S
S. Kilgore
March 18, 2026
Verified Purchase
These two peaked my curiosity right from the first time I met them in Safe. Both of their backstories were so heartbreaking!! But I love a good second chance trope!!! This one was outstanding!! I love that we got to see a glimpse of Declan’s POV of how his friendship with Landon was. Loved the glimpses of Grant & Landon as well!! Keeping my fingers crossed there is an age gap romance to come next in this series!! I’d LOVE to read that story!!!
While I ATE THIS BOOK UP, I still found it annoying LOL
Javi stressed me out. Like yeah I get this had to happen for the story but OH MAN. What a way to go.
I adored their flashbacks actually. Literally two fools in love and I love that trope loll. But as it was hitting present time.... ugh! I just felt so bad for my baby Declan. King, you were sooo valid in your questions cause why the F did Javi believe everyone else and not you?!?! I was so upset lol.
But in the end, I have to remember it's a high school story and these kids don't know anything because I was surely not so smart at this age as well.
Overall, I still loved them. And that epilogue!!! Swoon.
I was excited about this book and the author did not disappoint. The love between Javi and Declan is so tangible. I loved them so much! I hope we get Danny and Simmons next.
I had a hard time getting through this book. I usually can get through a book really fast if it captions my attention long enough and this book just was missing something. I almost stopped but I’m a reader that once I start a book, I want to finish it. I think this book took me over a week because it didn’t grab me like the first book.
It was really evident in Safe that Declan and Javi had some shared history, and in Pretty we finally get to see the full depth of it.
It's a second chance romance. The book doesn’t follow a linear timeline. It jumps between the present and flashbacks to when the thing that caused their conflict and separation happened. That “thing” was really super obvious from the beginning. Still, the back and forth timeline works because it lets us peel back their history and understand why their dynamic is the way it is.
Both of them have emotional, complex backstories, especially Javi’s family situation.
Their relationship is equal parts sweet and hot. The chemistry is definitely there, although they act super antagonistic toward each other for most of the book. Even when they’re angry, you can feel the pull between them.
I generally really enjoy L. Waltree’s writing (A Little Bit is actually one of my favorite books) but it does bother me that after putting the characters through so much angst, the payoff doesn’t always feel satisfying. The bad guys usually don’t suffer the consequences of their actions, and the good guys don’t really get to win big. Without spoiling anything, I really disliked Javi’s ending. It felt unfair. Meanwhile, pervy guy and especially awful stepdad didn’t really pay for all they did the way they should have.
That said, I genuinely had a great time with the book and the series as a whole.
Oh, one last thing, mind the trigger warnings. Better safe than…
