Hang the Moon by Alexandria Bellefleur

I won this title in a Goodreads Giveaway!

Before I get into this review, you need to know that I DO NOT like grand gestures or men who tell me what will make me happy.

Now, let’s talk about Annie, Brendon, and Darcy. Annie is visiting her best friend on her way to a new promotion in London. Darcy asks Brendon, her brother, to convince Annie that she is unhappy with her current plan and should change her life to move to Seattle instead. Moreover, Annie tells Brendon that she thinks romance is not for her right now, so he adds the challenge of changing her view on romance and love.

This is where things started to go off the rails for me. Annie says “I don’t like grand gestures”, Brendon responds by trying to show her every movie grand gesture he can think of. She doesn’t like roses, but accepts a bouquet from Brendon and never tells him her preference otherwise. She says, “I don’t like karaoke” and he takes her there anyways. She says, “I need time and space” while he keeps pushing her to stay and commit to their relationship. She goes to her best friend, Darcy, who doubles down on pressuring her to make choices that will change her life, based on a two-week vacation.

This book, to me, was a classic case of gaslighting. Deliberately convincing someone that what they believe to be the truth is actually not the case, by constantly telling them the inverse, while isolating them from gaining an objective perspective.

This is a sequel and the first one I liked well enough to keep reading this one in hopes that it will turn around, by the time he says something like, “let me tell you what will make you happy”, I lost all hope. I carried on reading fueled by sheer rage.

Sadly, it did not turn around. It just made me …. I actually don’t have adequate words for what this book made me feel. Most of all, it made me feel set aside. Told what I need and want. Ignored for my needs, wants, and desires. -Sky