. While she has let him into her bed, her heart is something she guards with everything she has. Westin was so thoughtful and kind and extremely patient with her heart, he really was the bright spot in her life and this story. I would definitely swoon over a doctor and man like Westin, one of the good ones, Serenity was lucky to have him in her corner. I did the audiobook and the narration really upped the emotional aspect, I definitely cried and had my heart put through the wringer but this is an absolutely beautiful story and I highly recommend if you are a fan of angst and drama!
It’s no secret that Corinne is one of my all time favorites. Her books just take my breath away. They are always so gorgeous and packed with a punch. I was so excited to get my hands on You Loved Me Once! Nothing like a new Corinne book to get you all in your feels! And gahh, did this book destroy me.
Serenity hasn’t had an easy to at life but that hasn’t stopped her from following her dreams. As a surgeon she lives a busy life to say the least but now with her clinical trial about to be a go, hopefully… she’s excited for the next step in her career.
Love has always been in the back of Serenity’s mind but that doesn’t stop Westin from trying to squeeze into her life, little by little. They both know the struggles of being a surgeon and how they are married to the hospital. But Serenity has secrets that she never wants to be uncovered. But when her past becomes the future… it looks like her secrets just might come spilling out.
This book wrecked me in only Corinne fashion. I adored every word and soaked up these pages. I devoured this book in one sitting. A gorgeous, angst filled read and one you are not going to want to miss.
One thing I know about a Corinne Michaels book is that it will hit you hard with the feels and your emotions will be a mess by the time it is over. You Loved Me Once was just that. Serenity has been through so much in her life already and to be where she is in her field is astounding. Westin is just one of those guys you cannot help but adore. He is one of her biggest cheerleaders. Then things get messy. And I mean MESSY! But it is done in a fashion that will have your heart aching, tears flowing and so much more. Seeing the development of Ren is intense and will take you on a gambit of emotions. To me this story was about finding that love that was buried deep inside. Letting your heart love and so much more. This is very much one of those books that has to be read. If you are a Michaels fan, you will love this story to its core!
This was such a beautiful story of love, grief, letting go, and moving forward. I can’ say too much but have your tissues ready. I love the relationship between Westin and Serenity and how it slowly progressed to more. It’s a slow burn of sorts with so much passion and understanding I was hooked on it from the beginning and I didn’t put the book down until I was done.
I am speechless!! 5 stars is not enough for this book!!! The emotions that were in this book were extraordinary!! Westin is a man that everyone wants. Serenity just can’t see that because of her past. Every choice that you make affects someone in some way.