Livia's Reviews > Torn Hearts

Minor spoilers alert!!!

Review now *UPDATED*
You can now read all 4 chapters of this novella for FREE! Go to Author, Claire Contreras's website http://clairecontreras.com/ or look for the novella on WattPad under ClaireContreras.

I loved finding out a little bit more about Mia and Jensen's failed romance and catching up with Estelle aka Elle and Oliver. Chapter 1 takes place at their wedding and is set 4 months after Elle and Oliver's love story, Kaleidoscope Hearts ended. Chapter 2 goes back first 5 years prior to 2010 and then to 2008.

I loved this moment below:

“I can’t wait to show you how charming I can be,” Oliver said as he opened the door for Estelle.
“TMI,” I screamed. “TMI!”
Oliver barked out a laugh and shot a wink my way. “You know you love hearing about our sex life.”
“Not from you!” I responded with a laugh.
He shrugged. “It doesn’t matter who the source is, the news is always the same, I rock her world. End of.”
We all laughed one last time before they drove off.’

I also cringed in sympathy as Mia realizes that she is still very much attracted to Jensen and could possibly bump into him in NYC now that she's taken a new photography job there. There's nothing worse than still carrying a torch for someone that is unavailable.

"You going to be okay?" Rob asked as we stood there, waiting for our own car to arrive.
"Yeah," I said, drawing in a breath. "I'm excited. I mean, despite the whole missing my family and friends thing, I'm excited."
"You should be. I don't think you've wanted anything more than this," he said. As he spoke I looked over my shoulder and caught a glimpse of Victor and Jensen talking inside the lobby, with drinks in their hands and nodded.
"I can think of one other thing," I said quietly.

The first 2 chapter installments definitely left me wanting to know more about why Mia and Jensen's relationship tanked so badly. I loved the ending to the 2002 flashback scene:

"I'll tell you everything, baby. Everything," he said in a whisper as he ran his thumb over my bottom lip. "God, I missed you," he said, pulling my lips to his. We definitely needed to talk, but I was willing to wait a couple of hours if this was his way of temporarily shutting me up.

*Ch. 3: My favorite moment:

He reached for my hand and kissed the back of it. “Are you having fun?”
“I always have fun when I’m with you.”
“Good because I have an entire weekend of fun planned.”
“Does it involve you and me naked on a bed?”
His nostrils flared as he pulled out of the parking lot. He brought my hand up to his mouth and grazed his teeth along the tips of my fingers. “And the kitchen table. And the floor. And the shower. And the beach. The possibilities are endless, really.”
My insides tightened.
“You want that?” he asked, his voice low.
“I want that,” I replied in a whisper.

*Ch. 4: Jensen reveals his backstory and how he knocked up a girl from his poetry class – gah! At least he regrets it. The most moving moment:

I’d seen her cry, but never like this. Not even when her family dog died did she cry like this, and it fucking killed me. Her blue eyes were filled with pain that I’d caused. She raised her finger and pointed at me. “It should have been me. That’s all I can think right now.”

My immediate reaction was just WOW and YES, exactly! Jensen, Mia and I were seriously all thinking this same thing.

Author Claire Contreras really gave fans a treat with this look at Mia and Jensen’s backstory. Their full length novel is expected sometime this summer. I, for one, am eager to find out how Mia and Jensen can find a way to be together again because it was painfully obvious that they never should have parted ways.