Review: “Irreplaceable” by Jenna Hartley

Series: Love in LA #5

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐✨

Steam: 🔥🔥🔥🔥

Release Date: February 9th, 2022

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CW/TW: character struggling with pregnancy, infertility and seizures 

One impulsive, passionate week changed my life.
And I can’t stop thinking about it…or him.

The hot Italian with the full lips and inked skin.
The passionate man who made me feel incredible until I realized it was all a sham.

Because he lied.
About his name.
About everything.

Now, I’m not only pregnant with his child but thrust into the spotlight.
Because my vacation fling, my baby daddy, is an international soccer superstar.

He wants a second chance, but I’m concerned that he’s as much of a player off the field as he is on it.

 

Ever since I started reading the Love in LA series, I’ve been waiting for Jenna Hartley to write Harper’s story. And after reading this book, her author’s note and acknowledgements, I am so in awe of Jenna’s strength to write this story even though it took so much out of her. It’s a story of second chances, not just in love, but in yourself. It’s also about not giving up, even when things are really hard. Harper, as we already knew, is such a brilliant character. Her heart and soul are so beautiful and to have her tell this story and to see her fall in love made me the happiest person ever.

In Irreplaceable, we get a love story between the two unlikeliest people. If you’ve read Feels Like Love, then you already know who Harper gets her HEA with, but it’s the journey to that happy ending that we see in this book. And it is glorious. As a film location scout, Harper gets to travel all over the world and after her work trip in Bali, she’s decided to take a vacation. Not only because she’s tired, but because all of her attempts at getting pregnant have failed and she needs a break. The last thing she expects is to meet Enzo, a sexy Italian who almost runs her over on the street and then proceeds to take care of her to make up for almost running her over. Enzo’s hiding out in Bali after a scandal breaks out in Milan, where his ex is making his life miserable. As a professional football player, he barely gets any time alone or moments of peace where people don’t know who he is. But in Bali, he gets all that and then some, especially when he moves Harper into his luxurious vacation getaway.

This book is hot! I feel like with every book in the series, Jenna turns it up a notch and I have zero complaints. Harper and Enzo’s relationship is at first, purely physical. He’s the definition of everything she’s looking for in a fling and he’s drawn to her like a moth to a flame. There’s some hesitation at first, but once Harper realises that she’s missing out on everything, she takes a leap and the pay off is fantastic. Their chemistry is off the charts and the steamy scenes are so incredible, you might find yourself getting lost in them. Harper and Enzo also build something of a friendship-slash-relationship during this time. While neither of them are looking for forever and a fling is all they want, the more time they spend together, the more it becomes obvious that something is brewing.

When Enzo misunderstands what Harper’s doing and he reacts poorly, their sexy vacation fling ends and she returns to LA with absolutely no plans to see him ever again. Except, the universe has something else in mind for them. Not only does Harper discover she’s pregnant (omggggg!!!), she also realises that Enzo kept the secret of his identity from her the whole time. But let me just say, that their reunion is fantastic. It’s not what you’ll expect, but I love that Harper made Enzo work for every minute of her time and all of her attention. Just like he should, if I’m being honest.

“I wasn’t sure I believed in soul mates or even love, but I certainly believed in destiny and signs. Harper had been put in my life for a reason.”

I’m trying to be super vague so as not to give anything away, but let me just say that the relationship between these two is fantastic. I loved how they go from a fling to frustrated humans to falling in love and trying to make it work. There’s so much they have to learn from each other and so much they have to learn from themselves. Not only does their relationship build slowly this time around, you can see just how much these characters grow too! I fell in love with that, without a doubt. There’s some miscommunication in the beginning and then there’s a lot more communication as the story progresses and just… *chefs kiss*

I absolutely loved how much of Juliana, Alexis and Lauren we got in this book, because those friends are truly some of my favourites. The four women getting together, their men being involved now and then, the conversations and the friendship—it was all so wonderful. I also loved Harper’s family and all the bits of Alondra Valley we got to see, because that makes me really excited about the books coming in that series too!

As usual, Jenna Hartley wrote a book that tugs at your heartstrings, makes you fall in love and shows you the importance of friendship and family, while putting you through an emotional rollercoaster. I am so glad we got Harper’s story, because this was the perfect way to tie it all up.

Thanks to Jenna Hartley for generously providing me with an advance copy. I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.