Overall Grade: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 1/2
On TikTok, there’s this trend where people criticize each other using this phrase “it’s the…” and the person goes on to mention one thing that bothers them. For this review on Skylar Hunter’s Get Over You, I want to change that phrasing to all the ways that this book is worthy of a spot on your Kindle AND an afternoon read. So here goes…
It’s the…hero for me with Hunter’s Get Over You. Reyes is the type of hero you can’t help but love. As the blurb asserts, Reyes is back in his paternal family’s home town, bent on connecting with his childhood best friend and paramour. On the surface, seemingly he’s there to find out why she broke off their relationship when they were younger and exact some type of revenge in the process. However, you learn quickly that his feelings run deep and his intention might not match his subconscious need for her. Even more, his character, while very alpha, isn’t really cruel. As Hunter’s story goes, you, in fact, realize that he is the dreamiest of heroes. There isn’t really anything that this NFL playing, crooning, chefing, morally resoluting hero can do. By the story’s end, you will lament the fact that Reyes isn’t real…because he’s the man you would love to love.
It’s the…heroine for me too. At first sight, Emerson is incredibly self-possessed. I love that Hunter crafts this woman in the midst of a predominately male world. And she’s incredibly successful in it. While almost all of the men in her life fail her in some way or minimize her, Emerson stands in her strength, and it’s inspiring. She pushes back on anyone who seeks to diminish her with the exception of Reyes. For the first third of the story, the contradictions of Reyes and Emerson’s connection is probably the hardest part of reading Get Over You. As Reyes seeks to wound Emerson, she, however, takes it willingly. Knowing Emerson’s background, this makes reading their initial experiences heart-wrenching. There was a part of me that wanted her to punish Reyes for his cruelty towards her even though I understood his pain. Yet, Emerson bears the weight, and you recognize that the last half of Get Over You is a gift for her sacrifice at the beginning.
It’s the…story for me. I think what I found interesting about Hunter’s story is the ease in which Reyes and Emerson reconcile. What this does is allows Hunter to craft more story for her hero and heroine as a couple. Oftentimes, romance writers reconcile the couple very late in the story, and you receive an epilogue which never feels like it’s enough. With Get Over You, Hunter treats you to the early challenges of Reyes and Emerson’s reconciled couplehood, and it’s oddly endearing. I will say that there are parts of the story (overly wrought descriptions of rooms) that could have been revised down. However, this story isn’t just about Reyes and Emerson; there is an additional story about the problems of power here too. What happens when power becomes one’s focus? How low must someone go to maintain that power? Even more, how does power destroy the meaningful relationships around you? These are the questions of Hunter’s story, and they feel important.
And ultimately, it’s the…author for me. Skylar Hunter is a revelation. I’ll be honest. I enjoy reading new authors to me, especially one’s who are beginning in the business of pusblihing their work. Oftentimes, though, I’ve been disappointed because they require more resources to revise their stories than they often have. To be honest, that isn’t Skylar Hunter. I’m imagining another book in her Dare Me series, one that includes Reyes’s best friend, Greer, and maybe, Susana, his cousin. And you can be sure that I will definitely be reading that story because Skylar Hunter’s Get Over You found itself a new fan in me.
In love and romance,
Professor A
Professor Romance 