Southern storms

“…When I think about love, I think about you.”

This book was cute—but unfortunately, that’s where it ended for me 😔😔 I read Disgrace by this author last year and absolutely loved it, so my expectations for this series were pretty high. While Southern Storms met some of those expectations, it fell short in others.

The story follows Kennedy Lost, a young woman drowning in grief after a devastating loss and the end of her toxic marriage. With nowhere else to go, she shows up at her older sister’s door and begins rebuilding her life in a quiet small town. She’s craving solitude and healing—what she doesn’t expect is to live next door to the town jerk… who also happens to be someone from her past. Kennedy once knew Jax Kilter when they were kids at summer camp, but years later, he’s nothing like the boy she remembers. He’s guarded, angry, and carrying heavy baggage of his own. The question becomes whether they’ll heal each other—or turn into another painful chapter in each other’s lives.

The book alternates between past and present chapters, and honestly, those childhood scenes were my favorite parts 😊😊 Young Jax had such a gentle, sensitive soul, and it broke my heart seeing how his father tried to crush that part of him. I loved how Kennedy brought that softness back out of him—and how Jax, in return, helped her reconnect with the version of herself that slowly disappeared during her marriage. There was something very tender and meaningful about their shared past 😍😍

“You can be afraid and brave all at the same time”

Both main characters were relatable, and Brittainy Cherry does what she always does best: she makes you feel. The grief, guilt, and depression were portrayed vividly. Still, despite that emotional depth, I struggled to fully connect with the story. Something felt off throughout the book. Some conversations and situations didn’t sound like they were coming from adults, which pulled me out of the story more than once 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

One thing I genuinely loved was Kennedy’s strength when it came to her ex-husband. She didn’t give him another chance, didn’t let him walk all over her again—and that was refreshing 😎😎 Her relationship with Jax was sweet and heartfelt, but in my opinion, their romance overshadowed her healing journey too much. Especially toward the last fifty pages, when major truths come out, Kennedy pushes her trauma aside to support Jax. While emotionally touching, it didn’t feel realistic. Trauma doesn’t just pause on command—having a full-blown panic attack one chapter and then suddenly functioning perfectly the next didn’t sit right with me 😑😑

The supporting cast, however, added warmth and color to an otherwise very gray story. Yoana’s unconditional love for her sister genuinely moved me. Joy and Jax were incredibly sweet together, and Connor’s humor made me laugh out loud more than once—I’m definitely looking forward to his book 🤩🤩 As for the nosy neighbors… I admire Kennedy’s patience, because I would’ve snapped long before she did.

Overall, I did enjoy Southern Storms, but it didn’t offer anything new enough to truly stand out for me. It felt very familiar—classic Brittainy Cherry. That said, I do think I would’ve loved this book much more if it were my first by this author. I’m still hopeful that the rest of the series will resonate with me more than this one did 👍👍