Book: Something Spontaneous by Dakota Forest
Reviewed by Desi Disassociates
Rating: 5/5
Josie Hare has spent the better part of a decade avoiding her hometown, Sterling Springs, and by extension her ex Sly. But when her adventure van breaks down and the closest (and only) body shop that's qualified to fix her only means of transport, she's forced to step back into the town she swore she'd never set foot in. And the mechanic that'll be working on her van? Yep, that'll be the man who broke her heart when she was 18 at the time she needed him most.
Sly Sterling thought he was doing the right thing by breaking Josie's heart before she left for college. But when she's dropped back into his orbit while he fixes her van, it's hard to keep his distance and feelings from resurfacing. Add in the fact that she ends up being the faceless cam girl he's subscribed to for years and things are bound to get messy. When feelings they both thought were long gone bubble up to the surface, they're forced to face them head on while acknowledging that while time has passed, not much else about their situations keeping them apart have changed in those 10 years.
Something Spontaneous was hands down a five star read for me. There were a lot of layers to both Josie and Sly individually, but also their past that was intermingled together. They're both dealing with some tough things from their past: Josie still having to face the fallout from her parents' betrayal of the town, Sly and his accident, and both of them confronting their feelings they never got over.
Sometimes second chance romances can feel a little too unrealistic, but the shared traumas and growth they both want for themselves and each other were powerful and something that I really enjoyed about the story. I also really enjoyed the faceless camgirl trope that just added another layer to their story. It made the spicy scenes incredibly hot and on brand for them. 12/10 recommend for that alone.
I reallllly like this series and the Sterling siblings are all fantastic. But also, Eddie?!?!?!? Meddler extraordinaire! I really enjoyed him as a side character since he added some much needed comedic relief. ALSO, I should mention I absolutely shed a few tears reading this one, so prepare for that if you get emotionally invested in your stories. I can't WAIT for the rest of this series.
Audiobook:
Story: 5/5
Narrators: 5/5
I was lucky enough to immersive read this, and the audiobook was very well done! Samantha Brentmoor and Jason Clarke are two of my favorites, and together they hit it out of the park. If you're an audiobook listener, I'd absolutely recommend it.