I went into Pine River believing it to be a sports romance in a college setting, instead I got a high school setting with lots of teenage angst and drama. Despite Pine River being not what I expected in terms of setting and genre, it still provided an interesting read.
Pine River was supposed to be a new start for me.And it was, especially attending school with my three overprotective cousins, who were the triplets at the top of the social hierarchy.Except they weren't alone there, and the first day when I came to school, I saw him. I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. This post contains affiliate links you can use to purchase the book. If you buy the book using that link, I will receive a small commission from the sale.
Title: Pine River
Author(s): Tijan
Published by Self Published on October 24, 2023
Pages: 554
Genre(s): Contemporary Sports Romance, Young Adult
Source: Publicist
Format: eArc 
Purchase: Amazon|Audible
Rating: 
Heat Level: 
Scout Raiden.Tall. Lean. Tattooed. Mesmerizing.He was a golden god with dark and piercing eyes, looking like he wanted to eat me up.
The feeling was mutual, and that was a problem.It was a lust-want-must have-loathing-hate experience all at once. I was affected.And I couldn't have that. No way.Not after what I'd just left in Cedra Valley.
I didn't care how much money his uncle had.I didn't care that it seemed every girl wanted him.I didn't care about his reputation as an up-and-coming fighter.Or the promise of how those hands would make me feel.
What I did care about was staying as far away from Scout as possible.Because the promise of his presence, the heat that was going to turn the light back on in my world wasn't a promise at all.It was a threat.
I wasn't going to survive Scout Raiden.
A/N This is a 130k enemies-with-benefits standalone that handles some serious life themes.
The story introduces Ramsey Williams, who moved to Pine River, hoping to put the traumatic events of Cedra Valley behind her. Starting a new school can be daunting. With her protective triplet cousins on her side, navigating her new school should be less scary. She plans to keep her head down and not attract attention. Her cousins, however, had other ideas. To make the situation more complicated, she caught the eye of Scout Raiden.
Scout came to Pine River one year ago because of family issues. During that time, he has risen to the top of the social hierarchy of Pine River High School. He fights in legal MMA fights, hoping to secure a spot in the UFC once he reached the required age.
One could feel the sparks between Ramsey and Scout from the moment they first came in contact with each other. However, despite the chemistry sizzling between them, they despised each other. Their explosive attraction to each other, however, provided the ammunition to tear down the walls of enmity between them. They both struggled with demons from their past. Not only will their backstories break your heart, but it will also provide an understanding as to their current behaviour. Ramsey’s demons were huge, having suffered abuse at such a young age and losing someone close to her. But she’s a survivor and throughout the story we how hard she worked to deal with the pain.
I enjoyed how the relationship between the main characters developed. They confided in each other and provided much needed support. In doing so, they helped each other to heal.
The story had a lot going on, and despite it being over 500 pages, I finished it quickly. As much as I enjoyed my time in Pine River, I struggled with a few things. One of which being the unending and overtop teenage drama. The circumstances behind Ramsey and Scout’s move to Pine River were not resolved adequately. That aspect of the story was rushed and could have done with some more development. Also, I didn’t find the spicy scenes in a high school romance appealing.
Pine River offers a combination of romance and drama. It delivered a steamy and intense enemies to lovers romance while exploring the themes of abuse, healing, and self-discovery.
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Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
This is an author I’d like to try sometime, but maybe not this one. Over the top teenage drama is not my thing. Usually, the spice is subdued with young adult, but maybe this is being marketed to adults instead?
Sounds very interesting. I know I have read a few of this authors books but they can get so angsty lol so I really have to be in the mood but the cover for this one is so intriguing.
Despite the high school surprise, I am glad you enjoyed it. Wow, 500 pages…that is long for romance!
The fact that they’re all in high school makes me pause, because the romance part of it, and his fighting MMA, skews older.