Wren and Anders’ story was so powerful that it sometimes took my breath away! What a beautiful and gut-wrenching book.

Also loved all the side characters in the story, they complemented the story so well. And the title of the book is so fitting!

Thank you to NetGalley and G. P. Putnam Sons for the advanced copy for review.

Wren finds out that her fiancée has fallen in love with someone else.
Anders lost his wife and is struggling to move on.
They're half a world apart, but meet when Wren spends time with her dad in the states.

Y'all this is such a slow burn and I loved watching the cat and mouse of Wren and Anders. Not even cat and mouse so much as friends to angsty wanna be lovers who can't be and then there's a plot twist that I really wasn't super okay with. I still liked the story and how the author navigated the plot twist but it still felt icky to me. There was also something in the epilogue that I still can't get out of my head that is bugging the crap out of me. Regardless of the ick and the eye twitch thing in the epilogue I'm still giving 4 stars.

Have I found another great contemporary romance author?? This was my first book by Paige Toon, and I loved every minute of it!

If you like books by Mia Sheridan or Katherine Center, you will definitely enjoy Only Love Can Hurt Like This. Paige hits that perfect balance between heartwarming and bittersweet to create a story that will stay with you.

I went into the plot mostly blind - so in turn, I won’t give away too much in this review. But if you love small towns, tight knit families, hunky country guys, and dark secrets - you’ll love it as much as I did.

Thanks to Netgalley, Putnam, and the author for a digital ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts!

"An Earth shattering secret. A life changing love story"

This was my first time reading this author and when the twist came I did feel a bit shattered...like wait, this isn't what I signed up for. Such a touchy subject and I wasn't sure how the author was going to pull it off.

Wren has hopped across the pond to visit her father, step mother, and step sister in Indiana. A product of a broken marriage, her dad cheated on her mom with her now stepmom, Wren has always felt a bit out of place visiting them in the states. While out at the local bar with her stepsister Bailey Wren encounters handsome local boys, and brothers, Anders and Jonas. While getting to know her family, and doing a bit of soul searching herself, she becomes close to the brothers next door. Both men have some angst, issues, and one big whopping secret.

Again, such a touchy subject for me, but I felt like the author did a good job on handling it with compassion. The blurb touts this book as a book for fans of Colleen Hoover. While I agree the heartache element is there it is lacking the spice and quick pace that readers have come to know and love from Mrs. Hoover. I will say this story is unique and the characters were all likable. It was nice to see Wren heal from family trauma and find herself, and love, along the way. Thank you to penguin Group Putnam, GP Putnam's Sons and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. 4 stars.

Shattered. Absolutely shattered. This book shattered my heart in the best way . No words. I physically cannot.

This is the first book by Paige Toon that I've read and it left me feeling all kinds of emotions.

In the beginning, we're introduced to Wren, who flees the UK for Indiana after she realizes her boyfriend is in love with someone else.

Wren's parents divorced when she was young - her dad and new wife ended up in Indiana, while Wren and her mom went to the UK. Wren never felt close to her father and his new family, and yet, Wren finds that small-town Indiana is the place she needs to be to find solace and heal her heartbreak.

Wren and her half-sister, Bailey are enjoying drinks at a local bar, when Wren sees two handsome brothers playing pool. Anders, the younger brother, looks her way and she's spellbound. Turns out Anders and Jonas's family's farm is right next door to Wren's family's farm. How convenient!

During her visit, Wren struggles to not only feel comfortable and a welcomed member of her family. Toon crafted an interesting family dynamic that we see evolve into a caring and loving relationship.

Wren and Anders. Each is dealing with a loss, while slowly falling in love with each other. We're privy to Wren's thoughts and emotions, yet left wondering why Anders is so closed off and unable to share his feelings with Wren. I don't want to spoil this for anyone, but when it's revealed why Anders is struggling to share his heart fully with Wren. The last few chapters were so beautifully written and I can't image what Toon felt writing those scenes.

Yes, this is a feel-good love story, yet it's also an emotional roller coaster of love, loss, betrayal, pain, and a deep sense of "what would I do in that situation".

Wren and Anders' love story will leave you longing for more. Love isn't easy and "Only Love Can Hurt Like This' reminds us that love is worth fighting for, love can conquer obstacles, and when you find the one, love truly wins.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

This book grabbed my attention from the start and kept hold of it until the very last page. It's my first story by Paige Toon, but I loved her work.

While each of her characters had something they were dealing with, some were doing better with their problems than others. But as they each opened up and began to rely on one another, giving and receiving the support they needed, there was this beautiful shared heartbeat that developed.

I truly enjoyed the characters, relationships, setting and storyline. It's not an easy read, but it is a simple one filled with love.

Thank you Paige Toon, Penguin Group and NetGalley for an advance review copy. I look forward to reading more of Paige's stories in the future!

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this ARC publication for an honest review.

Oh, this book captured my heart! While, yes, it is a romance, it is more a book about relationships. There are so many family dynamics and you become fully invested in all of them. Our story starts with Wren escaping the aftermath of her fiancé declaring he has feelings for someone else. I totally have to give the author props! For while I hated the situation with the fiancé, I did not hate him. He could have cheated on Wren but didn't. Her heartbreak leads her to the last place she truly wants to be. Indiana! Staying with her father, stepmother, (who he cheated on her mom with and abandoned Wren as a child) and her half-sister. While Wren does build on her relationships (especially with Bailey) and there is some redemption, I still wanted more groveling for all the hurt her father/stepmother caused! I personally wasn't quite ready to let it go...

Then the brothers, Anders and Jonas. I adored the brother connection. I adored the relationship between them with Wren. The romance, the friendships...so many sweet sighs...and so many tears.

There was such a perfect blend of fun, sweet moments and full-blown emotional angst. One minute smiling and the next sniffling...This book will break you, but then put you back together.

My only complaint is the ending was a little rushed from the big build up. But then you have a happily ever after epilogue, so...:)

4.5 stars

Lots...of....tears. This book had me really invested with its characters. Very moving, and very hard to put this one down.

Is love worth risking everything for? Wren finds out her fiancé is in love with someone else, and during that same time, but in another place Anders is struggling to move on from his wife’s death. Wren goes back to the family farm to visit her parents and to try and heal and crosses paths with Anders. This was a slow burn, tearful page-turner about second chances in both life and love.

The title is just perfect for this book. This story just broke my heart. The characters were all beautiful in their imperfect and slightly damaged ways, striving to do the best with what they had to offer. I loved how a professional woman living in the UK who has her heart broken heads home to spend time with her dad's family in rural Indiana to reconnect and to heal. In her healing she reestablishes bonds with her more distant family and makes new friends. Sometimes two people just have a connection on another plane. It doesn't detract from love for others, but it is something spiritually different. Sometimes that connection breaks someone else's heart. This theme is explored in different ways with various characters, all with different approaches to situations where there is no completely right answer nor wrong one either.

This is my first read from Paige Toon, and I will be definitely going back to read her previous books. A Brit who can write lovingly of farm life in America and make Indiana come alive as someplace cool gets all the props from this midwestern gal!

Thank you to #NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

An emotional read with a strong sense of place! I really enjoyed this romance. It touched on a lot of tough topics but explored them in a way that still allowed for lots of sweet and fun moments. I wanted to hang out with these characters, they were so likable. This was my first Paige Toon book but I look forward to reading more from her.

Thank you to Paige Toon and Putnam Books for this advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review!

***Spoilers below, you've been warned!

PAIGE, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME????

Good Lord. Paige was very, very kind enough to get her American publisher to approve my request on NetGalley just a few short hours after I've put in the request. I had messaged her asking how I'd be able to get my hands on this story early. If you know me, then you understand that I am a complete and total SUCKER for a good romance. Two people finding one another, falling in love, jumping through hoops and obstacles for one another? Weak. If it makes me cry? A++.

I went into this book with the understanding that it was going to emotionally wreck me -- some how, some way. What I did realize was just how much it was going too. The first half of the book, I took my time -- took my time getting to know Wren and her heartbreak, getting to know Anders and as much of his personality as he was willing to show. I adored the way Wren had left her home in the UK and fought uncomfortably to make America feel like home as she desperately tried to connect with family members. Her raw emotions and inner monologue were a beautiful reminder that we all chase the feeling of comfort, and yet sometimes in order to find it, we need to be uncomfortable for a little while. Wren sacrificed her own comfort in England in order to find new comfort in America, by leaving behind everything she had known and going into the unknown -- into discomfort. UGH. Chef's kiss.

The second half of the book, I sped through. I devoured it in one sitting, SOBBED into my kindle for most of that time. Laurie? STILL ALIVE???? Anders was still married?! Sinking below the water??? THE WAY HER PARENTS MADE HIM GO AFTER WREN? SET HIM FREE? And how she peacefully passed after Anders and Wren had finally gotten married? O M F G. (Sorry, excuse the freak-out, but what the actual fuck). I had no idea where Toon was going with this story, I was shocked at bomb after bomb Paige continued to drop throughout the second half of this story.

The love I could feel between Anders and Wren was heart-wrenchingly, breathtakingly, mesmerizingly beautiful and painful. Each and every time Anders tried to open his heart to Wren and simply just *couldn't*, I could feel a part of myself break. Normally, the main character in a book is always my favorite. It's just kind of how I operate. But this one? I love Wren, I truly do, BUT ANDERS. Oh, he wins. Sweet, beautiful man. He wins it all. One of my all time favorite fictional characters, by a landslide.

Thank you Paige, for this pure, magical, heartrending story of unadulterated love. How will I ever recover from this one? How will I ever be able to love another fictional character as much as Anders? UGH

Only Love Can Hurt Like This has cracked my heart wide open. I'm a mess of emotions after reading this absolutely beautiful & tragic story. Do not let the tragedy deter you from reading this book. It's 1000% worth the read. I will be thinking of and recommending this book to anyone and everyone who will listen to me. Gracious, I'm an absolute mess after this one.

Over 10 yrs ago, I began following a story similar to Ander's and Laurie's through a prayer page on FB. The wife was pregnant when she suffered a stroke, and while she survived, it left her in a vegetative state like Laurie. She is still alive, and her son is alive and thriving. Her husband still cares for her daily, but this story sure made me see it from the husband's perspective of just how much they put their life on hold while their spouse continues to live in this state. It's heartbreaking for both sides, and honestly, I can't say what I'd do if I were in their shoes. I don't think any of us can say for certain until we were actually forced to make those decisions.

I love books like this one that will give me a very realistic story with each characters perspective of hard topics and to see how it's handled & how everything gets worked out because unless you have experienced it in your life, it's hard for any of us to relate and/or even think about these situations happening to us or someone we know. It can also open doors to discussions with our own spouses and families about these tough subjects in the event something happens. Don't assume they know your desires if tragedy strikes, and it forces them to decide what to do.

Paige Toon was a new-to-me & is now and forever an auto pre-order author for me.

Thank you, Netgalley & Penguin Group Putnam, for this e-ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is my first book from Paige Toon and oh my! I fell in love with this book…the characters…the story! Such an emotional and heartwarming story, totally pulled my heartstrings! Totally must read!!

Thank you NetGalley for the digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Putnam's Sons publishing for the arc that I didn’t read until after pub date!

Wow what the heck, I flew through this! I'm often unsure about slow burns and with this not having a major twist, it still was emotional with strong characters. The relationship/ bond between the siblings was written so well. Also, really enjoyed the sense of belonging/community to that town, I felt like i was there!! I do wish the ending was longer, the plot seemed to like pick up towards the end and then the book was over. It felt a little rushed.
But the timing of me reading this was book was hard. Loving someone and it not being enough- that hit me!

Happy release day, #paigetoon. I didn’t release this was a reprint when I received it as an #arc from @netgalley but let me tell you … This book was beautifully written. I loved reading every single minute of it, and often thought of the characters even when I wasn’t reading. You can NOT pass this book up!
#bookstagram #5starreads #paigetoon #onlylovecanhurtlikethis #netgalley #gpputnamssonsbooks

First, this cover is absolutely gorgeous. The shattered flower definitely reflected my shattered feelings with this one. And apparently, that’s what my heart loves in books- as I’ve come to find out- to be beautifully broken and lovingly put back together.
I fell in love with the story and all the characters… this was a good one!

Wow! I didn’t think this story would be so rich, so in-depth, so “MUCH” but it proved to be that and more. Throughout the whole book, the connection between every single character is so deep and complex and connected to one another! You think things are going to go a certain way then boom…not as you expected. Anders, Jonas, Wren, and Bailey each have a lot of baggage which includes all the families and friends coming together to try and work out what is right and good. And, again, just when you think you know where it all is heading, BOOM, it throws a “I didn’t see that coming” at you and you scramble to catch up as the characters do the same!! I truly recommend this book. I shall be looking for the author’s other titles now!

Wow - I loved this story. So many relationships were explored - losing fiance, going to America to stay with the father you feel chose his other family over you and your Mom, the stepmother you thought hated you, the half sister you don't really know, a new romance with complications. I loved it so much I want to read everything this author has written!