I received this book for free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
So Into You by Kathleen Fuller Series: Standalone
Published by Thomas Nelson on 2024 December 03
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Pages: 211
Format: E-Arc
Source: Netgalley
Buy on Amazon
Goodreads
Opposites attract in this heartfelt rom-com about overcoming your past and embracing all that life has to offer.
Britt Branch has a successful My-tube channel where she teaches all kinds of art lessons. Obsessed with the 1970s, she has a style all her own and loves yacht rock. She also has a huge problem--severe social anxiety. She lives with her mom, and while she pays her own bills, she wonders if she'll ever have the courage to move out. When her best friend announces she's getting married, Britt thinks it's time to make a change.
Gorgeous Hunter Pickett has always skated by on his model looks and applying very little effort to anything except sports, and even that was iffy at times. The third son of extremely wealthy and successful parents, he's always been the black sheep of the family and has dealt with the issue by drinking and using drugs. When he lands in jail, he turns his life around. But by his third year of sobriety, he's still dealing with aimlessness. When he catches Britt's channel, he's intrigued and ends up watching her videos even though he's not interested in art . . . at first. He reaches out to her, and they eventually become friends and make a deal--if she gives him art lessons, he'll help her with her social anxiety.
But neither of them is completely honest with the other. When all the secrets come out in the worst way possible, relationships must be rebuilt, and Britt has a decision to make--is she going to continue to hide from life, or is she going to finally start living?
I can’t understand why this book has some low ratings in GR due to “religious themes” because after reading it, I did not feel like I had to go to Church and atone for my sins as soon as possible. If anything at all, So Into You was one of the best contemporary romance books I’ve read this year so far, not that I’d read a lot of romance stories this year. But believe me, I also had my phase wherein I won’t read anything that is not a romance book at all. So give me some street cred because I love this book from its gorgeous cover to its characters and how everything just came together for that happy ever after.
So Into You is much bigger than its supposedly romance-centered plot. It explores the process of healing a person has to go through his/her life and, second chances without being imposing about its morals and standards about what a perfect relationship is all about. As I navigated the Hunter and Britt’s story, never did I find myself cringing about some pathetic pick-up lines or cheesy scenarios that normally littered the romance genre. There’s just this heartwarming story wherein they try their damnedest to win over their inner demons by making good art and during such journey, they found themselves falling for each other. I’m not an artistic person but Fuller wrote So Into You in such a manner that I also enjoyed the drawing sessions between Hunter and Britt. And wowsers to Fuller for also being faithful to what really takes place behind SocMed because she was able to realistically portray that in this book. I was offered with glimpses of how Britt became this viral influencer in YT and the efforts she had made to make her channel a success.
The alternating POVs of both Britt’s parents who got divorced due to irreconcilable differences was also appreciated as it provided more insight as to why Brittany turned the way she is growing up. Her parents’ imperfections and misgivings which led to a traumatizing fall out further reinforced what So Into You is trying to point out: Relationships break when neither parties aren’t willing to work on it. Despite their severed relationship, I like the voices of both Britt’s parents because they felt so real and mature. I welcomed it because their journey is much more challenging compared to Britt and Hunter’s. I was eager to see how the author would resolve every conflict in this book without forcing things and making the characters act like they just undergo personality liposuction.
Fuller really did well in writing So Into You because while it’s light and wholesome, it surely is swoony with lots of depth. I wouldn’t hesitate reading another book written by Fuller.