I Could Be Yours by Helena Hunting
Release: July 10, 2025
🏖️Sports Romance
🏖️Best Man/Maid-of-Honor
🏖️Holiday Romance
🏖️Opposites Attract
🏖️Grumpy/Sunshine
🏖️Annoyance to Love
🏖️Second Chance Romance
🏖️Hurt/comfort
🏖️Competition
🏖️Tortured Hero
🏖️She’s Pierced
The best man ghosted me six years ago after kissing me, and now I have to plan every wedding event under the sun with him.
Nate Stiles is the definition of serious. Furrowed brow? Check. Rain cloud personality? Double check.
I shouldn’t be thinking about the fact that our kiss was the best one of my life right now. I should be planning the bachelorette party of the millennium.
I shouldn’t be wondering when Nate became such a good dancer after we got roped into salsa lessons with the happy couple. I should be mentally ticking off boxes on my bridal checklists.
I shouldn’t be wondering what it would be like if I didn’t hate Nate Stiles. I should be holding strong against a man who doesn’t believe in love.
My name is Essie Lovelock. I am a reformed love obsessed fairytale fanatic and I’m determined to be the best maid of honor my best friend could ever have.
And I am absolutely not going to fall for the best man.
*Nate and Essie’s standalone summer holiday romance. This title can be read as a complete standalone.
Buy Link: https://helenahunting.com/books/icby
I Could Be Yours by Helena Hunting
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
If there’s ever been a couple that screams grump vs. sunshine, it’s Nate and Essie. Seriously, if you know a better example, let me know… I’ll wait! 😂 These two have a bit of history—not something huge, but enough to shape who they are now. Nate’s still carrying a lot of pain from his childhood, and unfortunately, he takes it out on Essie. But she’s not the type to just let him walk all over her, so they clash… A lot.
Planning their best friend’s (and his brother’s!) wedding throws them together, and being close makes them realize there’s something more between them. Things start to bloom, but with both of their pasts, committing for the long haul isn’t exactly easy.
It’s been a couple of years since I picked up a Helena Hunting book, and honestly, her drama-writing game is still strong. I loved Nate and Essie, and the side characters were just as great. Can’t wait to see how the rest of the couples in this series come together!
***Review copy requested and reviewed on behalf of OMGReads Blog***
I Could Be Yours by Helena Hunting
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
***Review copy requested and reviewed on behalf of OMGReads Blog***
I Could Be Yours is a second chance, grumpy/sunshine, opposites attract, enemies to lovers romance. This is considered a standalone, but there is character cross over in some of the Toronto Terror books, specifically If You Hate Me, so you may want to start there for maximum enjoyment.
Nate Stiles comes off as grumpy and a jerk, but he’s really using these tactics as a way to guard himself and his heart from being hurt further. He has some serious emotional trauma and issues from childhood that he never resolved. Behind all that hurt and anger is a really sweet, intelligent, young man.
Essie is a girly girl who loves doing make up and dressing up. She’s also fairytale and princess obsessed. For years she’s been judged by her looks and people overlook the fact that she’s very bright, organized, kind, funny, and an extremely loyal and supportive friend. The judgement has always bothered Essie and it’s one of her insecurities, especially in relationships with men.
These two had a lot of chemistry and the tension between them was palpable. There was a good mix of drama, angst, spice, humor, banter, etc. A lot of the issues these characters face is relatable like anxiety, reacting off emotion, family trauma, abandonment issues, impulsive speaking and so much more, which I find helps connect to their journey on a deeper level.
Additionally, I loved that we got to read about Tristan and Rix’s wedding and wedding related festivities. It was a bonus in reading this, especially being with the whole Toronto Terror crew. There were little Easter eggs throughout this story hinting at what’s to come in upcoming books in that series.
NYT and USA Today bestselling author, Helena Hunting lives outside of Toronto with her amazing family and her adorable, emotional cat, who thinks the best place to sleep is her keyboard. Helena writes everything from emotional contemporary romance to romantic comedies that will have you laughing until you cry.
Connect with Helena Hunting: https://linktr.ee/helenahunting
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