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Paperback, 352 pages
Published August 26th 2014 by Harlequin HQN
Series: 2B Trilogy #1
Source: Won for review from author
From Goodreads:
Nadia Conrad has big dreams, and she’s determined to make them come true—for her parents’ sake as well as her own. But between maintaining her college scholarship and working at the local day care to support herself, she barely has time to think, let alone date. Then she moves into a new apartment and meets the taciturn yet irresistible guy in 1B…. Daniel Tyler has grown up too fast. Becoming a single dad at twenty turned his life upside down—and brought him heartache he can’t risk again. Now, as he raises his four-year-old son while balancing a full-time construction management job and night classes, a social life is out of the question. The last thing he wants is for four noisy students to move into the apartment upstairs. But one night, Nadia’s and Ty’s paths cross, and soon they can’t stay away from each other. The timing is all wrong—but love happens when it happens. And you can’t know what you truly need until you stand to lose it.
Don’t tell me that this didn’t pop into your head immediately. It did. And, if you’re anything like me, it will be in your head for days to come. Maybe weeks, the jury’s still out.
Anyway… I have to admit, I was nervous to start this one. NA and I don’t always get along. I find that while there are some really good ones out there, there are also a lot of books that just use sex and trite plotlines without any substance. This book is most assuredly the former.
When I first started reading, I still wasn’t sure it was my “thing”. I thought I knew the whole story, knew how it’d turn out, but pushed along anyway because the writing was good and I was entertained. I thought Nadia would be just a “typical” romance-story girl, and Ty your “typical” unavailable love interest. So wrong was I.
While it does have the sexiness and angst so widely seen in NA, it has so, so much more. I Want It That Way delves into love, friendships, family issues, trying to plan for a future, making tough life choices, and so much more. Even if you can’t relate to the specific romance, there is such a wide variety of issues discussed that you can surely relate to someone or something. The fact that this is the start of a trilogy helps too, because as I read about the other roommates of 2B, I reminded myself that I am going to get a lot more of their stories, which was pretty great.
Truthfully, I didn’t relate to Nadia. I was never her. She is hard-working, level headed, and confident being out on her own. She tries to hide her feelings, but she fights for what she really wants. Sure, she does have typical early-twenties reactions, but overall she is quite level headed. But I felt that she was realistic, and by no means perfect. Her character made sense, and the actions she took throughout the book felt very true. As for Ty, for most of the book I could not figure out why he couldn’t be a dad in a relationship. I mean, people do it every day, right? That was irritating, until more of the story unfolded, and his views and perspectives started to make more sense. Also, a sidenote: I adored Sam, Ty’s son. Adored.
The plot isn’t just the romance, though of course that is a good chunk of it. No, it deals with each important area of Nadia’s life: Her roommates/friends, her family, her school, job, and future aspirations. These topics all converge to paint a lovely picture of who Nadia is, and the struggles that we all face, especially in that stage of life.
Bottom Line: I am so glad that I gave this book a chance. The story was so multifaceted, and really quite lovely. This is my first book by Ann Aguirre, but it will be far from the last. I am definitely planning to read the rest of this series, and can’t wait to dive into Lauren’s story (she is the roommate that I most identified with, as she was uncertain of her life plans and struggled to find her niche) in As Long As You Love Me.
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I was waiting for the gifs! 😉 That’s exactly why I don’t read NA all that often (especially when it’s more focusing around the romance) don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind sex in books, but I like substance, too. So glad that it’s not just that. I love realistic characters (which you don’t often find in YA, never mind NA) it just really throws me off if they’re not, you know? I’ve only read Enclave by her (which I loved) but haven’t finished the series yet. 🙂 Glad you enjoyed this though!
I have the entire Enclave series just BEGGING to be read. I need to read them ASAP, since I liked this book so much, and Enclave is definitely my genre of preference!
I was so, so pleasantly surprised by this book. Especially with the cover and the BSB songs, I was really, really iffy. It was definitely a breath of fresh air in the NA genre!
Thanks, now I’ll have that stupid song stuck in my head all day! Odd how I wasn’t sure what it was, but the song just started playing in my head. I wasn’t really a fan of either, though I had to listen to a lot of that crap during middle school dances. I’ve had the same experience with NA, usually they’re too adult for me. (Yes, I realize I am an adult, even if I’m a bit in denial.)
You’re quite welcome! I have been humming it since I got the book in the mail! Damn the Backstreet Boys. DAMN THEM! My friends always seemed to love them but I just couldn’t. Probably because of the aforementioned humming in my head.
OH! I am in denial about adulthood too! Glad I am not the only one 😉
Me and NA have a complicated relationship. If NA were a guy then we would be one of those couples that splits up and then gets back together every other day. This one sounds cute, I’ve gotta admit I’m drawn to stories with hot single dads with young kids. I don’t know what it is about them, I just can’t stay away!
Hahah yes! I have read some NA that I thought was really good, but then some that was SUCH a mess. This is definitely not one of those awful, non-stop sex ones though, it has an actual story. And, as you read on, you can really see all the different life stuff unfolding. I liked the first half, but LOVED the second half!