Older By Jennifer Hartmann | An Age Gap Romance Book Review
I was looking for a Kindle Unlimited book to read, and I settled on Older by Jennifer Hartmann. It’s the story of two people who meet and feel an instant attraction, but when they reveal their true selves, the know that they can never be together. This book has a lot of traumatic situations and to be honest, I’m still processing how I feel about it. For my full thoughts and opinions, keep reading for my full book review of Older by Jennifer Hartmann.
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What is Older by Jennifer Hartmann About?
Before he discovered my age, he uncovered my heart.
Bruised and abused, and victim to a loveless household, I shimmered with new life the moment he found me drowning my sorrows in a lake beneath the stars.
A chance encounter. An unspoken connection.
I was smitten; he was curious.
But, as everyone knew, fate could be decidedly cruel.
He called me Halley, like the comet.
I called him Reed.
And my best friend?
Well…she called him Dad. (from Amazon.com)
Who is Author Jennifer Hartmann?
Jennifer Hartmann is a USA Today bestselling contemporary romance author. She is known for crafting intense and emotional love stories that are sure to bring out many feelings for readers. Her characters often recovering from trauma and learning to heal. Some of her published works include:
My Initial Thoughts
Older is an age-gap romance standalone novel. And I usually enjoy the age-gap trope so I was excited for this book. But in the end, it wasn’t quite what I expected. Angsty love stories aren’t always my thing and I found myself disappointed by how Reed handled his relationship with Halley. I felt like Tara was a bit over the top as a character. I really liked Whitney, Tara’s Mom and Reed’s ex. But I don’t know… something about this book just didn’t feel right to me.
The Idea of Reed and Halley Together Gave Me The Ick
There. I said it. That’s what I’ve been wanting to say.
I get that Halley and Reed’s forbidden love wasn’t actually illegal since they didn’t get together until after she turned 18. But because of her lie and the fact that she is best friends with Reed’s daughter and being raised by his former partner, it just felt weird.
I generally like age gap relationships in romance novels. I think they can be fun. But when the two people in the relationship meet and get to know each other before the other person turns 18, that is a red flag to me. Halley and Reed first meet when she is 17 and proceed to spend extensive time together, which to me means that they should be together. Sorry.
The Complexities of Love
I don’t even really want to call it that but as Reed and Halley begin to fall for each other, it’s complicated. Halley and her best friend Tara are finishing up high school and exploring with dating and boys. The last thing Halley should be doing is lusting after her best friend’s Dad.
The subject of grooming is brought up in this book in a big way. And it kind of makes sense? Halley comes from a home where her parents didn’t care for her. Her Mom is absent and drinks to take a break from her life. And she has an abusive father. So did Reed technically groom Halley? I’m not sure. I don’t really know enough about the subject to say yes or no. But it is definitely fishy for her to wind up with a guy her father’s age after having a terrible father for her entire childhood.
Whitney is a really good Mom so I’m surprised she didn’t enroll Halley in therapy. If any of them went to therapy I think they would have learned the error of their ways.
In Conclusion
I just don’t think this book was for me. I have a hard time getting into books where the love story is filled with so much angst. And I really have a hard time with main characters who are supposed to have such a deep connection, yet they don’t seem to really know all that much about each other.
I guess I’m glad that the character of Halley had someone to turn to during the darkest circumstances, but he maybe should’t have hooked up with her. Lol.
And that’s all I’m going to say about that.
