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Available 4.15.24


The Reunion

The Reunion, January 2023
by Kayla Olson

Atria Books
320 pages
ISBN: 1668001942
EAN: 9781668001943
Kindle: B0B3Y8CLTS
Trade Paperback / e-Book
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"An epic romance and a wonderfully written character-driven story!"

Fresh Fiction Review

The Reunion
Kayla Olson

Reviewed by Miranda Owen
Posted February 7, 2023

Romance Comedy | Coming of Age

THE REUNION is a standalone contemporary second-chance romance by Kayla Olson. This story is perfect for readers who enjoy second-chance romances. About a million years ago, Liv Latimer and Ransom Joel were on a teen drama, Girl on the Verge. Adolescence makes forming romantic relationships hard enough, but the added pressure of fame made Liv and Ransom’s burgeoning romance implode. Liv’s response was to kind of duck and cover and generally avoid Ransom for the past twenty years. Now there’s a show reunion and possible reboot. When these two people meet again, after so many years and such a complicated history, the sexual tension, and feelings of being haunted by their past promise a tantalizing present.

For me, so much of this story is about trust and separating what’s real from fantasy. Years ago, when the relationship between Liv and Ransom was a friendship and mild flirtation (with secret longing), the way things ended made Liv question if everything was just all in her head. She thought things might have all been one-sided and she was the fool. Instead of a regular cold case mystery dealing with something like murder or a disappearance, THE REUNION deals with a cold case romance. What really happened years ago that stopped things before they really ever got started? Who was to blame? Can things be put right? I like how Kayla Olson only gives Liv’s perspective. Having only her perspective makes her more sympathetic to the reader and keeps Ransom just as enigmatic to the reader as he can be with Liv. As the story progresses and the chemistry between the two main characters becomes intense and undeniable, you want them to find their way to be happy and be together, but you also see what makes Liv understandably cautious.                                                                                 

THE REUNION is both an epic romance and a wonderfully written character-driven story. I love stories with “making of” or “behind the scenes” elements. Kayla Olson does a phenomenal job of breathing life into these characters. By the end, I was so caught up in the characters that I was teary-eyed near the end. I would love to read stories featuring one or two of the supporting characters in this story. Although Kayla Olson is a new-to-me author, I can’t wait to dive into her next book.

Learn more about The Reunion

SUMMARY

As the star of the popular teen drama Girl on the Verge, Liv spent her adolescence on the screen trying to be as picture perfect as her character in real life. But after the death of her father and the betrayal of her on-screen love interest and off-screen best friend Ransom Joel, Liv wanted nothing more than to retreat, living a mostly normal life aside from a few indie film roles. But now, twenty years after the show’s premiere, the cast is invited back for a reunion special, financed by a major streaming service.

Liv is happy to be back on set, especially once she discovers Ransom has only improved with age. And their chemistry is certainly still intact. They quickly fall into their old rhythms, rediscovering what had drawn them together decades before. But with new rivalries among the cast emerging and the specter of a reboot shadowing their shoot, Liv questions whether returning to the past is what she needs to finally get her own happy ending.


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