Love and Kerosene

Love and Kerosene by Winter Renshaw tells the story of Anneliese and Lachlan and it took me by surprise how much I loved it. Anneliese was living a happy life with her fiancé Donovan and they were planning their wedding and renovating Donovan‘s childhood home to build their family. But then Donovan dies and Anneliese finds out more and more about her fiancé that paints him in a very different life. She was very much looking through rose-colored glasses and naive at times, but that also led to her character growth and even as a reader you can learn from her mistakes. I liked her a lot as a character and also found her naming business fascinating. Lachlan is Donovan‘s brother whom Anneliese has never heard of. After a family tragedy when he was younger, he left his past and family behind and moved across the world to the UK. Lachlan is amazing and I deeply love him. He is also a poet and storyteller and that was something I didn’t expect from him. Donovan’s death brings Anneliese and Lachlan together, but they start off on the wrong foot as both want the house. They then strike a deal to live there together and finish the renovations. In that close proximity they learn a lot from each other and are vulnerable and honest. That creates such a strong base and I just love them together. Things, now matter how tragic, just happen for reasons you might not immediately see and that’s what this story showed as well. Overall, Love and Kerosene is an all the feels romance that shows a raw and beautiful romance and I highly recommend it. 5 stars. (ARC kindly provided in exchange for a review.)