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Saturday Series: The Year We Hid Away (The Ivy Years #2) by Sarina Bowen


She’s hiding something big. He’s hiding someone small.

Scarlet Crowley’s life was torn apart the day father was arrested for unspeakable crimes. Now the shock has worn off, but not the horror.

It’s a safe bet that Scarlet is the only first year at Harkness College who had to sneak past TV news trucks parked on her front lawn just to leave town. But college will be Scarlet’s fresh start. Clutching a shiny new student ID — with a newly minted name on it — she leaves it all behind. Even if it means lying to the boy she’s falling for.

Bridger McCaulley is a varsity hockey star known for being a player both on and off the ice. But a sobering family crisis takes that all away. Protecting his sister means a precarious living arrangement and constant deception. The only bright spot in his week is the few stolen hours he spends with Scarlet.

The two form a tentative relationship based on the understanding that some things must always be held back. But when grim developments threaten them both, going it alone just won’t work anymore. And if they can’t learn to trust one another now, the families who let them down will take everything they’ve struggled to keep.


The Bridger we met in The Year We Fell Down is not the same guy we get to know here. No more partying or hooking up with every girl he meets, but studying, working and babysitting are his life now. He even had to give up hockey due to the lack of time. His friends are worried, but there's not much they can do as Bridger keeps them all at a distance. As a reader it becomes clear pretty quickly what is going on with him, and you admire him for what he's trying to and at the same time you can not help but feel for him.

Scarlet's situation is completely different, but they each have a burden to bare. Her dad, former NHL player, now famous coach, has been accused of some horrible things. The past years has been a nightmare for her. Everyone turned against her, so college is to be a fresh start. She changed her name and background story, still she's wary of people. When she meets Bridger she slowly lets him in, though never revealing her secrets.

When their lives intertwine further, it becomes harder and harder to hide the truth. Their situations become even more complicated due time and they will need to learn to rely on each other. They are not in this thing alone. Secrets always have a way of coming out. 

This story is quite different from the previous. Here we have two people who are trying to hide from the world, it just doesn't work that way. While they might not have handled it the best way, Bridger and Scarlet handled it in the only way they knew how. They kind of went on survival mode. I don't want to diminish what they went through, but by going through it alone I feel they only made it worse for themselves. They needed to learn that there are still people who they can count on, are there for them no matter what.

The Year We Hid Away was an amazing story. I love how realistic these characters feel. Their situations are kind of out of the box, but I still feel this could actually happen to someone. The connection between Scarlet and Bridger was almost tangible, I could really feel what was going on between them. Despite the heavy topics sometimes, there was still an overall sweetness and sexyness to the story. 

3.5 stars


The Ivy Years - Reading order and purchase links

  


  



The Author
Sarina Bowen writes steamy, angsty Contemporary Romance and New Adult fiction from the wilds of Vermont.

She is the author of The Ivy Years, an award-winning series set amid the hockey team at an elite Connecticut college.

Also, the Gravity series.

Sarina enjoys skiing, espresso drinks and the occasional margarita. She lives with her family, eight chickens and more ski gear and hockey equipment than seems necessary.

Connect with Sarina Bowen:

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