Review: True by Erin McCarthy

Title: True
Author: Erin McCarthy
Published: May 7th 2013
Add It: Goodreads
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
*An ARC was provided in exchange for an honest review*

When Rory Macintosh’s roommates find out that their studious and shy friend has never been with a guy, they decide that, as an act of kindness they’ll help her lose her virginity by hiring confident, tattooed bad boy Tyler Mann to do the job…unbeknownst to Rory.

Tyler knows he’s not good enough for Rory. She’s smart, doctor smart, while he’s barely scraping by at his EMT program, hoping to pull his younger brothers out of the hell their druggy mother has left them in. But he can’t resist taking up her roommates on an opportunity to get to know her better. There’s something about her honesty that keeps him coming back when he knows he shouldn’t…

Torn between common sense and desire, the two find themselves caught up in a passionate relationship. But when Tyler’s broken family threatens to destroy his future, and hers, Rory will need to decide whether to cut her ties to his risky world or follow her heart, no matter what the cost…

Not sure what I was expecting going into this book, but the cover and the synopsis completely allured me in. I requested it on Netgalley and was a little reluctant to start reading since it seemed like people on Goodreads weren’t all satisfied with the story. I was ready to be disappointed, I’m not going to lie. Guess what? I didn’t have to disappoint!

“We had a fight with each other,” Kylie told him. “We cried on the sidewalk in front of the club. It was awesome. Best Girls’ Night ever. We laughed, we cried, we drank, we danced. Got punched in the face.”

The story. Rory is basically a 20 year old nerd and also a virgin. When her roommates find out that little fact about her, they set her up with a swoon-worthy bad boy. The only nuance is that Rory isn’t aware that it’s a set up. She starts to open up and she and Tyler have quite great chemistry between them. When Rory realizes it’s all a set-up, she must decide whether to give this chemistry a try or forget all about the boy that could very well be the one.

My thoughts. As you gathered from the introduction part, I was ready to be disappointed. I had no reason to worry though. It was such a quick and enjoyable read. The plot seems like the same old, same old, but McCarthy did an excellent job not portraying Rory as a damsel in the distress in the hands of an experienced guy. Tyler and Rory were a great match for each other and their chemistry was undeniable. Also, Rory is a very relatable character – she’s experiencing all sorts of firsts in her college years and I think most of us have discovered new sides to us while being in university. I know I find them more often than not.

I didn’t see all of the twists coming. There was something that allured me as a reader to find out more about the story. I absolutely adored Tyler’s brothers and their bond and the side characters weren’t that bad either. At first I was a little mad at Rory’s roommates when they stayed in Nathaniel’s apartment, but throughout the novel they grew on me. I do think that the ending was a little rushed though and could have been more developed, but it still worked for this particular situation.

In the end, I found True to be enjoyable and I’d recommend it to all New Adult fans out there as well as people who are up for a read about family bonds, forgiveness, character growth and quite a few laughing-out-loud moments. Yay on that little teaser chapter for Erin’s next book ;-) I had a feeling that one was coming and I’m oh, so glad! I can’t wait for the companion novel. Read on, lovelies!

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

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