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Hothouse Flower (Addicted Series) Kindle Edition

by Krista Ritchie (Author), Becca Ritchie (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

4.5 5,618 ratings

Book 5 of 8: ADDICTED SERIES

Best of #BookTok

See all formats and editions

Ryke Meadows, meet Daisy Calloway ... she's all grown up.

Twenty-five-year-old Ryke Meadows knows he's hard to love. With a billion-dollar inheritance, a track-star resume, and an alpha-male personality—he redefines the term likable-asshole. But he's not living to make friends. Or enemies. He just wants to free climb three of the toughest mountains in Yosemite without drama or interruption.

And then he receives a distressed call from a girl in Paris.

Daisy Calloway is finally eighteen. With her newfound independence, she can say goodbye to her overbearing mother and continue her modeling career. Next stop: Paris. Fashion Week begins with a bang, and Daisy uncovers the ugly reality of the industry. She wants to prove to her family that she can live on her own, but when everything spirals out of control, she turns to Ryke to keep her secrets.

As Daisy struggles to make sense of this new world and her freedom, she pushes the limits and fearlessly rides the edge. Ryke knows there's deep hurt beneath every impulsive action. He must keep up with Daisy, and if he lets her go, her favorite motto—"live as if you'll die today"—may just come true.

From the Publisher


	Addicted Series	Webs We Weave Series	Like Us Series	Bad Reputation Duet	Circus Is Family Series	Standalone Romance
Tropes	High Angst, Fake Dating, Friends to Lovers, Rivals to Lovers, Forbidden Romance	Con Artists, Small Coastal Town, Angst, Fake Dating	Bodyguard Romance, Rivals to Lovers, Age-Gap	High Angst, Good Girl / Bad Boy	Sports Romance, Coach / Athlete, Second Chance	Small "Cursed" Town, Second Chance
Perfect for...	Binge readers and fans of the TV shows Gossip Girl and One Tree Hill	Lovers of morally gray characters, Dawson's Creek, and Outer Banks	Readers who love sagas and all kinds of romances like M/M, M/F, and M/F/M	Anyone who needs their Jess & Rory fix from Gilmore Girls	Those that love Cirque du Soleil and want to see all the drama and romance in a Vegas cirque setting	Lovers of coastal settings and Nancy Drew type mysteries
Follows Different Couples Throughout the Series	✓		✓		✓
Follows the Same Couple		✓		✓		✓

Editorial Reviews

Review

"I got so excited when reading it; I literally squeezed my kindle and had a big goofy smile on my face as some of the scenes were so fantastic. Repeatedly I paused to think, this is actually amazing." ~ Biblio Belles Book Blog

"Ryke...good lord...That man made my panties disintegrate he was SO meltingly sexy, broody, foul-mouthed, sweet...Absolutely amazing." ~ Romantic Book Affairs

From the Author

KRISTA & BECCA RITCHIENew York Times & USA Today Bestselling Authors
RECOMMENDED READING ORDERAddicted Series & Calloway Sisters SeriesIt's highly recommended to read the Addicted series in tangent with the Calloway Sisters series, since they follow a continuous timeline. Though it is possible to read and enjoy both series separately. Addicted to You (Addicted 1)Ricochet (Addicted 2)Addicted for Now (Addicted 3)Kiss the Sky (Calloway Sisters 1)Hothouse Flower (Calloway Sisters 2)Thrive (Addicted 4)Addicted After All (Addicted 5)Fuel the Fire (Calloway Sisters 3)Long Way Down (Calloway Sisters 4)Some Kind of Perfect (Epilogue Novel)
MORE BOOKS BY KRISTA & BECCAStandalone RomancesAmour AmourInfini Like Us Series1. Damaged Like Us 2. Lovers Like Us3. Alphas Like Us4. Tangled Like Us5. Sinful Like Us 6. Headstrong Like Us7. Charming Like Us
8. Wild Like Us

About the Author

Krista & Becca Ritchie are New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors and identical twins—one a science nerd, the other a comic book geek—but with their shared passion for writing, they combined their mental powers as kids and have never stopped telling stories. They love superheroes, flawed characters, and soul mate love.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

One

Ryke Meadows

I run. Not away from anything. I have a fucking destination: the end of a long suburban street lined with four colonial houses and acres of dewy grass. It's as secluded as it can be. Six in the morning. The sky is barely light enough for me to see my feet pound the asphalt.

I fucking love early mornings.

I love watching the sun rise more than watching it set.

I keep running. My breathing steadies in a trained pattern. Thanks to a collegiate track scholarship, and thanks to climbing rocks-a sport that I sincerely fucking crave-I don't have to think about inhaling and exhaling. I just do. I just focus on the end of the street, and I go after it. I don't fucking slow down. I don't stop. I see what I have to do, and I fucking make it happen.

I hear my brother's shoes hit the cement behind me, his legs pumping as quickly as mine. He tries to keep up with my pace. He's not running towards shit. My brother-he's always running away. I listen to the heaviness of his soles, and I want to fucking grab his wrist and pull him ahead of me. I want him to be unburdened and light, to feel that runner's high.

But he's weighed down by too much to reach anything good. I don't slow to let him catch me. I want him to push himself as far as he can go. I know he can get here.

He just has to fucking try.

One minute later, we reach the end of the street that we were shooting for, next to an oak tree. Lo breathes heavily, not in exhaustion, more like anger. His nose flares, and his cheekbones cut brutally sharp. I remember meeting him for the very first time.

It was about three years ago.

And he looked at me with those same pissed-off amber-colored eyes, and that same I fucking hate the world expression. He was twenty-one back then. Our relationship balances somewhere between rocky and stable, but it was never meant to be perfect.

"You can't go easy on me just once?" Lo asks, pushing the longer strands of his light brown hair off his forehead. The sides are trimmed short.

"If I slowed down, we would have been walking."

Lo rolls his eyes and scowls. He's been in a bad place for a few months, and this run was supposed to release some of the tension. But it's not helping.

I see the tightness in his chest, the way he can still barely fucking breathe.

He squats and rubs his eyes.

"What do you need?" I ask him seriously.

"A fucking glass of whiskey. One ice cube. Think you can do that for me, big bro?"

I glare. I hate the way he calls me "bro." It's with fucking scorn. I can count on my hand the number of times he's called me "brother" with affection or admiration. But he usually acts like I don't deserve the title yet.

Maybe I don't.

I knew about Loren Hale for practically all my life, and I didn't even say hi. I think back often to when I was fifteen, sixteen, seventeen and my father asked every fucking week: Do you want to meet your brother?

I rejected the offer every single time.

When I was in college, I came to terms with the fact that I would never know him. I thought I was at peace. I stopped hating Loren Hale for just existing. I stopped listening to my mother condemn a kid that had no say in being born. I slowly stopped talking to my father, losing contact because I didn't need him.

The trust fund, I use. I figure it's payment for all the lies I had to keep for that fucking asshole.

One day. That's all it took to change my idealistic, head-in-the-fucking-sand life. Outside at a college Halloween party, a fight started. I watched four guys on the track team-the one I was the captain of at Penn-go up against a lean-built guy. I recognized him from all those photos my father showed me.

He wasn't how I'd imagined. He wasn't surrounded by frat guys, crushing beers over their heads.

He was alone.

His girlfriend came into the fight later, to defend him, but it was too late. She missed the part where my teammate accused him of drinking expensive booze in a locked cabinet. She missed the part where Lo egged him on, just so the guy would swing.

He hit my brother. I stood and watched Lo get decked in the face.

It was in that fucking moment that I realized how wrong I had been. I didn't see a prick with a hundred friends and cash up to his chin. Not a jock, not an athlete like me. I saw a guy wanting to be punched, asking to feel that pain. I saw someone so fucking hurt and broken and sick.

Four against one.

All that time, I wanted to live the life he had. I hated playing the bastard outcast when I was really the legitimate son. But if our roles were reversed, if I had lived with my alcoholic father, I would have been there.

That would have been me: tormented, drunk, weak and alone.

My father was trying to tell me that Lo wasn't the popular kid I'd dreamed up. He was just as much of an outsider as I was. The difference: I had the strength to defend myself. I wasn't beaten down by our father like Lo had been. I didn't even contemplate the fucking horror of living with Jonathan twenty-four seven, hearing the why are you such a pussy? comment every day. I had blinders on. I could only see what was wrong with me. I couldn't fathom Loren getting a shitty bargain too.

That night at the Halloween party, I left the false peace I'd built for myself. It wasn't a gut reaction. I stood there and watched Lo get beat on before I made a decision to intervene. And once I fucking made it, I never turned back.

"You want a glass of whiskey?" I give him a look. "Why don't I just push you in front of a fucking freight train? It's about the same."

He stands up and lets out an agitated laugh. "Do you even know what this feels like?" He extends his arms, his eyes bloodshot. "I feel like I'm going out of my goddamn mind, Ryke. Tell me what I should do. Huh? Nothing takes this pain away, not running, not fucking the girl I love, not anything."

I haven't been where he is, not to this extent.

"You relapsed a few times," I say. "But you can get back to where you were."

He shakes his head.

"So what?" I narrow my eyes. "You're going to drink a beer? You're going to chug a bottle of whiskey? Then what? You'll ruin your relationship with Lily. You'll feel like shit in the morning. You'll wish you were fucking dead-"

"What do you think I'm wishing now?!" he shouts, his face reddening in pain. And my lungs constrict. "I hate myself for breaking my sobriety. I hate that I'm at this place in my life again."

"You were under a lot of scrutiny," I backpedal, realizing he doesn't need me to be a hard-ass, something I revert to on instinct. I push people too much sometimes.

"You're under the same scrutiny, and I didn't see you breaking your sobriety."

"It's different." I haven't had a drink in eight years. "The media was saying some pretty awful shit, Lo. You coped the first way you knew how. No one blames you. We just want to fucking help you." We're all public spectacles, under constant gaze of cameras, because of the Calloway girls, the daughters of a soda mogul.

By proximity to the Calloways, we've been roped into the spotlight. It's not fucking fun. I wear a baseball cap just to try to disguise myself, but thankfully cameramen have better things to do than film us this early in the morning.

But they'll be out trying to get a picture of us at noon.

"You don't believe them, do you?" Lo suddenly asks, his voice still edged.

"Who?" I ask.

"The news, all those reporters . . . You don't think our dad actually did those things to me?"

I try to hold back a cringe. Someone told the press that Jonathan physically abuses Lo. The rumors just kept escalating after that. I don't know if our dad could hit him . . . or molest him. I don't want to believe it, but there's a fucking sliver of doubt that says, maybe. Maybe it could have happened.

"It's not fucking true!" Lo shouts at me.

"Okay, okay." I raise my hands to get him to calm down.

He's been like this since the accusations, pissed and angry and looking for a way to fix things. Booze was his solution, unfortunately.

Our father filed a defamation lawsuit, but no matter the outcome of the court case, it won't change the way people look at both of them. Vilifying our father, pitying Loren. There's no going back.

"You just have to move fucking forward," I tell him. "Don't worry about what people think."

Loren inhales deeply and stares at the sky like he wants to murder a flock of birds. "You say shit, Ryke, like it's the easiest thing in the world. Do you know how annoying that is?" He looks back down at me, his features all sharp, like a blade.

"I'll keep saying it then, just to irritate the fuck out of you." What else are big brothers for?

He sighs heavily.

I rub the back of his head playfully and then guide him towards his house. I drop my hand off his shoulder, and he stops in the middle of the road, his brows scrunching.

"About your trip to California . . ." He trails off. "I know I haven't asked about it in months. I've been too self-absorbed-"

"Don't worry about it." I motion with my head to the white colonial house. "Let's go make some breakfast for the girls."

"Wait," he says, holding out his hand. "I have to say this."

But I don't want to hear it. I've made up my mind already. I'm not going to California. Not when he's in a bad place with his recovery. I'm his sponsor. I have to be here.

"I need you to go," he says. I open my mouth and he cuts me off. "I can already hear your stupid fucking rebuttal. And I'm telling you to go. Climb your mountains. Do whatever you need to do. You've had this planned for a long time, and I'm not going to ruin it for you."

"I can always reschedule. Those mountains aren't fucking moving, Lo." I've wanted to free-solo climb three rock formations, back-to-back, in Yosemite since I turned eighteen. I've been working up to the challenge for years. I can wait a little longer.

"I will feel like shit if you don't go," he says. "And I'll drink. I can promise you that."

I glare.

"I don't need you," he says with malice. "I don't fucking need you to hold my hand. I need you to be goddamn selfish like me for once in your life so I don't feel like utter shit compared to you, all right?"

I internally cringe. I was selfish for so many fucking years. I didn't give a fuck about him. I don't want to be that guy again.

But I hear him begging me. I hear, please fucking go. I'm losing my mind.

"Okay," I say on instinct. "I'll go."

His shoulders instantly relax, and he lets out another deep breath. He nods to himself. I wonder how long he's been carrying that weight on his chest.

I can't explain why I love him so much. Maybe because he's the only person who understands what it's like to be manipulated by Jonathan for his gain. Or maybe because I know deep down there's a soul that needs love more than anyone else, and I can't help but reciprocate to the fullest degree.

I put my arm around his shoulder again and say, "Maybe one day you'll be able to outrun me."

He lets out a dry, bitter laugh. "Maybe if I break both your legs."

I grin. "Would you even be fucking fast enough to do that?"

"Give me a lacrosse stick and we'll see."

"Not fucking happening, little brother."

I don't say it with scorn.

I never do. And I never will.

Two

Daisy Calloway

I have this theory.

Friends aren't forever. They're not even for a while. They come into your life and they leave when something or someone changes. Nothing grounds them to you. Not blood or loyalty. They're just . . . fleeting.

I'm usually not this cynical, but I popped up Facebook this morning, my laptop resting on my bent legs. I should have deleted my account a couple years ago, around the same time my family was thrust into the public eye-when my older sister's sex addiction went public.

But alas, I had a different theory about friends back then.

Butterflies, rainbows, hearts, holding hands-it was literally a PBS special in my brain whenever I thought about my friendships.

And now Cleo Marks posted this on her wall: During Daisy Calloway's sweet sixteen party, she couldn't shut up about sex. It's all she cared about. You know she's a closeted sex addict like her sister. All the Calloway girls are skanks.

Those are the beautiful words of my former best friend. And it doesn't even matter that she brought up an incident from two and a half years ago. Resurfacing it is enough to elicit 457 comments, mostly all in agreement.

Four months have passed since I graduated prep school and I'm still being haunted by my former friends. Like the Ghosts of Hells Past.

A hand reaches out and smacks my computer closed. "Stop wasting your fucking emotions on them."

A tall six-foot-three guy is in my bed. Beside me. In only a pair of drawstring pants. And I'm sitting against the headboard, wearing white cotton shorts and a cropped red-and-blue top that says: Wild America.

On the outside, we probably look like a couple, gently rising from the morning sunlight that peeks through my curtains.

On the inside, there's no touching. No kissing. Nothing beyond friendship status.

Reality is a whole lot more complicated.

"When did you wake up?" I wonder, avoiding any discussions that center on my old friends.

He doesn't sit up yet. He stays beneath my green comforter and sheet, running his hands through his disheveled dark brown hair. "Attractive" doesn't even begin to describe his I don't give a shit about it hair. It never looks neater during the day, but he knows that.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00JAXSEFQ
Publisher ‏ : ‎ K.B. Ritchie (March 27, 2014)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ March 27, 2014
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 3399 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 479 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #12,008 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #429 in Contemporary Women Fiction
- #745 in New Adult & College Romance (Kindle Store)
- #781 in Women's Romance Fiction

Customer Reviews:
4.5 5,618 ratings

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Becca Ritchie
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Krista & Becca Ritchie are New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors and identical twins--one a science nerd, the other a comic book geek--but with their shared passion for writing, they combined their mental powers as kids and have never stopped telling stories. They love superheroes, flawed characters, and soul mate love.
For more information visit www.kbritchie.com
Stay up to date on new releases, bonus content, and more by signing up for Krista & Becca's newsletter. To sign up, copy and paste this link into your browser: www.kbritchie.com/newsletter.html
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Krista Ritchie
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Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.
Krista & Becca Ritchie are New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors and identical twins--one a science nerd, the other a comic book geek--but with their shared passion for writing, they combined their mental powers as kids and have never stopped telling stories. They love superheroes, flawed characters, and soul mate love.
For more information visit www.kbritchie.com
Stay up to date on new releases, bonus content, and more by signing up for Krista & Becca's newsletter. To sign up, copy and paste this link into your browser: www.kbritchie.com/newsletter
See more on the author's page

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THIS BOOK WAS AMAZING JUST LIKE THE SERIES

Reviewed in the United States on April 2, 2014

Verified Purchase

FINALLY!!! This book has been four books in the making and I am so glad to finally get to read Ryke & Daisy’s book. Right off the bat let me just say THIS BOOK DID NOT DISAPPOINT. I loved finally getting to delve into the minds of these two fascinating characters – the daredevil and the jacka$$. Their relationship has been pretty much forbidden for as long as they’ve known one another but now Daisy is finally eighteen and ready to start making decisions on her own. But, this is not a smooth-sailing storyline for these two. One would think that since she is an adult now, nothing would be in their way, right?! Wrong! Krista & Becca Ritchie gave me one hell of a story and I will try to articulate why this book is so freaking awesome.

Ryke Meadows was always a little rough around the edges. He has a dirty mouth, he is unapologetic and he does and says what he wants. But oh do I love him. I am going to go out on a limb here and say that I think everyone knew there was something more between Ryke and Daisy, even back when she was only sixteen years old. But because Ryke would have never done anything about it, it has been a waiting game for him, Daisy and us, the readers, until it became “okay” for these two to finally get together.

And then there was the youngest Calloway, Daisy. This one gave me a headache every time she was around. I think in previous books I just got frustrated with her impulsive, reckless behavior. But, I think I also forgot how young she really was and how much she was being put through at such a young age. My viewpoint of her changed completely the minute I got a chance to be inside her head. I always knew she had a crush on Ryke (let’s be honest – who didn’t?), but what I respected was that although she may have pushed the boundaries with him, she never crossed the line. She respected him and herself enough to never let her feelings push them too far.

The interesting thing about this book is that the reader was finally able to see the truth behind their relationship. I myself was surprised by the misconceptions about these two that the other characters saw in previous books. As the book began, they are strictly friends – no touching, no kissing, nothing sexual. However, there is a bond there that rivals Lily & Lo’s connection. These two family misfits, the ones who never seemed to “fit in” found a commonality in each other, the oldest and the youngest, just gravitated towards one another. I was very surprised by how close they really were and how respectful Ryke was of his “Daisy is off limits” mantra.

Daisy harbors secrets – ones that only Ryke knows – and she has been dealing with them for a long time. Ryke has always been there for her to help her find the light when all she saw was the dark. But, when these two are forced to be apart, the real challenge begins. Can Daisy really be as independent as she claims she wants to be? Is this life of a supermodel what she really wants? Can Ryke start to date and be with other women when the only one who has been in his head has been Daisy? Can they handle each other being with different people?

These two together were explosive. I loved every single moment that they shared after they finally got their heads out of their asses and allowed themselves to be selfish, to be together. Yes, they finally get to profess their love to each other and everyone else and it was one of my favorite reveals! I will even go as far as saying that these two had more passion for one another than any of the other couples, or at least they showed it in a more obvious way. This book was seriously steamy and sexy. Prepare to fan yourself – I know I did multiple times!

I freaking love this book, this series, these characters and these authors. There I said it. I am so emotionally invested in this series that I don’t know what I will do with myself when the series finally ends. I’m trying to block that part out for now. Krista & Becca Ritchie are by far two of my favorite authors and I can honestly say that I will read pretty much anything they write from now on. This is the fifth book of theirs that I have read and over the course of these, I have really learned to trust them and their vision for these characters.

Their writing style is unlike anyone I have read before. Krista & Becca have a way of forcing the reader to really be in the character’s head, regardless of whether you’ve read the story from other characters’ perspectives. When I was in Ryke’s head, I forgot what it was like to be in Lo’s or Connor’s and the same applied for Daisy. It is so blatantly obvious that they know their characters inside and out.

I’m in awe at how they are able to find each character’s individual voice and stay true to that. As the reader, I was given the opportunity to now see the world from each of the six different characters’ perspectives and I honestly do not have a favorite – they are all amazing. No matter whose head I was in, I loved the character that I was reading. Krista & Becca have a talent that is so rare and I cannot wait to see what they come up with next.

I cannot recommend this book enough. It is a MUST READ and this series is one of my favorites. These characters have embedded themselves into my heart and I am almost dreading the release of the final two books in the series.

4 people found this helpful

Helpful

i'd rather be reading

least fav of the series so far, but solid

Reviewed in the United States on March 4, 2024

Verified Purchase

"...he’s the kind of guy who wants to slay all those monsters for me. Too bad he can’t get to the ones in my head. Even if he tries."

ok off the bat, i will just say i am still not a fan of the age gap we worked with. i think i wouldn't care if ryke hadn't really thought much of daisy before. like give me a "oh wow, one day she grew up and i just realized she's a woman but i can't reckon with it" trope. that being said, i chose to roll with it for the story's sake.

this was good ptsd rep and i think a lot of what daisy goes through is what a lot of young celebs or people close to celebrity have to suffer as a sort of collateral damage to fame. i do love how much ryke is there for her and cares for her, he really does do a lot for the people he loves.

“But if I crash,” she says, slinging her leg over the seat. “I’d rather crash with you.”

the moment where daisy is thinking about how mad she is that lily is a famous sex addict and how much it has affected her life and how much it's hurt her... it just felt like one of the most real moments in daisy's head where she had some real AGENCY where she wasn't a victim and wasn't just pretending to be daredevil penny lane. it was raw and imperfect and human and i felt like it was a place she could work from to stand on her own two feet finally.

i think i would have really loved this had daisy been aged up to 21/22 instead of just turned 18, but beyond that i wouldn't change anything else. something i'd like to see in daisy and ryke's next book is maybe her finding what her real passion is.

"She’s the sun. I’m the dark. If she’s gone, I can kiss that light away. Without her, I know I’ll never see it again."

Helpful

Jullie - Teacups & Book Love

Adventure, love, & healing

Reviewed in the United States on April 2, 2014

Verified Purchase

Have you ever gone highlighter-happy on your Kindle? Yes? *high five* If you've read any of the Addicted books by Krista & Becca Ritchie, your answer is probably somewhere on a scale of “Duh, obviously” to “Yup, the whole damn book”. There were chapters in this latest novel, Hothouse Flower, where I nearly highlighted the entire thing, a rainbow of blue, pink, and yellow. (Daisy would've loved it...) And yes, I color code my quotes. (Rose Cobalt would approve.) I'm just so completely awestruck by these authors' originality and storytelling. I could print my favorite quotes...no, *passages*...on posters, frame them, and hang each one on every wall in my house. Like this, for example:

Her eyes lock on me, and she whispers, "Big bad wolf, are you going to eat me?"
You're a dirty girl, Calloway. My gaze drops to her mouth. "Until you f---ing scream."

Oh, whoops, too much?! *squeals then covers mouth* Okay, maybe not that one. My house guests might go bug-eyed, and I'd probably be reduced to a hot mess every time I passed it in a hallway and remembered *that* scene.

So, *what is it* about Hothouse Flower that has thrown me into a complete, unabashed book-hangover?? Aside from Daisy and Ryke themselves, there were three things about this story that locked me in and refused to let go until the ride was over: adventure, love, and healing.

#1: Adventure. Daisy and Ryke's voices were so much fun to read. Ryke Meadows is full of snark and f-bombs, but he doesn't care what anybody thinks or says about him. This guy has the motorcycle, likes to run, and climbs mountains. And what about Daisy? Daisy is my favorite Calloway sister. *Yeah, I said it!* Not because we share a birthday or anything...or because I'm a baker and she's obsessed with chocolate cake...I love Daisy for her youthful curiosity and her exuberance. There's a whimsicality to her character, the daredevil with quirks. If I could, I would go shopping for the craziest t-shirts, explore a foreign country, and jump in for a midnight swim with this girl!

Considering how these authors like to keep their readers on their toes, though, the crazy twists and gut-wrenching spins were a given! Hothouse Flower taps into your inner wanderlust and takes you all over the place, from Philly to Paris to California. Oh, and *that* trip is one you'll want to take over...and over...and over again. You won't be able to think of road trips, or camping, or…cornfields on the side of the highway...the same way. Ever. *grinning and blushing to the max*

The Six Musketeers reunite, too. The bromantic banter between Ryke, Lo, and Connor alone was A+ quality because I giggle-snorted way too much. (The irony of wanting to use the expression, "I would give these guys their own reality show"...) When this group is together, the dialogue is just so clever and fluid. No offense real-life friends, but I want my own Connor Cobalt. And Loren Hale. And Ry- okay, you get my point.

Since I'm not opposed to sacrificing sleep and human contact in the name of book love, this book was the bring-my-Kindle-wherever-I-go-whatever-I-do kind. I didn't want the adventure to end! Because there are few things more adventurous than a *forbidden romance*, and my heart was on fire for Ryke and Daisy.

Ryke is 25 years old. Daisy is only 18. Daisy is also Ryke's little brother's girlfriend's little sister. Daisy's mother *also* can't stand Ryke...Do you see why "complicated" and "angsty angst" would be understatements here? Yet, it's all of that build-up that makes this forbidden romance *so* *damn* *good*. This relationship is 3 books and a few story-years in the making! We all got to watch their friendship grow into something deep and strong. By this point, they know each other so well. From the way Ryke protects and takes care of Daisy to all of the teasing, mischievous back-and-forth, I lost count of all the cute little moments. Finally, in Hothouse Flower, their chemistry lights up and burns the pages, leaving *Holy craps* and *Wows* in its wake. FI-NA-LLY. I'm talking about scenes that I had to slow motion read, *go back*, and read 'em again. *For emphasis.*

Along with the adventure and the romance, though, there's a beautiful story of healing. Daisy has her own demons hidden underneath her bright, playful exterior, and Ryke is avoiding dealing with a painful past. I loved how they were together. Ryke was her unfaltering safe zone, and Daisy was the light to his dark. The way they get through that journey, with the help of their little family in Lily, Lo, Rose, and Connor, is so perfectly crafted by authors Krista and Becca. I loved being there for every excruciating and exquisite moment. Past all of the humor and smart-ass banter, there is a deeper connection between all of them. There were times when I was legitimately misty-eyed over these characters!

I was all-in for Ryke and Daisy's story, and when I finished reading Hothouse Flower, I was out of my mind with how amazing the book was. Incoherent. Unable to put non-corny sentences together. 5 stars for Daisy, 5 stars for Ryke, 5 stars for adventure...No...I give *the whole sun* to Hothouse Flower. Please accept my offering, Krista and Becca, and write another book for Ryke and Daisy. I heard somewhere that Daisy Calloway is powered by the sun. ;)

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Gaby

Really enjoyed this

Reviewed in Canada on March 28, 2022

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So I didn’t think I’d feel so many emotions reading this book but as I go through the series and read every couples story I’m really getting attached to these characters. This is about Daisy and Ryke and I was super excited to get to their story and this didn’t let me down.

I love how much both Daisy and Ryke grow so much as people. Their stories really are beautiful. I felt a connection with Ryke and his growth in my opinion was so nice to read about and I found myself quite emotional. I also absolutely LOVED the whole dynamic of the group. We got a lot of sweet moments of the core six and how they are becoming a family of their own.

I found the whole message about fake friends and finding those people in your life that are there to stay super powerful. Lots of heartfelt moments were in this book and I definitely connected to some. Some things from both Daisy and Rykes POV will stay with me for life because they made me realize that even in my own life, it’s important to find those that will be there for you no matter what, both in friends and family. It’s not worth keeping relationships where you put in more effort or you don’t receive the love you give back. Overall I really loved this book and the impact it had on me.

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Shruti Kumari

My favorite in the series

Reviewed in India on April 21, 2024

Verified Purchase

It took me some time to REALLY connect with Lily and Lo and Connor and Rose. But Daisy and Ryke?? Their story won my heart instantly. They are now my favorite couple in the whole series and I love this book so so much. It had a great character development for EVERYONE which I loved the most. The spice was spicing, the emotions were emotioning...ah everything about this book was so good.