Blog Tour & Review: 10 Reasons to Stay by Candace Knoebel

Okay, guys, I loved this book.
Loved it.

It's going into my 'top reads of 2018' list.

Add It To Your Goodreads

One day a week—Thursdays—my husband and I could do whatever or whomever we pleased. 

Protection was non-negotiable.

And no matter what, we had to be home by midnight.

Jack was the one who wanted an open marriage, but we were supposed to keep things simple. No strings. No commitments. It seemed so easy…until it wasn’t.

Devilishly handsome Cole Blackwater was only supposed to be a fling, but everything about him made me feel alive. Wanted. Seen. When I realized he was my husband’s boss, I should have broken things off right then…but I didn’t.

One day a week, I could pretend that I was his and he was mine…until Cole wanted more.

But how could I decide between the man I’d promised to love, honor, and cherish, and the man who tempted me to break every single vow I’d made?

*ebook provided as part of the blog tour*

ebook

Full-Length Novel

First Person - Dual pov

Open marriages?

No.

Nope!

Yes!

Is it infidelity if the couple is in an agreed open relationship?
Is it infidelity if there are rules to the open relationship and they get broken, even when both know they're getting broken?
Is it infidelity if all parties involved know there are other parties involved?
Honestly, it hurt my head.

This is an interesting question... Technically, yes. Corrine is married and loves her husband and Cole. But! I didn't feel a single thing but annoyance for the husband so I didn't feel like there actually was a triangle.

There's one incident that made me a little twitchy but it wasn't exactly violence.

Oh, sweet baby Jesus...
This book freaking wrecked me! Twisted me up, wrung me out, made me stabby and happy and feel all the feelings.
It was the first contemporary romance in a while to do that to me.
I started reading it at 7:30pm and did not stop until I read the last page at midnight. I just couldn't stop! Nothing could have made me stop.

I was so nervous about reading this book.
The blurb made it clear it was going to push me so far out my comfort zone that there was a very good chance I'd hate it but I was too intrigued not to take the chance and I am so glad that I did!

Yes, it is a tale about an open marriage but it's so much more than that.

Corrine is lost at the beginning of this book.
She loves her husband and is thrown for a loop at him wanting an open marriage but - knowing that he'd do what he wanted anyway - she chooses to go ahead with it.
She's meek and kind of a doormat but she's likable.
She's relatable.
When she strikes out and takes some control back by setting rules, I applauded her.
When she musters her courage and finds herself a 'Mr Thursday', I cheered.
When she sticks to those rules, despite how messy her emotions become, I wanted to both shake, strangle and hug her.
I loved watching her evolve throughout the book. I loved, and hated, how hard she fought for her marriage even when she knew he didn't deserve her.
Seeing her take what she wanted, and start to grow a backbone brought joy. Seeing her principals rip her apart brought pain.
She was flawed and she was real and I just wanted her to be happy.

Cole - Mr. Thursday - was everything.
He knew Corrine's situation from the start. He knew what he was getting into. He never expected it to become everything, but he was quickly all in and I freaking adored him.
I love how he fought for her without trying to mess her up more than she already was over the situation. I love that he saw her when her own asshat of a husband was blind.
I loved all the ways he asked her to stay.
I loved how he loved her.

I wanted her to stay. Every time he asked her, I was screaming stay.

Jack, Corrine's husband, was a fucking dick.
I guess the author tried to give him some redeeming qualities but I felt nothing for him but annoyance and outright hatred throughout the book.
Corrine deserved so much better than him.
Cole gave her so much better than him...
Did I hate Jack so much because Cole was obviously her lobster?
Nope.
I hated Jack because he tried to hold onto something despite having already moved on. I hated Jack because he was determined to have his cake and eat it. I hated how he decided things and didn't listen and just seemed sleazy and obnoxious. I hated how he didn't support her. When he only seemed to care about her when he realised he may not be the centre of her world anymore...
However, by the end, the author had managed to bring out slivers of humanity in him.
I suppose.
(I still don't like him though.)

I'll admit, I wasn't expecting a happy ever after here.
I was expecting heartbreak and a cliffhanger or some inconclusive ending that would lead into the second part of this duet.
That's not what I got folks!
Nope, this book gives you a happy ever after. 
It's a complete story.
It's an ending that made me smile.
It's an ending that Corrine deserved and I'm betting that the second book in this duet is the other side of the coin... For every story has two sides, right?

If you're thinking of reading this but are put off by the open marriage thing, don't be. Give it a try. It's messy and it crosses so many lines but it's compelling and, I thought, beautiful. 

Unfortunately, I have little love for this cover.
It just doesn't capture the book for me.
The teaser graphics... Now those are beautiful. Those are what the book is about!

Candace Knoebel is a hopeless romantic with an affinity for whiskey and good music. Her love of words began when she met the boy who lived in the cupboard under the stairs. She's a self-proclaimed Lost Girl. Words are her mirror. 

With two completed series, her work ranges from  paranormal to contemporary, all centered heavily around romance. Currently she lives in Florida with her husband and two children, and has just completed her thirteenth novel, The Taste of Her Words.