Review: The Sin of Kissing You by Maya Hughes

Title:	The Sin of Kissing You
Author:	Maya Hughes
Series:	Falling Trilogy (Book 2)
Pages:	328
Genre(s):	Contemporary New Adult
Trope(s):	Enemies to Lovers Friends to Lovers Neighbours to Lovers Sports Romance (American Football)
Point of View:	First person, past tense, dual viewpoints (H & h)
Location:	US
HEA:	❌ (CLIFFHANGER ENDING)
Release Date:	8th April, 2021

Such angst-filled deliciousness

Up front, right off the bat, this is not a standalone novel. It’s the middle book in a trilogy chronicling Bay and Dare’s romance / love story. If you haven’t read the first in the trilogy, The Art of Falling for You, you will not understand what’s going on in this story. And this story does not end with a HEA. That will (hopefully) be in the third and final book of the set, The Hate of Loving You.

Okay, now that the public service announcements are out of the way – onto the book review, which will likely contain spoilers if you haven’t read the first book.

We start off 4 years from the close of the last book and the explosive break up of Dare and Bay and the revelation that seriously knocked me for six. Bay is spending summer looking after the university halls of residence when Dare appears for training camp as part of the pro-football team he’s drafted to after college. As you can imagine, after the way things ended, Bay is less than pleased to see him.

Although this is the story of Dare and Bay, as this is the middle book in the trilogy, I always kept in the back of my mind that this was more of two paths intersecting rather than coming together. It felt like Bay’s path was on the way up while Dare was having a more difficult time.

I really liked Bay, even if she was a little harsher towards Dare than I would be under the same circumstances. She was cute, kick-ass and determined – and I loved her. The way she used her hang-ups to spend more time with Dare, then realised what she was doing and started looking out for him – it was both realistic and made my heart happy. It might not have been evident from the start, but when Bay started allowing her feelings to resurface, it was clear that she adored Dare with everything she had.

“[Maya Hughes] manages to suck me in and mess with my head and emotions in a way that is so painfully delicious and always has me desperate for more.”

Dare on the other hand was 100% all in from the get go. He wore his heart on his sleeve and my own heart broke for him as much as his beat for Bay. He was so desperate to right his wrongs – and took Bay’s previous parting words that he would never be loveable, to heart. He was trying so hard to be a better man but it was so obvious to us readers – and Bay – that he still had so many issues. I wanted to scream at him to stop his destructive behaviour but I also wanted him to learn. The end almost killed me. Sad angst-ridden sighs.

Despite the fact we know it’s not going to end well just yet – Dare and Bay were so obviously perfect for each other. They just worked. Both were able to just be themselves around the other and I loved that the spark hadn’t died after 4 years of being apart. I still laughed with them and cried with them and screamed at them to get their stuff together and figure things out. Frankly, even when they were being idiots, I still love the pair.

Throughout the book I had a nervous energy that wasn’t entirely pleasant for me. I didn’t know how this part of the story was going to end and there were so many houses of cards in this book that I was waiting to fall, that I was both desperate to continue reading and didn’t want to read another word. I’m so absorbed in this world and this story, dammit!

I adore Maya Hughes and her writing. She manages to suck me in and mess with my head and emotions in a way that is so painfully delicious and always has me desperate for more. She’s one of the very (very) few authors whose books I would actually read if they have a cliffhanger – in fact, this is probably the first time I’ve intentionally read one! I actually detest them! The fact that I even read one let alone gave it 5 stars probably tells you all you need to know.

I cannot wait until the final instalment of this trilogy hits my kindle and yet I’m also terrified. The angst is almost too much to bear but it’s so addictive that I just can’t help myself. 5 stars.

Maya Hughes can often be found sneaking in another chapter while hiding in the bathroom from her kids! 🙂 I’m a romance writer who loves taking inspiration from everyday life, namely my husband and biggest fan. Inspiration also strikes when I hear a song, meet someone new or daydream while at soccer practice.

I’m the mom of three little ones, the wife to an amazing husband and also work full time. Some of my favorite things are cinnamon rolls, white wine, laughing until I can’t breathe and traveling with my family.

Falling Trilogy: