Half Truths

"Oh, Mae." He sighed into the phone.

"How could you be a footnote when you're the whole damn textbook?"

You've heard of these groups- the secretive ones that only the creme de la creme are invited into, the ones outsiders speculate about for centuries- I'm the second in my family invited to attend, but to them, I'm fresh meat. New blood. New money, too. They think they'll elbow past me, that I'm here for their amusement, for them to walk all over, they'll find out soon enough that I'm not. I may look like one of them, with my designer bags and clothes straight from the Parisian runways, but I'm not. I'm here for answers, to take revenge for blood spilled on their centuries- old Persian rugs. I transferred here in search for answers about what happened to my older brother, who hightailed it out of here, and my friend who seemingly disappeared into thin air. I certainly wasn't here for the attention of the star hockey player, regardless of how much he willed my eyes his way. I wasn't here for his scrutiny or his judgement or to read into his mysterious aura. I was here for the society, because only they held the answers I needed. That was, until I found out that in order to get those answers, I needed to go through him. He's saying if I want in, I have to play by their rules, follow their lead. It's a game I'm willing to play. I may be the second person I know of to be invited into their society, but I'll be the first to make it out intact. 

I freaking love Claire Contreras. She seriously always has the best reads. I love when a book is so much more than a romance. I love when a book keeps me on the edge of my seat, has my head spinning, and makes me not trust a single soul. That is how I felt reading Half Truths. It was so fantastic. Not only are you getting this solid romance, a solid slow burn romance, but your also getting mystery. I didn't trust anyone in this book, everyone made me suspicious, and that's how you know the writing was spectacular. 

"You obviously don't know anything about me. I always look upset."

Mae was so great. She was sassy, and brutally honest. She had no problems telling people exactly what she thought, and exactly what she was feeling. She was hard to get close to, and she made people work for a place in her life. She was closed off to a lot of people, but loyal once she let you in. I loved her character. She is exactly the kind of friend I would want in my life. I loved that she was obviously attracted to Logan, but turned off by the parade of girls he always had. And while she didn't have any issue with him knowing she was attracted to him, she also had no issue with telling him exactly what she thought of him and his "harem" of women. She didn't take any crap from anyone, and I think that's such a great trait to have. 

"I don't have a harem." He wrapped a hand behind my neck and reached down and kissed me.

"I have you."

Oh, Logan. Man. What a great book boyfriend. He had all the things you want in a good man. He was fiercely protective, even when Mae didn't want him to be. He told anyone and everyone exactly how he felt about Mae, and made sure they didn't forget it. While he didn't appear to be sweet on the outside, he didn't make a show of it, he definitely was. The things he did when Mae wasn't around, the way he spoke about her to people, and how overprotective of her he was...was just so freaking amazing. He jumped through all the hoops she threw his way just to try and get a place in her life. He put up with all the verbal abuse she spewed at him, just to prove to her that he belonged with her. 

My favorite parts about this book wasn't even the romance, it was the mystery. As I was reading I was trying to figure out what happened to Lana, the missing girl, what happened to Mae's brother Lincoln, and what was going on in all of these secret societies. There is nothing I love more than a romance book that is so much more than romance. The way this book was written, and the way the characters were written had me second guessing everyone and that made the story so much better. 

"I want you forever, Amelia," he said against my hair.

"And forevermore after that."

Overall, this book book is definitely getting 5 STARS. I love a good slow burn romance, and this one had the slowest of burns. I love a romance that is more than just that, sure you get the heat and the love, but you also have a mystery to solve. I love that I couldn't trust a single character and it had me second guessing myself throughout the whole read. Claire really knocked it out of the park with this one, which is not surprising.