Review: Devil You Know by L.A. Fiore

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Standalone - Lost Boys #1
Release - March 10, 2017
Genre - Contemporary Romance
Dual POV - 1st person
Heat - 3.5 out of 5
Length - 362 pages

Damian Tate. One look into his sad green eyes and I was hooked. I wanted to be the one to make him laugh, to make him smile. I hadn't expected him to be the one to make me blush, to make me hot...to make me fall in love. He was my first kiss, my first love, my first everything. I wanted forever with him, but life got in the way.

He enlisted, I went to college, and for years we were never in the same place long enough to pick up where we left off.

Thirteen years after he left, tragedy brings him home. The stoic boy I fell in love with grew into a quiet, dangerous and wildly sexy man. He still tugs on all the right strings for me, but he seems determined to keep me at arm's-length.

However, when trouble comes knocking at my door, he is the one to put himself between that trouble and me.

Spending time with him might drive me insane, or it might be our second chance at first love.

Find it here:
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MY REVIEW

THE DEVIL YOU KNOW was another second chance romance from L.A. Fiore and she hit it out of the ballpark!! It was a sweeping tale of love that spanned more than a decade and I was immediately enamored and captivated with the story of its characters.

"I've waited for you for half of my life. I want a lifetime with you."

I fell in love at first read with Damien. He was first introduced as a sweet five year old boy whose father ended up abandoning him, leaving destruction in his wake. His mother became abusive and he became a little lost. She had so much anger and hatred inside and pushed it all on poor Damien's shoulders. Therein lies the seed that made him doubt his own self-worth. Luckily, at the age of 16, he becomes best friends with Cam and through this friendship he meets Thea, Cam's twin sister. It was almost love at first sight for them. Initially intending to enlist in the army, as his relationship with Thea deepened and grew, he started to envision their future together. That is until his mom reared her ugly head, spewed her nastiness, and had him doubting all over again. Those doubts separated the young lovers for almost 15 years!!

There was a passage in the book that not only tells of the great love between Damien and Thea, but beautifully sums up how powerfully poignant their story really is.

"I've waited a long time for you and now that I finally have you I will move Heaven and Earth to keep you right where I've always wanted you, at my side. I will walk in the rain so you stay dry, I will forgo food so you can eat, I will take the pain so you won't feel any and I will absolutely step in front of danger to keep you safe."
Tears rolled down my cheeks and he wiped them away. "I've waited a long time for you too, so let's get an umbrella big enough for two, let's plant a garden so we always have food, let's share the pain because we have each other to seek comfort in and let's just avoid danger because living a life without you would be worse than death."

I hope the author isn't too upset that I revealed this portion because I just couldn't help it. I need you to truly understand how incredibly amazing this story is. It blends romance, family, friendship, and even a bit of a murder mystery. Each character remained relevant and the strength of their connections were palpable. I want an Anton in my life too!! Damien's POV gave this story a special deepness and gravity yet there were so many lighthearted moments that things didn't turn dour or dark. In all honesty, love didn't just make an appearance in this book, it was this story's statement. It didn't languish and it didn't die. It didn't only survive, it prevailed and the evidence was in the way that Damien and Thea found their way back to one another and finally captured their own version of a happy ending.