Book Review: From This Moment On by Bella Andre

Title: From This Moment On
Series: The Sullivans, Book 2
Author: Bella Andre
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Sensuality Rating: Steamy
Source: Novel Publicity & Co.
Published: August 2011

With FROM THIS MOMENT ON, bestselling author Bella Andre introduces you to Marcus, the second Sullivan bad boy, whose life will never be the same from the moment he meets Nicola….

For thirty-six years, Marcus Sullivan has been the responsible older brother, stepping in to take care of his seven siblings after their father died when they were children. But when the perfectly ordered future he's planned for himself turns out to be nothing but a lie, Marcus needs one reckless night to shake free from it all.

Nicola Harding is known throughout the world by only one name - Nico - for her catchy, sensual pop songs. Only, what no one knows about the twenty-five year old singer is that her sex-kitten image is totally false. After a terrible betrayal by a man who loved fame far more than he ever loved her, she vows not to let anyone else get close enough to find out who she really is...or hurt her again. Especially not the gorgeous stranger she meets at a nightclub, even though the hunger - and the sinful promises - in his dark eyes make her want to spill all her secrets.

One night is all Nicola and Marcus agree to share with each other. But nothing goes as they plan when instead of simply tangling limbs, they find a deeper connection than either of them could have anticipated. And even though they both try to fight it, growing emotions - and sizzling attraction - keep drawing them closer together.

Close enough for them to wonder if stealing one more secret moment together can ever be enough?

Why I Read this Book: I enjoyed reading The Look of Love (my review), the first book in this series, and plan on continuing to read the series. I love the family dynamic and bond between the Sullivans and can’t wait to read the rest of this series.

What I Liked: The previous book touched on Marcus’ recent break up but not much was revealed. In From This Moment On, the how and why he broke up with his fiancé is well explained. I liked knowing what exactly went down between him and Jill because it gives me a sense of his character traits.

I loved how Michael put himself out there to gain Nicola’s trust by giving her his cell phone and telling her to “call anyone, all of them”. Well played Marcus, well played. What was even better was how she determined whom to call. She’s a smart girl! It was a slick move on Marcus’ part and I liked him from that moment.

I love a good celebrity/commoner trope, especially when the commoner doesn’t know the celebrity’s star power. Marcus had never heard of Nicola before. She’s from a different generation and her fans are a younger generation. So it helps that the commoner isn’t star crossed.

What I Didn’t Like: There were two tropes I’m not a fan of in From This Moment On. The first trope being a May/December relationship. Marcus is 11 years older than Nicola which puts him in a different generation than her. When Nicola hears a Whitesnake song on the radio, she refers to it as an ‘oldie’. But to give Nicola credit, it helped that she was mature for her age, as most females generally are more mature than their male counterparts.

The second trope was the insta-love between Marcus and Nicola. The same trope was used in book one of this series and I hope it will not be a reoccurring trope for the remainder of the series.

Memorable Moment:

"That's not fair," she protested in a breathless voice.

"I'm not playing fair anymore."

Overall Impression: Even though there were two tropes I don’t like in From This Moment On, I still really enjoyed the story. Bella Andre does that for me; she takes something I don’t normally like and still creates a story I enjoy reading. And I can’t wait to read the next book in this series.

Brianna’s Rating:

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