Review | Fallen Foe by L.J. Shen

Fallen Foe

by L.J. Shen

Published on May 9th, 2023
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance, Fiction

Format: eARC

Source: Publisher via Netgalley

Summary from Goodreads: 

One (crumbling) French castle. Two enemies-at-first-sight. The holiday of a lifetime.

Merry DeLuca has a problem - a big problem. Her sister just married her best friend and the only man she's ever loved. Her life is rapidly spiralling down the drain and she doesn't have an escape plan.

So when Merry is offered a three-month holiday living in a romantic castle in the French countryside she leaps at the chance. Merry knows her French holiday will fix everything - there will be mouthwatering pastries, delicious (meaningless) flirtations, and languid strolls through vineyards at sunset. Her holiday will be perfect.

At least, Merry believes that until she arrives and finds Noah Wright - the best man at her sister's wedding and the worst man she's ever known - staying in her castle.

Buy Links:

Amazon│Barnes & Noble│Indigo

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Review

Having read the first book in the Cruel Castaways series, Ruthless Rival, I figured that I would enjoy Fallen Foe as well. While this book did have a bit of a slow start, I truly found it to be an entertaining read.

Arsène Corbin had a complicated and harsh childhood which turned him into the man he is today. Ruthless. Angry. Complex. Then we have Winnifred Ashcroft, a sweet and passionate actress. These two opposites meet each other at difficult points of their lives, with tragedy and betrayal bringing them together.

Fallen Foe really pulls you in from the very beginning, with it being well written, having a captivating plot, intriguing story, and true character growth. There are also various topics in the books also may be relatable and difficult to read at times.

There were two things I didn't necessarily like in Fallen Foe. The first was the stepbrother/stepsister relationship between Arsène and Grace, he didn't love her and even went as far as to not only admit this to himself but also felt he could control her with his money. (Extremely dysfunctional to say the least.) The second aspect I didn't like was that Winnie, the main female character, was only truly integrated into the story in the second part of the story, after briefly meeting both Arsène and Grace in part one.

While this might not have been my favourite L.J. Shen's work, it still was an overall light and enjoyable read.

Rating

★★★

About the Author

L.J. Shen is a Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Washington Post, and #1 Amazon bestselling author of contemporary, new adult, and young adult romance. Her books have been sold in twenty different countries, and she hopes to visit all of them.

She lives in Florida with her husband, three rowdy sons, and rosier pets and enjoys good wine, bad reality TV shows, and reading to her heart's content. Connect with her on her website, Instagram, and Facebook group.

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