Review: THE BOY & HIS RIBBON by Pepper Winters

“What do you do when you meet your soul mate? No wait…that’s too easy. What do you do when you meet your soul mate and have to spend a lifetime loving him in secret?
I’ll tell you what you do.
You lie.”

REN

Ren was eight when he learned that love doesn’t exist—that the one person who was supposed to adore him only cared how much he was worth.
His mother sold him and for two years, he lived in terror.
But then…he ran.
He thought he’d run on his own. Turned out, he took something of theirs by accident and it became the one thing he never wanted and the only thing he ever needed.

DELLA

I was young when I fell in love with him, when he switched from my world to my everything.
My parents bought him for cheap labour, just like they had with many other kids, and he had the scars to prove it.
At the start, he hated me, and I could understand why.
For years he was my worst enemy, fiercest protector, and dearest friend.
But by the end…he loved me.
The only problem was, he loved me in an entirely different way to the way I loved him.
And slowly, my secret drove us apart.

Amazon | Goodreads

My Review

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I think one of the things I loved most about this story was how ‘real’ it was. The background, the main characters, the side characters, the emotions, the hurdles, the triumphs, their story… everything felt so genuine and authentic, almost like I was reading the entries of a diary. My heart felt gutted for Ren right from the start. With what this young man had to endure, it was no wonder that he was suspicious, wary, and extremely averse to people in general. He’d never had the chance to know kindness and was instinctively distrustful of people who offered it. However, when it came to Della, he was always willing to sacrifice his own comfort for her happiness. His love for her far outweighed his natural urges and he would do anything to make her life better.

The way Ren looked at you made you suffer beneath his expectation and glow beneath his praise. He touched you deeper than any hand could read. He affected you harder than any spoken word ever could.
He cared with his entire soul and committed with entire being.

Everything Ren did was for the sake of Della, his ribbon. She was once everything he hated and became his very reason for existing. She was his world. He raised her from infancy and protected her from all perceived dangers. Somehow, despite his own ignorance, he was able to help her become the beautiful young woman she was. They survived the wilderness together and flourished from the generosity of a family that they couldn’t quite call their own. Through everything, his love for Della and hers for him grew deeper and their bond grew stronger. No matter what or who got in their path, it was always them against the world and no one and nothing could take the place the other had in their hearts. Well, except for each other. What happens when love becomes love and no one is equipped for the repercussions? The Boy and His Ribbon was a love story, but not in the traditional sense. It wasn’t romantic. It wasn’t pretty. And it hurt so bad while hurting so good.

I’m living proof that a heart can be broken a thousand times and still function, still keep you alive - desperately hoping that it won’t happen again, all the while knowing it will.

While Della was a little harder to understand because she started off as a baby and this book ended with her as a coming-of-age adult, her intentions and feelings were clear. Well, clear enough. It was Ren who absolutely owned me though. He was humble, sensitive, wise, and so loving. The ways he loved Della left me in awe. He was selfless and generous, thoughtful and considerate.

He carries this melancholy melody inside him that just makes me want to protect him and have him protect me at the same time.

The Boy and His Ribbon was proof of why Pepper Winters will always remain at the top of my must-read list. It’s books like this that make me drop anything else I’m doing to get my eyes on them. It’s why her books are always deliberate purchases for me. Her writing for this story was not only flawless, it was eloquent and evocative. It had me swinging from bouts of happiness and despair and right back again. The authenticity of her characters and her arguments have me completely devoted to learning how this story will turn out. I really need The Girl and Her Ren asap!! Now that the secrets are out in the open, I can’t wait to see how Della and Ren stitch themselves back together again. That cliffy damn near broke my heart and I’m ever hopeful that somehow these characters will give me the happy ending I’m looking for.

Release: 04.01.2018 | Contemporary Romance | Dual POV - 1st person | Heat: 3.5 | The Ribbon Duet #1

All views expressed are my own. 100% honest. 100% of the time!!