5 Heart-wrenching Stars!

I've been waiting for Kincaid's book ... and it doesn't disappoint!

Kincaid's boyfriend Graham died at the school shooting and she believes she lost her "one" that night. Kincaid also lost her best friend Ashton ... he didn't die in the shooting, he just left Long Acre right after it happened. So Kincaid lost the two people she loved most that night! But she's strong and has made a life for herself ... far from her lonely, neglectful childhood. But when Ash comes back to Long Acre for peace and quiet to write his next novel, his feelings for Kincaid surface again. Ash has always loved Kincaid more than a best friend ... but he knew she loved Graham and he just wanted her to be happy. Even though Graham has been gone for 14 years, Ash knows he's still very much alive in Kincaid's heart.

I just loved Kincaid right from the beginning of the series ... she was so upbeat and giving ... just wanting everyone to be happy even though she knew she would never be with the love of her life. And my heart just broke for Ash ... who wouldn't love a guy that wrote love letters? I just wanted teenage Kincaid to open her eyes and see what was right in front of her! This series has touched on many hot topics and really makes you think! Ms. Loren has done a wonderful job making you see different sides to the same story. I highly recommend not only this book ... but the whole series ... believe me you won't regret it!

I received an early copy courtesy of Sourcebooks Casablanca through NetGalley in exchange for a honest review.

Roni Loren has outdone herself! I didn’t think I would love this book as much as I did I knew I would be giving this 5 stars because I have loved all of the books in the series and have given them all 5 stars but this book was everything to me. If I could give this more than 5 stars I would. This book deserves 10 stars, no it deserves all of the stars it was just perfection. Kincaid and Ashton are my newest bookish OTP! 😍

Kincaid and Ashton were bff's all through school and went their separate ways after the tragedy that rocked their town. And now they're thrown back together for a bit. I love a good childhood friends to adult lovers. This of course has the added layer of grief all these characters in the series have had to deal with in their own way. You can't help but cheer extra hard and hope for them to find their happy life after everything.

Kincaid is everyone's cheerleader and happy happy happy. She's pulled herself up from nothing, but all she sees is the impulsive mistakes she's made and the love she lost as a teen. Ashton- he's like the greatest. I love him so hard. SO HARD. He's so easy to fall for in every way.

This series has been so amazing, and the end of this book made me cry. You could read this on your own, or altogether to get the full picture. I think this is the final book and I'm gonna miss these guys. The undercurrent throughout the stories, and maybe the more important thing to take away, is the strong friendships built and how they pulled each other up through it all and find their best lives after going through so much.

4.5 stars!

The fourth and final book in the The Ones Who Got Away series, this friends-to-lovers romance is fun, sweet and sexy with lots of emotion, and I absolutely loved it!

This series tells the story of survivors of a high school shooting. Years after the event, four women reunited and became as close as sisters, helping each other to deal with their grief, move forward and find their happiness. We have watched three of them do just that, and finally it’s Kincaid’s turn.

Each of the girls in the series lost friends and loved ones in the Long Acre shooting. Kincaid did as well, but not only was her first love and soul mate killed by one of the gunmen, but her best friend from childhood survived only to leave town shortly after, leaving her feeling abandoned and alone. She has since developed a ‘smile and move on’ mentality, and she’s forging her way forward through life, working hard to achieve her dreams while hiding her vulnerability and pain.

Ashton Isaacs escaped Long Acre, but he did it leaving his best friend behind. He has travelled the world and become the writer he always wanted to be, but he’s done it by shutting the door on his past with only very infrequent visits back to Long Acre. When circumstances force him to return, all of his feelings from the past come roaring back as he is brought face to face with Kincaid once again and he realises that he is still desperately in love with his childhood best friend.

OMGOMGOMG, it’s such a fantastic set up! Kincaid and Ashton are brought together to help old friends, forcing them to finally face each other and deal with all of the crap between them. They do exactly that, and find themselves easily and naturally falling into their old friendship. It’s sweet and funny, and I just loved seeing them together. We get to see moments from their past through flashback, showing just how connected these two were, and the depth and intensity of Ashton’s feelings for his bestie, and watching them enjoy that reconnection is so beautiful.

And then there is the blazing attraction between them. It’s something that Ashton has always felt, but he tried to ignore it as he was forced to watch Kincaid fall for his high school friend only to tragically lose him. For Kincaid it’s new, and the feelings and chemistry in this book are just fantastic! I could feel everything between them, and I was buzzing with anticipation just waiting for something to happen. And when it does… holy hot damn! It’s sexy and exciting, and it’s underpinned by their close friendship, making it so much better, and their dynamic is hot and so much fun.

"When he pulled back, he brushed his thumb over her mouth. “This was a brilliant idea. We are geniuses.”
She smiled, and he lowered her to the bed, kissing her again and stretching out over her. She ran her hands through his hair, taking in the sight of him above her. “We are exceptionally smart people.”
He grabbed her behind the knee, opening her body to him. “I’m going to last about six point two seconds, but I promise the next time, I’ll make you proud.”
She lifted a brow. “Already planning the next time, huh?”
He eased himself inside her, stretching her and making her gasp with pleasure. “You’re not leaving this bed until the sun comes up, Breslin. I hope you brought snacks.”

I loved seeing them together, and it all seems so easy, but Ashton is only in town for a short time. And more importantly, he has secrets from the past that he fears could derail everything that he and Kincaid have been able to find together. It’s a difficult situation, and it’s not a smooth journey for either of them, but I loved watching them work through it all, and the emotion is beautifully written.

“All this time I thought you were the one who left. You were the friend who broke my heart.” She shook her head. “But that’s not true, is it? I was the one who broke yours.”

Kincaid has been a larger-than-life personality throughout the series, and I admit I was worried going into this one that she would be a bit much in her own book. But Loren has taken those traits and written them into the story in a way that creates a wonderful character journey for Kincaid, and I just adored her!

And I fell head over heels for Ashton. The nerdy hipster with a wicked sense of humour (and a seriously sexy side), he loves deeply and cares so much for Kincaid. The blend of friendship, love, attraction and humour is just fantastic, and I loved every moment of these two together.

"She had found her soul mate.
He’d been there all along."

The couples from previous books in the series are all a part of the story, and I loved catching up with them. The bond between the girls is gorgeous, and there is a beautiful sense of closure in this book for each of them.

This was such a gorgeous read. It recaptured the feels I experienced while reading their first book in the series (which remains my fave), and I loved it.

4.5 stars.

Great story and characters, I read it in one sitting because the story kept me hooked and entertained, all the way through the end.

***Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review***

I have not finished the first three in this series, but am excited for the fourth. I know I'll love it as much as the first.

This series wrecked me-in the best possible way. And The One For You was a great conclusion. That epilogue was basically perfection.

Kincaid has been the most light-hearted character and this was probably the most light book. It’s not lacking in emotion, but I only cried like one and a half times. So, comparatively it was lighter. Kincaid was great. She’s a little flighty, but in a perfectly fun and likable way. She is a typical extrovert and while that exhausts me, you can feel how she gets her energy from others.

Ash was a nice guy. He was an introverted writer, but not socially awkward. I appreciated that. He’s also a caring guy. The story line with his parents was heartbreaking.

The romance had some unrequited love elements which isn’t my favorite trope, but it was handled well. To me, this was more of a friends-to-lovers and second chance romance which I do like. There were some elements from the past that gave me pause, but Ms. Loren handled them so well. I never should’ve doubted her.

Just like the rest of the books, this is spectacular because of the strong friendships between these four ladies. It is no secret that I love great friend groups and found family. This is exactly an example of why.

Even thought these stories are an emotional roller coaster, I want to go back to the beginning and read them all again.

A great continuation from a great series. An highly original storyline that had me reading non stop.

Ash and Kincaid were best friends before the night from hell. Now years later they get to reconnect and fall in love. It’s a best friend to lover kind of story.

It’s a captivating story. Since this is the 4th book in this stories, I already know some of the circumstances so it was a constant recap.

Told in the third person with an HEA. I recommend this story.

I loved the other books in this series, and The One For You is no exception. It’s another beautiful story full of emotions. The friendship between the four women is great to see. And Ash makes another amazing hero. I really liked Kincaid as well.
I love how this series deals with themes such as grief, guilt and friendship.

I have enjoyed the previous books in the series a lot and this was one of my most anticipated releases of 2019. Maybe because of the high standards set by the previous books and my own very high expectations, this story didn’t work quite well for me. I’m happy Kincaid got her HEA but little details here and there in the story bothered me and in the end made it just an Okay read for me.

Kincaid was awesome in the previous books and we see a lot of that up-beat, no-regrets attitude of hers here. At the same time we see her vulnerability, the trauma she survived on top of a difficult childhood has left deep marks on her.

I liked Ash, I liked him as a teenager and as an adult. I understood why he left, I could relate to his insecurity and his pining for Kincaid. But and this is a big BUT, as the story developed I found his behaviour in the past more and more not-OK. He helped his friend but he essentially lied to Kincaid and it didn’t sit well with me. He kept too many secrets from her and this is not how one acts with their best friend / crush.

One of the big issues for me in the story was the way Graham was made to be the bad guy. I found it disingenuous and unnecessary. He is not here to defend / explain his behaviour, the whole change from a loving, supporting relationship (it has been like that in the memories of Kincaid for years) into a potentially abuse, controlling one came of the blue and I didn't buy it. Don't get me into the whole aspect of keeping it all a secret from his parents, even all those years later. I don't know what the right approach is for such a complicated situation but the one taken by the author bothered me and made me sad and unhappy.

This story has a direct retelling of the shooting which was difficult for me to read and I feel it should been explicitly mentioned in the CWs of this book.

On the plus side, I liked how Kincaid went after her dreams, even though she was scared and convinced she was making a mistake. I liked how Ash helped her and supported her. I didn’t like that she lost her job the way she did and it bothered me the message it sends how fragile one’s reputation is, how women get very real consequences of mis-judging men.

While I loved seeing the other couples and catching up on their HEAs, the ending was a bit over the top for me. It gave closure to the whole series but all there was to much drama and one too many grand gestures. It's a dream-like, fantasy ending which is all nice and heart-warming but still I prefer the realness and sense of down-to-earth I got from the previous books.

CW: school shooting, child abuse, domestic violence, panic attack

The One For You

4 stars

This book is very... special. Where other ‘romance’ books typically fill me with hope and ‘bubbly’ feelings, this one filled me with a sense of realness, a feeling of raw pain and emotions that were very bitter to swallow. There were topics in this book that were really hard to process so some trigger warnings:

Domestic abuse and school shootings.

With that being said, this book was very well written, the topics and the way they were dealt with were well done. The romance aspect of it was very wholesome given the context that it occurred from. I liked the characters and adored them both separately and together. The banter, the story, all of it was fantastic.

I think the book was constructed and executed really well. There are flashback sequences that were added at the right moments. There was a mystery aspect to the shooting and what occurred, why there was tension between our two MCs, the question of will they, won’t they and it all worked perfectly together.

I enjoyed this one immensely and definitely recommend it, however some chapters were difficult for me to get through as I’m sure they’ll be for many others, as of course they should be. Topics like school shootings that are filled with grief and survivor guilt are always hard to delve into but I commend the author for writing that struggle so accurately and so well.

It was both a powerfully moving novel and a sweet, incredibly wholesome romance which is what made it so special.

I think my chemistry with this book was a bit off. Even though I don't enjoy the idea of a mass shooting as a plot point, I found that perversely I really have been enjoying this serious. The previous books in the series set it far enough in the past so that the present day protagonists are still dealing with the fall out in some abstract ways (small triggers) and usually from external forces. It wasn't in your face per se and it allowed the characters to move forward and thrive with their new romances with that tragedy used as a backdrop more than a plot mover.

I think of one my issues with this book is that it more than the others dwells a lot more in the past. Part of that is because the two main characters, Kincaid and Ash, were BFFs throughout high school and her boyfriend Graham was also Ash's BFF and Graham was a victim of the shooting. This book gives us a lot of flashbacks, to give us a grounding in Kincaid and Ash's long standing friendship but also to make a point that Ash -- bookish, introvert Ash -- had been in love with Kincaid all his life but knew he could not compete with the BMOC Graham. But more than that it feels inevitable that we are going to get an extended scene of the shooting. Because Ash is keeping a secret about that night and Kincaid has to lay the perfect ghost of Graham to rest before she can move forward.

In addition to that, as if to tell us that being the survivor of a mass shooting isn't enough, both Ash and Kincaid are given really crappy home lives. It is as if the shooting is simply a cherry on top of a shit sundae of their lives.

When Ash and Kincaid finally get together, the book is so much better and more hopeful. Their banter is snappy, their sex scenes are great. I feel like they and I can breathe a bit. There are some great moments of humor. But that we know there is going to be an 11th hour revelation that relies on a flashback so the reprieve is temporary.

I will say that once we get past that last speed bump, the author sticks the landing really well. The hero does a sort of private grand gesture that only he and the heroine understand the significance of and it is super sweet because of the sacrifice that went into it.

So while I wasn't happy with the first part of the book, I did really enjoy the second part.

In Roni Loren's The One for You, the fourth installment in the Ones who Got Away contemporary romance series, this loveswept romance novel is so gut-wretching and tear-jerking from start to finish. In high school, Kincaid Breslin and Ashton Isaacs were best friends who looked out for each other, and survived a high school massacre during prom night. But while they mourned their lost friends, they've crossed the line once in a one night for passion. Now twenty years later, Kincaid is a real estate agent and made a name for herself when she brought a farmhouse with high hopes to turn it into a B&B someday if she could afford to turn it around someday. Meanwhile, she'd been unlucky in love throughout her life and loved working in the bookstore that became her home. Ashton Isaacs is best-selling thriller writer under the name of Ashton Stone, and returns to his former stomping ground while he was dealing with writer's block. But when he ran into Kincaid, old feelings and flashbacks from the past resurfaced--and that included living and escaping an abusive home. With the challenge of modernizing their bookstore before it's sold to a new owner, they talk about the past, on what really happened on that awful night, and harbored secrets were out in the open. And in the end, grab a box of tissues when this couple had found each other with an emotional roller coaster ending.

The One for You is the fourth and final book in The Ones Who Got Away series. It’s still a standalone. I have only read the first one and wasn’t lost at all. The series follows four girls who escaped a school shooting while they were in high school. As you can imagine, it’s quite emotional. The friendships these four girls have with each other is my favorite part of this entire series, and what I will miss the most. We’ve seen the love stories for Liv, Rebecca and Taryn, and now it’s Kincaid’s turn. Kincaid is bubbly, sweet, and so easy to love. Ash was Kincaid’s best friend but after the shooting, left town to escape. He returns down on his luck and has a hilarious first run in with Kincaid! When they finally get together, they were so great together! And that epilogue was absolutely incredible and the perfect end to this series! I will miss these characters so much. Highly recommend!

* ARC provided by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

“The One for You” by Roni Loren is the fourth and final book in “The Ones Who Got Away” series, a beautiful conclusion that ties together four strong females who overcome the devastation of a high school shooting and find friendship, family, and love!

Blurb: Kincaid and Ashton are childhood best friends, but Ashton’s unrequited crush is kept a secret and the only way he reveals his true feelings is when he agrees to write love letters for his friend Graham, who is trying to win over Kincaid.

After the school shooting, the two friends become estranged and it isn’t until years later when they are paired together to help sell the old book store that they reconnect and become fast friends again.

But will Ashton have the courage to finally tell Kincaid how he really feels?

This is an angsty,heartfelt second chance romance of two best friends finding their way back to each other. A very sweet and tender book that deals with real world issues and the combined struggles of loss, forgiveness, and regret and how we find connection through the hardest of circumstances.

I’ve read this whole series and I love how we see the strength of female friendship and the courage it takes to move forward and find beauty for ashes.

The best part of Ashton and Kincaid’s story is their renewed friendship and the courage they find even when life hands them lemons. The flashbacks of their childhood and the shooting added an element of realness and I enjoyed watching their love-story unfold over a lifetime. I am all about a good friends to lovers romance and this one delivers both rawness and sweetness. Such a good conclusion to this whole series!

I'm so sad to be at the end of this series. Kincaid's story is probably my favorite, which surprised me as Kincaid was my least favorite in the Long Acre group. Like everyone else, I only saw the shiny, cheery face Kincaid presented to the world and not the deeper, tender layers underneath. Luckily for Kincaid, Ash saw and knew the real her all along.

Bravo to Roni Loren for crafting a tender, respectful romance series with four amazing, strong women that showed love and healing could go hand in hand even after the unthinkable happens. I give the author so much credit because, despite the fact that I was a fan of her earlier books, I wasn't sure if I could handle romances tied to a school shooting. I'm sure that in the hands of a lesser author, this might have been disastrous.

Thank you, Ms. Loren, for providing a theme of healing while not glossing over the painful road ahead for survivors.

What an incredibly satisfying ending to such an amazing series. I think this is the book that made me cry the hardest the entire year. Balanced with the laughter it also elicited, The One For You is definitely one of my Top 19 in 2019 (out of 190 books). Almost certainly in the upper half of that list.

After a series of 3-star reads, I decided to pick this up because after having loved the first three books in this series, I trust in Roni Loren to break the lackluster streak and she delivered spectacularly. Ash and Kincaid’s second chance/best friends-to-lovers romance made me smile, laugh, cry, and sigh. I found myself highlighting several passages and bookmarking pages - signs of how thoroughly impressed I am with Roni’s writing.

I loved the entire book but these are highlights for me:
- Ash and Kincaid’s teasing banter
- them working together to renovate a bookstore
- Ash’s letters
- their defense of the other against exes and Ash’s parents

I also love love love how Roni seamlessly included the three previous couples without recapping their stories. Lastly, I absolutely adore the final scene which echoed the first scene in the series beginner The Ones Who Got Away, with the four friends Liv, Rebecca, Taryn, and Kincaid all together celebrating the fulfillment of the promises they made after their traumatic experience.

“... Promise the Class of 2005 that I will not waste the second chance that I have been given, that I will honor all the people we lost by living my life to the fullest… That we will not give in. That we will not give up. That we will love.”

A beautiful second chance romance that stems from tragedy! Roni Loren has done this series justice and while the books are a tad emotional you can't help but fall in love with them. Ladies and gents, this is a wonderful romance series and shouldn't be missed.

*4.5 stars

This was honestly a great ending to this series overall. Somehow, a unique idea about a group of women surviving a school shooting in their teens (which could definitely go off the rails in today's world) became such a heartfelt story for each woman as they worked through their lingering insecurities/fears of the past and moved towards a future with the men they fell in love with.

Kincaid was the last of the four women to fall in love/move on with her life (truly). But her story was so important in terms of those who love blindly. The secret of her past love, who died that tragic night, was sprinkled throughout her second chance friendship/relationship with Ash, and I think the way things were revealed-both in a past and present view-was amazing. It showed her view of the situation that she'd blocked out as a teenager from trauma and her remembering when the words triggered the memories as an adult.

Also, come on... Ash is a nerdy writer best friend. How can anyone NOT fall in love with him?

(I received an electronic copy of this novel from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!)

The One for You is the final book in Roni Loren's series following the survivors of a school shooting who reunite for a documentary roughly twelve years after the tragedy.

Prom Queen Kincaid Breslin wasn't supposed to survive prom night. So many lives were lost including her boyfriend Graham. But Kincaid, along with her best friend Ashton Issacs were among the lucky few who survived. But how they've survived is another matter. It's easy to imagine that living through something like they did will have a huge impact on life going forward. For Kincaid, she doesn't take anything for granted. She lives life to the fullest she possibly can. She chases opportunities and maybe even makes impulsive decisions - like buying a dilapidated old house to turn it into a B&B.

Ash, on the other hand, ran. He left Long Acre almost immediately after prom night and barely looks back. Becoming an author and using a pen name he's been able to disassociate himself with the tragedy as much as possible.

But now Ash is back in town. Trying to keep a low profile while he gets back on his feet after a breakup. In a town the size of Long Acre it's not surprising that Ash and Kincaid run into each other again and they certainly have a lot to work through. But Ash has been keeping things from Kincaid, things about what really happened on that frightful night that changed their lives. Things that could ultimately alter the tentative friendship they've started up again, but for Kincaid Breslin, Ash will, and has done, everything. After all, he's been in love with her from the beginning.

Full disclosure: I am not up to date on this series. I've read the first book [book:The Ones Who Got Away|34569847], but I've been a little lax on reading the other two books. While I'm promising myself to get on that, I was fine going into this book minus knowledge about the previous two. However, I do think it's important to have read the first book because it is a setup for the overall tone of the series. Where the characters are coming from in regards to their experience with the tragedy. Then the individual books break it down a bit more individually in regards to how each has moved forward with their lives.

Roni Loren has really taken an issue that I think we can all agree is something that strikes fear in the hearts of the majority of people: school shooting. She's taken this issue, and while still honoring the severity of it, has given readers a survivor story. I imagine it's not easy to balance this serious topic which has impacted so many people, with the fact that it's ok to move forward, it's ok to continue living even if that living also equally means that someone else is not. It's something that Kincaid still struggles with twelve plus years after the tragedy. The fact that she survived and her boyfriend, whom she dearly loved, did not. What happens often when you're the one that has to move forward is that you put that person on a pedestal. Kincaid has done that with Graham. No one else she's tried having a relationship with comes close to her memories, and now seeing her friends all paired off and starting families, Kincaid is lonely.

When Ash shows back up in town, Kincaid is both elated, but also that sense of loss is exacerbated because she lost him too, in a way, because he left after the shooting and their friendship has suffered in the intervening years. Seeing Kincaid and Ash find themselves, first, back to friendship and, second, into a romance was the most satisfying thing because one doesn't suffer in order for the other to thrive.

Their friendship continues to heal even after their attraction to one another is revealed, but Ash knows things about the past that have eluded Kincaid up to this point. At the time of the shooting Kincaid was unconscious and only remembers bits and pieces, and I think she's filled in a few areas, but not objectively. Ash keeping the past from Kincaid was probably not the smartest thing to do, but I think his heart was in the right place overall. It's a tricky, sticky situation, but I believe in this instance that the way it's been handled speaks more about the healing process - and how that process is different for each individual - than anything else.

I've really enjoyed this series. The heartbreak, moving forward from the past. How tragedies don't have to change who you are, but certainly influence your life, and sometimes something good can come from the pain. How they can bring you closer to people that you may not have normally thought of as a friend or lover.

This series and obviously specifically this book is perfect for the friends-to-lovers trope in that taking that scary step to alter a wonderful friendship with romance has always been a risk just as it's a risk to put yourself out there and pick yourself up after tragedy. This time, Kincaid and Ash will do it together.