Review: Dearest Clementine

Title: Dearest Clementine (Dearest #1)
Author: Lex Martin
Genres: New Adult, Contemporary Romance
Publication Date: May 25, 2014
Publisher: Lex Martin
Purchase Links: 
    

Twenty-year-old Clementine Avery doesn't mind being called bitchy and closed off. It's safe, and after being burned by her high school sweetheart and stalked by a professor her freshman year of college, safe sounds pretty damn good.

Her number one rule for survival? No dating. That is until she accidentally signs up for a romance writing class and needs material for her latest assignment. Sexy RA Gavin Murphy is more than happy to play the part of book boyfriend to help Clem find some inspiration, even if that means making out … in the name of research, of course.

As Gavin and Clem grow closer, they get entangled in the mystery surrounding a missing Boston University student, and Clem unwittingly becomes a possible target. Gavin tries to show Clem she can handle falling in love again, but she knows she has to be careful because her heart’s at stake… and maybe even her life.

DEAREST CLEMENTINE is a stand-alone novel with two companion novels. This New Adult romance is recommended for readers 18+ due to mature content.

Dearest Clementine swallowed me up whole (and all my thoughts are just muddled up).

People see Clementine as a bitchy girl who hates men and doesn’t date, but all I see is a broken and tired girl who tries to hide everything that she is. It just made me root for her because she definitely deserves her own happy ending.

I love how I’ve seen all the progress she’s made to become who the person she is by the end. She is strong and courageous in her own way. It is definitely hard to have that leap of faith to change things. But oh my god. Gavin. He’s just an entirely different person — he just made me swoon. He is very addictive, and straight-forward. I was Team Gavin right from the start, especially when I see all his efforts to melt that icy exterior of Clementine’s. I think I just melted right with them.

The interactions between Gavin and Clementine seemed like fire and ice, push and pull. Clementine was very guarded, but Gavin just wanted to show her how beautiful life can be. He’s just simply not like others; he’s sweet, smart and sensitive. I love how he is very patient and just meets Clementine halfway. He made me just laugh and blush, and definitely touched me. I am simply cheering throughout the story when I can see Clementine’s growth.

I also love how there was a lot of build up on something else, and not just romance-centered. There was also about the Clementine’s stalker and also a missing girl in the campus. The entire thing had tackled on serious issues, but it was not over-dramatic. It was well-balanced with some fluff and fun.

Dearest Clementine definitely had me drawn in immediately. It is a captivating story about a girl who experienced some hardships in life, but making progress towards the life and person that she wants to be. 

      

Lex writes contemporary romance, the sexy kind with lotsa angst, a whole lotta kissing, and the hot happily ever afters. When she's not writing, she lives a parallel life as an English teacher.

She loves printing black and white photos, listening to music on vinyl, and getting lost in a great book. Bitten by wanderlust, she's  lived all over the country but currently resides in the City of Angels with her husband and twin daughters.