ARC Review: Four Years Later by Monica Murphy

In My Room Reading 3/05/2014 Add Comment Reviews Edit

Release Date: March 4, 2014

Four Years Later

by Monica Murphy

Book 4 of the One Week Girlfriend Quartet

4.5 stars

It's official! when it comes to NA romances and inner monologues, Monica Murphy is a queen!

This series started with Drew and Fable (One Week Girlfriend, Second Chance Boyfriend and Drew + Fable Forever, a novella) during their last years in college. Three Broken Promises starred Jen and Colin. In all these books we got updates about Owen and how he is faring growing up. Who would have thought back then that he will also get his own book down the road? I certainly didn't think so at that time!

From the very first book, he was endeared to the fans. He was this witty, foul-mouthed young boy who made a show of being tough but in all honesty is very vulnerable inside. He and big sister Fable grew up with a junkie mother who never really did become a mother to them both. It was Fable who worked hard for the family. She tried her best to raise Owen. Since she was a tough young woman herself, it's really not surprising that Own adapted the same defensive attitude growing up. Unfortunately, the young boy could not completely let go of the hope that their mother will one day come home and be the loving, caring person she should have been.

One of my favorite Owen scenes in the entire series happened in Second Chance Boyfriend. Fable brought Drew to their house and, upon realizing that this was the guy who made his sister cry, Owen punched him. Just laid it on Drew as hard as a young boy could, and drove the bigger, older guy to the ground! I loved seeing his protective brother side! It was just wonderful, seeing this vulnerable boy transform for a brief moment into the person his sister deserves to have.

In that brief moment too, we see Owen's heart, his care and love especially for the people he considers family.

Here in FOUR YEARS LATER we see more of that in him. We also see that some things don't change. Owen still has this drive to want to please his family, something he had wanted with his mother before. This time he hates to be a disappointment to Fable and Drew. It's also apparent early on that despite everything that happened, no matter how obnoxious and uncaring she is about him, he still cannot say no to his mother. :(

He is a star football player in his university, along with his best friend Wade (yes, these two are still peas in a pod!). They are far from good boys, though. They are known to hold rowdy parties at his house (the house Drew bought for him, the sweet man!), smoke weed, drink, and bring home one or more girls for the night. On the good side, he does have a job at The District, Colin's restaurant (but there is a BUT here... you have to find out what it is, but I'm telling you it's sad). Unsurprisingly, his grades suffered. This became a concern for his coach and of course, Fable.

I just loved how Fable laid down the law for Owen by telling him flat out he needs to "get [his] shit together". Even I gulped reading that part!

Now this is where Chelsea comes in. She is the tutor assigned to help Owen pull up his grades, especially in English and Creative Writing (which was a surprise to his family since writing is his strength. He's taking after Drew ya know! *swoons again*). The second half of the synopsis says it all about her and her budding romance with Owen:

Chelsea is not my type at all. She’s smart and totally shy. I’m pretty sure she’s even a virgin. But when she gives me the once over with those piercing blue eyes, I’m really over. But in a different way. I won’t deny her ass is killer, but it’s her brain and the way she seems to crave love—like no one’s ever given her any—that make me want her more than any girl I’ve ever met. But what would someone as seemingly together as her ever see in a screwed up guy like me?

I loved Chelsea! Although she is virginal, an academic achiever and quite a homebody, she's no simpering miss. She's shy, but not that type of shy who's so meek and won't speak out her mind. She's has a toughness in her which reminded me of Fable. She has some family problems of her own, and I think it's because of this that she is able to relate and understand Owen. Any other girl would have been impatient with Owen's refusal to share his problems, secrets if you will. Chelsea has her own though, so she lets it go quickly when their conversations venture to the secrets territory.

Both of them are very guarded people, so unsurprisingly, it took time for trust and intimacy to develop between the two. Actually this only has, what, 1 1/2 sex scenes? And it was only around 45-50% I think that it was established that they are together. I think it works, though. All the while Owen and Chelsea are breaking down their walls, overcoming their insecurities, inhibitions and fears. Owen kept showing through actions that for him, Chelsea is different from the other girls. Those moments were really sweet and lovely, and far more effective at establishing romance than thorugh a sex scene, in my opinion.

I love seeing how Owen grew up to be. I love that he looks up to Drew as a role model; and while he did initially try to become his carbon copy, he eventually became his own person. Chelsea fits into his life perfectly, and him in hers. There's something to be said about birds of the same feather flocking together. People with quite similar experiences and problems easily gravitate towards each other because they understand one another. This happened with Owen and Chelsea. Even better because they grew to protect, trust, and love each other.

I highly recommend FOUR YEARS LATER! If you read the earlier books then you just have to get this one too. It was wonderful to see how the earlier couples are faring (would have loved to hear more about Jen and Colin though!), but Monica Murphy had truly made this Owen's book. I love it!

**I received an ARC from Random House Publishing through NetGalley for an honest review!

Buy Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Synopsis:

New Adult bestselling author Monica Murphy winds up her sensational series with this sexy story of two college kids with nothing in common but a bunch of baggage and a burning attraction.

Over. That about sums up everything in my life. Suspended from my college football team and forced to cut back my hours at The District bar because of my crappy grades, I can’t keep turning to my sister, Fable, and her pro-football playing husband, Drew, to bail me out. I just can’t seem to find my own way. Weed and sex are irresistible temptations—and it’s messed up that I secretly hand over money to our junkie mom. A tutor is the last thing I want right now—until I get a look at her.

Chelsea is not my type at all. She’s smart and totally shy. I’m pretty sure she’s even a virgin. But when she gives me the once over with those piercing blue eyes, I’m really over. But in a different way. I won’t deny her ass is killer, but it’s her brain and the way she seems to crave love—like no one’s ever given her any—that make me want her more than any girl I’ve ever met. But what would someone as seemingly together as her ever see in a screwed up guy like me?

Here are the first three books in this series, plus a the Drew & Fable novella!