Hmmm this book was a little too sappy for me. I like a cute little love story, but for some reason the dialogue was too sappy and cliche throughout the book.

The leads were suppose to be nearly 40, but they talked and acted like they were in their young 20s, and in their first relationships. The way that Vic dealt with her "fight" with Riley was a clear example. Why would you just text someone when you live/visit so close? Not even one stop by her house or place of work in a month?

The second chance love stories I usually dig, but I thought Riley would give Vic more roadblocks with how she was treated. Also, there was a HUGE difference in their social standings, but it was barely recognized and dealt with.

Last thing, I still think Vanessa is a biatch. Just saying.

Overall, the two main characters could have made more sense than the did.

Forced to return home after 16 years for her sister’s wedding, Victoria Thayer not only had to contend with her homophobic mother but also someone she could not forget since high school.

As a descendant of The Thayer family, the crown jewel of Wolf Bay, Victoria has had misgivings about the intentions of her partners who have often sought her for the wealth of her family. When she returned home and had the chance to start afresh with Riley, her crush from high school, dare she hope that Riley be any different? And will Riley give her a chance to right all her wrongs?

Riley Warren is a survivor in her own rights. Subjected to bullying since high school for her sexuality and poverty due to an alcoholic and absent mother, she made a way for herself. When Victoria her high school crush came back to town, she found herself unable to resist someone who used to part of the bullying.

The premise was promising however I could not really reconcile how easily the relationship developed with such a history between the pair. Riley was not only subjected to bullying but also blatantly ignored even when she saved Vanessa, Victoria’s twin’s life. Having to question her worth when compared to Victoria’s flings was hard to read. I really like the author’s character of Riley but could not really relate how she had to condition herself to fit into Victoria’s life. Overall it was an ok read and feel readers will be able to like the book better if Victoria’s feelings for Riley were explored further.

I just reviewed Hopes and Dreams by PJ Trebelhorn. #NetGalley

I have mixed feelings on this one. Normally enemies to lovers is my thing but there was just something that didn’t resonate with me. I loved some parts and didn’t connect with others.

I have quite mixed feelings about this book. The plot was promising an excellent novel, but the deliverance sort of lacks. Too many times the money issues have been brought up and easily forgiven, too many "envious or jealous exes or so-called friends" are meddling in a relationship of two adult women, and too many tears shedded over it, so at times, this sounded more like a YA novel, which I didn't like.

When your childhood is a mess and you can't get out, but still make a life for yourself it is courageous at least. Having your high school crush come back to your life is priceless. Not to mention that person also was part of the bully group.
I really liked this story. It is very uplifting and promising.
I would wish for one extra chapter...maybe 2 years later??

I have very mixed feelings about this book. There were parts of the book that I really enjoyed, but there were a lot of other parts of the book that were really confusing (plot points that weren't totally resolved.) Overall, I liked the book but didn't love it.

This is an enemies to lovers book as well as . Vic and Riley went all through school together and Vic willingly participated in tormenting Riley. By willingly, I mean, she never did anything to stop her sister and friends from torturing Riley. When they meet years later, Vic has since come out and she's out and proud. Riley still holds a major grudge but ,to me, she forgave Vic quickly and started dating her. Now I by no means feel that a person in this situation should go to their grave not forgiving their tormentor(s), but Riley gave in really quickly. It could just be the fact that she's a really nice person or she had a major crush on Vic back in school. This was a cute, well written book which many people will love!

I wish I could say that I totally loved this book, but I didn’t. For that reason, my review of Hopes and Dreams by P.J. Trebelhorn is going to be a mixture of good and bad.

First the good. I did really like the premise of the story. The idea of a book about two women where one had been a bully to the other in high school is an interesting storyline. It provides all kinds of angst as well as moments of introspection for the characters about their lives then and now. Both of those things did happen in the story, at least with the two main characters, Riley and Vic. Overall, the tale is well written and flows easily. I read the entire book without having to skim which sometimes happens with stories I have trouble with.

My biggest problem is with the characters, both main and secondary. I connected with Riley who was the bullying victim in the novel. Her thoughts and actions ring true to her character. I had trouble connecting with Vic. She was wishy-washy through most of the tale, and only really showed she had any kind of a back bone when she was fighting with her mother. She was constantly giving in to her twin sister Vanessa’s wishes and actions. She was one the leaders of the group that bullied Riley in high school, but throughout the novel she would go from being apologetic for her former behavior to acting like an adult version of that high school bully. It happened so often that I felt like I was getting virtual whiplash. I began thinking of her as this book’s Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde. She was so irritating that I think whatever her character was supposed to do for the story became lost. She needed to be either one or the other, or at least show a steady progression of character improvement.

The other major problem with this novel is the ending. The big conflict/angst part of the tale didn’t happen until very late in the story, and because of that, there was an extremely short resolution to the romance. This, of course, made the ending feel very rushed. In fact, this book is screaming for an epilogue that isn’t there, and I’m left wondering if these two will really stay a couple.

As I said at the beginning of this book, the story is not all bad. It did keep my interest, and I can tell from the writing that Ms. Trebelhorn is an accomplished writer. Though I honestly can’t recommend this novel, I will look forward to reading more of her writing.

Thanks to NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for giving me the chance to read and honestly review this novel.

Rainbow Reflections: http://rainbowreflections.home.blog/

I had hoped this book was a bit better than it actually was. The blurb had me wondering if this would be a nice book to read, and it was an ok read, but the story is just a bit on the boring side for me.

Riley has lived in the same town all her life when one night she is driving home and she sees an accident happen. She saves the woman in the car online to discover it's one of the Thayer twins, her biggest tormentors from high school. Riley had a crush on Victoria Thayer, the nicer one of the twins, the woman she saved is Vanessa. Fast forward to a year later and the Thayer twins are back in town for Vanessa's wedding. Vic has always felt bad about how they treated Riley in high school and now she has discovered no one in her family has ever thanked Riley for saving Vanessa's life, she needs to apologize and see if she can ever connect with her. Vic had a secret crush on Riley when they were in high school but Vic hadn't figured out that she was into women. Riley is on the fence when they meet up again but also pulled to Vic. They both held onto the crush they had in high school. Dealing with horrible mothers and some self-esteem issues their budding relationship is riddled with doubt and pulling away.

I didn't care much for either of the main characters and they did nothing to win me over. Their story isn't convincing for me because Riley never fully trusts Vic, because of the bullying and her own self-esteem issues. Riley wants to take the relationship slowly, but when Vic says she is moving closer to their hometown Riley happily moves in with her. There are just so many things that don't make sense to me.
This book was mediocre at best.

3.5 stars. With one major caveat, I enjoyed this book. There were lots of issues past and present pulling the storyline in different directions. My biggest issue was that the book felt almost YA. I had to keep reminding myself that these characters were late 30's and early 40's. The lack of insight, the way the characters related to one another and the homophobic mother drama just felt simply done, like for younger readers with less capacity to understand the real depth of the issues. I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I liked this book. It was a very quick read with a nice story but it all seemed a bit fast

I loved the background of school bullying behaviour but I know that it wouldn’t be so easy to fall for someone who had been so awful to you. Also the ending felt really rushed. I’m not quite sure if she accepted the gift or not (I hope not!)

However I did like Riley a lot. She seemed kind and genuine. I’m not sure about Vic and tbh I think it would be difficult to be in love with someone whose friends are so vile ....

This is a read about life after high school and the baggage we may carry with us if it has not been processed. Bullying is painful. Bullying can shape the way you feel about yourself. I really dislike bullies. Riley Warren, small town girl, kinda looking for love, and really wants to purchase the movie theatre she manages. Money is an issue. Riley was bullied by the so called cool and well-to-do kids. Victoria Thayer, former small towner, now living in the big city, and wants to possibly establish a relationship with her high school crush, Riley.

Riley is a likable character who is easy to cheer for. She had a crush on Victoria and still does. Victoria's character, grows on the reader as she works to redeem herself with Riley. On the other hand, Victoria's twin sister, Vanessa is a hit and miss for me. At times she is okay and other times not so much. This is also a read about a mother not accepting her daughter for who she is. The comments she makes are very ugly and distasteful. Miscommunication runs rapid to almost the detriment of the story. In general, a good read with family and friend dynamics which were okay. I wanted Vic to have to work harder to "win" Riley. the she has money and she does not have money was not flushed out enough as well as the mother daughter dynamic.

Riley Warren grew up poor with an alcoholic mother who never did anything for her. She still lives in the same town she grew up and works at the local movie theater that she wishes to own one day. She was bullied by her peers in HS and she even had a crush on one of them. Victoria Thayer and her twin sister (who was the ring leader) was part of the group that tormented Riley. Victoria really didn't want to bully Riley growing up. She often tried to defend her because she had feelings for Riley in HS. Victoria now goes by Vic and she has her own set of issues. Most women want her for her money and her mom has pretty much disowned her. Vic and her twin head back to the town they grew up in for Vic's sister's wedding and also to attend their 10 year class reunion.

So Hopes and Dreams was just ok for me. I had issues with Vic and her feelings for Riley and how Riley even could have a crush on someone who was not kind to her in HS. I just found it odd. I did like Riley and her supportive friends and I could see that she has some major issues with trust. The connection between Riley and Vic just doesn't seem believable. I did like the how Riley took her time with Vic, but Vic still had a hard time trusting that Riley would only want her money. That just was odd because Riley didn't seek her out and she was very cautious. So I did have some issues with this one. I like the concept of the story but just think the execution was great.

3 stars because I made it through relatively quickly and was still a decent enough read.

This arc was provided by the publisher for an honest review.

Hopes and Dreams is a rich girl - poor girl romance. And then also one where the rich girl was part of a group of bullying teenagers when in high school. You would think it will all be a bit much to overcome and ofcourse the road has bumps. Riley grew up in a trailer with an alocoholic mother and a low self asteem, while Victoria grew up with all the money in the world and experiences that people only want her to get money. Unlikely as it seems there is connection between them when Victoria comes back to town for 3 weeks because her twin sister gets married. This was a slowly developing romance with all of a sudden an ending that felt a bit rushed in comparison to the romance speed... it glossed over a lot of stuff. Disagreement, no contact, all of a sudden both going to the other to fight for it. This speeds up the storyline for over a month and it offers the reader no insight into why now all of a sudden the change of hearts. I was sort of invested in their journey but now it feels like my journey got cut short and confusing near the end. Also it felt like the writer wanted to make something more out of the storyline with Riley's mom at some point but then didn't follow through. My overall problem with this book is that you didn't quite get a good read on the main characters so it was hard to stay invested in the story.

*** An ARC was provided by Netgalley in exchange for a honest review ***

I really love enemies to lovers romance books, I think that it’s all the tension that builds throughout the book. This was a good book but not great. The tension lasted as long as it takes to snap your fingers. Vanessa had to say sorry and then they were on a date. Who does that? With that being said, the dialogue was really good and I did enjoy the book.

An honest review thanks to NetGalley. This book was very difficult for me to review. I loved this book, I was so engaged and loved the characters until some issues arose that made me really start to loose my enthusiasm for it. The good. I loved Riley, she was amazing and I felt a connection immediately to her. Vic at the beginning was great to, I know it was fast but because of her personality I could totally see how Riley forgave her so quickly for the bullying in high school. The issues. Well the first problem was Vanessa. One second she was Vic's biggest supporter and the next she was fake and being the version we were introduced to in high school flashbacks. Another issue that really irritated me was Vic was considering her feelings for Riley was just the chase and then two pages further and she is head over heels in love with her. That was the moment that this went from a five star read to a three star. These issues seem quite small but they squashed my love for this in the beginning. This was still a good read, I was just a little let down as I loved it so much the first half of it.

This new novel by PJ Trebelhorn is such a sweet and refreshing love story, a story of forgiveness and learning to put the hurts of growing up behind. Riley Warren had been bullied throughout high school, even to the point of being told she should kill herself. One of those that were part of the bullying group was Victoria Thayer, who secretly had a crush on Riley but was not sure how to deal with the confusing feelings she was having. Fast forward nearly 20 years and their paths cross again, this time with Vic having come to terms with her sexuality and determined to apologize for the pain she had caused. Riley still lived in the same town, working and living paycheck to paycheck. The two search for how to forgive and build a new relationship together.

This was a fantastic story, a slow burn that leaves you wanting this couple to get together so badly that it hurts. The author does a great job of developing the back story and showing how powerful words can be as a teenager and how they can go on to affect you for the rest of your life. Riley is justified in being cautious with her forgiveness after the pain that she had gone through growing up. But Vic slowly chips away at the walls Riley had built up. It is such a beautiful story of forgiveness.

If you are looking for a good slow burn love story, this one will be a sure hit for you.

I received an ARC of this novel in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

2 stars

Riley Warren will never forget the bullying she experienced at the hands of Vanessa Thayer's friend group in high school. Looking back, she can see they were all just rich, entitled jerks, including Victoria, Vanessa's twin sister. So why is it that Riley's still harboring a crush on Victoria after all this time? It's taken Victoria Thayer a while to take control of her life. After being disowned by her mother for being a lesbian, only her sister's upcoming wedding can bring Victoria back to the town where she grew up. But now that she is back home, she might as well take the chance to win over the girl she's always wanted—Riley Warren. Can Victoria and Riley find their happily ever after, or was their love story doomed from the start?

cw: suicidal thoughts (past), minor character death, so much homophobia, so much classism, so much mommy issues, alcoholism, car accident, child neglect (past)

Argh. So I really did not get what I expected or wanted from this book. As you can tell by my content warnings, this was a rough ride. Okay, I did think the book would need to address the past bullying, but it was too much. The bullying did not stay in the past and there was way too much hate in this book for it to be a pleasant read.

The Characters: Riley was a nice person, even though her lack of self confidence was a bit frustrating at times. Vic was... supposed to be nice? But I kind of just got the read that she was obsessed with money / entitled like the rest of her family, but she's slightly better because she's not homophobic because she's gay herself. The MCs were pretty defined by their issues with their mothers, and that made them both one-dimensional in a way. I didn't really like any of the side characters. Some were plain jerks, and even the nice ones made poor judgment calls at least once. Small peeve, but I got the twins' names mixed up super often in the beginning. I also did not like the Thayer family dynamic. There's the extremely homophobic mother, the supportive father who stands up to the mother, and the twin sister who is supportive but sometimes makes homophobic and classist comments. It didn't mesh or make sense to me. You know when you're reading amateur writing and all the characters sound the same because they're written in the same voice? That's what this felt like, except there was the author's voice and the author-imitating-bigotry voice.

The Romance: I couldn't root for Riley and Victoria. I'm not totally convinced that Vic is a good person, and Riley also has her own issues surrounding money. (I suddenly cringed remembering how Riley gushed over Victoria's rooftop pool and heated bathroom floor.) I didn't buy the crushes that Riley and Vic supposedly had on each other in high school. There were some enjoyable reactions thrown in there, but it was mainly unconvincing progress in which they fall in love way too fast, then some angst, then the HEA.

The Plot: The plot is the romance, which was a bit unfortunate. It doesn't make sense.

The Writing: Here's the thing... I've read one of PJ Trebelhorn's sports romances before, and I enjoyed it. I'm very confused about what happened here. As I started reading, I thought to myself, okay, this is a little rocky but I'll probably get into the story soon. And then it got worse and worse and fell apart.

Sigh, I'm sad about writing such a negative review. I think as I was reading and more problems with the plot appeared, I disengaged from the storyline and just kept pushing ahead without trying to get back into it. So at the end, I was just left with a lot of complaints and not much positive feedback.

I think my main issue with this book was that it felt out of touch. In some ways, it was kind of problematic. While the homophobia is addressed somewhat, I don't think the class difference is talked about enough.

Unless you have a thing for overdone poor girl/rich girl romances, I would not recommend this.

**I received an ARC via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Victoria Thayer and her twin sister Vanessa were very close and financially secure. Riley Warren was an only child raised by a single alcoholic mother. They lived in a trailer park and Riley wore second hand clothes. She was often made fun of and bullied in high school. By senior year, she was not only targeted and bullied for her home life, but also by Vanessa and her group of friends because they thought she might be gay. Victoria went along with the bullying out of fear. At one point, it became so bad, Riley contemplated suicide. Her best friend Megan, who was always there for her, talked her out of it. Now almost twenty years later, Riley was the manger at a movie theatre in the same upstate NY town of Wolf Bay, living basically from paycheck to paycheck. Vanessa and Victoria were working in Manhattan for their family’s company and still wealthy. The twins were back home to prepare for Vanessa’s upcoming wedding. While Vanessa was making wedding plans, Vic was planning to make amends for her past transgressions and hurtful behavior in order to gain Riley’s trust and the possibility of a relationship with the girl she actually liked in high school.

Riley and Victoria were likable characters. There were many characters that were not, especially the mothers who strongly disliked their daughters. Riley’s mother was never there for her growing up and only wanted money for more alcohol. Vic’s mother wanted nothing to do with her since she came out. The conversations the mothers had with their daughters were hateful and hurtful. But I liked how the author counterbalanced all this mean spirited behavior with a loving support team, especially for Riley. She not only had the constant presence of Megan’s love and support, but also Nancy and her husband Andy. They took on the much needed parental role for Riley and she because the daughter they never had. I felt Vic’s greatest ally seemed to be her father since Vanessa wavered on her opinion of Riley too often. I also felt some of Vanessa’s actions and reasoning were questionable. There were also many angst moments caused by Vanessa, and once again, her friends. Riley’s self esteem and self worth fluctuated several times throughout the story because of that.


I think the weakest part of this story was the romance. The romance needed more time to develop, especially when there was a period of minimum to no communication between Riley and Vic before they reunited again. I had trouble understanding the characters’ actions during the latter part of this story.

I did think the author did a good job in showing how bullying and hurtful actions can impact a person’s thoughts and feelings through the years. I also liked how the author allowed certain parental characters not to change and this made it more realistic.

An ARC was given for an honest review.

2.5 Stars. Riley Warren is the manager of the local movie theater and has never left her home town. She was bullied in high school by a ground of the popular girls, including the twins Victoria and Vanessa Thayer. Riley saves Vanessa one night after witnessing a car accident and is upset when she is never thanked for saving the person she hates the most form high school. Vic was always afraid of what to do in high school, she knew she was different and had a crush on the person they made fun of the most, Riley. Riley also secretly had a crush on Vic but knew it would never go anywhere. When they see each other 20 years after high school in their home town, they cannot stay away from each other as they both have changed.

This novel was okay, I feel like the two characters started to have feelings too quick. Riley forgave Vic very quickly for her crappy high school, she did not even really give it any time. Riley seemed to just accept the change, which I did not really like. They really only dated a couple weeks and that seemed to bother how fast their relationship changed. Vic is afraid of Riley stealing her money and I feel like that barely comes up. The drama in this book, is the worst, its a misunderstanding that could have been solved by a conversation. I am not sure I would recommend this one.