Review by Ahanson2020 -- Hello, My Love by Evy Journey

Ahanson2020 · Post by **Ahanson2020** » 26 Jun 2019, 13:45

[Following is a volunteer review of "Hello, My Love" by Evy Journey.]

3 out of 4 stars

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Hello, My Love by Evy Journey is a romance novel. Elise Halverson, law student, isn’t interested in love and has a plan for her life. She intends to become a lawyer for those who can’t afford to right their injustices. Elise is the youngest of three children and the only girl. She comes from a tight-knit family, close to her father, Dr. Halverson, an economics professor at a university. Although beautiful, she is doesn’t take stock in that and is focused on her intelligence. She jokes with her best friend, Leah, that she would probably be a perfect match for a young Judge Brenner. Intellect and a sense of justice above all else.

Greg Thorpe, wealthy playboy, who is engaged to be married, is having some labor disputes with his employees. To improve his company’s image, an internet-based business, and to do right by his employees, he consults with Dr. Halverson, employee benefits specialist. It is through his first meeting with Dr. Halverson that he meets Elise and is smitten.

The kinder he was, the more he tried to engage her in conversation, the colder she was and he did not understand why. It wasn’t until one night, at her parents’ dinners, that Greg saw Elise had a copy of Crime and Punishment and begins a conversation with her. They engage in a lively discussion about murder and justice and Elise realizes that there is more to Greg than his playboy image. He has depth in his soul. Greg has finally broken through Elise’s emotional wall. From there, they converse more and end up texting each other on a regular basis.

But alas, Greg is engaged to Lori Williams, a determined and self-made woman who exudes sex. Two nights before his wedding to Lori, he offers Elise a ride to her apartment. They both know that their friendship will need to change as Greg is soon to be a married man. Greg wants to show her who he really is before he marries. He realizes that everything will change, including himself, once he marries. Greg shows her his house and it is so different than what she imagined.

Little does Greg know that Elise has been in love with him for a long while and is beside herself over the loss of their friendship. Over the course of the evening, they end up making love. This one event has several life altering consequences.

Does Greg end up marrying Lori in spite of realizing he does not love her? Does Lori take any of this laying down? Does Greg and Elise’s friendship evolve into a relationship? Do they get married? Does Elise become an attorney? So many questions and a couple of twists and turns for the reader’s pleasure.

Hello, My Love by Evy Journey is a romance novel for readers who enjoy love stories. Hello, My Love is an easy read. The writing flows well and contains minimal grammatical errors. The writing starts off strong and stays strong until the end. It is well-edited. The writing starts off strong and stays strong until the end. Even some of the complicated sentences, flow well. As a reader, you get lost in the story, as one should.

I liked the alternating point of view in each chapter. The story begins with Elise in the present time and the second chapter is a year earlier from Greg’s point of view and the chapters go back and forth to tell the story from both Elise’s and Greg’s point of views. As a reader you get to see how each main character feels about the situation and why they behave the way they do.

Greg and Elise are both likable and although I do understand why Elise is so cold to Greg at the beginning of their friendship, I would have liked to have known Elise’s feelings for Greg sooner in the story. Although minor, after Greg and Elise’s one night of passion, I wanted to know how she got his car back to him since he was driving it to see Lori the next morning.

When the book skips to two years later, I was wondering what happened to Elise’s immediate family. She was alone in her apartment. I didn’t like that Greg and Elise picked up as if there wasn’t a time gap in their relationship.

While I understand Greg was trying to prove himself and learn to be alone, I think it took too long was for him to reconnect with Elise. There is a lot at stake in the end and I think the reconciliation was too easy. All the people involved were too accepting of Greg after his two year hiatus from Elise’s life. I would have liked more pages dedicated to their relationship once they moved in together. You really get to know someone once that happens.

While Dr. and Mrs. Halverson tried to let Elise make her own decisions, it would seem they would have voiced their concerns a little more forcefully concerning their grandson.

The trip to France at the end seemed rushed. There could have been more to that story.

I also was unclear over the event that happened to Elise when she was in grade school. It was life-altering for her, changing so many things in her life. I would have liked that clarity.

The story of Mrs. Thorpe could have been better explored to explain her impact on Greg.

A nice, enjoyable easy read. Discovered that it is the first in the series. Yay! I would definitely recommend it. Overall, I give the book a 3 out of 4 due to the explanations above.

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Hello, My Love
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