Review by Sarah Tariq -- One Way or Another
Posted: 31 Dec 2019, 02:54
[Following is a volunteer review of "One Way or Another" by Mary J. Williams.]
Love is a formidable force. At least, it was true for the Benedict girls. One Way or Another: A Friends to Lovers by Mary J. Williams is the first book in series that follows the story of four independent, wealthy, strong sisters (Andi, Calder, Bryce, and Destry), and their mother Billie. Though they had witnessed the vicissitudes of life; however Billie, licentious by nature, was least affected by all. As being the first in series, the book follows Calder’s story.
The four sisters shared the same mother and four different fathers. On one side, they had to deal with Billie’s self-centered nature; on the other side, their fathers’ apathetic attitude developed in them a kind of cynicism towards men, as they can’t be trusted. Unconsciously, this outlook also hindered them to find the right match for themselves. Only Mrs. Finch was a good alternative for their mother who looked after their needs. Despite having enough inherited wealth, each sister was successful in her domain. Erica’s Angel was Calder’s multi-million successful charity organization to help needy children. But what she lacked was the true love. By luck, he found a man Adam Stone, who could be his dream man. Can she trust him? How will Benedict sisters deal with the propounding threat of Billie’s new love? Would they be able to cope with the haunting inheritance issue? Readers will discover all of these answers in this fascinating story.
The book is a nice blend of love, humor, deceive, and class division themes. The story primarily centers on Calder and Adam’s love. I like Calder appears as a strong woman who unlike other rich women is committed to wisely use her time and money. Whereas, Adam is a self-made person whose general behavior towards women is positive, the quality that Calder likes the most. Their genuine outlook towards life overlapped the apparent differences in their background and united them together in a love bond. As Adam says, “I need you to understand. Take away everything, I’ll still be here. Because of you. Always you.” So it was their inner beauty that connected them beyond class divisions.
More to say, the narrative is engaging and the story alternates between the first and third-person perspectives. Marry J. Williams beautifully articulated each character in the story. Their sweeping conversation draws the readers’ in. Furthermore, the cordial relationship between sisters and Calder’s conscious approach towards finding a mate makes this story crisp. Among the peripheral cast, the character of Adriana Stone (Adam’s mother) was the most solid and appealing to me. There is nothing to dislike in the book. Billie’s non-serious nature, the vibrant role of each sister, and the loving connectivity between Adam and Calder makes it an impressive read. Indeed, it’s a page-turning book. Even so, the ending remains a bit cliffhanger; however, it was interesting and surprising. I would like reading the next books in the series.
On the whole, One Way or Another is a compelling romance story with some bitter and sweet relationships that not only entertain readers but maintains the element of surprise as well. Additionally, as compared to other romance stories, graphic portrayal of intimate scenes is comparatively low. Still, I won’t recommend it to readers under eighteen. The book is professionally edited as I didn’t found any serious grammar or editing issues. Owing to its interesting plot, I am pleased to rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. Through this romance story, the author lightly unveiled some ugly truths of class division and juvenile issues and parenting impacts on their children. I would recommend it to anyone who likes contemporary romance stories.
******
One Way or Another
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Love is a formidable force. At least, it was true for the Benedict girls. One Way or Another: A Friends to Lovers by Mary J. Williams is the first book in series that follows the story of four independent, wealthy, strong sisters (Andi, Calder, Bryce, and Destry), and their mother Billie. Though they had witnessed the vicissitudes of life; however Billie, licentious by nature, was least affected by all. As being the first in series, the book follows Calder’s story.
The four sisters shared the same mother and four different fathers. On one side, they had to deal with Billie’s self-centered nature; on the other side, their fathers’ apathetic attitude developed in them a kind of cynicism towards men, as they can’t be trusted. Unconsciously, this outlook also hindered them to find the right match for themselves. Only Mrs. Finch was a good alternative for their mother who looked after their needs. Despite having enough inherited wealth, each sister was successful in her domain. Erica’s Angel was Calder’s multi-million successful charity organization to help needy children. But what she lacked was the true love. By luck, he found a man Adam Stone, who could be his dream man. Can she trust him? How will Benedict sisters deal with the propounding threat of Billie’s new love? Would they be able to cope with the haunting inheritance issue? Readers will discover all of these answers in this fascinating story.
The book is a nice blend of love, humor, deceive, and class division themes. The story primarily centers on Calder and Adam’s love. I like Calder appears as a strong woman who unlike other rich women is committed to wisely use her time and money. Whereas, Adam is a self-made person whose general behavior towards women is positive, the quality that Calder likes the most. Their genuine outlook towards life overlapped the apparent differences in their background and united them together in a love bond. As Adam says, “I need you to understand. Take away everything, I’ll still be here. Because of you. Always you.” So it was their inner beauty that connected them beyond class divisions.
More to say, the narrative is engaging and the story alternates between the first and third-person perspectives. Marry J. Williams beautifully articulated each character in the story. Their sweeping conversation draws the readers’ in. Furthermore, the cordial relationship between sisters and Calder’s conscious approach towards finding a mate makes this story crisp. Among the peripheral cast, the character of Adriana Stone (Adam’s mother) was the most solid and appealing to me. There is nothing to dislike in the book. Billie’s non-serious nature, the vibrant role of each sister, and the loving connectivity between Adam and Calder makes it an impressive read. Indeed, it’s a page-turning book. Even so, the ending remains a bit cliffhanger; however, it was interesting and surprising. I would like reading the next books in the series.
On the whole, One Way or Another is a compelling romance story with some bitter and sweet relationships that not only entertain readers but maintains the element of surprise as well. Additionally, as compared to other romance stories, graphic portrayal of intimate scenes is comparatively low. Still, I won’t recommend it to readers under eighteen. The book is professionally edited as I didn’t found any serious grammar or editing issues. Owing to its interesting plot, I am pleased to rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. Through this romance story, the author lightly unveiled some ugly truths of class division and juvenile issues and parenting impacts on their children. I would recommend it to anyone who likes contemporary romance stories.
******
One Way or Another
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon