Review: You or Someone Like You by Winter Renshaw*

*I received a copy of this book in eBook format via NetGalley in return for this review. All reviews published on Yours, Chloe are completely honest and my own, and are in now way influenced by the gifting opportunity.

Title: You Or Someone Like You
Author: Winter Renshaw
Genre: Romance

Trigger warnings:  Death Of A Spouse, References To A Hit And Run

Rating: ★★★★★

Spice Level: 🌶️🌶️🌶️ (Open Door)   

Being an identical twin has its perks, but when my sister asked me to sub in for a date with Roman Bellisario, I wasn’t exactly thrilled. Sure, he’s sinfully handsome and successful, but he also got me fired from my dream job three years ago.

This time, my sister’s promotion is riding on this date, so I have to say yes. And as it turns out, we’re strangely perfect for each other. I sell art. He collects it. We’re both obsessed with the same obscure, mysterious artist that most people don’t even know exists.

Roman is guarded, though, and I can understand why. He’s a widowed single dad. But as one date leads to another, he starts to let me in, and I can’t help but fall for him.

The problem is Roman still thinks I’m my sister. Is our twin swap going to be the best thing that ever happened to me and Roman—or the lie that tears us apart?

You Or Someone Like You is a contemporary romance from bestselling author Winter Renshaw. This was my first time reading anything from this author and this book had been on my TBR for a long time but I was very quickly captivated by her writing and the story which ultimately ended up being one of my favourite reads of the year so far. The narrative was well-paced and so compelling that I read it in a single sitting.

Sloane was a fantastic protagonist with a big heart and kind soul. How she was so patient with her sister I’ll never know, her calm temperament was admirable. Roman was a fantastic MMC who I quickly fell in love with. His character had so many layers to it which were gradually revealed over the course of the book, as he starts off really grumpy and gradually starts to soften as he falls first and harder for Sloane. He’s a devoted single dad to two daughters (who doesn’t love a girl dad?!) and his love for both them and his late wife shines through his character and everything he does in the book which was a truly beautiful read. The most powerful aspect of the book was Roman navigating trying to make sense of the fact he is developing romantic feelings for someone for the first time since the passing of his late wife. He gradually allows himself to love again and that was beautiful. Reading the author’s afterword brought tears to my eyes as she explains the message behind the book. She wanted anyone who has ever loved and lost – but particularly her own brother – to know that “loving someone new doesn’t mean you love the one you lost any less”.

Their relationship was built at a really good pace, with their connection growing stronger and stronger over the course of the story and them bonding over a shared passion for art. One of my favourite aspects to the story was how mature both Roman and Sloane were, which was a breath of fresh air to see from characters in a romance book. Roman’s eventual realisation about the reality of the fake identity plot was mature and it made the (spoiler alert) third act breakup bearable, even to someone who hates third act breakups with a sweet passion. The eventual spicy scenes were well written and felt realistic.

In terms of supporting characters, Margaux (the real one) was grating to say the least but her selfishness was really well written.

Overall, You Or Someone Like You is a compelling, powerful and heartwarming romance novel exploring learning to love again after loss and finding connections in the most surprising places. It is the first romance in a while which has really hit me right in the feels and is going to stay with me for some time.