Auburn Reed has her entire life mapped out. Her goals are in sight and there’s no room for mistakes. But when she walks into a Dallas art studio in search of a job, she doesn’t expect to find a deep attraction to the enigmatic artist who works there, Owen Gentry. For once, Auburn takes a risk and puts her heart in control, only to discover Owen is keeping major secrets from coming out. The magnitude of his past threatens to destroy everything important to Auburn, and the only way to get her life back on track is to cut Owen out of it. The last thing Owen wants is to lose Auburn, but he can’t seem to convince her that truth is sometimes as subjective as art. All he would have to do to save their relationship is confess. But in this case, the confession could be much more destructive than the actual sin…
My Review
I love that the inspiration behind this story was true confessions from anonymous sources submitted to the author. I think Colleen Hoover is a mastermind on social media by posting excerpts, how she feels while writing some of these broken romances, and asking for character names and for these confessions from her audience. She makes you feel involved, as if you are a part of her books. She also posts pictures of her kids and brags about her husband, she is a crazy beautiful down to earth woman. I met her at a book fair and she came around the table to give me a hug and take a picture with me, she was so easy to start a conversation with. I have read the Hopeless, Slammed, and Maybe series and I am making my way through her Never Never series. I have wanted to read Confess since it came out and finally had the chance to read a book from my library now that my life is settling down. I was drawn to it more than others based on the community involvement and the idea of real-life confessions incorporated into the story line. I had no idea how she would incorporate them, but she managed beautifully as always. I do wish there was a more consistent emphasis on the confessions. It was such a fun element to involve and it seems there was only a chapter or two focused on them. I do wonder if some of the confessions she received inspired some of the plot twists that occurred throughout because those were constant. There never seemed to be a slow moment between both secrets being revealed and obstacles being thrown their way.
It felt like the countless obstacles the characters faced took away from their depth. They were so busy, with one problem starting before the last would end, you weren’t able to get to know them as they developed and solved the problems together because it never ended. I needed more confessions, more painting, and fewer obstacles. I will say that the instances where the characters did bond were breathtaking. I love how real the romance feels in all her books and this one did not disappoint. This is the main reason I keep coming back to her book because how strong the connection is between Owen and Auburn, as the reader, you become overcome by the same sense of desire and anticipation they must feel and I love the feeling of being part of a story. The romance was constructed perfect as always but I finished the book wanting more of this and less of that, so I gave Confess four out of five stars. Overall, it was still a great read that I would highly recommend.