As the author, I’m excited to share the story of Aaron Adler and Jasmine Ross in London Calling. I first introduced the Adler brothers, founders of Saola Technology, in the "Let It Rain" book series. Then, in "Taming a King," I offered a closer look at Aaron as he becomes one-third of a love triangle.

Throughout these stories, I hinted at the Ross family’s elusive sister, Jasmine. In London Calling, we gain an in-depth look at the complex life of the woman behind the mystery. As her story unfolds, we learn that, like her older sister in "Taming a King," she is still grieving the loss of her mother, who died when she was young. Although I was an adult when I lost mine, I, too, understand the grief of losing parents. And even though some passages were difficult for me to write, this story contains many references to grief, which I strive to handle with care.

Still, this is a love story. Sometimes love comes to us in unexpected ways—which is the case with Aaron and Jasmine. I hope you enjoy reading about how fate brings them together. Fall in love with them, page by page. Experience their ups and downs as they navigate this thing we call…life.

Themes:
🩷Marriage of convenience
🩷Close proximity
🩷Opposites attract
🩷Kismet
🩷Found Family

I hope you take a chance and read it for yourself.
Enjoy!

END NOTE: While London Calling is a work of fiction, student homelessness is a very real issue across the globe. The glimpse you see in this story only scratches the surface—reality is often far more dire. As a world traveler, I once found myself in a similar situation, moved by an overwhelming desire to help a homeless student. If you’d like to learn more about the challenges students face both in the U.S. and the UK, here are a few resources/articles:

'Invisible' crisis: Student homelessness in CT hits record-high, advocates fear more are at risk

California’s hidden homeless children: living in garages, doubled-up and unseen

Private landlords and hotels ‘cashing in’ on England’s hidden homelessness crisis

Want to help in your local area in the USA? Contact your school district's local homeless education liaison, your national state-level organizations, or dial 211 or visit 211.org to find local services and shelters in your community, including those that specifically help homeless youth.

I was looking forward to reading this book but it was quite disappointing. The prologue was confusing, the pace was slow and it took forever to get the storyline setup. (Chapter 7 and the main characters still aren’t fake-together, as the blurb announced would be the storyline. They finally meet in chapter 10.) Besides the pace, there were a lot of elements that felt unrealistic. Jasmine deciding to stay in another country for a total stranger; a teenager she knew for just one day, was unconvincing, as were secondary characters Bridgette and Bane as threats to Aaron and Jasmine. In my opinion Aaron’s history with June was too farfetched and unnecessary for the plot, as was Jasmine’s dark and troubling past. It didn’t add to the plot and only felt like an unsuccessful attempt at creating a backstory for the main characters. But what it did was undermining the credibility of the characters, detracting from the plot and slowing down the pace considerably. The romance development and the book as a whole suffered as a result, and at some point I mentally checked out. There was so much going on in this book, all of which just felt unrealistic and I just felt the execution was off. I am sorry but I didn’t like the book.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Jasmine Ross ha pasado la mayor parte de su vida huyendo del dolor, del pasado y de cualquier lugar que implique echar raíces. Viaja por el mundo documentando historias y preservando memorias, pero evita formar las suyas propias. Todo cambia cuando regresa temporalmente a Londres para sustituir a un profesor en un evento en el Museo Británico. Lo que debería ser una estancia de dos semanas da un giro inesperado cuando rescata a una adolescente sin hogar, Amara, y decide hacerse cargo de ella.

Mientras Jasmine empieza a cuestionarse su estilo de vida nómada, el destino la vuelve a cruzar con Aaron Adler, un magnate de la tecnología europeo que también carga con su propio historial de pérdidas, responsabilidades familiares y escándalos mediáticos. Aaron y Jasmine se conocen desde hace tiempo, pero su relación había permanecido siempre en pausa... hasta ahora.

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Tenía miedo de cómo la autora manejaría el tema entre June y Aaron, ya que intentaron algo, quedaron como amigos, pero ambos decían que se amaban y que, de no haber sido porque ella conoció a su actual esposo, se habrían casado. Afortunadamente, cuando Aaron se enamora de Jasmine, la relación tan íntima que tenía con June comienza a transformarse. Sin darse cuenta, deja de llamarla cariño y empieza a referirse a ella por su nombre, y llega a decir que la vida lo cruzó con June porque, en realidad a quien debía conocer a Jasmine.


Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest