no. do not read this book. a virgin 22 year old and a 35 year old grown man who desperately needs therapy?? no. she should be at the club!!! “WHO THE FUCK IS ON TOP THEIR FIRST TIME?!” - lady bird (and also probably this FMC as well) small rant: a career bartender would NEVER order a “margarita on the rocks” while clubbing. be fucking fr. shit like this infuriates me to no end. and the fact she specified on the rocks as if this dance club was going to whip out the jimmy buffett margaritaville blender is sending me. like what???

Loved it 🤩👏🏻

Elsie Silver can really do no wrong! I love every single book she writes and I will devour each book everytime. Beau and Bailey omg so good loved it!!

and this book proves that despite it all, age-gap romances aren't my thing at all.

4.25 i love this book and series so much💗 i can’t believe this is over :( and this was such a good end of chestnut springs

insane. like truly this is top tier shit. chestnut springs will live on in my heart. i’m clinically depressed after this series. i love these people, need these men. so sad that i’m truly so fucking single :/// </3333

Unfortunately could not get passed the age gap!!!!

I’ve read dark and FILTHY books before but Bailey and Beau’s flirty banter had me BLUSHING. Bailey is so funny and has quite the mouth on her 😏😉 Their chemistry and interest in each other was so cute! I didn’t think I would care for this book since I wasn’t really a Beau fan after reading the previous books in the series but I’m so glad Ms. Silver decided to write this. I’ll even say Beau is my favorite, after Theo Silva of course.

first half slapped, second half lightly tapped

What a way to start out the year. I contemplated starting it by ending this series but I knew I could start and finish it today before my schedule got hectic. This was a rollercoaster that I loved from start to finish. I will die on the hill of saying fake dating is one of my all time favorite tropes and I loved this one. Beau and Bailey had my heart of start to finish. I understood Bailey so much in the book and loved to see her in this one. It’s sad to see it ending but I love this series with my whole heart and can’t wait to read more by Elsie and discover what’s next!

“My pain disappears when I’m with you.” The premises and the raw emotion and trauma from the characters backstory had such potential but unfortunately it fell short. Which is so tragic because the Chestnut Springs series is one of my beloved and every book leading up to this one was so great. But with Beau, it just didn’t do it. I was so excited to read about him finally and I just didn’t enjoy it like I thought I would.

1.5 stars, thankfully there wasn't an accidental pregnancy again, but there really wasn't much else going on in this other than two people who have the hots for each other and not much else.

I don’t want this serie to end. I was so excited for this book! I loved Bailey and Beau together, it was truly amazing. I love the growth both characters went throug in this book!

Sad to see the series end:(

This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review.

Book Evaluation:
Plot: 🎞️🎞️🎞️🎞️
World Building:🌎🌎🌎🌎
Cover:📔📔📔📔📔
Hero: 🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻
Heroine:🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️
Intimacy Level: 🔥🔥🔥🔥
Relationship Building: 💒💒💒💒
Heart & Feels:💞💞💞💞
Witty/Banter/Reaction of Laughter: 😂😂😂
Page Turner Level:📖📖📖📖
Ending:🧧🧧🧧
Overall View: ✨✨✨✨


First Impressions
Hopeless is a book that I had such high hopes for and I really had some high expectations on this one especially coming off of Reckless which was only released a couple of months ago. I wish that I could say that I loved this book unfortunately it didn't quite meet up with my expectations. It was a bit disappointing. It did feel very rushed and not enough flow with the story and the tropes. And was really hard to stay invested. However, it had its moments that kept me reading it. And for those that want Beau's book, then I highly recommend it.

First Line
I thought pissing my brother off and storming away would make me feel something.

The Main Protagonists
The Hero: Beau Eaton
A tortured military Vet, injuries both inside and outside, and a bit of a surly grump caught up in the terrors of his past

The Heroine: Bailey Jenson
High spirited outcast of the town. Despirate for a fresh start.

Summary
Beau Eaton is the town hero, he is much revered by the whole town and everyone wants to befriend him. The problem is...Beau couldn't care less. He is suffering wounds from serving in the military and is haunted by those demons that no one seems to understand including his own family. Then we have Bailey, who is a Jensen. Her family is consider the outcasts of the town, and unfortunately her family has earned their bad name and Bailey is a innocent bystander from it and the town does blame her and won't give her a solid chance to prove that she is different from them. Beau and Bailey have a very quick connection and Beau proposes that they have a fake engagement so that his name can bring her what she needs...that clean slate and it will help get his family off of his back. But both Beau and Bailey have a fierce attraction to each other and a connection that they both want to explore ....will they be able to make a true engagement work or will it fail...

What I Loved
Despite my issues with the story itself, there are many factors in the story that I really did enjoy. The first is that I had a blast with the connection at times that we see from Beau and Bailey. Especially in the first half of the story, I was really behind these two being together. They have such a easy way of being together and seeing the way in which they get along was almost infectious. Their in the middle of the night meet ups in the river were so delicious and the chemistry between them was done just right. Their dialogue with each other was easy going and they stand up to each other and know when to back down and when not to. The family bantering was just delightful and enjoyed how welcoming they were of Bailey. Beau is so tortured and his journey was beautiful and the way in which we see how protective he is of Bailey, melted my heart completely.

What I Struggled With
The pacing in this book is really off and most especially in the second half it just didn't quite deliver. It got to the point where I just wanted to get to the end, I just became bored with the couple and there seemed to be such a rush for the ending. It really felt like the author was writing to just finish this off and not really dig into the issues and explore it as she has done in the previou books. And some of the snark comments from the heroine was a bit off putting and didn't quite mesh right. Not sure why authors seem to want a snarky heroine in every book these days, but Bailey's dialogue could have been handled much more delicately to bring out her character to be more likeable.

Overall View
Hopeless had a easy romance that is fun to get behind....some fantastic tropes and has a small town setting that will endear the reader to this world...

Favorite Quote(s)
“I know you’re scared of losing control around me.” Her chin tips up as though she’s told me something that will make me back down. Run me off. It doesn’t. “No, I’m scared of you becoming something I can’t live without.”

Book Details (also in my shelves)
Sub Genre: Contemporary Romance
Character Types: Military, Abused, Tortured
Themes: Small Town, Family Saga, Lots of Laughs, PTSD
Tropes: Fake Relationship, Grumpy Sunshine, May to December, Opposites Attract

Book Perspective
DUO Pov

Relationship Conflict vs Plot Conflict
Relationship Conflict

Song This Book Inspires
Hold My Girl by George Ezra

Recommendation For Reading Order
You can read as standalones

Steam/Spice Explanations

Steamin' up the room -the sexual content is more explicit in the language and tone, heavier amount of sexual scenes.

Elsie really wowed me with her last book in this series! I loved the family vibes throughout with all the siblings and their significant others. Love Beau and his story 100/10❤️