Aldo's story is one of patience, perseverance, dedication, loyalty and finally (maybe), happily ever after? I absolutely adore Aldo and everything about him. His crazy loud and brash mom, the torch he's been carrying for Gloria for a decade, and who he is as a person. The story of Aldo and Gloria isn't without major heartbreak, setbacks and major obstacles (mentally, emotionally and physically) to overcome. As much as I love Aldo, this was my least favorite book by Score. I can't put my finger on why exactly though. I read Finally Mine as fast as I've read most books by her, so I was pulled in and invested. It's a good book two in the series and had me ready for the next one as soon as I finished. (Trigger warnings listed below).
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Military, Deployment, Abuse, Bodily Harm.

I was soooo excited to read Gloria and Aldo's journey! I love them. Their stories are so real and relatable.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review!!

Thank you to NetGalley and bloom books for the opportunity to read this arc! I LOVED THIS BOOK! The character development, the relationship, everything! I highly recommend reading this book! Lucy score has a way with words that just keeps me coming back!

2.5⭐️

Alright as someone who loves Lucy Score books, I just couldn’t with this one. There were way too many variables going against our hero that made me just want more for the heroine and that is why I’m giving this a low rating. I just didn’t truly believe he actually loved her because what he pretty much allowed to continue to happen to her. There was no remorse in my opinion, only excuses. And I don’t care how many times you say you love someone, if you can let her be treated the way our heroine was treated and continue to pursue other woman… I don’t buy it dude.

This one was a difficult read. Not from a writing standpoint, its Lucy Score after all, but just because Gloria's story isn't easy. this was the ultimate read about perseverance and fighting for love and acceptance. I love the small town and all the side characters that I was familiar with from previous books. plot and pacing was good. sizzling steam and a good love story.

Thank you to Bloom Books and NetGalley for the copy of the e-arc.

I liked this book, but not as much as Pretend You're Mine. Some parts were hard to read because of the abuse. I would just be aware of the trigger warnings going into the book and be in the right frame of mind to read it. There is a bit of overlap if you read the prior book. 3 Star for me.

The love he’s been waiting for. 💙💙

The Gist:
In the first Benevolence book, Gloria is the reason Harper finds herself the position she does to meet Luke. We get a really good introduction to Gloria and Aldo in book 1, but this is their version of of the same timeline as Harper & Luke’s story.


Things I loved:
-The timeline! I have not read a book 2 that followed the same timeline as book 1 before! Now, we have essentially experienced life in Benevolence from 4 perspectives!
-Aldo. 💙
-Abuse Victim awareness

My Reflection:
I have this long standing thing I’d really enjoying book 2s more than the first in a story. That was totally the case with Finally Mine. The funny thing is, I know this has happened multiple times, but starting this book, that never crossed me mine. 😂

I loved this “sequel” that tells Aldo and Gloria’s story! Aldo is just an All-American military man with a ten year love for Gloria. Who doesn’t want to read him finally get his chance with her?

Read if you like:
-Small towns
-dual perspectives (technically these are perspectives 3 & 4)
-Military Rep

Thank you NetGalley, Bloom, and Lucy Score for the ARC in exchange for my review!

I absolutely loved this book that follows Gloria and Aldo, two remarkable characters who have endured unimaginable hardships. Can a heart damaged by years of abuse find healing? Can a man who lost a leg in Afghanistan regain his sense of self? The emotions in this story hit me hard. The author's ability to address important issues without preaching is impressive. It's a beautiful depiction of life's highs and lows, reminding us that we're never alone.

I’m a huge fan of Lucy Score’s books, but there were some aspects of this book I did not enjoy. It was difficult for me to read about Gloria’s abuse and the lack of help she had during that. I understand this is a huge issue and I’m glad Lucy Score brought awareness to it. However this just wasn’t my favorite Lucy Score book.

i enjoyed finally mine and i especially loved how aldo and gloria worked through their struggles together as the book progressed not just having that as the constant point of tension. it dragged on a little for me towards the end but overall big fan!

Found on netgalley but knew of it because of a friend telling me
So so happy I was approved to read it, couldn't put it down at all kept me pulled into it
5 star book and I already told a few people that they need to read this book
Highly recommend this book
Might reread it later on in the year

This was very very not for me. I think the details of the abuse were a bit much for me to handle, and the circumstances surrounding said abuse are frustrating and devastating.

Thank you to Lucy Score, Bloom Books, and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Book two in the Benevolence series. This one was a hard read for me as Gloria the FMC endured years of abuse and not one single person did anything to help her. I DNF'd at 20%

Thank you to Netgalley, Lucy Score, and the publishers for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Where do I even start? This book is so much more than your average romance. Gloria has just found the courage to leave a decade long relationship where she was the survivor of severe domestic violence. She is trying to find out who she is now that she is out of a relationship that has defined her since she was 16. Aldo on the other hand is about to leave for a six month deployment and before he leaves he cannot help but tell Gloria how he feels (and has felt) about her. He requests one thing from her: a date when he gets back. In the meantime he wants Gloria to live her life, to figure out who she is now, and even go on dates if she so choses. But when Aldo is injured during his deployment, he is forced to come back early, and heal from the physical and mental wounds that he endured.

Lucy Score does an outstanding job telling the story of two individuals who are trying to fight their way past their trauma and to make a new life for themselves. Something that is no an easy thing to do. While this is a self-contained novel, it is the second book in a companion series. For those who have read Pretend You're Mine, this story does take place within the time frame of the first book. The ending is something that is already known. But watching the journey, and going alongside these characters as they discover who they are if face of everything makes this feel like a completely different story. While some scenes are ones that you may have read before, simply from the perspective of another character, it does not feel like it. Score does an outstanding job at including the scenes that occurred in Pretend You're Mine that are necessary, without making it feel like you are reading the same thing all over again. Throughout Finally Mine, I cried, I laughed, and I smiled. I could not put this book down, there was something compelling about it. I could not recommend this book more.

Gah. I really loved Luke and Harper but I love Aldo & Gloria even more. I love this series so far, the characters are so easy to love, the story is beautifully written, and I love how she incorporates real life incidents and doesn’t make her characters cookie cutter perfect. They have flaws and scars just like us and it makes them so much more relatable. Aldo has held a torch for Gloria since high school. He has waited 10 long years for a chance with the one that got away. Gloria has spent the last 10 years in a less that perfect relationship fighting to get free from the chaos. Will they finally have their chance at love? If you haven’t read their story I highly suggest you do. This series is not talked about enough 🥹

This wasn't an easy book to read because of the years of abuse that Gloria endured.
It's very difficult to watch someone you love in that situation knowing that you can't change it for them, they have to be ready.
I loved Aldo's passion.

“You can’t put your worth in someone else’s hands like that. Whether those hands are stroking you or hurting you. It doesn’t matter. Your value comes from inside. Whether you mean something to him or not has nothing to do with how inherently valuable you are.”

SUCH an incredible read!! Lucy Score never ceases to amaze me with her ability to make such lovable characters with beautiful depth and angst. Can't wait to read more of her backlist!!

The second installment of the Benevolence Series is about Gloria Parker and Aldo Moretta. Gloria is coming out of a ten-year-long abusive relationship and is learning how to be her own self again. Aldo, who has always had eyes for Gloria, is a member of the National Guard and is about to be deployed for six months. Between the two, this is not the time to get into a relationship! When Aldo sustains a serious injury and returns home a month into deployment, he has some rediscovering to do, and it turns out that Gloria and Aldo are a part of each other's discovery path.

The timeline of this completely overlaps the timeline of Pretend You're Mine so much of the dialogue and scenes are the same but from the viewpoint of Gloria or Aldo. It was nice to see Gloria's path to self-worth and the growth of her own confidence, not only of herself and her abilities but her growing trust in others in that they aren't out to hurt her. I love Gloria's "Glo-up" which takes place throughout the plot and the relationships she builds with her friends and rebuilds with her mom.

Aldo is a witty, smart, and respectable character who truly shows his love for Gloria. He always has a smart comeback or clever response but shows his soft side when it comes to Gloria, the girl he's pined over since high school.

This is the second book in the series, and I think it makes more sense if not read as a stand-alone, however, because the plot covers all the same events as the first book, it could be read by itself.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bloom Books for the digital copy. My response is honest and voluntary.

So I will start out by saying that after reading the authors notes I realize this was a fan request.
However, I think this story should have stayed in the side lines of “Pretend you’re mine”. I really liked Aldo and Gloria in that story. This one felt like it was just retelling of the Harper and Luke story. Maybe it would have been better as a short or novella.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

Going into this book, I was thrown off by some reviews posted on Goodreads. Several were DNFs regarding the abuse the heroine, Gloria Parker, suffered for years at the hands of her ex-boyfriend, Glenn Diller. So, I expected to have that abuse detailed heavily in the beginning of the book, and that wasn't the case. Does the author hide the history of abuse? No. It is featured as a way to highlight how far Gloria has come, because this is a story about healing and moving forward.

Having read book one in this series, Pretend You're Mine, I already knew the basic parts of Gloria and Aldo Moretta's story, but this installment dives into what eventually brought them together and how they fought for one another when doubt crept in.

Gloria and Aldo have known each other a long time, but with Glenn always in the picture and possessive/jealous to dangerous levels, Aldo kept his distance. Should he have stepped forward sooner to protect Gloria, yes, but given how dangerous Glenn was, I'm not sure that would have helped anyone. This story picks up when Glenn is no longer a threat, and Aldo wastes no time in declaring his interest in Gloria. I do appreciate that he was forward with Gloria but didn't push her to do anything she wasn't ready to do. Then he leaves for military service and returns as a changed man.

This part of the story highlighted how both Gloria and Aldo are suffering from wounds internal and external, and those wounds impact their confidence, their ability to see a path forward at times. Does the lack of communication hinder things? Yes, but they have some people on their sides that help them work through the issues in the long run.

While this book covers some heavy subject matter, it is ultimately an uplifting story about recovery and second chances. I loved Gloria's strength and growth over the storyline, and how she learns to put the past behind her for good, moving forward to bigger and better things.