The Room Mate

The Room Mate (Room Mates #1) by Kendall Ryan4 stars!!!“He might be young, twenty-four years to my twenty-eight, but his eyes spoke of wisdom and maturity.”Kendall Ryan delivers a fun, flirty read that ticks all those boxes for a hopeless romantic like me. While, on first impressions, Cannon should be someone you dislike for his ego alone, you cannot help but fall in love with our doctor in the making and it does seem that it isn’t his ego talking, but it is his reality.Cannon is in his last year of residency before he becomes a fully qualified doctor. Cannon is extremely professional and motivated and his quest is only fuelled by his inherent belief that being the man of the family, he has to be there to support his mom and sister…cue ovaries melting. Cannon tries his hardest to stay away from the opposite sex, it seems that every time he sleeps with one, they instantly fall in love and become some crazed stalker. Even one night stands are off-limits for him. While this did give me the proverbial eye roll, it is a novel spin and led to some hilarious scenes as well as some not.“Growing up the way I did, I guess it shaped my goals. Now I’m just perfecting the art of making lemonade.”Paige is Cannon’s sisters best friend…older best friend. Cannon has lusted over Paige for over a decade, she has been the object of his teenage fantasies for years but they haven’t met in the flesh for about five years. A lot changes in five years. After another stalker issue, Cannon finds himself homeless and only needing a place to stay for a couple of months, Cannon’s sister sets him up to stay with Paige.When these two meet, you can tell that any suppressed lust Cannon had for Paige soon resurfaced and it seems that Paige wasn’t immune either. This was a forbidden romance of sorts, not only because Paige was a few years older than Cannon but the fact that Cannon was her best friends little brother, a little brother that she was extremely protective over. With careers and friendships telling them that this was definitely a bad idea…what happens when chemistry tells you it isn’t?“…he was the realest, best, brightest thing in my world, and I hated that we would never be more.”This was one really enjoyable read that seemed to end as quick as it began. Totally immersed in their story the pages flowed effortlessly and with only a little drama the pacing was perfect. I loved their relationship, the dialogue and how they seamlessly converged into each other’s lives. This was a cute read, relatable, believable and heart-warming.“Nothing about us was a mistake.”

Let me just preface this by saying that I really like Kendall Ryan's books, but there was something about this book that didn't quite hit the mark for me. This book felt like a safe read, there's not really anything too deep or any great conflict that happens in the book that couldn't be solved easily. The big conflict between the main couple could have been easily solved if they just talked to each other, and by the way the characters were described and introduced in the beginning I found it weird and out of character that the they took three or four weeks to finally talk and instead just spent that time pining and moping over each other. It felt way too unnecessarily drawn out and angsty.Although it may seem that I don't actually like this book, (you never thought this once, right?) I did actually enjoy this book for the most part, the beginning and the middle was good, and the relationship between Paige and Cannon felt light and easy and I liked how even though Paige was older, and there was an age gap (it was only 4 years so probably not even worth mentioning), it wasn't constantly brought up. It only felt like the ending was lacking. So even though I gave this 3 stars it would be more like a 3.75.

Previously posted to Booked J and Goodreads.“Sometimes there are no second chances. Sometimes it’s now or never.”I've come to the conclusion that, The-Actual-Queen-of-Romance, Kendall Ryan cannot write a bad book. It's just not possible. She will always, always, always create the sort of novels you dive head first into and grow feverish over when reading. In The Room Mate, you get two very pleasurable characters who have the most explosive level of chemistry imaginable. If you've read a Kendall Ryan book in the past, you know how teasing and seductive her prose is--she's a pro at the slow burn and this book is a definite yes on that front.What do you get when you mix (1) A scorching hot med student, who has a romantic streak and is beyond charming; who may or may not drive his conquests mad when he leaves them plus (2) A young woman comfortable and secure in her life, with a great career and a lovable pup by the name of Enchilada, who is still looking for Mr. Right and (3) A shared childhood? Well, you get a lot of chemistry, tension and danger.Let's talk characters: I love both Paige and Cannon. When I started The Room Mate, I had a feeling I would. I've never been overly keen on the trope of my-best-friend's-sibling romances but there's just something right about Paige and Cannon. We knew from the start that, once their relationship began to shift and the desire they held for one another was too much to ignore, this could have potentially devastating repercussions. It was all a matter of when, not if, Paige's best-friend and Cannon's older sister, Allie, found out about their blossoming connection.Despite this and a bit of an age difference, there's something so obviously real about the way these two connect. It isn't just physical, although it does begin this way, and there's just something that clicks into place when Cannon and Paige are together. Like, fate. It's complicated, like all things in life, but it is exactly where they were meant to be. Everything happens for a reason and these two were always, somehow, building up to this moment. That's that.The Room Mate had an edgier beginning to the story than I expected. That first glimpse of where it would lead, you know? So, you go into the novel with this thought in your head and wonder what will escort you to that particular destination. I really liked that, because it definitely kept the story flowing and all the more thrilling. You felt equal parts dread and excitement.Truthfully--I wanted to hear more about Cannon's past bad-luck with women because, dang! That was one scary moment when one particular ex came around and I was downright afraid. Besides the obvious tension, there were other forms of it in The Room Mate, such as--would Allie ever be okay with Paige and Cannon being together?Also...I liked that there was a bit of a gender swap in this one. That Cannon was the more vocally romantic one of the relationship. I liked the way it felt like, by the end, they were taking a chance and truly embracing their future, and that everything worked out in a satisfying way. Overall, it was a blast from start to finish and had me holding my breath on more than one occasion. I was happy with the ending but so very sad to see Cannon and Paige go--they have quickly become one of my favourite Kendall Ryan pairings.The Room Mate is a must-read for romance fans and is as sweet as it is steamy.

Great story but a quick read. Halfway through I wanted the story to keep going.

This book was everything to me! Lots of steamy scenes, drama, romance and incredibles characteres! Really recommend for those that are looking for a easy, fun but aso touching story

Good book

This was a humorous read.... Burst out laughing in lots of places. The two characters had a sparky chemistry which almost caught the pages on fire. This authors got a great sense of humour to be able to make her characters so much fun and so witty on paper. Great skills.This is a great feel good novel.Bk 2 is due out soon.

Absolutely loved this book. It's pretty da*n realistic too, thus could happen to every girl/guy and their best friends little brother or sister.