TITLE: That Kind of Guy (Ravenswood, #3)
AUTHOR: Talia Hibbert
GENRE: Romance
AGE RANGE: Adult

SYNOPSIS:
If there’s one thing Rae can’t stand, it’s pity. She’s forty, frazzled, and fed up—so attending an awards ceremony alone while her ex swans about with his new wife? Not an option. To avoid total humiliation, Rae needs a date of her own. And her young, hot-as-hell new best friend is the perfect candidate…

Zach Davis, king of casual hookups, has a secret: the notorious womaniser craves emotional connection, and anonymous encounters leave him feeling hollow. After years of performance, Zach’s desperate to be himself. So why does he agree to play Rae’s fake boyfriend? And why does it feel so easy?

Her heart was painfully, wonderfully vulnerable, officially free to fly off and hurt itself again. But maybe, if she didn’t react, the poor thing wouldn’t notice that it belonged to him. Maybe it would stay safe and sound and oblivious.

I always knew this day would come eventually, but I didn’t think it would be so damn sad to say goodbye to the Ravenswood series. I have adored every second of my time spent with these lovely babies — Ruth and Evan, Hannah and Nate, and now, of course, Rae and Zach — and if Talia ever decided, for any reason at all, to write six more novels about this little band of misfits, I would be first in line for every single one.

She’d never fixed a mistake with someone she loved without paying a pound of flesh. He was the only one who cared like this.

Alas, all good things must end, though, and I have to say that this was a flawless finale to the series. We got to spend time with everyone a little bit (I’m endlessly in love with Evan’s protective, cuddly nature towards his friend group, by the way), and most of all, we got a chance to really dive into the complex lives and personalities of Zach and Rae, who were such a dynamic duo, I can’t even begin to describe.

… this was comfort, this was faith, this was a love so deep, it must be stitched into his DNA by now.

First, let’s talk about Zach. He’s such a sweet, soft little bean, and I love him so much. He’s a total geek, and would do anything to make his loved ones happy, regardless of how much it might cost him. This leads me to a point I have to make here: Zach is demisexual, but has spent most of his adult life performing acts of self-neglect (and potentially even self-harm) through physical interactions in order to please the people around him.

I’m not demi, but I related to the other aspect of Zach’s history WAY too much. I have literally never seen this facet of my own personality reflected in a book until this moment, and it was so eye-opening. Talia, thank you so much for including it. ♥ I know I’m not alone in saying that it meant a lot to see something I had felt about my past, but didn’t know how to describe, put down in such eloquent and precise wording.

Most of the time, she hated being stared at — but here in Ravenswood, where she had some wild, Cruelle de Vil reputation built off rubbish and assumptions? It was hilarious.

Of course, there’s also Rae, who has her own set of traumas to move past (mainly her toxic asshole of an ex-husband — eww — and her downright cruel mother), but man, she is such a powerhouse. She is GOALS. She isn’t taking anyone’s crap, she’s not here for your nonsense, she knows what she wants and she’s going to fight for it — unless “it” is the adoration and love of her best friend, in which case, she’s going to flail wildly for a little while. Oh, and did I mention her massive fur-baby Duke, who she carries on entire conversations with? Yeah, get ready for all the doggy feels.

She lay safe and warm in the cage of his arms, falling asleep to a reassuring thought. This is not what love feels like. It doesn’t hurt nearly enough.

Finally, the romance itself is so wonderful. I love a good friends-to-lovers ship, plus there are some delicious tropes thrown in (“Oh no, just one bed! Whatever shall we do?!”). I laughed, I cried (no, really — there are some mushy quotes in this book that just about ended me), I swooned… it was all perfect, and exactly what this beautiful little series deserved as a finale. I’m sad that it’s over, but you bet your butt I’ll be rereading this entire series over and over again for years to come, because it’s just that good.

“I should’ve known you all my life.”
“From now on.”

All quotes come from an advance copy and may not match the final release. Thank you so much to Talia Hibbert for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

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