REVIEW: Cynthia P. O'Neill - Learning to Trust (Learning #1) ♥♥♥♥

When Garrett Andrews finds something that catches his eye, he goes after it, letting nothing stand in the way of what he wants to possess. The first woman to arouse his heart could be the one person who helps him to finally open up and feel again.

Laurel Hart was a swimming champion until a frightful event and unknown health issues derailed her career. With a recent degree from MIT in Bio-Medical Engineering and an offer to join one of the leading innovators of medical equipment in the world, she plans on making a new life for herself; letting nightmares from her past stay in the past, or so she thinks.

Neither of them wants to date, but she finds herself drawn to him and Garrett uses every excuse to be near her. Laurel’s afraid to let anyone get close, but finds solace in his arms. Garrett is finally able to be himself around someone. Together, they discover a connection that manages to soothe both their souls and starts opening them up to new possibilities.

Once Garrett finds out about Laurel’s past, all rules in regards to "relationships" are changed, because one false move could drive her away. He attempts to calm her nightmares and gain her trust so he can show her who he really is and the relationship he desires from her.

Will they be able to overcome the damage their hearts have encountered? Can they find happiness? Can they trust their minds or will life throw each of them another curveball? Only time will tell if they can learn to trust.


***This is a contemporary/erotic romance suitable for mature audiences only, ages 18+.***

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The R♥mance Vault's Verdict: ♥♥♥♥ Trusting hearts.

I received an ARC in return for an honest review. My review is my own and is in no way swayed because I received a copy to review. I have reviewed as though I have purchased the content and whether I would be satisfied or not.

I really wasn't expecting to enjoy this book as much as I did, I thought it was going to be a pleasant read, the synopsis suggested enough to keep me entertained but it went further that just entertainment, I really did sink into Garrett and Laurel's story.

I liked Laurel, she'd been through a lot with Chase and it had left her a different person, she was hiding behind unflattering clothes and never wanting to catch anyone's attention. She did wind me up a couple of times but that makes me like the book even more because she was feeling real and I wanted her to do things differently sometimes. Her health issues added to the realness although in this area I did have reservations about previous diagnoses and how it hadn't been properly detected before.

Garrett, well what can I say, he's dominant, he's got a secret, he goes after what he wants and he's pretty much everyone's dream who likes the 'take control man and don't argue' personna.

The storyline is if I am honest a little bit predictable, events seem to fall into place too easily, sometimes we want 1 + 1 to add up to 3 and this isn't the case in this book. There are no left wing shockers, it pans out pretty much how you're assuming it's going to. But (oh I love a but) in this case I felt it was totally ok, the writing was good enough that it didn't matter that it was going the way I thought it was going to. The characters and the way the story was written was enough to be a really enjoyable read.

And as for the heat factor, Cynthia got this spot on I think, she didn't turn every event into a sexfest, she picked the important times to get all erotic and sexy and left us imagining on our own at other times and I really liked that. I also liked the fact that Laurel actually left Garrett hanging a couple of times ☺

I am really looking forward to reading Learning to Let Go, I need to see what happens to Garrett and Laurel and whether they get their HEA or not.......