I received this book for free from the Author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

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Five years ago, I nearly lost everything. But there was a glimmer of hope on that darkest night. There was him—a stranger I could never forget.
Now, I’m finally getting the fresh start I’ve longed for. But when I show up to interview for a nanny position in the small mountain town, the single dad has startlingly familiar blue eyes.
Eyes that have haunted my dreams for the past five years.
Lawson Hartley is everything I know I can’t have. Older, handsome, and my boss. Not to mention the shadows in his eyes that tell me he has demons, too.
Still, he seems to understand me better than anyone I’ve ever met. So gentle and careful of my scars, yet somehow making me believe I’m stronger than I ever thought possible.
And when his lips touch mine, I’m lost.
We find what we've been missing in each other. But the terrors of my past aren’t done with me yet, and this time, Lawson might not be able to save me...

Whenever a new book of Catherine Cowles arrives on my kindle, I get so excited. And this time I was even more excited because ‘Ashes of You’ is the story of Lawson Hartley. Lawson is the oldest Hartley brother, and we’ve read a bit about him in the previous books and I was so curious about his story. So when I received an ARC, I dropped everything and started reading right away.

In ‘Ashes of You’ we read the story of Hallie Astor and Lawson. Hallie has been through hell five years ago. She was taken by a horrible men, and after almost a month she escaped, barely surviving. Now her days are filled with anxiety, and her parents trying to act like nothing ever happened to her. It’s time for a new start, and when Hallie gets a job interview as a nanny in the small town of Cedar Ridge, far away from her parents, it sounds perfect.

Lawson is a single dad of three boys (16, 13 and 6) and the chief of police of Cedar Ridge. His life is crazy busy and he has been looking for a nanny to help him for months now. But no one seems to be good enough. Then at the last interview, in walks Hallie. From the moment they meet it’s clear they already know each other. Lawson was the one who saved Hallie’s life five years ago. Shortly after,  Lawson hires her and soon it’s clear she is perfect for the job. Hallie, and Lawson’s boys get along perfectly and Lawson starts to feel like he can breath again. The one problem is that he finds himself extremely attracted to the much younger nanny, and that’s a complication he doesn’t need. Especially with Hallie’s past!

‘Ashes of You’ was a book I read in only a day. I was really looking forward to reading Lawson’s story, and I found myself being hooked to the pages. And this book definitely exceeded my expectations. I loved it. Lawson’s character was my favorite. I loved how hard he worked, even though he didn’t have to, and how much he loved his boys. And those boys where so charming!

Hallie’s character was another great one. She had some anxiety problems, which where so understandable and the way she dealt with them was really impressive. Would I hire a nanny with anxiety problems to take care of my kids? Well, probably not.. but it fitted the story. The whole age gap didn’t bother me at all. Lawson mentioned it himself a few times, but I wouldn’t have noticed other wise.

There was a great slow-burn romance going on and it made this a book I didn’t want to put down. Lawson and Hallie where so fun! So I read till late at night and honestly, I’m sad I’m finished with this series. It’s probably a good thing for Cedar Ridge though, with all these aggressive people that seem to find their town! LOL!

‘Ashes of You’ was a great story and the prefect ending to the series. Yes, you can read this book as a standalone. But honestly I think it’s much better to read these books in order. I can’t wait what Catherine has in store for us next.

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About Catherine Cowles

Writer of words. Drinker of Diet Cokes. Lover of all things cute and furry, especially her dog. Catherine has had her nose in a book since the time she could read and finally decided to write down some of her own stories. When she's not writing she can be found exploring her home state of Oregon, listening to true crime podcasts, or searching for her next book boyfriend.

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Maureen Bakker

Maureen is a mom, wife, nurse, and Ravenclaw living in the Netherlands. She spends her days juggling mom-life, reading, blogging, planning date nights with her husband and working as a nurse. Maureen also is a big Anglophile, loves cooking, Gilmore Girls, Bridgerton and Harry Potter.. Always!  Facebook | Instagram