The fact that Sara Cate wrote this guaranteed I would read it, but if you took that away what would attract me to this book? Well, two of my favorite tropes: forced proximity and grumpy versus grumpy. In this case, it’s a grumpy, reclusive Scottish billionaire and a grumpy, tough-as-nails New Yorker. What a delightfully volatile combination. 

 

It’s not until I was reading Keep Me that I realized I was going to fall in love with these characters, because they’re both heavily motivated by the same thing that’s gotten me through some of the toughest spots in my life: spite. Spite is not only one of the most powerful and relatable motivators, it’s also one of the most combustible. 

 

Sylvie and Killian are a fire waiting to ignite as they both loathe and lust at first sight. All too often a book bills itself as enemies-to-lovers and softballs it; Keep Me goes hard and gives you no cause to doubt that our main characters might just go and drown each other in a nearby loch at some point. The tension will make you shiver in the best way. 

 

When these two break, it’s like a sundering of the earth. 

 

There are vital themes underneath the romance about pride, self-worth, parental abandonment, grief, anxiety, self-esteem, repressed emotions, and trust, but the romance between Sylvie and Killian was so enthralling I can only think of it all as scaffolding for their beautiful story.  

 

I was provided a copy of this title by the author via Netgalley. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you. 

 

File Under: 5 Star Review/Billionaire Romance/Book Series/Contemporary Romance/Kink Friendly/Spice Level 3