Review: "One Night" by A.J. Pine (Only You #1)


Note: This ARC was provided by Penguin Group (Berkley, NAL/Signet Romance, DAW) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Jessica Elliott stopped being the girl she once was after enduring one loss that led to more losses. She chooses to not be involved with any guy, preferring to simply have one-night stands that will ensure that she has someone with her for a night and then pushing them away the morning after. She doesn't want nor need the emotional entanglements and commitments that are needed in relationships with others. Jess barely knows her roommate and keeps her distance unless she's looking for her next anonymous hook-up.

Then Jess meets Adam Carson, basketball superstar of their university, and spending time with him as her physical therapist then as his friend sparks something in her that she thought was long gone--hope. But even as she opens herself to the possibilities of having a normal friendship with her roommate and maybe something even more with Adam, the door to her past is one she refuses to unlock. If she shares her most painful secret with him, she may never be able to recover should he choose to simply walk away afterward.

One Night is the first book in the Only You series by A.J. Pine and is the story of two broken people, one with a past she refuses to share with anyone other than those who are already privy to it and the other left with no other option than to change the direction he envisioned his life going in. This was a story that had a lot of angst but there are reasons behind the drama and while the journey that Jess and Adam go on is filled with pain and heartache, there's also redemption and forgiveness and a re-birth of sorts that occurs.

Jess' story is not a simple one and her current behavior is a result of a particular event in her past that traumatized her. I liked the thought that the author put into story, adding layers of depth and not making it the usual tale of a character having issues and the other one comes in to save the day. In order for Jess to get out of being stuck in neutral, she had to be the one to make the decision to make the changes that would help her move forward. As much as my heart squeezed in empathy, it never failed to cheer for Jess.

The character of Jess was an inspiring one but I also fell in love with Adam and Zoe, two people who also had their own issues and yet didn't allow those issues to take over their lives. Adam was sweet and sincere while Zoe was sassy but steadfast, two great support systems for Jess. I'm curious to see who the next book in the series will be about but if I had a vote, I'd definitely give it to Zoe and Spock (aka Zach). Though one about Bryan and Ashley, Jess' ex-boyfriend and ex-best friend would be quite interesting too.

I enjoyed author A.J. Pine's first series, If Only, but I loved how this one felt different, with more seriousness and maturity, but always had a great deal of heart. Once I started reading this, there was simply no putting my tablet down. This story had light moments to balance out the heavier ones and the characters weren't difficult to fall in love with. One Night is one of my favorite reads for 2015 and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to all bookaholics. I'm giving this first in a series five out of five stars! ♥

Release Date: 21 April 2015

Date Read: 17 April 2015

Learn more about A.J. Pine here.

Pre-order One Night on Amazon | B&N | Kobo.

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