YOU & ME BY STEPHANIE KEPKE

Title: You & Me

Series: A Candy Hearts Romance

Author: Stephanie Kepke

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 59

Publisher: Wild Rose Press

SYNOPSIS:  Forty year old Alex Spencer has given up on love. Having escaped five years earlier from the verbally abusive and two decades older, Trent Peterson, her life revolves around her daughter, sixteen-year-old Josie, even if Josie wants nothing to do with her.

But with Valentine’s Day looming, Alex’s high school sweetheart, Billy Leibowitz, whom she kicked out of her life twenty years earlier thanks to Trent’s demands, has been invading her thoughts. Alex searches for Billy in vain-it seems as if he’s simply disappeared. Suddenly, Candy Hearts, which Billy sent to Alex every Valentine’s Day, start arriving in the mail.  Is Billy sending the Candy Hearts? Will this finally be her chance at happily ever after?

REVIEW: This story is about second chances at love. Both Alex and Billy are at different places in their life now. With Valentine’s Day looming ahead, Alex is wondering what happened to her first love, Billy Leibowitz. She has searched internet and every other way she could with no luck. It is like he disappeared off the face of the earth. When she starts receiving candy hearts she has to wonder if they are from a co-worker or from her first love.

She also tries to connect with her daughter to no avail. Her daughter, Josie is a sixteen year old girl who loves her romance books. Alex decides to look at the book she is reading and is shocked to see the writer looks a lot like Billy. The author’s name is Blake Lincoln but Alex is convinced that is Billy.

She gets a note to meet her mystery candy hearts sender at an ice cream joint that Billy and Alex used to go to. Alex is trying not to get her hopes up but when Blake gets there she knows it is him. It is chilly so they wind up going back to Alex’s house. They aren’t inside but a moment before they starting kissing and tearing each other’s clothes off.

Josie decides to pick today to come home early. Alex runs in the bathroom and Blake aka Billy puts his shirt on before Josie gets in the door. Josie is so excited to get to meet the Blake Lincoln that she can hardly speak.

They agree on meeting later in the week for pizza and Josie goes to her friend’s house. Alex and Blake picks up where they left off. Alex and Blake will get there happily ever after even though they had to wait for each other.

I really loved this story. I liked how Alex and Blake got a second chance. I was pulled into the story and I honestly was surprised that the author was Billy. I didn’t see that one coming and I usually can guess what is going to happen. I also liked that Josie started to interact with her mom even if it was to talk about romance books.

I highly recommend this story.