Fail to Fight

10 years ago:<br />Hxh meet when she was 18 and he was 28 <br />VERY much in love <br />Besotted with each other. <br />❌SPOILERS:❌<br />(Until her punches her senseless) <br />But only after this: when she discovers her parents were separating after what seemed like an idyllic marriage. She’s depressed and vulnerable and feeling out of sorts. We MUCH later hear that she was pregnant and hormonal as well. <br /><br />Because she’s feeling like this, while Will is away for work, she goes to a bar, a guy flirts with her; she unintentionally leads him on; after a few drinks he walks her home; kisses her. She responds for a few seconds but rejects him. She feels regret that she cheated on Will. He hears that she took a guy to their home from someone else. He confronts her and when she takes too long to reply he assumes the worst. When she brings it up again, he doesn’t want to know anything about the incident. He only wants to know that she still loves him and still wants to marry him. So he still thinks she slept with this guy. <br /><br />On the evening of their engagement he goes ballistic because he feels she’s talking too closely with his friend. This, added to his festering jealousy over the bar guy incident attributed to his anger and he hits her. Unconscious. Him: bloody knuckles, Her: bloody and hospitalised for a fractured jaw, bruised face, cut on her head when she hit the ground. <br /><br />He’s not charged for assault, but a 2 year domestic violence charge is put in place. He’s horrified at himself. Absolutely gutted. That night he tries to see her in hospital but he’s not allowed to. They’re both heartbroken but don’t talk to each other for 10 years. I’m still waiting to read why he really ghosted her, apart from feeling that he didn’t deserve her. He did call her from a private number just to hear her voice. She didn’t call him because she felt he abandoned her but she’d have taken him back immediately cos she adored him. <br /><br />She spirals out of control because she miscarries and misses him, etc. She does heal eventually. <br /><br />10 months after he hit her, he meets his present wife, and they elope. She knew how he feels about the h but loved him enough to marry him. He’s hung up on the h for the duration of his marriage. 10 years later H and ow are still married but estranged for months. <br /><br /><br />Present:<br />His wife left him with this note when she moved out: <br />“Until you put to bed what keeps you awake at night, I’m done. Find her, do what you need, and if you decide I’m still the one for you, I’ll be at my mother’s holiday house.<br />Amanda xx”<br /><br />He learned to love his wife over the years and wants to make their marriage work so he calls the h for closure. At least that what he tells himself. When he hears her voice he realises how much of an impact she still has on him. <br /><br />She agrees to meet him at a bar, starts drinking because she’s nervous; meets a gorgeous guy; instant attraction!!!!!<br />(He comes across as hero material, all alpha and knowing he’s God’s gift to women, and I wish he was for her but he gets his own book. <br /><br />She thinks the H stood her up so she flirts, drinks too much, etc. Will sees this and once again freaks out. He doesn’t let her know he’s there. OM walks her back to her door and leaves. <br /><br /><br />His stalker aas sits outside the bar and waits for her for hours while she and alpha bar guy chat and flirt. He follows them to her hotel and sees her go in alone. NOW he goes to her when his stupid a$$ didn’t even have the balls to show up at the bar. UGH.<br /><br />He tells her he has no excuse or reason for ghosting her 10 years ago. She explains that she didn’t sleep with the first bar guy. He’s shocked and wished she’d told him before. He admits he was initially miserable without her. <br /><br />She’s angry for like half a second before she’s dropping ovaries and her clothes, what with her “the out-of-control party between my legs.” Her words, not mine. (Said party not being held in panties cos she wasn’t wearing one when she went to the bar.) <br /><br />They’re both tearful and upset. They talk about things but nothing much about his wife, really. He feels guilty when he remembers his wife and can’t understand how he can love 2 women at the same time, but he’s drawn to h and they have s.€.x, thinking even if it’s only for one night, it’s worth it. <br />She leaves him in bed the next morning because she’s feels he loves his wife and should give it a go with her. She tells him this in a letter. <br /><br />She comes across bar guy as she’s leaving the hotel and miraculously she feels nothing but friendship for him now. They have breakfast and she updates him on matters with H. (Bar guy and her BFF are the couple in the next book)<br /><br />Hero finds her letter and has already decided it’s the h he wants and is going to divorce his wife. <br />He sees the h and bar guy having breakfast and again thinks the worst but at least he doesn’t disappear on her this time. He convinces her to give him a chance.<br /><br />He goes to cut things off with the wife and discovers she’s shacked up with his ex friend and they have a baby together?. She’s been cheating on him, ironically with the same guy whom he felt the h was talking too closely with the night of their engagement.<br /><br />He divorces her and the Hxh get together.

note to self; spoilers<br /><br />H loves 2 women at the same time.<br /><br />He thinks h cheated on him.<br />He punched the h in the face with his FIST and BROKE HER JAW! WTF... <br />He then ghosts the h and marries ow and ends up falling in love with her too. <br />the ow dumps his ass, because hes not over the h, and H goes to h for closure.<br />Hea<br /><br />And this is romance?

I'm so torn with this story. I give credit to the author for drawing such raw emotions out of me. I really wanted to like it and for the most part I did. I loved Chloe and Will's love. They were so good together, so passionate and intense and seemed to be really deeply in love. However, I can't get past what Will did and there was really no real explanation for it. I couldn't really like him after that and definitely I had no respect for him. Who does that? definitely not the main male character in the book. It was something that kept nagging me throughout the story. <br /><br />And then there's the issue of "closure", which seems to be the main topic for both characters. To me closure means confronting the person, getting everything out in the open and forgiving and possibly redeeming yourself over the mistakes made. To them it meant what? One night of passion? Nothing was truly discussed, not really. Forgiveness came so easy after ten years of not communicating? Chloe seems to be satisfied with Will telling her that she was worthy and he failed to fight for her….huh? He SHOULD HAVE fought for her, just telling her, after all that time, doesn’t do anything for me. <br /><br />Chloe never told him about that one very important thing, which I will not spoil for the readers. There really isn’t closure if she didn’t get that out in the open.<br /><br />And what about Amanda? I just truly saw her as a rebound thing. It didn’t seem that what he had with Amanda compared to what he had with Chloe if he wasn’t able to get her out of his system for 10 years. So the ending didn’t quite sit well with me. I always want my HEA no matter what.<br /><br />I’m probably in the minority with this review but it’s how I feel. I will probably read the next installment as long as it doesn’t include any more of Chloe’s past. I want to know more about Sean. <br />

Oh fucking no. <br /><br />There should be a special hell for anyone who writes a book like this and sells it as romance. I don't give 2 flying shites that this rubbish is 'based on real events' - if that is even fact or something the writer slotted in to assuage guilt. Again, that's assuming she felt it. She should.<br />Whether any of it is based in fact or not, what kind of twisted mind thinks this "factual" fucked up mess makes good romance? Jfc. <br />Once a beater, always a beater. It only takes ONE time and there should be no second chances, ever. <br />Ever. <br />What the mmc did was unconscionable. He knocked her out! For NOTHING! She was in hospital! You don't get to come back from that and I'm incensed by the fact that charges weren't brought against him and the writer kept him as the hero. He should have lost everything, not skipped off to marry someone else stupid enough to fall for him. He's an abuser and that shite should be branded on his disgusting ass for the world to see. <br />And what does it say about the heroine that she took him back?<br />Weak, loser, too stupid to live. Just a few things that come to mind. <br /><br />This generation of writers needs therapy. <br />Disgusting example of what depths people will sink to because they think readers should experience their brilliance ??

Can two people find love again after a long time. Absolutely enjoyable and romantic. I was definitely caught up with the book.

Gosh, I'm gutted you could say and that is putting it mildly. I'm so torn after I read this book, I can't decide if I should be happy the way it ended or be sad. This one is definitely emotionally package and will need to be read in one sitting. <br />I will say that I love that this is not only told from dual POV, but that the tables were turned and its more from a man's side of being torn between love and not the girl per say. Don't get me wrong, Chloe is definitely still fighting her past with Will. <br />Chloe and Will were it ten years ago until one mistake left them both yearning for not only each other, but answers that they still don't have ten years later. Oh my, I still kinda feel that after they had that chance to speak all these years later that there is still so much more that they both could have said. I obviously know what happens since I finished the book, so I am hoping that maybe just maybe in the next book there is a cameo that Chloe still struggles with after this meeting. IF not, I am hoping that book three is about Amanda cause inquiring minds really wants to know her POV and how this relationship has progressed after I became gutted. haha. <br />I love Texas AKA Tex and Tequila Girl. Who are they you say? Read the book and find out cause you may just see them in book two. Maybe or Maybe not. This is for you to find out after you finish this book. See if I have to be gutted, I will leave you yearning to read this book and be gutted with me unless you have no heart. Hehe. <br />I truly believe you could have two loves and the past love is still torching me a day later even writing this review. I will say that I do love that in the end, the ending is more realistic to match true live relationships even though I am spinning the ending in my head another way. <br />Fail to Fight may have gutted me so I am hoping that Fail to love leaves me in a loving mood you could say. Though I am sure the author is going to gut us a few times with that story. This is the first book by this author and she has a fan who will read all her other books now after reading this book.  Emotion packed, frenzied passion (that is a mild description of the love moments so this review will post) and you may just need that shot of tequila after finishing this book.

Fail to Fight is the debut novel of Maci Dillon and it will take you on an emotional rollercoaster that will keep you coming back for more. This is a quick read but it will have you asking more questions than it answers. The biggest and most profound question for me was how can a moment in time and one bad decision change and affect your whole life so devastatingly. One decision and taking the wrong path can emotionally hamper you for years and make moving forward an impossibility. First let me say that Maci writes with a clear and concise ability to grab your attention and never let go. Her characters are well defined and likeable and it is unusual to have the male point of view so beautifully written. Both Will and Chloe made many mistakes and we're too young and insecure to fight for their relationship. <br /><br />This book starts when they first fell in love and we're the golden couple having everything anyone could have wanted. They had suffered no drama in their relationship and we're not prepared to fight to keep it together. When things start to fall apart and unravel they were not mature enough to overcome a night that quickly became any persons worse nightmare. As everything and everyone is so against Will and Chloe that their relationship falls completely apart. <br /><br />The rest of the story is told 10 years later when they meet again and finally try to have closure to move on with the rest of their lives. This book is beautifully written with both sides of the story being well written and emotionally gripping. You will like really like and enjoy the characters and as in live there is no clear villain just bad choices and decisions made by both of them. I cannot wait to read more from this author as she enticed me from the beginning. This can be read in one sitting and if the rest of her books are as well written as this one we are all I for some very good reading. Look for more from this amazing new author.

4.5 stars <br /><br />Will and Chloe are the perfect picture of young love. Happy and content in their relationship, things have been going well. Until one night at a party when things take an unexpected turn, and Chloe sees a side of Will that has devastating consequences for both of them, sending Chloe into a downward spiral. Months later, she finally starts to turn her life around and for the next 10 years, she's quite content doing her thing. Until she gets a phone call from Will, that brings all her heartache rushing back to the surface. <br /><br />Will has spent the last ten years regretting not only what happened on THAT night but also how he's dealt with it since. Been made to face the fact that his inability to let Chloe (or the memory of her) go is affecting his future, he realises he needs closure and reaches out to Chloe hoping they'll both be able to move on. <br /><br />I've got to be honest. I really wanted to love Will....but I didn't. I found him so unbelievably selfish and infuriating. His attitude is quite immature. Honestly, he drove me mad. Chloe, on the other hand, I loved. I really felt for her and what she'd been through. She was definitely the stronger character out of the two. <br /><br />This book is quite emotional and heartbreaking at times. I just wanted to bundle Chloe up and hug her. This is my first book by this author and this isn't what I was expecting. It's not predictable, it will keep you hooked needing to know what's going to happen, and I absolutely loved how their story is told. Getting insights into their pasts at the same time as getting to know their present, you get a really good idea of what happened and why the characters reacted the way they did making it very easy to connect with them. <br /><br />I can't wait for more from this series. Maci Dillon has definitely got a new fan in me

Wow! What can I say about Maci Dillon's debut novella? First, I tip my hat to the woman who would tease her blog followers with pieces of stories, leaving us wanting more. It was proof the woman has talent to write; and write she did. <br /><br />I will say that when I began reading Will and Chloe's story I definitely wasn't expecting the story I read. I purposely avoided anything about Fail to Fight (I.e., teasers, book blurb, etc.) because I wanted to experience the book with zero knowledge of what I was getting. Maci painted a picture that can only be described as heartbreakingly beautiful. <br /><br />As I read between both Will and Chloe's POV's, it gave me all the "feels". I felt their happiness, their pain, and mostly their excruciating sense of loss. My heart broke for both characters, but I think Chloe's downward spiral struck a nerve for me. I've been in her shoes, and Maci's words that flowed across my iPad brought tears to my eyes; I physically felt the darkness that was swallowing Chloe. <br /><br />I won't write any spoilers so I will leave you with this: GO ONE-CLICK THIS FIVE STAR READ! Fail to Fight doesn't leave you with a "true" cliffhanger, but it leaves you knowing there's more to come. So, to this fabulous author, Maci Dillon, I hope you give Little Miss Impatient (me) the next story soon.

I honestly didn’t know what I wanted to say about this roller coaster of emotions I was just taken on. Second chance, unrequited love story with an epilogue that teases the next book. High drama factor, holy hotness with the steamy scenes, tons of chemistry but may be hard for some to digest with some domestic violence and cheating discussed. <br /><br />The start of this book had me so confused and lost on what happened. Then it bounces to present day and then back again where we finally get more insight into what the crap we just experienced. It was a lot to happen, a lot to digest and normally you cheer for the couple but I was not a fan of them until the end when everything is cleared up between everyone. I’m looking forward to the next one though, for sure!!