Review - Nova and Quinton: No Regrets by Jessica Sorenson

Title: Nova and Quinton: No Regrets

Series: Nova #3
Author: Jessica Sorenson

Release Date: April 15, 2014

Pages: 384

Goodreads Rating: 4.21/5 Stars

My Rating: 4/5 Stars

My Content Rating: NA (Sex, Drugs, etc.)

Summary from Goodreads:  Today is the first day of Quinton Carter's new life. The toxic guilt of his past left him in pieces-but one girl unexpectedly put him back together. Thanks to Nova Reed, Quinton can finally see the world with clear eyes. She's the reason his heart is still kicking behind the jagged scar on his chest. And he would love to have her in his arms every minute of the day . . . but he's not ready yet.

Playing drums in a band and living with her best friends are just some of the highlights of Nova's life. But the best new development? Talking to Quinton on the phone each night. She wishes she could touch him, kiss him, though she knows he needs time to heal. Yet shocking news is on the way-a reminder of life's dark side-and Nova will need Quinton like he once needed her. Is he strong enough to take the final leap out of his broken past . . . and into Nova's heart?

***NOTE: This review may contain spoilers for the first two books in the series.  To read my reviews for those books, click on the links:  Breaking Nova   Saving Quinton***

Nova and Quinton: No Regrets is the third book in the Nova series, and it pretty much wraps up Nova and Quinton's relationship storyline (though there is still going to be at least one more book in the series, which will focus on Tristan).

I have absolutely LOVED this series, and I was happy to finally get to a happy ending for Quinton and Nova.  This book was all about Quinton's healing - and how Nova starts to fall apart a bit and needs to lean on Quinton instead of the other way around! 

The negatives:

• Not as memorable as the first two books.  I have to admit that I waited for much longer before I wrote this review than I usually do.  I'm usually pretty good about reviewing the books that I read right away, and it's been almost a month since I read this one.  Unfair?  Maybe, but that's just the way it goes sometimes.  So, here's the thing - thinking back on this book, I couldn't remember all that much about it besides the fact that I enjoyed it.  I had to go and refresh my memory.  Is this a horrible thing?  No, but the fact is that I could remember more details from books 1 & 2 (which I read a lot longer ago) than I could about this book.  So, even though I know that I really enjoyed this book, I couldn't bring myself to give it more than four stars.  The series itself is still five star for me, but I don't think this last book was as stellar as the first two.

What I loved:

• Quinton and Nova.  Well, duh.  Of course I loved Quinton and Nova!  I have been desperately waiting for these two to get their happily ever after since book #1, and I wasn't disappointed.  The two both still had a lot to get over, though.  Quinton, being just out of rehab, was realistically cautious - of course he wanted Nova in his life, but he wasn't ready to just jump into a relationship when he knew that a relapse could be waiting right around the corner.  So, at first, Quinton and Nova were cautious - they interacted via phone and text and tried to stay in friend territory.  Of course, both of them were hoping for something more, but they didn't jump right into a happy-go-lucky relationship. I actually really liked that Sorenson, once again, gave us a realistic portrait of drug abuse and recovery. Was I dying for them to find their way back to each other and to finally interact in person? Yep. But watching Quinton's slow healing process was more rewarding in a lot of ways. And I loved that Nova had really grown since the first book and was able to share that growth with Quinton.
• Tristan.  I'm so happy that the next book in the series is going to focus on Tristan!  My heart broke a little more for him in this book because he can't ever quite grasp that happy ending.  He's always kind of the odd man out, and I really felt for him!

So, this book was definitely a satisfying "end" to the series (I know, it's not officially done, but it feels like Nova and Quinton's arc is mostly over).  I love how Sorenson realistically portrays messy relationships - I can't wait to see what she has in store for us next! 4/5 stars.