June First: Emotional Contemporary Romance with Forbidden Passion

This is not the ordinary “meant to be” love story. This is the story of what society says is abnormal, not “meant to be” and how two individuals, scarred in different ways dared to dream and fought to make their dreams come true.While some might feel this book is too long, it was precisely what I needed. I needed the lullabies, Aggie and Bubbles, the piggyback rides, the sword fights protecting Princess Peach, the first dance recital, the nights sleeping under the treehouse, the birthday parties, the quiet moments just being three children brought together by tragedy and the path they each forged. I fell so incredibly in love with these characters.This story spans thirty years of love and loss, tragedy beyond comprehension and an all-consuming love forged out of that tragedy. This was so beautifully written and touched me in all the right places. I laughed, I cried, I swooned. And I will never listen to “Over the Rainbow” without thinking about Brandt and his Junebug.Brandt’s life dramatically changed in the blink of an eye one fateful night when he was only six years old. Everything he knew, the safety he felt was gone. He was thrust into a new reality, living with his best friend Theo and the new baby sister the boys had wished for. Brandt vowed the first night he lived with the Bailey’s to always protect June. He would always be there for her and make sure she was safe. Over the years his love only grew for his Junebug. It morphed from that of an innocent child to something deeper, something all consuming. June was always meant to be the girl next door and not his sibling. His feelings for her were confusing and messy. Everyone looked at them as siblings, but Brandt couldn’t. He fought his feelings so hard and for so long…until he couldn’t. And it wrecked him. He felt like he was not only betraying the Bailey’s but also in the end he would hurt June, and that was the last thing he ever wanted to do. He wanted her to thrive…to fly.June had never known a life without Brandt. He was always her protector and her safe space. He was her home. She would always run to Brandt to chase away her nightmares. As June grows into a young woman, her feelings for Brandt grow stronger. When she was young, Brandt was her brother, even though her feelings for him were different from how she felt about Theo. She realizes that what she feels for Brandt is deeper, and it scares her. How can she think about Brandt in any way other than her brother. All it takes is a dare from her friends and her world flips. She couldn’t understand why Brandt was pulling away from her. She felt like she was loosing everything and was determined not to let that happen. I loved how strong she was. Her love for Brandt never wavered. She made an impossibly hard decision to not only protect Brandt but to hopefully one day for them to be happy.And Theo, oh my heart Theo…he was the ultimate "saver". His love for Brandt (his Luigi) and June (his Princess Peach) was never ending. They were closer than best friends, closer than brothers. The bond between them was beautiful and at the end, it was Brandt and June he thought of.The ending was perfect! I loved the rainbows and Rupert! I loved the tradition Brandt carried on with writing moments on index cards. Getting to see how their lives played out was everything I needed. The cherished moments from their youth were still a part of their new family and complete with lullabies, treehouses and sword fights.This book will forever live in my heart. Thank you, Ms. Hartmann, for introducing me to such amazing characters and a beautiful love story.

This was the first time that I read a story about forbidden love - I’ll be honest, it started a little slow for me and I honestly wasn’t even sure I was going to be able to continue reading it. I never stopped reading and I’m glad I did because it made sense as to why she had it start it the way that she did.There was a reason that every single moment had to happen in this book. There was trauma, heartache, love and just pure happiness throughout the entire story.As always, I’m happy that Jen came out with another new book and I’m happy that I read this one and didn’t wait! Her stories just always make you feel great when you’re done reading them. <3Great job Jen!

5⭐️ 3🌶️“June always feels like a new beginning.”I will officially read anything Jennifer Hartmann writes. Any book, any preview, any grocery list. Give them all to me. I went in blind to this one (okay, I actually thought I knew what was going to happen for Brant to meet June but I was about 87 miles off the mark) and I was absolutely WRECKED one chapter in. And the hits kept coming. Tragedies come in threes and wow, did these three hit hard. But through all of the trauma, darkness, tragedy, and angst…there was exquisite beauty and love. I simply couldn’t put this book down and the sleepless night I got in exchange was well worth the reward. June and Brant are everything.“Sometimes a lot of love can make you cry.”“I don’t cry about love.”“Maybe you will someday.”“That doesn’t sound so good. I don’t think I want a lot of love.”“It’s a good thing to have. The downside is, the more love you have, the harder it is to lose it.”We got a look at the entirety of June and Brant’s relationship, spanning thirty years, and a lot of this was set in their childhood/the first eighteen years of June’s life. This was a really unique set up for the book and while I know it won’t be everyone’s cup of tea because this is a romance novel, I don’t think you could ever truly appreciate the gravity of June and Brant’s love for one another or the intricacy of their dynamics if we didn’t get the full picture. This also gave us such a special look into my favorite side characters to date–The Baileys. All so unbelievably kind, caring, and loving. I absolutely swelled with happy tears thinking of everything they did for and gave to Brant.“She claimed me like the sunrise claims the morning sky with lightness and blush, promise and wonder. She claimed me like a cyclone, funneling through a quiet town, taking no prisoners. She claimed my good and my bad, my light and my dark. She took my broken, ugly bits and molded them into something worthy of display. She turned my agony into art. June claimed me in a way that could ultimately be defined by a single word: inevitable.”As for our main characters, I was utterly taken. From the second Brant laid eyes upon June, he vowed to always protect her and they grew up in one another’s love and visceral need for the other. Through lullabies, nightmare comforts, shoulders to cry on, piggy back rides, backyard games, and all the moments in between, Brant and June became inseparable and utterly enmeshed. While our second and third tragedies showed how unhealthy this could become, I really did appreciate how they worked through their codependency and built their own spaces so that they could eventually love one another in a healthy way.“You just need to be brave that first time, then all the other times come easy.”As it always is with Jennifer’s books, this was full of angst, heartache, laughs, wit, trauma, healing, and love. I felt such a range of emotions, sometimes all at once, and it broke me in only the way a JH novel seems to know how to do before delicately piecing me back together again. This was chock full of triggers so be sure to check the warnings before diving in if you have limitations. Otherwise, going in (relatively) blind is how I recommend it. Either way, this beautiful book will keep you captivated from page one to the very end.

Instant tears within the first few chapters. I mean my god Jennifer, why do you enjoy my tears. I'll send you my therapy bill. This was one of the hardest earned HEA I've ever read in my life, and it was just sad. It was so emotionally written and I was so involved in the outcome of these two. Jennifer knows how to write a book that will break you soul and put it back together again.What to expect:Adopted siblingsTabooTear jerkerForbidden lovehard earned HEA

This story was so beautifully written . It was so sweet and hearbreaking and now I can’t stop crying .

Um pouco arrastado as vezes mas maravilhoso... vale a leitura! Personagens bem realistas, fiquei sempre ansiosa para ver o que ia acontecer em seguida, o livro te faz rir e chorar...

"Never underestimate a man willing to wait forever for the women he loves, for there is nothing he's not capable of. Noble to some, a fool to many, but to that woman? He is everything. "What You'll Find:✔️Forbidden Romance✔️Taboo (?)✔️ALL The Feels✔️Slow Burn✔️Dual POVMINI REVIEWI loved it. You must read it. I could quote the crap out of it because there are so many moments worth sharing. There's a taboo element that some may not love. Some won't think it's taboo. It's really in your own interpretation. But you know what, it was about the connection for me. And it was undeniable. I teared up. I smiled. I felt. I read this book in one evening. I couldn't put it down. And its 400 pages friends! There is just something so captivating about this authors writing. It's like your under her spell. Her words draw you in. And I am 1000% here for it. This is my fifth read of hers and she is now a one-click author for me. I hope to read the rest of her backlist soon and look forward to what's next from her!"He takes my hand. He takes my whole life too.”Ps. The paperback is beautiful!

Okay, I've officially found a new favourite author because this is my second book by her and I'm completely blown away. This author's emotional range in her work is outstanding.Six-year-old Brant is taken in and adopted by his best friend Theo's parents after an incredibly tragic night. He finds solace and light in Theo's baby sister and vows to always protect her. I don't want to give too much away because this is a book that you need to experience yourself. I ugly sobbed several times during it because there is so much angst, hurt, grief and love.‘𝙎𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙡𝙖𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙙 𝙢𝙮 𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙢𝙮 𝙗𝙖𝙙, 𝙢𝙮 𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙢𝙮 𝙙𝙖𝙧𝙠. 𝙎𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙢𝙮 𝙗𝙧𝙤𝙠𝙚𝙣, 𝙪𝙜𝙡𝙮 𝙗𝙞𝙩𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙢𝙤𝙡𝙙𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙝𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙮. 𝙎𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙢𝙮 𝙖𝙜𝙤𝙣𝙮 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙖𝙧𝙩. 𝙅𝙪𝙣𝙚 𝙘𝙡𝙖𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙙 𝙢𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙖 𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙪𝙡𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙗𝙚 𝙙𝙚𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙗𝙮 𝙖 𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙡𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙙: 𝙄𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚.’This author has the ability to rip your heart out then mend it with her words, leaving me stunned once I finished. Again, this is NOT for the faint of heart, and there are numerous trigger warnings.‘𝙄’𝙙 𝙝𝙖𝙙 𝙥𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙘𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙜𝙚𝙙𝙮. 𝙄’𝙙 𝙗𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙚, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙄’𝙙 𝙨𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙙𝙤. 𝙄’𝙙 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙙𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙞𝙩, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙄’𝙙 𝙘𝙧𝙖𝙬𝙡𝙚𝙙 𝙢𝙮 𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙚𝙚𝙩𝙝, 𝙘𝙡𝙖𝙬𝙨, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙗𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙙. 𝙄 𝙠𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙙𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙬𝙖𝙨𝙣’𝙩 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙚𝙣𝙩—𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙪𝙣 𝙨𝙚𝙩𝙨, 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙪𝙣 𝙖𝙡𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙚𝙨. 𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙤 𝙙𝙤 𝙬𝙚.’

A must by all accounts, Ms Hartmann dibs her pen in a mainstream over abused trope and makes it unique, she gives worth to something that is often carelessly portrayed. She takes all the shock value and OTT out and breathes life into it. I don’t think anything else matches so far.

I have no words to describe just how amazing, beautiful and heartbreaking this book was. The feelings, emotion, pain and the angst it invoked? It was like a bullet straight to the heart that broke it into a thousand pieces but somehow managed to piece it back together by the end. It posted such a beautiful picture from start to the end, it felt like i was watching a movie play before my eyes. Everything was perfect and that's what makes it a masterpiece - from characters, to story, to the tragedy, to the familial bonds, the childhood, growing up, finding independence and most importantly LOVE - in various shades and forms.Bran, Theo and June are one of the best protagonists I have ever read and the bond they share is soooo beautiful. It's everything!! The way their childhood is described and the callbacks towards the end...it hits you right in the feels. It's not easy to forbidden romance especially when it's toeing the lines of incest (stepbrother/sister) but author has done such a remarkable job that it never feels like odd or awkward. She has balanced it very well, with hints of love throughout but nothing pervy as such. There is a rationale behind it too and it interweaves so seamlessly with the story. This right here proved just how skilled and mature the author is to present such a difficult story in such a mature way. There is no way anyone would not root for Brant and June. Till the very last page, i held my breath, praying and hoping for these two beloved characters to get together and what a ride it was from start to finish. Seriously, this book and the author deserves all the accolades. I believe it's her finest work and will undoubtedly find a place in my top 5 all time fav books.