Release: 1 (The Release Series)

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Because when I was ten years old, I met a boy. I hated him. But I needed him like my veins needed blood. He broke my leg. He broke my patience. And eventually he broke my heart. But there hasn’t been a minute that’s passed that I haven’t loved him with every single broken shard.” Bree and I were the only survivors - not that either of us were truly living after that night. As a single dad with nowhere else to go, I moved into her guest house. And somehow, through the guilt and grief, we forged an unlikely team. They become the best of friends. Once they get a little older and hit their middle school years, they become boyfriend/girlfriend. These two are inseparable and I Loved reading about their past. Watching their friendship grow was so beautiful.

stars for Twenty-four years, three months, one week, five days, eighteen hours, eleven minutes, and counting… Release is exactly the kind of romance I love. It's heavy on the friendship, the romance, and most importantly, the feels. This one mad me laugh, cry, and cry some more. At the end, my heart was whole and so happy. This story was stunning and a 5 star favorite from me. Ramsay was perfect for Thea. He hid his awful family life and abandonment issues behind a perma-smile, took care of everyone and everything who needed him. And he paid for it. The weeks following his release from prison, his adjustment to life outside his cell was heartbreaking to watch but the author managed to infuse some humor (cue Siri) that lightened the mood and helped to handle the emotional roller coaster. And this is what Aly excels at - her stories are perfectly balanced and never drift into the trap of too much angst.So, yeah. Aly Martinez had me all up in my feelings again with this one. WAY up. But the two most prevalent ones had me laughing at one point and smiling from ear to ear the next - hilarious anecdotes and deep discussions of the past providing a serious emotional barricade. But that certainly doesn't negate the fact that a twist thrown in there didn't just make me gasp like, "no biggie!" With a slow burn and some angsty moments, Release is a second chance romance that would appeal to those looking for a touching story dealing with real life painful issues.

When they're in high school, whats supposed to be one of the best nights of their lives turns into something tragic and traumatic and sets things on a whole different trajectory for them both. Though Ramsey is only seventeen, he's sent to prison for over a decade. For years, Thea stays true to him. She never gives up on him or their love. Even though Ramsey is insistent she lets him go and moves on with her life, she can't. She can never move past their love. For her, there is only him. And now that he's released, she's ready to prove it. Sadly, I didn’t feel their connection, or chemistry or love. That’s why, I felt detached and the whole thing felt like a bit forced. My heart went out for Althea Floye Hull, as he sits under a tree, mourning the loss if her mother. Ramsey Stewart jumps down the same tree, landing on her and breaking her foot. This could be a sign of things to come, he then proceeds to break her heart and her life in the years to come.We were two lonely people who relied on each other. We’d never been brainwashed enough to believe that the world wasn’t a horrible place. We’d been disenchanted with the beauty of life since the day we’d met. But we had each other. That was the one constant we needed for happiness." We'd been disenchanted with the beauty of life since the day we'd met. But we had each other. That was the one constant we needed for happiness. There are several elements I enjoyed about this story. Namely, how Thea and Ramsey connected at such a crucial time in their lives and experienced so many firsts together. Ramsey is such a noble character with a big heart, and while sometimes it is to his detriment, it makes him endearing. As for Thea, she is strong character, though some point she needs to realize she isn’t the only one suffering. However, Thea knows the value of friends and family. No woman deserves to be verbally abused. I couldn’t understand why the heroine was so pathetic and took his verbal abuse. He just should have stayed in prison. What kind of a man blames the woman/girl he loves for ending in prison? She did not tell him to kill the boy that raped her. To throw it in her face was disgusting, he deserves to be hit with a bat in the face. I’m not giving up on you, Ramsey. I don’t care if you want me to. I don’t care if it means you ice me out for all of eternity. I don’t even care that you’ve already quit on me. I once promised that it was you and me forever. Do you remember that? You made me swear it.”

My reading experience with this one was a lot like watching a man plays video games and his whole body is moving left and right with the controller in his hand, swearing that’s helping him do better in the game. I was like, "No there’s not enough room in his book to hash the rest of this out - oh my gosh - what am I gonna do - holy cow - someone help her -someone help him - someone help ME!!" I don’t think I’ve ever listened to a book where I had less in common with the MCs, both in lifestyle choices and the way they thought and acted. I felt like an anthropologist observing an alien species and finding zero points of relativity. It was a strangely interesting story because of that. What is wrong with you asking her to bring you here today?” he snarled. “How many times do I have to scrape you off before you finally get it?” But carved into my soul for the rest of my days would be the earth-shattering realization that the woman in my arms wasn’t my wife. I was surprised that their past took up about half of the book. Normally, when a couple shares a past that's important, the author usually gives us about 20% of the book on the past. Instead, we didn't get to see Thea and Ramsey trying to understand their relationship when he's released from jail until halfway through the book. That being said, I wish we got more of them in this stage of their relationship. I felt like we watched them in agony over how to be together again and, once they were, it was just over. If we got more of them trying navigate the world actually being together, I would have loved this even more.I’m over asshole heroes with a pathetic heroines. I don’t care how much of amazing a book or how mediocre the book really is. Aly Martinez writes the best friends to lovers stories. They always have so much heart and give me so many feels. Some of her older books (Fighting Silence especially) are some of my favorite romances of all time. It's been a while since she wrote a book that gave me those same kind of feels, but Release did just that. Thea and Ramsay are two of the most resilient people I've read about in a while - they have that survivor's gene that just won't let them give up, no matter how dire the situation looks. But I guess, when you know you're fighting for your soul mate there is no such thing as giving up. Thea and Ramsay were meant to be but until they were allowed to have their happily ever after my heart took quite a beating. But that's Aly Martinez for you - she makes you hurt and earn those happy moments. She makes sure that you deserve that happy ending when you get there.