The Forever Rule

The Cage Family, Book 1

By: Carrie Ann Ryan

Narrated by: Jason Clarke, Emma Wilder

What happens when the man you’d thought could be the one turns out to be your new boss?

Blakely

The moment I met Aston Cage, I knew my life had changed. A single dance later, we’re both all in. Until he ghosted me.

Then my boss fires me for dancing with the enemy.

Three months later, working for the Cages is my last resort. Now I’ll work beside him day by day, trying not to let my feelings take control. It’s heaven and hell. Except I’m starting to think there’s a part of this story I’m missing…

Aston

I made myself walk away from Blakely after my family’s dirty laundry hit the news. My father’s secret family complicates everything. In order to keep our inheritance intact, we’re forced to do monthly dinners with both sides of the family—the brothers I grew up with and the new set of siblings we never knew about.

An additional obstacle: Blakely is my new sister’s best friend.

Meaning the moment I give into temptation, I not only risk the woman I’m falling for, but the family legacy just starting to reveal itself.

But Blakley is worth it. I just have to prove I am as well.

**The Forever Rule is a missed connection, workplace, big city meets small town romance featuring Aston and Blakely. Each book can be enjoyed as a complete standalone. An HEA is guaranteed!**

©2024 Carrie Ann Ryan (P)2024 Carrie Ann Ryan

Great new series

The Cage Family promises to be a great series. It's about two large families who find out at the reading of their father's will that he fathered all of them. The will stipulates that a majority of the siblings from each family have to have dinner monthly or every 3 weeks (it was confusing to me which) and document it to the lawyer. Astin Cage and Blakely meet at a work dinner and have an attraction to each other but because of misunderstandings, she's fired for meeting with the rival company and can't get another job because of that. Astin doesn't call as he said he would. Now she has an interview with his company. He's shocked to find out what's happened with her. They talk things out but still have other things thrown in their path. I thought the narration by Jason Clarke and Emma Wilder was wonderful. I'm looking forward to the rest of the siblings' stories.

Amazing

I received this as an arc/alc from the author and I’m voluntarily leaving my honest review.

This was an amazing way to start a series. The story had absolutely everything I wanted it to have. There was a lot of family drama, and I’m already in love with all the Cages and their very special family dynamic. The story also had a really wonderful love story with characters that seemed so real. I just couldn’t get enough of Aston and Blakely’s story.

Audiobook review: This was one of the best audiobooks I’ve heard in a long time. I loved the way the narrators made the characters come alive and I was just able to completely get lost in the story.

Just the Beginning

The Cage Family, Book one by Carrie Ann Ryan.

Narrators Jason Clarke and Emma Wilder do a great job on these 2 characters! They both pull you into the story and are not just a voice you are listening to.

Absolutely amazing beginning for a new series! The Cage Family promises to bring us lots of entertainment. Aston and Blakely are our first book and we met them briefly in the prequel, “before I knew,” when Blakely accidentally got caught up in a family text chat and their relationship just grew from there.

Blakely shared a dance with Aston at an event they both were attending, not knowing just how big of a mistake she had just made. She didn’t expect to lose her job over a simple dance but she did, according to her boss she was dancing with the enemy. Now, here she is without a job over something so far-fetched!

Aston and his siblings didn’t realize just how messed up their lives could be until they find out their parent’s have been hiding a life changing secret. This secret had a major complication for not only Aston but Blakely as well.

I can’t really say much more here without taking away from the book so let me just say that, this is just the first book, I can’t wait to see what is next!!!

The Forever Rule

Finally we get to know what happens after Aston’s life implodes at the end of Before I Knew. First off I want to say that I love the banter between the Cage brothers. I was laughing every time they picked on each other. I can’t wait to see what other surprises are in store with this series. I love Blakely and Aston, and watching them find their way back to each other. I also love seeing all the siblings find their footing with each other.

Fantastic start to this series!

Oooh! This book was a delight! Great start to the series. Blakely and Aston meet in a very unconventional way. I found myself grinning over their interactions! Things are going well but then Aston’s world flips upside down; the Cages are dealing with their father’s choices. While things may have veered a little off course for Blakely and Aston, soon their worlds collide again. These narrators really brought these characters to life! I was here for it! And I couldn’t listen to this book fast enough!

Aston and Blakely

Absolutely loved this story. We get to meet all the Cages in greater depth. This is Aston and Blakely’s story, it’s a second chance romance.

It’s complete with an HEA and definitely a page turner that will leave the reader looking forward to the next book in the series.

Astin and Blakely

The Forever Rule is an excellent start to the Cage Family series. It begins with a prelude, "Before I Knew,” which introduces us to Ashton Cage and Blakely's story. Then, it dives straight into The Forever Rule and introduces us to the rest of the complex Cage family, a family about to discover how many lies their parents have told and the secrets they have kept.

This story concentrates on Aston, the new head of the family business as the eldest Cage sibling, and Blakely the woman who captures his heart. They met when she was inadvertently included in a group chat between the brothers. After she removes herself from the group chat Astin and Blakely continue to text each other their messages sparking a connection between them which leads to a face-to-face meeting for coffee. They agree to meet again in two weeks but attend the same Gala that weekend. They share one dance and the depth of Aston's growing feelings for her have him second-guessing if their chemistry is real or if he is more like his father than he thought. He leaves the Gala early when he receives a call from his mother informing him that his father is dead.

At the reading of the Will, he and his siblings discover that his father had been leading a double life and that his father had a secret family that none of the children from either family knew about although both mothers were fully aware. The Will stipulates that the two sets of siblings must have monthly dinners for three years if they wish to keep their inheritance. There’s tension on both sides, as all the siblings from both families try to work through what they have learned. Every one of them bears the scars of their father’s actions and realises that their respective mothers knew everything.

At the Gala when Blakely dances with Astin, she feels this could be the start of something special but then Aston doesn’t call, doesn’t text, just ghosts her. Blakely's boss, jealous of the Cage brothers fires her for sharing that dance with Astin saying she has shared company information with his rivals. After three months of being out of a job and having doors closed in her face, she applies to work for one of the Cage Companies and she and Astin meet again.

Astin and Blakely’s unwavering attraction to each other shines through, despite the challenges they face, the reappearance of Aston’s ex, and the complicated family drama all make for a sometimes heart-wrenching rollercoaster ride. Blakely's strength and determination shine through as she helps Aston face his fears and accept that he's nothing like his father.

This is a fantastic story full of romance, family conflict, and deeply emotional themes, peopled by wonderful characters who feel real and relatable. The Forever Rule is a wonderful introduction to what I am sure will be another unforgettable series.

The narration by Jason Clarke and Emma Wilder is wonderful both of them do an amazing job of bringing the characters to life. Jason’s interpretation of Astin was perfect bringing Astin's honesty, strength, vulnerability and sexiness to the fore. Emma is perfect as Blakely, her narration shows us just how genuine, sweet and strong Blakely is. Together they were a perfect choice to bring Astin and Blakely's story to life.

Ghosting to Forever

The Forever Rule is book 1 of The Cage Family series. We were introduced to Aston and Blakey in Before I Knew, a prequel to this series.

Aston is “The Cage”. He has been groomed from birth to secede his father at the helm of the family business.

When his father suddenly passes away, the family is in shock. For more reasons than one.

Blakely found herself on a Cage family group chat by mistake. When Aston asks her out she agrees to a coffee date. It goes well and they agree to a dinner date, just not that weekend since both have plans.

Little do they know that they have the same plans. However, when her boss sees her dancing with Aston he is livid. After all, Aston is his biggest and main competitor.

After Aston disappears on Blakely for three months and she is unable to get a job, since her boss blackballed her, she is desperate and finally goes to Cage Industries.

She is hired immediately due to her experience and given freedom to put programs in to place that she has wanted to do for years.

However, she is hesitant due to Aston being the head of the company. I mean he ghosted her. Who would not be hesitant?

Anyways, only time will tell if Aston and Blakely get back together. And if they do, will they be able to keep work and life separate? And do not forget there are crazy ex-stalkers out there just waiting to appear at in opportune moments.

Jason Clarke is perfect as Aston. He has the he cool, professional, family leader voice and persona. Emma Wilder again plays well in one of Carrie Ann Ryan’s worlds. These two paired together make you feel like you are living the story with the characters.

The Forever Rule

This is a great start to this new series. I enjoyed being along for the ride as Blakely and Aston find their way. The two are good together but they have to work hard to get their happy ever after. Their story is full of emotions and has you rooting for love to win. Narrators Jason Clarke and Emma Wilder do a good job of bringing these characters to life and I was quickly immersed in their story. I cannot wait to return to this world for more of the Cage family.

dual narration, a lot of issues

this story was a good premise. however, there were a lot of issues that should have been flushed out in editing. for example: the siblings were to meet weekly for dinner for 3 years, then suddenly it's monthly. maybe i missed something. then there are the chapters being labeled the same thing, or the wrong character being named during a scene (i.e. Isabella instead of brinkley, or Diana instead of Meredith, or Isabel instead of isabella). some of the story was confusing but maybe it was due to these issues. this should have been duet narration. it didn't work in dual narration. andi arnt doesn't have the emotional range as a male character. Jason Clarke did a great job and I actually really enjoyed his chapters and preferred his performance. I usually really enjoy andi's but not in this production.

the story was a good premise. it could have been executed better but I liked the general story. there should have been more time spent on their relationship. it moved quickly and I just didn't get into their romance as deeply as I did with the sibling relationships.