Format: Ebook
Pages: 467
Quotes added: 7
Total Reading Time: 9h 15m


Review:
First off, I have to say that I was really questioning if I liked this book in the beginning. It took a little bit to get into, however, once I did I have to say I was hooked. Forbidden romance tends to stress me out because of how secretive and how long it takes for them to get together. What Kenzi and Tor had was special and it took a long time to realize that but towards the end they made it a lot easier to see. Even though they had an uncle-niece relationship to beginning with it grew into something else, which neither of them were expecting or ready for. Hell, no one was ready for it!

One of the things that drove me absolutely crazy is that we had to wait sooo long to find out what happened to Ember (Kenzi’s mom) and even then, it was just in passing during a heated argument between best friends. THe epilogue also throws in another questionable situation that does not get elaborated on much

The bonus chapter kind of through me off because it went back in time after the epilogue. This took me a few minutes to figure out but when I did it was all smooth sailing and I am glad I was able to see Kenzi’s side of seeing Tor again.

One of my favorite quotes would have to be “Sharing such an unconditional, timeless love and connection with him is indescribable. To me, it is the very essence of a fairy tale.”
Overall, I really did enjoy this book and could not be happier with the ending.
Now… onto Tyler whom caught my interest in this book.

Father's best friend romance?!??! I did not know I needed this in my life until now!!!! God this book was so good and I ate it up 🥵

Thank you, netgalley and ReadForeverPub, for providing me with a copy of "Torn" by Carian Cole.

Right from the start, Toren “Tor” Grace had been a constant presence in Kenzi Valentine's life. He was more than just a loyal friend or adoptive uncle; he was family. Over time, their connection grew deeper, slowly transforming into something beyond friendship. But their love was deemed forbidden, overshadowed by Tor’s close relationship with Kenzi's parents. Their bond was at risk of being torn apart, threatening to strip away everything they cherished.

✨Thoughts✨
When it comes to age gap romance, no one does it quite like Carian Cole! She is a masterful storyteller, and her talent shines through in every word. Since stumbling upon her incredible work in "Don't Kiss The Bride," I have been a fan of her writing style.

As I delved into this book, I was immediately struck by Kenzi's maturity and grounded nature. It was impressive to see how she handled herself, especially considering her father is the legendary Rock God, Asher Valentine. As for Tor, our male lead, he was the epitome of selflessness, always willing to go above and beyond for his loved ones.

Although it did take me a moment to grasp the fact that Tor had been a constant presence in Kenzi's life from the very beginning, the way their relationship developed felt natural. Their shared experiences and the way they grew up together made their connection even more profound. Tor fulfilled the roles of both protector and caregiver, treating Kenzi as if she were his own family.

Carian Cole expertly balanced the angsty nature of their romance with its forbidden aspect, creating palpable tension that added depth to the overall story.

Overall, this novel is a true gem, a hidden treasure waiting to be discovered by those who love forbidden romance and age gap stories. It's a must-read that will leave you wanting more of Carian Cole's exceptional work!

I think this book had some really strong potential with an interesting storyline but the writing felt too informal and lax for my preferences. I think some would enjoy it however.

Absolute favorite age-gap romance, hands down. Carian Cole is a genius.

Tor and Kenzi were so perfect for each other. Their chemistry was off the charts. And yes, this may seem like a very forbidden story line, but trust me, Carian Cole has a magical way of writing that will make you forget their age difference.

This is one of my top favorite books of all time and I’m so excited to read it again already 🖤🤍

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever Pub for the ARC

"𝗜'𝗺 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗺𝗲 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱𝗻'𝘁 𝗯𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵."

We will never get enough of age-gap romances, and 𝘛𝘰𝘳𝘯 by Carian Cole is one of our absolute favorites! This was the first ever Carian book we read, and it quickly led to us reading her entire collection.

Kenzie is old for her age...mature seems too tame a word. She is an older soul and we love her so much. Kenzie knew that Tor was what she wanted and needed in her life, and she wasn't going to let anyone or anything stand in their way.

Tor is so protective of Kenzie and he always has been. The connection that Tor and Kenzie share is once in a lifetime. It's not storybook and happy ever afters, but it is so real, and they are bonded for life.

While this is considered an age gap taboo romance, it is much more than that. It's about two souls finding home in each other, but it wasn't insta love and no questions asked. Tor agonized and questioned himself over every decision he made. Kenzie was equally confused over her feelings, and took time to herself to figure out what exactly it was that she wanted. In the end, she knew it was Tor and he knew it was Kenzie, they were meant to be.

Carian did such a wonderful job with this generally taboo subject, she wrote a beautiful story between two soul mates that couldn't ɴᴏᴛ be together!

This was a good story, but felt overly long with a little too much drama. I thought it could have been a little shorter. I liked the story between Kenzi and Toren.

Torn was a book that kept me captivated from page 1 to the last page. Its story had depth and character and was one I read into the wee morning hours. I would totally recommend as the characters Tor and Kenzi will entertain you with their unique love story.

Wow. This book came out of nowhere and I am speechless. I had never read Carian Cole before & like to go in as blindly as possible so I wasn't sure what to expect. Blown away. These tropes are new to me, and I couldn't see myself reading them all the time but here they worked:
•age gap
•forbidden love
•taboo
Spicy, slow burn, and a great back story & sorry. Even better, Torn is part of a series. Tied here I come! Thank you to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. 4.5 salacious stars.

Torn by Carian Cole is one of the best age gap forbidden books I've ever read. The relationship between Toren and Kenzie was everything. I loved seeing their romantic relationship develop in present time, AND I enjoyed the flashbacks of them at the beginning of every chapter. We got to see the full picture of how they were truly meant to be together. I enjoyed every second of this book.

This book was the first I read of Carian and it won’t be the last. I couldn’t get enough of Toren. He will definitely become a BBF that you will never want too forget. Kenzi and Toren are a couple you will never forget.

★★★☆☆ - 3.75 𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑠

♡ 𝐴𝑔𝑒 𝐺𝑎𝑝
♡︎ 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑏𝑖𝑑𝑑𝑒𝑛 𝐿𝑜𝑣𝑒
♡︎ 𝑆𝑙𝑜𝑤 𝐵𝑢𝑟𝑛
♡ 𝐹𝑎𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟’𝑠 𝐵𝑒𝑠𝑡 𝐹𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑛𝑑
♡︎ 𝐸𝑚𝑜𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 ＆ 𝐴𝑛𝑔𝑠𝑡𝑦
♡︎ 𝐹𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑 𝐹𝑎𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑦

𝐒𝐏𝐈𝐂𝐄 𝐋𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐋 🌶️🌶️🌶️

This book gave me warm, fuzzy feelings, and felt Jacob and Renesmee coded from Twlight, minus the supernatural elements.

Their love story was like a beautifully messy masterpiece, a swirl of emotions that made me truly understand the essence of the word "soulmate" in the world of Kenzi & Toren. It was like a dance, with moments of push and pull, a rhythm of battling their own thoughts and the social norms that tried to keep them apart.

While I adored every page, the ending felt a tad hasty. I craved more closure, a deeper exploration of the symbols that had woven through their relationship. I longed for a peek into her mother and father's love story too．

Carian Cole handles taboo/age gap trope with care and manages to pull off a captivating romance. Plenty of angst, tension, chemistry, and steam. Torn is one of her most well known novels and a staple in her back list. This published version is a great intro or new readers and a must have for fans already immersed in her books.

This was a pretty good read overall! Forbidden romance was my favorite when I got back into reading. I got burnt out from it and this is one of my first ones in a while.

Pros: I enjoyed Kenzi and Tor's characters before they developed feelings for each other. The duel timelines were cool to see and I also enjoyed getting to see the past with Tor and Kenzi's parents. They were definitely meant for each other and both deserved the hea. Lastly, the angst portion of this one was minimal which is a plus to me because I get such bad anxiety during those parts in forbidden romance.

Cons: The age of consent was brought up twice in the book and that felt kind of yucky to me. Also, the fact that the feelings started developing for both of them when she was still 17 bothered me. Now it takes a lot to make me uncomfortable but the feelings about these two stuck around so wanted to note it.

Was a good read overall though!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Tor was 15 when his best friends had a baby, Kenzie. He was her Godfather and earned the title "Uncle" by being a constant in her life growing up, always there to babysit and be there for her.

When Kenzie is almost 18 their relationship changes and evolves into something different. They begin a flirtation that can't be taken back, but once it begins neither one of them want to go back to what they had before. They want more....forever. Together.

This was my first true "taboo" romance. There was definitely a lot of taboo moments, enhanced by the timeline shift between chapters. In the present, Tor and Kenzie are in love, their physical relationship blossoming. Then we shift back in time to when Kenzie was a baby. That really took me out of their relationship and increased the ick factor for me. The age gap of 15 years itself did not bother me. Know what you're getting into prior to reading this one as it won't be for everyone. The ending was perfect though so give it a chance.

I loved every moment of this book. It was well paced and I loved how the story unfolded. I quite enjoyed this one. Absolutely amazing!

I thought the age gap was a bit big but once you look past that factor it's a really good novel that has a lot of heart and comforting aspects to it.

Totally hooked on Torn - I did not want this story to end. What started out as taboo ends with a true romance and a happily ever after. Tor and Kenzi are complete soulmates. Carian Cole gives her readers exactly what they were looking for - a heart wrenching, edge of your seat storyline, characters that feel like family as you fall in love right along side of them, so many emotions from laughter to tears and a perfect combination of love and angst. I loved this story and recommend it highly. Best read so far this year. My review does not do this book justice. This will now become my go-to book. This should be a movie!!!

Definitely worth the read —

If you are just coming from Torns book, and wondering what the heck is up with the brother in the woods …. You’ll be happy to finally get the full story on him. While this is an interconnect series, you can read this is a standalone. Ty is trouble, and lives secluded in the woods. And between Ty and Torn, I definitely liked Ty the most. Holly and Ty’s story was interesting from the start. Keep in mind this story does have a lot of flashbacks. Usually flashbacks aren’t my favorite thing in a book, however I actually enjoyed the flashbacks. I kept wondering where the story was going and each time it went somewhere completely different. I did enjoy how Holly and Ty’s story wrapped up in the end.

Torn by Carian Cole is the first book of the All Torn Up duet. Ty and Holly's story is an intense roller coaster ride of emotions. Tor and Kenzi definitely worked through some major issues to get their HEA, and I was rooting for them the whole time. Highly recommend!!!