Review: Wait for You by J. Lynn
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Wait for You (Wait for You #1) by J. Lynn
Contemporary / New Adult
J. Lynn (February 26, 2013)
Heroine: Avery Morgansten – College Student, Broken
Hero: Cameron Hamilton – College Student, Swoon-Worthy
Review:
Holy hell, this book bitch slapped me when I finally decided to read it! I can’t believe I’ve overlooked another orgasmic, awesome book! I luuuurved this book. It’s everything I love in a romance and so much MORE. So, in case you’re not picking up on my awe vibe, what I’m trying to say here is… if I dare say… this book was just about perfect in every way possible from beginning to end.
Avery has moved thousands of miles away from her home to attend college. A place where no one knows what tragically happened to her five years ago at a Halloween party. Because of that event, her life changed forever. For five years she has suffered tremendously. Now she’s ready to start over fresh and rebuild her life. She hopes to stay in the shadows and not bring too much attention to herself, especially after being in the spotlight for five long years. And hopefully no one ever finds out about the secret from her past that she is running from.
On the first day of school, very first class of the semester, Avery is rushing to get to class on time – not wanting to walk into class late drawing attention to her. But as fate would have it, she ends up slamming into a wall of six feet three inches of swoon-worthy hotness and then being rescued by this blue-eyed hottie after almost falling down a flight of stairs. During this awkward yet interesting meet and greet, Avery captures the attention of one of the hottest guys she’s ever met. Then she suddenly realizes she’s late for class. She panics and runs away, skipping her first class of the new semester and leaving Cam calling after her stunned. Avery hopes to never face Cam again after the strange and awkward encounter. But as luck would have it, Cam is her astronomy partner and her neighbor across the hall from her apartment.
“You’ve been checking me out, haven’t you? In-between your flaming insults? I feel like man candy.” – Cam
Let me get straight to the soul of this book. I absolutely love Cam. He’s intoxicating… to say the least. He bakes cookies for Avery and then proceeds to use cookie innuendo to tease her. What I wouldn’t do for a piece of his cookie. He has a pet turtle named Raphael. Totally sexy. He makes eggs for Avery on Sunday mornings. Swoon. He goes commando. Helloooo. He’s funny with his quirky ideas. He’s cocky or, as he says, ‘confident.’ Have I mentioned how sexy he is? And finally, every time he calls Avery sweetheart, my heart melts into a puddle of mush.
But seriously, Cam is truly a wonderful and amazing character. There are so many things I love about him, which makes it hard for me to put it all into words. But the thing that stands out the most is his patience with Avery. He knew Avery needed to be handled with care. And he did exactly that. He took his time with her. He let her feel him out. Get used to him. Trust him. But in the process, he relentlessly pursued her to be in her life, and refused to let her push him away. He was attracted to her, wanted her, quirks and all, but also knew friendship with Avery came first and foremost. The cat and mouse game they play, where Cam randomly ask Avery out on a daily basis until she finally gives in, not only made me feel giddy with anticipation but also sigh because it’s so romantic. I loved their playful banter and verbal sparring. It’s all part of the unique and sweet friendship they share.
“I don’t want to go out on a date with you.”
Cam didn’t look surprised by my response or daunted. “I figured you’d say that.”
“Then why did you ask?” …
“Because I wanted to.”
“Oh. Well. Okay. Glad you got it out of your system.”
His brows knitted. “I haven’t gotten it out of my system.”
Oh no. “You haven’t?”
“Nope.” He flashed a charming grin. “There’s always tomorrow.”
Dreamy Sigh. Can I have Cam for myself?
I really liked Avery as our heroine. She’s a snarky and fun character when her personality comes out. Underneath her defenses, there is a beautiful girl with an outgoing personality, screaming to feel alive again. But Avery has a dark secret that changed her whole life when she was fourteen. We don't find out what the secret is until much later but, through tidbits of information and clues that were shared throughout the story, it was easy to figure out what happened to her. My heart went out to Avery. She's been alone, handling this baggage by herself all these years. The people that should’ve nurtured her, supported her, and protected her from the fall out, failed Avery miserably. So as Avery and Cam grew closer, it was obvious she really wanted to open up to him about her secret. But her fear had a tight grip on her. I truly did understand why she held back for so long from opening up to Cam. What she went through was horrific and oh, so very wrong. It would make anyone build a fortress around themselves and never let anyone in.
Eventually, Cam did break down her defenses little by little. He showed her how to be happy again. He showed her how to have fun again. He showed her how to live again. He gave her friendship, love, and, most importantly, trust.
“I’m begging you, Avery. You’ve got to be up front and honest with me. You said that you trusted me. You’ve got to prove it…If you trust me you will finally tell me what the hell is going on….You keep everything from me. You don’t trust me….I don’t know what else to do and I know I don’t know everything in the world, but I do know that relationships don’t work this way. If you can’t really trust that how I feel about you is strong enough, then we have nothing” – Cam
Trust is the one thing she never thought she would be able to claim again. Avery’s trust issues ruled her life. With good reason. Not being able to trust anyone can limit you from having a normal and happy life. It affected her and Cam's relationship on an intense level. Even though she couldn't resist the amazingness that is Cam Hamilton, she still locked down when it came down to trusting him with her secret. And if Avery wanted Cam, all of Cam, she had to fight for what she wanted. Come to terms with her past in order to have a future.
Leaning back against Cam's chest, I tipped my head back and I reached up, cupping his cheek. I drew his mouth to mine and kissed him softly. "Thank you."
His lips curved up on one side. "For what?"
"For waiting for me.”
J. Lynn does a wonderful job with the character development. I appreciated the fact that Cam and Avery were friends first. I loved getting to know the hero and heroine on a personal and emotional level without the insta-love overshadowing the plot. I love how the sexual tension hovered all around them even though they remained friends for a while before pursuing more. I loved the anticipation of not knowing if or when they would ever get together. And I really loved the build-up to their first kiss. Seeing their relationship go from friends to lovers truly made the story feel so much more genuine.
This story stunned and wowed me with its fabulous storyline, awesome snark, and engaging characters. My connection with the characters was heady. Everything I felt was intense. You name it, I felt it – love, intimacy, passion, sexual tension, giddiness, sadness, loneliness, anger, astonishment, happiness. I even felt Cam and Avery’s first kiss all the way down to my toes. And, when the story was over, I wanted to start over just to be with these characters again. I did not want this story to end. I wanted more, more, more. I’m a greedy bitch, what can I say. So when I found out Teresa (Cam’s sister) and Jase (Cam’s hot friend) are getting a book, I did a happy jig in my living room. No, I really did. I’m also hoping for another story with Brit and Ollie. (hint, hint Miz Armentrout.) My final words to anyone who hasn’t met Cam Hamilton yet: read this book and fall in love with one of the best heroes I’ve read to date!
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