I.can't.get.this.typed.fast.enough. I read this book in 12 hours straight after finding out I had a snow day from my day job (the privilege of working in a school besides summers). I had my daughter invite friends over and told them immediately, "Your job is to entertain yourself, I'm reading on this unexpected day off!!!!!" (Hey, no judging, you would TOTALLY do it too!!!!!) What I didn't realize is the love affair that I would suddenly take on between myself and Miss Tillie Cole. Her story grabbed my heart, almost from go, and I say that this is one amazing love story that had me reading slower and slower knowing I was getting close to the end.
First off, this cover. I mean, REALLY????? How could you resist? If covers were meant to be judged, I would definitely pick this one RIGHT OFF the shelf.
But enough about everything happening outside the book, it's time to just get to it. The story starts out in a small town in England where sweet 6 year old Molly finds out from her grandmother that something tragic has happened to her father. This all happening after already losing her mother at birth. Molly doesn't know what to think, she doesn't understand why this keeps happening to her. It's a very sad scene that truly leads you to understand the challenges and complications that Molly will have moving forward with her life. Molly feeling that life is disappointing and feeling emotions just hurts way too damned much.
The story quickly moved to the United States where Molly is now studying for her Masters degree in philosophy at The University of Alabama. She has two crazy, very different roommates who are trying to quickly pull Molly out of her shy shell and to enjoy her college life to the fullest. First off there's Lexi, the goth roommate who is dying to live her cheerleader dreams. Then there's Cass, where large explains everything about her. She has a larger than life body and personality to go with it. She tells it like it is and doesn't take anyone's crap. And Molly loves them both like sisters.
Molly, running very late for her philosophy lecture as a teaching assistant, is verbally assaulted by the campus belle and bitch, Shelly, when she smacks into her in the corridor-causing her papers to fly all over the floor. Wearing bright orange Crocs and her glasses, with her frizzy hair pulled up in a messy bun, she is suddenly given a hand picking up her papers by none other than Romeo "Bullet" Prince, the starting QB for the UA Crimson Tide. He is tall, blonde and gorgeous and he was looking at her with wonder because she didnt immediately recognize him like every other female on campus.
The story quickly turns into an unlikely relationship between a shy Brit and an All-American quarterback, which all started with the words, "Hey Mol," after a sorority hazing kiss.
Their communication isn't the greatest, and they are both scarred beyond repair from pasts that have changed their lives forever. Romeo, called Rome by everyone other than his parents and Molly, grew up with money and parents who hate him. He is expected to marry Shelly, the campus belle, in order to help an oil deal between their two daddys. Molly, has never let anyone in after so much death in her life. She has run from everything in her life once it gets complicated. But they need each other and need to find a way to get past their horrible pasts.
As their relationship grows, Molly suddenly becomes a good luck charm for Rome on the football field. And she becomes hope for the Tide fans who are hoping to see their "Bullet" take them to the Championship game. She is becoming more and more emerged into this American lifestyle, and is starting to let down her guard and letting Rome in.
I won't go into the whole story, because I don't want to spoil the whole story for you, but be prepared to have some very emotional moments through the last half of this story. The one thing that Tillie does so well is create a total feeling towards a character. There was not a single character that I felt on the fence about. There was either strong love and loyalty or strong loathing. She does such a great job with character development. And although their relationship happens over the course of a few weeks, you never feel as though she rushed it. They started strong and strange (I mean his name is Romeo and her last name is Shakespeare!) and then she just developed their relationship from there. She also does a great job connecting all the characters of the story so you feel that they are one big family.
This book is not for teenagers, and is definitely geared towards adults as the sexual moments of the book are graphic. It isn't the most graphic I've read, but it certainly gives you enough information that you know exactly what's happening. The only thing that bothered me about the entire book was actually during some of the intimate moments when Rome kept screaming, "Do you get me," but I understood her reasons for having him say it.
Tattoos play a major symbolism for this book and what these characters have gone through or are currently going through. She uses beautiful lines to explain their emotions and bring out their insecurities.
This isn't a book I've heard lots of people talking about. None of my friends have heard of this book or of Author Tillie Cole. But I'm sure my enthusiastic banter will drive them to purchase this book, if only to get me to shut up about it. But in the end, I know that they will click that last page feeling the same fulfilling emotions I did, while being sad that the book is over.
But don't be too sad, for Sweet Rome (Book #2) comes out in January!!!!!!!! I think we will all be shouting, "Thank you Tillie!"
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