Finally Mine, by Lucy Score, is the second book in this series and doesn’t disappoint. In book one, Pretend You’re Mine, Gloria and Aldo were characters we met as part of Luke and Harper’s story, and I was so excited that they got their own book!

Two people, who are broken for different reasons, have their own demons to fight. Gloria is still healing from her prior relationship that was toxic and abusive. Aldo is the man who helps her put together the pieces that are still jumbled and jagged. I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a romance that will break your heart while healing you at the same time.

WOW WOW WOW! Another knock out of the park for Lucy! I love her books! They are the perfect blend of spice, steam and keep you engaged til the very last page! I think this was one of my faves by her!

So great Lucy! BRAVO 4 stars

This is my second read of this book. I first listened to it 2.5 years ago (this is a re-release and a new paperback cover; I listened to my old audio while I read the new ARC and other than a couple changed words, it’s identical), and it was actually my first Lucy Score novel. I’ve read several of her books since then and have become a huge fan! My previous review mentioned no need to have read the first book in the series, but having just read that before coming back to this book, I have to disagree with my old assessment because with the timelines running concurrently and so many overlapping details (book 1, Harper and Luke’s story Pretend You’re Mine), it is a definite must-read first!

Coming back and re-reading this book much later and after the first book made me appreciate it so much more, and enjoy Score’s writing a whole lot more now. She writes extremely emotional stories, but this is probably the most emotional of them all (that I’ve read) - heed the trigger warnings due to war injury and extreme relationship abuse (every single possible kind imaginable). Reading her author’s note at the end, which wasn’t included in the audio version, Score mentions that this is partly personal experience. In my previous read, I thought she had just done extensive research. My heart breaks knowing this info, now!

Aldo and Gloria have a beautiful second chance romance but it’s not without so many trials and tragedies through their entire story. This is definitely worth picking up (after Pretend You’re Mine, of course - you definitely need that one first), as long as you understand what you’re getting into and are in the right mindset. I loved my second read so much, I binged the entire thing in a single evening after work!

I received an advance review copy from NetGalley and Sourcebooks Bloom Books, and this is my honest feedback.

I am sorry but this just wasn’t my favorite read. I didn’t dislike it but also didn’t love it. The writing was okay. The cover was cute at least. Literally no other thoughts.

This was my first read from Lucy Score, and not my normal type of read but I enjoyed it! The MMC does have the trope of hero complex/pride, which kind of grinded my gears at first (I tend to dislike that in actual guys), but he works through it and shoves his pride away and is actually there for FMC, Gloria.

Gloria is a survivor of domestic abuse, and it was wonderful to see her grow and figure out who she is as a person and what it is she actually loves to do, as well as create her own family of friends. Some of it was hard to read, but for personal reasons/triggers, but it was all good. If anything, relatable, and it made watching her process even more satisfying. MMC, Aldo, is deployed in the book and also comes back with his own scars which he has to work through. The novels focuses around them healing both themselves, and each other and it was beautiful to read as they found their way.

Thank you NetGalley and Bloom Books for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Oh. My. Gosh! This book was everything! I loved that it was the same timeline as the first one, and I loved Aldo and Gloria’s story as much as Harper and Luke! Lucy Score never ceases to amaze.

This book gripped my heart and my attention from the very first page. Gloria’s struggle to find herself and become a woman she can admire after finally leaving her abusive ex tugged hard on my heart strings and evoked a few tears. Her self esteem and belief in her abilities take time to rebuild, but she does have people around her for support and encouragement. One such person also sets off sparks of attraction deep down inside of her while also setting off all sorts of alarms in her head.

Aldo is a big, handsome and gregarious guy who uses humour and charm to show Gloria that he sees her, her struggles and means her no harm. A structural engineer by trade, Aldo is also a member of the National Guard and about to be deployed for six months. He calmly lets Gloria know that he intends to take her on a date when he returns after his deployment. He tells her about his long time crush on her and how he knows she is not ready to date anyone right now, but he hopes that in six months time she might give him a chance and go on a date with him. She tentatively agrees, forgetting how much life can change in any given moment.

I won’t go into any more detail about Aldo and Gloria’s story so as not to spoil this wonderful book for readers. Their story is emotional, filled with ups and downs and a few unexpected twists that set them aback, test their inner strength and their faith in each other and themselves. Through it all, they learn to trust again, to lean on others and to keep moving forward toward each other. Aldo and Gloria also discover that love is worth fighting for, even it is hard and taxing. The secondary characters in this book make this book even more compelling and foster an intense interest in reading more books written by this author.

I received an ARC of this book via NetGalley and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

Finally Mine is the second book in the Benevolence series and it’s a book about second chances. I’m feeling a bit neutral about it. This story is about Aldo and Gloria who were in the first book. They were attracted to each other when they were young, but through miscommunication and inaction, missed their chance to connect. Gloria wasted ten years in an abusive relationship; Aldo escaped to four tours in Afghanistan to avoid painful introspection.

Now Aldo is back from his last deployment with the loss of a limb; Gloria is finding her footing and adjusting to living alone after leaving her abusive ex. Will they be able to overcome the issues they face?

What I liked and didn’t like:

• Aldo started off after his injury with an understandable chip on his shoulder but bounced back quickly and became a great guy.
• I liked Gloria’s cool mother but had problems with why she didn’t step in and help her daughter sooner.
• I didn’t like how Aldo treated Gloria when he first came home injured but understood why. I found it odd though and too soon when he did a 360 and started hounding her for attention.

As I said before, I am feeling neutral on this one. It’s not a bad book and has good moments. One should remind themselves that this is one of Score’s earlier books and I can see how she has improved her craft since then.

I thank NetGalley and Sourcebooks Bloom Books for the opportunity to read it in exchange for my honest opinion. I gave it three stars.

Finally Mine by Lucy Score is a small town, slow burn story. I enjoyed the story, but it took a bit to get into it.
Gloria and Aldo are great together. They have overcome so much. They offered each other support through tough times. Their story is beautiful, romantic and heartfelt.
The story has a trigger warning for domestic abuse. It is tough to read those scenes, but Score did a great job telling a very tough story.

After ten years of suffering through her abusive relationship, Gloria is finally free. She's sworn off men for the foreseeable future, determined to work on herself and never find herself in that situation again. But when her crush from back in high school starts to flirt with her, how can she resist? After the best kiss of her life, Aldo asks her for a date... after he comes back from a six month deployment. But he returns early after an injury a different man, angry and haunted. Everything he ever wanted in Gloria is now out of reach. She needs a whole man, one strong enough to keep her safe. But Gloria isn't going to give up and these two so full of scars start to help each other heal.
This story was heartbreaking and sweet. The details of Gloria's abuse were hard to read and her recovery was hard. I love how understanding and supportive Aldo was with her, especially at the end. And although their story is familiar from the first book, the perspective from each of their points of view added more depth to the story.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I'll start by saying I am such a huge fan of Lucy Score!! This book was slightly different from her Knockemout books, but I loved it nonetheless. This was such a heartbreaking, yet empowering story about a woman who has been hurt time and time again, but learns to put her happiness and her state of mind first. I related to Gloria's fears about finally being on her own, scared that everyone would take pity on her for the things she had endured. I loved how vulnerable and open Gloria's character was, as it made rooting for her very easy.

I also found Aldo's character to be super loveable, as well. He always had Gloria's best interest at heart and their slow burn romance was a joy to follow. Lucy Score is the blueprint when it comes to slow burn romances and she definitely delivered with this book!! I highly recommend this one to not only any Lucy Score fan, but any romance lover in general!

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Bloom Books for this free arc in exchange for my honest review!

Rated 2.5 Stars

I loved the sound of Finally Mine but the reality was I didn't love it, I didn't hate it either and it wasn't meh. My feelings for it were somewhere in between. It was a very near DNF for me but I was determined to finish it after DNFing three books before starting it. What I did like was watching Gloria, the heroine take back her life and her autonomy. I enjoyed watching her come into her own, live and trust again and find love. There were fun, funny and cute moments throughout but overall it just didn't work for me. It was long and drawn out, plus it completely spoiled the first book in the series which I dislike when authors do.

Sweet and heartbreaking, this rerelease of a classic Lucy Score book is still powerful and beautiful.

Full of feels, angst and with a delicate fragileness, it's an inspiring tale of hurt, love and hope.

4 stars and a well deserved HEA.

This series is so amazing. I am completely obsessed. Do yourself a favor and grab book 1, Protecting what’s Mine and then come and read this one.

Gloria and Aldo’s made me feel all of the feels, and you won’t be able to get enough of her small town Romance.

Lucy Score has this amazing power that you what to know what happens but you don’t want the story to end.

Love the small town trope of this book. It wasn’t quite the Lucy Score book I’m used to but I still enjoyed it!

Great relaxing read. A little different than other Lucy Score books but just as good as the others I have read. Worth the read.

Another story about Benevolence. This time we’re reading Gloria and Aldo’s story. Theirs was a backstory from the first novel in the series, Pretend Your Mine. After Gloria is rescued from her abusive boyfriend by Harper, her life takes a huge turn where she learns about herself and her independence while falling hard for her high school crush Aldo. While Aldo sees her and can’t help but remember his own feelings from years ago and decides to pursue her but give her the space she needs to heal and become her own person. This story has the slow build of romance and friendship and all of these characters are likable and I enjoyed their interactions and friendships.

Another great book by Lucy Score. Gloria who has been in a toxic abusive relationship, finally decides to leave. She finds love again but the relationship is a struggle with her ex after her and a terrible accident happens to her new love. All comes together finally in the end for a hea.

This book/series just wasn’t for me. I didn’t enjoy the first all that much, but liked the characters in this. I can understand the appeal of her writing style for others, but I didn’t feel as connected to the story as I do others.

The characters both had a lot of growth and healing and watching this was enjoyable. The pacing of the story was good, but was a bit too insta lovey and fluffy for me.

I didn’t understand the first chapter how NO ONE inside the bar followed them out to make sure he didn’t kill her. They didn’t have to physically intervene, but for being a small town that cares for everyone, that made no sense to me.

Mini Book Review
Finally Mine by Lucy Score

📚Tropes, Triggers and Thoughts📚
Second in Benevolence series
Cannot be read as standalone
Lots of cross over storyline- same timeframe as Pretend You Are Mine
⚠️Military injury, Domestic abuse, Stalking
Second chance romance/missed chance romance
Gloria and Aldo
Honestly this one didn’t work as well as the first for me, too much of their romance was revealed in the first book so this one felt kinda repetitive
I did love the “therapy” inner dialogue chapters that provided the reader with insight into the MCs emotional growth and healing


Thanks to @netgalley and @bloombooks for my digital ARC in return for an honest review. Opinions expressed are my own.