Book Review
Title: Never Go Back
Author: Kinuko Nakayama
Genre: Manga
Rating: *****
Review: This synopsis sounds intriguing to say the least: “Olivia is taking on a big project for her company, renovating a historic mansion at Ramillies College. The opportunity is too good for her to pass up! But she soon discovers that their current client, Ludwig, is the same person who evicted her and her grandfather from their beloved home nine years ago! Despite hating him to the core, she is steadily taken in by his devilishly good looks and magnetic personality. In this unavoidable reunion, will she be able to take control of her feelings and seek revenge on the man who ruined her life?”
Olivia who lost her parents very young moves into Ramillies as her grandfather was a butler there and she was also very close to Ludwig’s great-uncle Rathbone. However, after Rathbone’s death Olivia is set in inherit Ramillies but it somehow ends up in Ludwig’s hands and he cruelly tosses Olivia out and put her grandfather in a nursing home, contributing to his death. Olivia is living her normal life until she receives a call from Ludwig to renovate Ramillies and she takes the project in the hopes of getting revenge for her grandfather. However, being back at Ramillies brings back a lot of memories for Olivia and she soon finds herself being drawn to the mysterious Ludwig who at times appears cold and other times as energetic as a child.
Ludwig seems to be pursuing Olivia, but she is told by several people that Ludwig is already in a relationship with Hati, his secretary. Olivia tries to keep her distance but after she realises that her grandfather who an alcoholic long before Ludwig put him in the nursing home and that Ludwig isn’t to blame for anything, she is finding it harder to keep away from him. When Ludwig’s mentor dies Olivia travels to Ramillies to see if he is ok only to see him with Hati, heartbroken she tries to hide from him.
In the end, he finds her and sees she is wearing the Webb family ring given to her by Rathbone and realises at last that she is the Ollie that his grand-uncle and his mentor had mentioned so many times. Surprisingly, it is Ludwig that confesses first, and the pair is looking at a bright future together.

Ludwig and Olivia are drawn to each other, but will that be enough for Olivia to overcome her grudge against the man who unwittingly evicted her years ago? A pleasant romance for all ages.

I really enjoyed the artwork and the way manga is used to tell the story and I thought the story was ok, but some aspects just didnt make sense to me. I couldn't understand why Olivia didn't seem to know her grandfather was placed in a home. Then when she did realise and found them a place together she didn't realise her grandfather was an alcholic and she chose to blame everything on Ludwig. Oh well at least she came to her senses eventually.

I am not a great fan of the 'big misunderstanding trope' and there seemed to be quite a few issues that Olivia had got wrong. And then suddenly everything made sense! The misunderstanding was cleared up and Olivia and Ludwig were declaring undying love to each other. This was a lovely romance but not one of my favourites. The drawings as usual were great.

Copy provided by Harlequinn/SB Creative in exchange for an unbiased review.

Revenge is a plate that is better served cold, but in the end instead there is love...

La vendetta é un piatto che va servito freddo, ma invece alla fine arriva l'amore.....

THANKS NETGALLEY FOR THE PREVIEW!

I received an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) from NetGalley and Harlequin/SB Creative as the publisher in exchange for an honest review📚

Book title : Never Go Back

Author : Anne Weale ; Illustrator : Kinuko Nakayama

Release Date : 6 December 2018

Olivia met Ludwig when she was a teenager and had a bad memory about him. Ah, that fierce Ludwig kicked her away from her grandfather’s house. Years have passed and Olivia became a lady. I adore her transformation from cute girls to an elegant one. It happened that Ludwig needed somebody to restore the mansion he inherited from Olivia’s grandfather. Ah, things get spicy after Olivia visited the mansion and made acquittance with the people there.

The story is a good story tho even I often got the feeling that there were some parts of the novel that were missing when it turned into manga-style. The illustration were great and I do love how the characters are portrayed. The ending was just too quick! Adding more illustrations will be very helpful tho.

Review: https://literatureisliving.wordpress.com/2018/12/15/never-go-back-harlequin-manga-by-anne-weale/

I received this manga from the publisher in exchange of an honest review.

So, the cover wasn't luring me in (what is up with those huge ass hands?), but the blurb did sound magnificent. A woman working for someone finds out he is the one who evicted her and her grandpa years ago. Will she go for love or for revenge? Of course I had to find out which one.

*snorts*"There's no mistaking it! It's a message from the devil himself." When hell calls you to be their interior designer. :P

"That'll give you more time to get a firm grasp on the atmosphere here at Ramilles." I am not too sure if he meant the house or something else entirely. Mm. *thinks* Given the situation I am leaning to a more 18+ idea.

Wow, that flashback had me seriously pissed off at that guy. He just waltzes in the place (sure, it is his inheritance, but do you need to act like such a dipshit?), dumps Olivia's poor grandpa in a retirement home (without telling her or without his approval), tells her his plans, and then even throws her out while she has all the right to be there. :|

BTW, I just love how much Olivia's changed. She went from cute to elegant. It is quite the transformation, then again years have passed, but still, wow. I can imagine our devil can't recognise the girl he threw out on the streets.

Plus, I didn't entirely like how Ludwig was flirting around with Olivia. She is working for you, it just felt so wrong. And of course, there is the whole business of what happened in the past, I couldn't just let that one out of my mind.

But oh my, there is a twist, and my heart broke for Olivia. :( Poor her realising that, I can imagine that has shook her world. Now I want to hug her.

Though, while I understand how she came to this, and in a way it is natural, it still felt way too fast-paced for me. From one revelation to a confession in her mind, it just seemed fast. But I guess with just a few more pages to go they had to do something, still I wish it was more fleshed out. That is why I also couldn't enjoy the ending so much. Sure, I was happy with it, but it just felt like I missed something. Like BANG, suddenly everything is solved. BANG happiness. :( Oh well.

Still a good story, though yeah, the pacing sucks at times. But the art turned out quite nicely even if our devil still had way too big hands. This was also one of the tamest stories so far.

Also, something that stands out, why are so many of the girls interior designers?

Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/