The Mixtape

Emery is a single mum, struggling to make ends meet, and just trying to give her daughter, Reese, the best life she can.Oliver is still reeling from the loss of his twin brother, Alex, who was killed in a car crash a few months ago, and Oliver can’t help but blame himself (even though neither of them were driving). He and his brother made up the R&B sensation, Alex & Oliver, and the vultures and vipers are all too happy to add fuel to the fire by blaming him publicly. Anything for a juicy story, no matter who it hurts.Emery and Oliver find each other in their time of need, and slowly build a deep and meaningful bond together. They help to heal each other whilst bearing their own souls, and fall deep and hard for one another. But nothing is ever that simple and life throws its fair share of troubles at the pair.Damn but this woman knows how to write a book! I don’t think I’ve ever given her less than 5 stars. Ever. And she always makes me cry! Why do you do this to me, Brittainy? Why? And the whole “are you ok?” asked constantly through the book just emulates “how’s your heart today?” from the Landon & Shay duet which is just…gaaaaahhhhh! #iykykIt’s also rare that I completely loathe certain characters quite as much as I do Emery’s parents, and Oliver’s ex-girlfriend, Cam. But they are all.just.vile. Disgusting excuses for human beings. Does it make me vengeful that I wish we’d seen more of a comeuppance for them all?So well written, beautifully paced, emotional, sweet, heartbreaking and healing all at once. Glued from the moment I picked it up.

After Oliver Smiths twin and second half of there musical duo, Alex, died in a car crash, he ends up in a downward spiral with no end in sight. Somehow he ends up at a hole in the wall bar where Single parent Emery works. When paparazzi makes a surprise visit to said bar, and Oliver is way past drunk, the only thing Emery can do to help her childhood, celebrity crush, is to take him back to her flat to sleep off the booze.To thank her for helping him, Oliver hires Emery as his personal chef but with them being around each other they start growing closer. It starts with late night phone calls then him inviting her and her daughter over for a barbecue with his parents. But learning each other’s true story’s both brings them closer and tears them apart.▪️▪️▪️▪️Such an emotional rollercoaster; I would go from crying my eyes out to laughing so hard the whole way through. I knew this would be a 5 star read after reading the first few chapters. It was such an addictive book that I ended up finishing it in a day. Reese is the sweetest, funniest kid and the way Oliver acts with her made my ovaries explode!⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I knew before I even picked this up that this was going to be great. I also knew it was going to hurt me in some way. And both of those things were true. But I loved seeing Oliver and Emery connect and love and build each other up from the dark situations they both found themselves in. Seeing them care for each other was so beautiful to see and I don't even have a solid explanation why I put this off as long as I did. A hurtful delight.

The more I love a story, the less I have to say about it. I know, that doesn't makes sense, I should be able to go on and on about it but when a book grips every part of you, makes you evaluate life choices, touches your soul and shines a light on places you want to keep dark and buried.....well, sometimes those books are just too emotional for you to talk about in depth.Emery and Oliver. These two. Emery's story and background put me through it. She's such a special character. Despite the things life has put her through, the unbearable parents she has and the daily struggles she continues to be such a magnificent person inside and out and a beautiful mother for her daughter.Oliver. Jeezuz..... I understand him. He is so deep and complicated, pure and stronger than he knows. Such a tragic occurrence that happened to him and yea, it broke him down and he lost himself for a bit. Some of the hardest parts for me were when he would talk negatively about himself and actually mean it. Gah, that hurt.When they come together does it magical make everything better? No but they do the work, they heal, they take the steps to make themselves and each other better and their love is SO SPECIAL.Something that I took away from The Mixtape is that you're not alone in your tragedies, you're not alone in your pain and trauma and your insecurities.The Mixtape is a phenomenally written masterpiece about choices, life, family, love, wounds and healing. It is an emotionally charged, passionate, intense story about humanity with all the FEELS! A MUST READ!

I think the only thing that I really thoroughly enjoyed about this book was Oliver’s point of view most of the time. Other then that, this book didn’t do it for me. This is a Friends to lovers romance book that for 40% of the book there is no romance, just the friends. Which is fine, if this book is longer, but then the romance wasn’t enough for me. I felt very disconnected to the writing style and the steam felt so dispassionate.