Luna and the Lie

Another OUTSTANDING book by Mariana. If you're into "slow burn" and even if you aren't I HIGHLY recommend you give this one (or any other book by Mariana) a go. As with her other books we only get the feminine side of the story with SUCH a beautiful buildup, both of the relationship as well as personal growth as this book takes a few months and that's without counting the time both MC have known each other before our starting point.Luna Allen had a difficult life growing up. It's more than she was just "unwanted" by her family, she was neglected and abused. Now ten years later she is in a totally different place and she has her own 2 hands and 10 fingers to thank for. Yeah, she had help from friends who were SO much more than her family ever was but still she managed to build a life for herself as well as take care of her three younger sisters. It wasn't easy, but she has done well. Lily, the youngest, will be following her older sisters' footsteps and getting into college. Well, Luna didn't have time for studies, but she made sure her siblings did. She found her calling in CCC a repair garage where she paints cars. It doesn't sound glamorous, but she is good at her job, she actually enjoys her work and (almost) all the people she works with, especially Mr. Cooper the owner who has become the father she could have only wished for.After years of working at CCC came a very unexpected change - a co-owner - Lucas Ripley. He and Mr. Cooper don't get along AT ALL, yet the business still works and the workers are getting along with the new change and how demanding Ripley is. He isn't unfair but he is HARD on everyone, including Luna. She might have been Mr. Cooper's favorite but she doesn't feel like one where Ripley is concerned.. Yet with a a fresh cup of coffee for the new boss and mostly a huge smile on her face she begins every morning.Luna have been attracted to Ripley from the start but he is her boss, so it's obvious he can only stay a very HOT fantasy and nothing more.. Yet she doesn't expected to form a sort of friendship with the most remote and unattainable person she has ever met.... but she does.. It starts with a favor she freely offers Ripley and from there he helps her out a few times only to find they are really good for one another. Luna doesn't take it too seriously. She sees Ripley's behavior as him "settling a debt" but I think it's obvious for us as readers he sees in Luna FAR more than she realizes.Lies and unsaid truths are somehow always in the way of happiness for both Luna and Ripley. There is much they don't say to one another or/and the people around them. Truths that might have the power to change everything, but that would happen only if they LET them control and define them. It is in both of their hands to decide how to deal with all the things hiding behind the surface.I could say so much more about this book. About Luna's relationship with everyone around her - her friends (on and off work), her sisters, Mr. Cooper and his wife and even her estranged family. Luna felt so GENUINE to me. I felt like I went through this journey WITH her by my side, or rather it was ME on HER side. It was beautiful, heart breaking at times, yet mostly endearing and sweet. Luna is such a wonderful person, it's so easy to see what Ripley saw in her. She is the light to his darkness, she is the one to SEE the lightness in HIM, something no one has seen in him for so many years. It was never about Ripley changing and becoming a better version of himself, it was about him realizing what he wants and WHO he wants and going for it (you won't believe how incredible romantic he could be!). I think for both Luna and Ripley it was about accepting who they are. They were already in a better place, it was just about finding true happiness in the moment.One last thing I have to add. Luna has this incredible sense of cherishing her accomplishments. Every time she was in a not so great place she would remind herself she is loved, happy, has a roof over her head etc. Things she didn't have growing up and she DOES have now. So things might not look bright at the moment, but there is much to be grateful for. I think it's something we should all incorporate into our life. Being grateful is a wonderful and helpful gift we have the power to give ourselves and it's totally and absolutely free.HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.Tags: Contemporary (MF) RomanceMore @ Ultra Meital Reviews.

If you are new to the wonderful world of Mariana Zapata...STOP RIGHT NOW and go buy KULTI and start there. I do not recommend you read Luna and the Lie first. If you like KULTI, then I suggest you read her other books in order of pub date. Although all are stand-alone books, they all have little Easter eggs / hidden gems in them referencing her prior books and it's a delight to find them. Luna is a complete stand alone although there is one reference, but otherwise completely independent. In my opinion, Kulti is her strongest work to date (but we're talking a difference of mere millimeters) but if you like Kulti, you'll love her other works. Once you get through her catalog, come back and read Luna.I will preface the rest of my review by saying Mariana Zapata is my favorite author...and she only recently earned that title. I've read thousands of romance novels and always had a "top 5" author list, but she has officially topped it. Her character-driven story lines that focus on a slow-burn between h and H are magic. Her secondary characters provide comedy relief, and are the perfect foil for some fantastic scenes. Her writing is thoughtful and well-crafted. Her heroines are relatable and real. When h and H finally get together, it doesn't "complete" h's life. All of her heroines have a life before H enters the picture. Instead, we get to see how much better both h and H are together. The reason why she's my favorite is because I can go back to her novels - and audiobooks which are FANTASTIC - and read/listen to them over and over again. I've read/listened to each one well into the double-digits and I still always discover something new. They never get old. However, that leads us to Luna.It has taken me several days of ruminating on the book to feel ready to write my review. I really wanted to love Luna. I did. But I found much of her inner dialogue repetitive and sometimes unnecessary. MZ pretty consistently writes from the h's perspective, so we get to learn about the H at the same time the heroine does. But there was just something missing in this book, a disconnect of sorts, and the flow wasn't as natural or easy as her other books. I found myself having to go back and re-reading passages for clarification. There were times when certain sections seemed drag on and on and other sections were too brief and I wanted/needed more clarification. One of the great debates amongst MZ fans on her facebook page is to determine the point in the book when H falls for h. Not only is there a change in his behavior, but you can feel a change in the H's intent. At the end of the book you can go back and see now what you (and the h) may have missed. I can't do that in Luna. He changes behavior but I can't attach affection as the reason. I mean he's an ass, then he's less of an ass, but you don't have to fall in love with someone to realize NOT being an ass is a good idea. I also don't feel I know Rip. I can't connect the Rip in the epilogue to the Rip at the start of the book. Another point is that the 'horrible' things that Luna's family did to her were mentioned over and over, but we don't know exactly what that was until it was revealed later. It's pretty bad, but after the build-up, I was expecting something much worse than what happened. And the lie...let's just say I can't say for certain what the lie really is. MZ reveals it in bits and pieces, but it isn't given enough attention for it to be the title of the book.Overall - I fluctuate between a 3.75-4 star rating. However, this is on the Mariana Zapata scale of awesomeness...and let's just say most other books/authors would require a grading curve or handicap to level the field. I love that MZ is growing and taking risks as an author. She's still my favorite one by far. And I enjoyed Luna a great deal. It just isn't my favorite of hers nor is it the best representation of her work in my humble opinion. I definitely recommend this book...but only after you've read her other ones.

So well written. Luna and her story spoke to my soul and my god I can't wait to meet my own Rip... who never gives up. Thanks Luna for showing us how to keep taking chances and still love ourselves through it all... 💜5/5 will definitely read again!!Humor: Hilarious! Sunshine/Grump humorHot: hotttt slow burn but hottttttWell-edited and great formattingAll the feels, swoons, alpha ish, pick em up by your boot straps (when it rains it pours, cause life, right?) and keep it moving sprinkled with some rainbows and unicorn magic! Yeah its literally got it all. Luna and Rip for life!Layered characters, hilarious side characters with their own stories, and two main badasses in their own hot/admirable right that have been through some stuff and are on their way to the best stuff.Discusses real life ish. For all the souls who had to grow up way too early... not sad or depressing at all, just familiar strength and encouraging reminders...for the kids who had to parent themselves and their siblings and the ones who went through it young. I loved it. I love it. I will love it tomorrow, the next day, next year... Definitely a keeper! Thank you Mariana! You did it again.Luna is so relatable to me and basically wonder woman with her ability to look for the good in it all and Rip is the perfect strong silent alpha type with a dry sense of humor. Both characters are caring, protective, fair, intuitive, and healing. Rip is stubborn af, which can only be a great thing when he realizes all he wants is you ;) Watching this all unfold had me cracking up one minute from sabotaged dates to melting into a puddle the next when he says... aghhh!! Just read it! Read it read it read it. Its worth it. Promise.

A classic Mariana Zapata book with a grumpy main man and sweet main female. There’s drama and angst and lots of sweet moments. This book had me tearing up and my heart aching over Luna. She just wanted to be loved, desperately. It took her a while, but she found Rip and they managed to come together.Slow burns are the best burns. And Mariana Zapata is the queen of slow burn. Fantastic story!

Perfect!!!!!! There is nothing to dislike about this bookMariana has the best writing I've ever seen." The way she makes you connect with the characters is beyond wonderful 💖 Just love for her and her amazing gift of bringing to life, beautiful love stories

Mariana Zapata escribió un muy buen libro, una historia de amor que se disfruta, un libro de esos que terminas amando por todos los sentimientos que te hace experimentar y odias simplemente porque se termina.Cuando crees que tienes claro para donde va, da un giro que te mete de nuevo a una historia bien contada y llena de matices.

⭐ 4.75/5🌶️ 0.5/5Another book that is practically 5 stars by Mariana Zapata, another book that has had me hooked from the beginning and another book that even though it is more than 500 pages I read in less than 48 hours.I would like to know what kind of drug Mariana Zapata puts in her books because they are ADDICTIVE, there isn't a book by this woman that I haven't eaten in a matter of a couple of days.There are a lot of people who say that this book has not been their favourite, I understand that, the personality of both main characters has not been 100% to my liking (only at the beginning). Luna at the beginning seemed to me a character too weak and too easy to manipulate, I mean girl they are taking advantage of you, realize for god sake.Lucas was too insufferable at the beginning but you end up liking him so much that he has become one of the male characters of Mariana Zapata that I have liked the most.I don't know, I seem to like grumpy and insufferable guys too much.But don't let my opinion of the characters fool you (after all, this opinion didn't last long) I ended up falling in love with both of them and their stories.And of course, I have nothing bad to say about the evolution of their relationship because it's a 10/10, chef kiss.In short, if you like Mariana Zapata I doubt you won't like this book because it's in my top 5 of her best books.

Je ne sais pas par où commencer. Quel livre. Quel bonheur. Tout est parfait. J’aimerais juste tellement que l’épilogue fasse 100 pages 😜. Mais quel slow burn passionant. Profond. Magnifique. Superbe.Ce livre est une prouesse. J’ai adoré!!!!!!