What's the first rule of getting the lead in the school musical? Don't fall for your bad-boy co-star.
When Elyse Cohen gets the lead in her private school’s winter musical, she thinks it’s a dream come true. That is, until she finds out she’s playing opposite Asher Park—the bad boy rumored to have been involved in the mysterious disappearance of his ex last spring. Soon, what seemed like a dream role has her worried she’ll be the next girl to get close to her enigmatic co-star and go missing.
After getting run out of the only home he had left, the last thing Asher wants is to return to Eden Falls Academy. But since a theater scholarship is his only hope for getting into a good college, he returns halfway through the school year to face the rumors swirling around him. As long as he keeps his head down and continues the ruse he started the year before, he might make it to graduation without too many scars.
He never anticipated Elyse in any of his plans.
But as the pair play love interests on stage and sparks ignite, the less Elyse wants to believe the rumors about Asher. And even though Asher knows letting people close leaves him vulnerable to being burned, he finds himself wanting to tell Elyse all his secrets.
My Review
Swoon!!! I have been impatiently awaiting Elyse’s story, in hopes that she would end up with Nash, but seeing the chemistry between her and bad boy Asher Park, and I became Team Asher all the way. Now I am longingly anticipating Nash’s story! I can’t wait to see this sweetheart get his happily ever after!
Elyse finds herself caught in a love triangle that parallels the play that the three are all in perfectly, blurring the lines between what is an act, and what is reality. Elyse and Nash have had a connection since the first novel, and it seemed like they would be falling in love in The Ruse, but Elyse never expected Asher. Nash and Asher have had a rivalry since childhood, and it seems like Elyse is the next conquest between the adversaries, but Asher is also mourning the disappearance of his girlfriend, Bailee, so there are multiple layers of theatrics that make for quite the page-turner.
I must admit, The Ruse was my favorite novel in the series so far. All the characters are easily identifiable, and I liked that Asher and Elyse’s story focused less on the physical, and more on the emotional. They truly became friends before anything physical, though when they did finally confess their true passions it was pretty steamy, surprisingly evoking memories from my own backstage shenanigans.
I have truly found a kindred spirit in Elyse. She is a fellow dreamer, one who gets lost in her daydreams, which is something I’ve been guilty of my whole life. That, plus her love of drama and music, spoke to my performing arts past, though she went much further than I ever did. I continue to stay in my dreams, while she went after what she desired, which I immensely admired.
Every novel in this series gets better and better, making me anticipate the next installment as soon as I read the last sentence. Though it can be read as a standalone I would highly recommend reading them in order, as it helps you grasp the characters, and all of their unique situations, but be forewarned: you will fall head over heels in love.
Judy Corry is the USA Today Bestselling Author of YA and Sweet Contemporary Romance. She writes romance because she can't get enough of the feeling of falling in love. She's known for writing swoon-worthy kisses, endearing characters, and hard-won happily ever afters.
She lives in Southern Utah with her husband and their four children where she is living out her own happily ever after with the boy who took her to her Jr. Prom.
To find out more about Judy and her books visit her website at judycorry.com
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