In my dreams I choose him, my prince, instead of the fraud. In this parallel universe, at this second-chance juncture, I turn right instead of choosing wrong… and there only there, we are together." Read this book if you’re a self sadist and willing to torture yourself and dug a whole in your soul. While the author did a great job describing physical abuse and portraying the feeling of being trapped in a relationship, I had difficulties understanding how Iris let herself in this situation in the first place. From the beginning it was clear she had no particular feelings for her boyfriend, so it felt like a contrived situation to me. Hope is the gap between what if and what is, but you have to fill the gap with a lot of hard work.” The characters in this book were written so well. Iris was such a strong and inspiring character and reading about her go through the worst period of her life was so heartbreaking but honestly a privilege to read. I cried most of the book, sad, angry and happy tears. There were some very distressing scenes which were incredibly hard to read which were very graphic and upsetting so be careful before going into this book. I have so much respect and adoration for Iris for surviving such awful domestic violence. She is a FIGHTER!!

Center,” he says, linking our fingers and toying with the hair hanging on my shoulder. “If you were mine, Iris, there would be no doubt what position you’d hold in my life. You’d be center. I’d play you at the five.❞ If you want to know if I recommend this book, the answer is YES. It doesn't matter if romance is your preferred genre or not. This is a book for everyone. It's a story that needs to be heard, and Kennedy did an amazing job telling it. I hope you give it a shot!Given that absolutely serious disclaimer about abuse - this book shook me up. I will say in the very beginning of the book when August and Iris meet, it's actually kind of boring to the point that I almost put this book down. And yet I am *so glad* I did not put this book down. Because shortly afterward it took a serious turn for the better (though for the worse for what the characters go through). I couldn't put it down! I don't want to give anything away, but just know that this is a romance story, but it is definitely about going through hell at first. The five-spot? His position is the point guard, or the one-spot. Shooting guard is the two. The three is small forward, and the four is power forward. The five is . . . The heart speaks in whispers, but sometimes by the time we listen, it’s too late. I learned that the hardest way. And maybe that girl can change her course before it’s too late.”

Welcome to Shh... [Smut, Heroes & HEAs], a reader group dedicated to contemporary Romance & Erotica. Heat level: Good. They have some good tension, chemistry, and scenes -- but not so much it takes away from the story. Ok, I need to stop here because I could spend all day re-reading and sharing all the highlights I have of all the delicious things that came from August. I'm going to be honest, when I started reading this book I thought it was going to be a 2 star read because of prevalent issues. Then when I got to the middle, I for sure thought I was going to rate this 4+ stars. Then the end I couldn't settle because my emotions were so mixed, I went and did the chaotically neutral thing and said it was a three star read. Long Shot (stand-alone) is the against-all-odds love story, spanning years, between NBA superstar and businessman August West and college grad and aspiring sports marketer Iris DuPree.I wish I had met MiMi, her wisdom and her clairvoyance guiding me too. Her cryptic support meant for Iris, could be helpful for