Book Review: Shatter (True Believers #4) by Erin McCarthy

Summary:

From the USA Today bestselling author of True, Sweet, and Believe comes a tantalizing New Adult novel about finding love in the most unexpected ways…

Kylie Warner prides herself on being optimistic, but after finding her best friend in bed with her boyfriend and flunking chemistry, her upbeat attitude has taken a dive. Even an impromptu hook-up with her sexy new chemistry tutor only brightens her mood slightly. After all, it’s not like she’ll ever see the tattooed scholar again…

While he’s a whiz at complex equations, Jonathon Kadisch has trouble when it comes to figuring out women. So when Kylie tells him that she’s pregnant after their night of passion, he’s at a complete loss. He’s prepared to be a good father—unlike his own deadbeat dad—but he’s less prepared to fall for the genuine and alluring blonde bearing his child.

With emotions running high, Kylie wonders if Jonathon’s devotion is out of growing love or looming obligation. And when heartbreak threatens to tear them apart, Jonathon will have to fight for the only girl who’s ever made him feel whole…

Release Date: September 1, 2014

Age Group: New Adult

Source: NetGalley

Reviewed By: Kelli

 

Review:

I've really enjoyed Erin McCarthy's True Believers series, and Shatter was my favorite book of the series to date.  This series gets better with each consecutive book.  Read my reviews of True, Sweet, and Believe by clicking on the titles.

 

I liked Kylie from the very start of the book---actually, I already knew her, sort of, from previous books in the series.  Kylie has been betrayed by her boyfriend Nathan and one of her best friends, Robin.  Kylie has a lot of anger, hurt, and mistrust to overcome in Shatter.  I didn't know if she was going to be able to rise above her circumstances, and her plight kept me so invested in the story.  I also liked Jonathon right from the start too.  He was a study in contrasts and I loved that he was smart and very different from Kylie's usual type.

 

The main conflict in Shatter is that Kylie gets pregnant after she and Jonathon's first night together (don't worry, I didn't spoil it, this is in the summary).  Kylie's behavior after learning she's pregnant, and Jonathon's as well, was what made me really fall in love with these characters.  McCarthy throws a few kinks into the plot, to keep things interesting and it definitely kept me on the edge of my seat.  As with its predecessors, this book was full of emotion, and I found myself tearing up a few times.

 

The one thing that kept me from giving Shatter five stars was that the epilogue had a very unrealistic element.  I won't say more, so that I don't spoil the ending, but let me just say that what's mentioned in the epilogue was so improbable as to be unbelievable.  This has unfortunately been a theme with the True Believers series: each book has had either a rushed ending, a rushed beginning, or something that makes the book feel too fantastical.  

Despite this one complaint, Shatter really was a great read.  I loved the chemistry between Kylie and Jonathon, the character growth, and the fact that the characters were so honest with each other.  I love it when NA authors write authentic characters who don't play a bunch of games with each other, and that, along with the sizzling chemistry and the realistic characters, is what keeps me coming back to Erin McCarthy's books.