Truly, Madly, Deeply

Forbidden Love, Book 1

De: L.J. Shen

Narrado por: Lila Winters, Teddy Hamilton

This old flame just might set them on fire.

Conceited, unattainable, and downright delicious, renowned Michelin-starred chef Ambrose Casablancas has one passion in life: food.

Women are a distraction, and he doesn’t do those. Especially Cal Litvin, his baby sister’s best friend. Her entire existence is a complication; she’s awkward, eccentric, infuriating…

And, much to his chagrin, hotter than his kitchen.

Ambrose has a lot on his plate: a new restaurant to open, a multi-million-dollar property deal to execute, and a violent stalker to tame.

Then Cal shows up at his doorstep, looking for both a job and salvation after their messy goodbye. His resolve, like his patience, is ebbing each day she works at his restaurant.

Because Cal is no longer a doe-eyed girl.

Now? She’s the woman he’ll do anything to conquer.

Quirky, compassionate ball of sunshine Calla Litvin can’t catch a break, and not just because she swore off running.

Back in her hometown to nurse her mother’s broken heart after losing her father, she finds herself jobless, hopeless, and penniless. She hopes to rekindle her friendship with her former BFF, but Dylan is attached at the hip to her cruel brother—the one Cal’s been secretly crushing on since middle school.

Falling for the bad boy the second time around would be a mistake of gargantuan proportions.

Too bad she’s always been clumsy.

Truly, Madly, Deeply is a grumpy x sunshine, enemies-to-lovers romance. It is the first in the Forbidden Love series but can be listened to as a standalone.

©2024 L.J. Shen (P)2024 Dreamscape Media

The best romance book I’ve read this year!

I loved it. It was a slow burn and it was worth the wait and development of the characters. The banter was hilarious and real and just so satisfying.

I love the full, thoughtful story

The story is so caring and so sweet and so thoughtful! The way that mental health and relationships and work is represented in the story is truly special!

Truly Madly Deeply

Grumpy x Sunshine , Best Friends Brother, and second chance romance. I loved every second of this story. How hard he falls and loves her for YEARS. The mental health representation. Narration was fantastic, couldn’t stop listening.

Beautiful

I love the switch between the characters, and the conversation via chat, and pov from the two main characters. The ending was great.

All the best tropes

This is a darker romance which perfectly matched my mood after my mom died. My heart broke for Cal as her past was unveiled chapter by chapter. And yet, I also found myself yelling at her to get out of her own way. And then there’s Row whose grumpiness and lashing out at Cal initially turned me against him until I saw that it was his protective mechanism to keep himself from falling harder for Cal. I loved how he articulated his feelings for Cal.

Thankfully, the online, secret identity chats leant some much needed comic relief.

Audiobook thoughts:
Teddy Hamilton nailed Row’s grumpy, abrasive personality and turned up the heat with his narration of Row’s dirty talk. Cal’s quirky, sunshiney personality really came through with Lila Winters’ performance.

Read if you like:
* second chance
* best friend's brother
* enemies to lovers
* celebrity chef
* small town romance
* Slow burn
* Grumpy x sunshine
* He falls first and hard
* It’s always been you

Not what I was expecting 10 times better!!

Love love love this book 10/10 recommend. It was unique but also a happy ending. Go read this now!!

Ooof

I’ve seen some shorts on TikTok about this book. But they don’t even touch this book. Loved it! So happy I listened to it!

Loved this book

This is the first L J Shen book I’ve read. The twist and turns, the anticipation, anxiety, laughs, and all over emotions. Loved this book!

LOVE LOVE LOVE

This book had me all in the feels. I love their love story. I laughed, cried and was hooked from the beginning. I want more!

Little painful

I'm usually a big fan of L.J. Shen. The MFC was so painfully awkward throughout the entire book. Everyone else had to force her to do anything. The storyline was good enough it was just the extreme insecurity that kind of ruined it for me.