Title: Burning Daylight
Author: Emily McIntire”
Publisher: Bloom Books
Pages: 526
Genre: Romance, drama
My Rating: ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

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Burning Daylight

Juliette Calloway grew up rich and never had to worry about money. Roman Montgomery is technically dead, at least on paper. In reality, he is still alive and living under a different name. Until he has to return to Rosebrook Falls.

He has met Juliette a couple of times and fell in love with her immediately. But now he is a Montgomery and she is a Calloway. Their families are enemies, and they can’t be seen together in public. Meanwhile, a lot of shady things are happening in Rosebrook Falls, and nothing is what it seems.

Review

This is the first book in the Defying the Stars series by Emily McIntire. It wasn’t my intention to start a new book series, because I’m currently reading way too many series already, and it’s driving me crazy. 2026 is definitely going to be the year I finish all of them.

Anyway, I picked up this book just because I liked the colorful cover. I had no idea what the story was going to be about. I thought it was going to be a cute, cheesy romance novel, but I was so wrong. It’s still a romance, but by the end of the book there are a lot of shady things happening, including gun violence. People get shot.

I liked the story. It’s a modern-day Romeo and Juliet, and I love that tragic story. I also really enjoyed the darker elements in this book. I’ve read enough sappy love stories this year, so I appreciated the twist. I honestly couldn’t stop reading. Even though it has 526 pages, I flew through it like it was nothing. It’s a real page-turner.

The characters are interesting, and honestly, I liked that you never knew who you could trust. Juliette doesn’t like her family, they value power and wealth over love, and she’s nothing like them. She constantly dreams of running away from it all. Roman grew up poor, even though he’s a Montgomery, so he has nothing to lose. His mother is addicted to drugs, and he deeply loves his sister and makes sure she’s okay. Because of this, both main characters are very likable.

I am honestly surprised, I’ve read so many books in my life and never a retelling of Romeo and Juliet. I guess there’s a first time for everything. And I loved it. I liked the plot twist, I loved the cover, and I really enjoyed the Romeo and Juliet vibes. This book surprised me in the best way.

I’m not sure if there’s anything I didn’t like, to be honest. Right now, all I want to do is read the second book in the series, that’s all I can think about. But I just found out that the next book isn’t out yet. The release date is July 2026.

If you are a fan of Romeo and Juliet, this is the book you should read. I really enjoyed it. It was so good. This book has romance, but it is not your typical cheesy love story. I can highly recommend this book.

The post Burning Daylight – Emily McIntire | Book Review first appeared on A happy life.